Client intake form template, phone version
Twelve questions to ask out loud, a branch for new and existing clients, and a close that ends on a booked consultation.
The intake form, as spoken questions
| Section | Question to ask | Required | Note for whoever asks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact | “What’s your full name?” | Yes | Spell back the last name |
| Contact | “What’s the best number for you?” | Yes | Read back digit by digit |
| Contact | “And an email for the paperwork?” | Yes | Spell back anything before the @ |
| Contact | “Are you calling for yourself or for a business?” | Yes | Business: ask its legal name |
| Need | “In a sentence or two, what can we help with?” | Yes | Write it in their words |
| Need | “Is there a deadline we should know about?” | Yes | Filing dates, notices, closing dates |
| Need | “Have you worked with anyone else on this?” | No | Previous adviser’s name if given |
| Fit | “Roughly how many transactions a month?” | Yes | Sets the service tier |
| Fit | “Which software do you keep your books in now?” | No | QuickBooks, Xero, spreadsheet, none |
| Fit | “How did you hear about us?” | No | Referrer’s name if given |
| Next step | “Would a 30-minute call this week work?” | Yes | Offer two times |
| Next step | “Is text OK for the confirmation?” | Yes | Record yes or no |
- Opening: “Thanks for calling Ashford Bookkeeping. Are you already a client, or is this your first time calling us?”
- Existing client: take the name and the business name, then transfer to their bookkeeper. No answer: take a message and skip the intake.
- New caller: “Great. I’ll ask a few quick questions so the right person calls you back ready.” Start the Contact section.
- Deadline inside 7 days: flag the intake urgent and offer the earliest consultation slot first.
- Payroll-only request: record it, then say “Our payroll partner handles that. I’ll pass your details to them.”
- Caller is a vendor or a job applicant: take a message for the office manager. No intake.
- Close every intake the same way: read back the name, number, email and the booked time.
Swap-ins by profession
- Law firm: add the other party’s name to the Need section, for a conflict check before any consultation is booked. Replace the transactions question with the type of matter.
- Insurance agency: the Fit section asks what they insure now, the renewal date and the current carrier. The deadline question becomes “when does your current policy renew?”
- Marketing agency: the Fit section asks about monthly budget range and the website address. The deadline question becomes the launch date.
- Financial planner: keep the Need section general on the phone. Detailed account questions wait for the consultation.
Closing lines that keep the booking
- “You’re booked for Thursday at 10am with Dana. She’ll call you on 555-0163.”
- “You’ll get a text with the confirmation in a minute.”
- “If anything comes up before then, call this number and we’ll move it.”
How to turn your paper form into a phone intake
Start from the form you already hand new clients, and cut it to what the first call needs. Your full engagement paperwork can wait until the consultation. The phone version asks only what decides who calls back, how soon, and whether you’re a fit.
Rewrite every field as a question you’d say out loud. “Entity type” becomes “are you calling for yourself or for a business?” Callers answer questions, and they stall on form labels.
Mark each question required or optional, as the table does, and let optional ones drop when a caller is in a hurry. A caller who gives you a name, a number and a deadline has given you enough to act.
Put the booking inside the intake, as the last section. You’ve already got their details and their need. Offering two times right then turns an enquiry into a consultation before they call the next firm on their list.
Store the answers in the same order every time. Whoever picks up the file next reads Contact, Need, Fit and Next step in one pass, and nothing is buried in a paragraph of notes.
How GreetKeeper runs the intake and books the consultation
GreetKeeper answers the call and asks your intake questions in order, in conversation. You enter the questions once, and it asks them on every new-client call.
Existing clients go straight to their person. GreetKeeper routes by what the caller needs, and it transfers to your team when a caller asks or the AI is unsure. If the first number doesn’t answer, it tries a second number you nominate.
The intake ends with a booking. GreetKeeper reads the name, number and time back before it books, then writes the consultation into Google Calendar or Microsoft 365. After the call, your client receives one text with the booking confirmation, and a reply with the opt-out word stops further texts.
Every answer reaches your own systems. GreetKeeper sends a webhook with the intake answers as question and answer pairs, alongside the caller’s name, number, email and the short call summary. Point it at your practice software or CRM, and you still get the transcript and summary in your inbox.
Your callers hear who they’re talking to. GreetKeeper’s disclosure setting announces the AI at the start of every call. That meets Maine’s Title 10 §1500-DD notice rule, and Utah’s rule that legal, accounting and other regulated occupations disclose verbally at the start.
Professional is $149 a month for 750 answered calls, then $0.35 a call, and annual billing gives you two months free. Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial, every feature on, no card needed.
Questions people ask about this template
What should a client intake form include?
Four sections: contact details, what the client needs, whether they fit your services, and the next step. On the phone that’s about 12 questions, with the name, number, need and any deadline required. Anything detailed, like account numbers or documents, waits for the consultation.
Can you do client intake over the phone?
Yes, if the form is rewritten as questions you’d say out loud and cut to what the first call needs. This template takes the four sections of a paper form and asks them in about five minutes of conversation. The call then ends with a booked consultation instead of a callback.
How many questions should a phone intake ask?
Around 12, with eight or so required. Ask fewer when the caller is rushed, keeping the name, number, need and deadline. Every extra question should change who calls back, how soon, or whether the work fits.
Does an AI taking intake calls have to say it’s an AI?
In Maine, yes: Title 10 §1500-DD requires clear notice on a call where an AI could be mistaken for a person. In Utah, legal, accounting and other regulated occupations must disclose verbally at the start. GreetKeeper’s disclosure setting announces the AI in the opening line of every call.
Hear it take a new-client intake
Your questions, your calendar, one call.