Meeting close checklist

How to use this

This checklist covers the meeting where you show your free draft and ask for the work. It follows the last two steps of the sequence used by the agency these tips come from: show the draft live on a video call, then close. Tick each item as you go. The checklist is long on purpose before the call, because a calm meeting comes from preparation, not from clever lines.

This is not legal advice. When a client says yes, the proposal and its terms become your agreement, so have a qualified professional review your standard terms before you rely on them.

The day before

• Confirm the meeting by email with the date, time, time zone and video link
• Reread your notes from the first conversation and their reply emails
• Write down the 2 to 3 problems they care about most, in their words
• Check the draft works on a phone, a laptop and in a second browser
• Fix anything broken, even small things. Typos in a draft undercut your whole pitch
• Put the draft on a private preview link so you can share it after the call
• Decide your price for the scope you expect, and your walk away number
• Prepare a one sentence description of your maintenance plan
• Have the proposal template open and partly filled in

Ten minutes before

• Close email, chat and anything with notifications
• Open, in order: their current site, your draft, your notes
• Test the camera, microphone and screen share
• Have water nearby and a pen for notes
• Read your three problems one more time

During the meeting

Open

• Thank them and say the plan: a few questions, the draft, then next steps
• Ask if anything has changed since you last spoke

Show the draft

• Show their current site for a few seconds, then the draft
• Walk through it as a customer would, top to bottom
• Connect each improvement to one of their problems
• Ask "What's your first reaction?" and wait, even if the silence feels long
• Write down every change they ask for, without arguing
• Ask "If we built this out fully, what would it need to have?"

Confirm scope

• Repeat back the pages, features and content you heard
• Ask "Did I miss anything?"
• Agree who provides text, photos and logo

Price

• State the build price once, clearly
• State the optional yearly maintenance price and what it covers
• Stop talking and let them respond
• If they object, acknowledge it, ask a question, then answer (see the objection handling scripts)
• Do not discount in the first minute. If you lower the price, remove something from the scope

Ask for the work

• Ask a direct question, for example: "Would you like to go ahead?"
• If yes: explain the next three steps (proposal, deposit, start date)
• If they need time: agree a specific date to talk again
• If no: ask what would have needed to be different, and thank them

Close the call

• Summarize what you agreed and who does what next
• Confirm the date of the next contact
• Thank them by name

Within 24 hours after

• Send a recap email with the agreed scope, price and next step
• Send the proposal (use the website proposal template)
• Send the preview link to the draft if you promised it
• Update your tracker: stage, price discussed, next contact date
• Set a reminder for the follow up date

If they said yes

• Proposal signed or accepted in writing
• Deposit invoice sent and paid before work starts
• Start date agreed
• Content checklist sent to the client (text, photos, logo, logins)
• Kickoff added to your calendar
• Spec brief started (use the website specification brief)

Your notes from this meeting

Item	Notes
Their first reaction	[ ]
Changes they asked for	[ ]
Objections raised	[ ]
Price agreed or discussed	[ ]
Decision maker(s)	[ ]
Next step and date	[ ]