How Web Developers Can Collect Everything They Need From Clients Using Intake

If you build websites for clients, you know the drill. The project kicks off with excitement and a signed contract. Then the real work begins: pulling teeth to get the logo files, the copy for the about page, the login credentials for their hosting account, and a dozen other details buried in someone's inbox.

Most developers try to solve this with a Google Doc or a long questionnaire. The client opens it, gets overwhelmed, fills in half the fields, and promises to finish it "this weekend." Weeks later, you are still waiting on the hero section headline.

Intake fixes this by turning your project questionnaire into an AI-powered conversation. The client chats through it naturally, uploads files inline, and the AI keeps them on track until everything is collected. Here is how to set it up, step by step.

Step 1: Create your web project template

Log in to Intake and click New Intake from the dashboard. The template builder is a conversation with an AI assistant that helps you design your intake form.

Tell the builder what you need. For a typical web project, describe something like:

"I need to collect everything required to build a website for a client. That includes project goals, target audience, brand guidelines, logo and image files, page-by-page content, color and font preferences, examples of sites they like, domain and hosting credentials, and a timeline."

The builder will generate sections and questions automatically. You can refine them, reorder sections, or add anything specific to your workflow.

Step 2: Organize your sections

A solid web project intake usually covers these areas:

• Project overview: What the business does, who their customers are, what the website needs to accomplish, and any hard deadlines.
• Brand and design: Logo files, brand colors, fonts, style preferences, and links to competitor or inspiration sites.
• Content: Headlines, body copy, team bios, testimonials, product or service descriptions. This is where most projects stall, so the AI is especially helpful here because it keeps asking until every page has content.
• Media and assets: Photos, videos, icons, and any existing materials the client wants reused.
• Technical details: Domain registrar login, hosting credentials, third-party integrations (analytics, CRM, payment processors), and any existing site URLs.
• Timeline and budget: Launch date, milestones, and budget range so you can plan accordingly.

Each section becomes a phase of the conversation. The client does not see all of this at once. They work through it one topic at a time, which keeps things manageable.

Step 3: Set the AI persona

Intake lets you customize the name, tone, and avatar of the AI that guides your client through the conversation. For web development, a friendly and professional tone works best. Something like:

"You are a project coordinator helping a client provide everything their web developer needs. Be warm but thorough. If an answer is vague, ask a follow-up. If a section requires file uploads, remind them to attach the files."

This means the AI will not just accept "we want a modern look" and move on. It will ask what "modern" means to them, whether they have examples, and what specific elements they are drawn to.

Step 4: Share the intake link with your client

Once your template is published, create a new intake submission for each client. Intake generates a unique link that you can send in an email or message.

The client does not need to create an account. They click the link and start chatting. The conversation picks up wherever they left off, so they can complete it across multiple sessions if needed.

Here is a sample message you might send:

"Hey! I put together a quick intake to collect everything I need for your website. It is a guided conversation, so just answer naturally and upload any files when it asks. Takes about 15 to 20 minutes. Here is the link: [intake link]"

Step 5: Review the collected information

As the client works through the intake, you can monitor progress from your dashboard. Each section shows a completion percentage, so you can see exactly what is done and what is still outstanding.

Once they finish, you have everything organized by section:

• Structured answers for project goals, audience, and timeline
• Uploaded brand assets (logos, fonts, images) ready to download
• Page-by-page content you can drop directly into your CMS
• Credentials and technical details in one place
• Design preferences with specific references and examples

No more digging through email threads. No more "can you resend that logo?" messages.

Step 6: Export and start building

Intake lets you export the entire submission as a ZIP file containing all structured data and uploaded files. You can also review the full conversation transcript if you need more context on any answer.

From here, your workflow is straightforward:

1. Download the brand assets and drop them into your project folder
2. Pull the content into your pages
3. Reference the design preferences when building layouts
4. Use the technical credentials to set up hosting and DNS
5. Check the timeline section to plan your sprints

Why this works better than forms and documents

Traditional questionnaires fail because they put the burden of organization on the client. A long form full of empty fields is intimidating. A shared Google Doc becomes a mess of comments and half-answers.

Conversational intake works because it meets the client where they are. They do not need to know what a "hero section" is. The AI explains it, asks for what it needs, and moves on. If the client's answer is too short, the AI asks for more. If they skip the file upload, the AI circles back to it.

The result: you get complete, usable information on the first pass instead of chasing fragments for weeks.

Getting started

Sign up for Intake, create your first web project template, and send it to your next client. Most developers find that it saves them several hours per project and eliminates the back-and-forth that delays every kickoff.

Your clients will appreciate it too. Instead of staring at a 50-field form, they have a guided conversation that takes 15 minutes and actually feels productive.