The most common reason a freelance project runs late isn’t scope creep or poor planning. It’s a brand logo that arrives in JPEG instead of vector. A password that was supposed to come on Monday and shows up the following Thursday. A strategy document someone thought was “in the folder” that doesn’t exist.
Missing assets aren’t the client’s fault. Nobody told them exactly what was needed, when it was needed, and what would happen if it didn’t arrive on time. So they gather things casually, send them when they remember, and are genuinely surprised when you tell them the project is behind.
The asset intake checklist eliminates this. It names every item explicitly, gives it a deadline, and creates an escalation process that turns “where’s the logo?” from a repeated frustrating email into a structured, professional conversation. Build it once. Send it on Day 1. Get what you need on time.
The 12-Item Checklist
Not every project needs every item. Customize for each engagement, but start from this master list and remove what doesn’t apply.
1. Brand files (logos, icons) Needed in vector format (AI, EPS, or SVG). Also acceptable: high-resolution PNG with transparent background. Not acceptable: logo embedded in a Word document or screenshot from the website. Include a note: “Logo must be vector or high-res PNG. JPEG or screenshot won’t work for design purposes.”
2. Brand fonts Font files (.otf or .ttf) for any custom or licensed fonts used by the brand. If they use Google Fonts or Adobe Fonts, the font name is sufficient. Note: if the client doesn’t know their fonts, include instructions for identifying them in their existing materials.
3. Brand color codes Hex codes (for digital), Pantone codes (for print), CMYK values (for print production). If they don’t have a formal palette, ask them to screenshot 3-5 colors from their most recent on-brand document and you’ll identify them.
4. Brand guidelines document Any existing style guide, brand manual, or tone of voice document. Even an informal one-pager is useful. If they don’t have one and you’re creating it, note “N/A, deliverable.”
5. Prior work samples The 3-5 most recent pieces of work most representative of their brand. For content projects: existing articles, email campaigns, or social posts. For design: existing marketing materials. For development: the current site or app. This tells you the standard you’re building from or improving on.
6. Tone and voice examples (what they like) Two types: (a) their own content they’re happy with, and (b) examples from other brands whose tone they admire. These can be from competitors, non-competing companies in other industries, or individual creators. The instruction: “Send me 3-5 examples of content, yours or anyone else’s, that sounds like how you want to be perceived.”
7. Competitor examples The 3-5 competitors or alternatives the client most often gets compared to. For design: their competitors’ visual identities. For content: their competitors’ website or marketing copy. For development: sites the client says “I want something like this.” This provides both a benchmark and a differentiation reference.
8. Relevant contact list Every person who will be involved in reviewing, approving, or using the final deliverable. Name, title, email, and their role in the project: “reviews drafts,” “approves before submission,” “subject matter expert for technical accuracy.” This prevents the Week 4 surprise introduction of a stakeholder nobody mentioned.
9. Accounts payable information Legal entity name, billing address, whether invoices should go to a specific person or department, purchase order number if required. For ongoing engagements: payment method preference, billing cycle. Collect this on Day 1 so the first invoice has no friction.
10. Legal and compliance requirements Any restrictions on claims, required disclaimers, regulated industry rules, or content approval processes. For example: “All marketing copy must be reviewed by legal before publication” or “We can’t use the word ‘guarantee’ in any customer-facing material” or “All content must comply with HIPAA.” Not knowing these until after you’ve written 5,000 words is expensive.
11. Target audience documentation Any existing customer persona documents, market research, customer interview summaries, or ICP definitions. If none exist, include a brief audience questionnaire: “Who is your primary buyer? What do they care about most? What’s their biggest fear about buying this type of service?”
12. Analytics and platform access Credentials or access invitations for any platform you’ll need: Google Analytics, Google Search Console, the CMS, the design tool, the project management platform. Include specific instructions: “I’ll need Viewer access to GA4 and Editor access to the CMS. Here’s how to send an invite: [link to help article if relevant].”
The clients who deliver assets late are not unreliable, they’re usually just busy, and nobody told them the stakes. The intake checklist tells them the stakes: item 1 must arrive by [date] because it blocks X, Y, and Z. When the consequence is named, the urgency is real. When the consequence is implicit, it’s easy to deprioritize.
The Google Doc Format
Format the checklist as a shared Google Doc with three columns:
| Item | Status | Notes / Upload Link |
|---|---|---|
| Brand logo (vector) | [ ] Not sent | [Upload link] |
| Brand fonts | [ ] Not sent | [Upload link] |
| … | … | … |
Set edit permissions so the client can check off items and add notes. Each “Upload Link” in column 3 points to the corresponding subfolder in your shared project drive: 00_Client_Assets/01_Brand, 00_Client_Assets/02_Content, etc.
Add a header with the deadline: “Please complete by [date 7 days from today]. Items marked as urgent are needed before the Day 3 kickoff.”
Share the link in the Day 1 welcome email. Reference it again in the kickoff. Check it every other day during the first week.
The 7-Day Deadline and Escalation Sequence
The deadline is Day 8 (7 days from Day 1). This gives the client a full week, which is enough time for any organized team to gather assets.
The escalation sequence:
Day 5 (2 days before deadline): Send a brief reminder via your project channel (Slack / email).
“Quick heads-up, the asset checklist deadline is [date]. Here’s what’s still outstanding: [list the unchecked items]. Let me know if any of these need more time, I want to plan around any constraints.”
Day 8 (deadline day): Check the checklist. If 3+ items are still outstanding, send:
Subject: Asset checklist, [X] items still needed
Hi [Name],
The asset checklist deadline was today. I’m still missing the following: [specific list].
Here’s the impact: without [items A and B], I can’t begin [specific work]. This means our [milestone date] shifts to [adjusted date] if these don’t arrive in the next 2-3 days.
If you need more time, please tell me when to expect them so I can adjust the timeline proactively. If there’s a blocker I can help remove, let me know.
Day 10 (2 days after deadline): If no response or no assets delivered, brief the decision-maker:
Hi [Decision-maker],
I wanted to flag that [items] from the intake checklist are still outstanding. This is not a problem yet, but it will affect [milestone] if we don’t resolve it this week.
Is there someone on your team who can help me get these items? Or is there a better person for me to contact?
The Day 10 escalation is not a complaint, it’s a factual update to the person with authority to solve the problem. Frame it that way.
Day 14 (the hard line): If critical assets are still missing, a formal timeline impact statement goes into the project record:
“As of [date], the following items remain outstanding: [list]. This project’s timeline has shifted from [original date] to [adjusted date] based on this delay. I’ve documented this in the project record. Once the assets arrive, I’ll update the timeline.”
Send this as an email (for the record) and update the project timeline document.
Customizing the Checklist by Project Type
Design project (branding, UI, marketing materials): Priority items: vector logo, fonts, color codes, brand guidelines, prior design samples, examples they like. Everything else is secondary.
Writing project (web copy, content marketing, scripts): Priority items: existing content samples, tone examples, competitor examples, target audience documentation, any legal restrictions. Brand guidelines if copy will appear in branded contexts.
Development project (website, app, automation): Priority items: login credentials for all relevant platforms (hosting, CMS, analytics, existing services), technical documentation if it exists, existing site or app access, any API credentials.
Consulting project (strategy, operations, advisory): Priority items: all internal documents (strategy plans, past research, org charts, financial summaries if relevant), contact list for stakeholder interviews, analytics access, prior vendor reports or assessments.
Build the master list once. Create project-type variants that check off the irrelevant items or have service-specific items pre-filled. Onboarding the third client takes 10 minutes to customize and send, not 45 minutes of thinking about what you forgot to ask for.
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