Detours

Two people can sit through the same presentation, walk up afterward, and say, “I’d love to learn more.” But those two people might need completely different conversations. One is ready to get started. The other is nervous and doesn’t even know what to ask. How do you know the difference? You ask. I’m Angie Norris, and this is Side Hustle GPS. Today, we’re stopping in Tech Junction to explore Client Intake Forms. When I speak at Chamber events about how businesses can use AI, I leave people with a QR code and a link to a form. If they want more information, they can fill it out. That gives them an easy next step, and it helps me understand who wants to continue the conversation. I don’t ask for their entire life story. Just enough background to understand their business, what they’re interested in, and where they are in the process. Because some people are fearful about using AI. They know they probably need to learn, but they’re tiptoeing around the subject. Others are ready to implement it everywhere and want to know how soon we can start. I would approach those conversations differently. The answers help me meet people where they are. And that’s what a thoughtful intake form can do. It helps a business prepare to serve the person who’s reaching out. I’ve used forms in different parts of my business. When I had my funnel agency, clients had homework. They needed to share the information and specifications we would use to create their websites. What were they offering? Who were they trying to reach? What did they want visitors to do? Those answers gave us direction before we started designing. And right now, as I prepare to speak at AI Marketing World, I’m on the other side of the process. I’m filling out forms about what the event team needs to know for my presentation. The organizers need information from me so they can prepare, too. Think about how many businesses have a version of that same need. Coaches welcoming a new client. Consultants preparing for a discovery call. Designers starting a project. Membership owners getting to know their members. You can help them create a form that collects the right information. And that can become a paid service. Start by asking the business owner, “What do you keep having to chase people for?” Then ask, “What do you wish you knew before you started?” Those two questions can tell you a lot. You can use AI to organize their answers, suggest useful questions, and make the wording clearer. Then choose what actually belongs in the form. Every question should have a purpose. If the business won’t use the answer, consider leaving it out. Keep the experience manageable. Explain what happens after someone submits, and make sure the answers reach the person who needs them. You can also help organize the responses so the owner can find them and prepare. Your first money move? Find one business owner who regularly collects customer information through scattered emails or messages. Offer to turn those repeated questions into one clear intake form. Agree on the questions, build it, test it on a phone, and walk through a sample submission together. So, what question could help a business understand its next customer a little better? Explore Client Intake Forms in Tech Junction at SideHustleGPS.com. Ask the questions you wish someone asked you. Then pay attention to the answers. Listening is a skill—and a thoughtful form can help that listening begin.