Web Business Lead: manage client sites

01

Discovery, proposals and scope

In simple words

Before a builder builds a house, they sit with the family and ask: how many rooms, what budget, when do you move in? Then they write it down and both sides sign. If the family later wants a swimming pool, that is a new job with a new price. A website project works the same way.

Key facts

Before this course: Site Systems: bookings, payments and integrations (course 7.6.3). You should already be able to build a multi-page business site with forms, bookings, payments, an email list and integrations, and to check privacy and accessibility basics. This course is about running sites for other people.
Discovery is the first conversation, before any price. Ask about: the business and its customers, the goal of the site (calls, bookings, sales, information), the pages and features needed, who will write the text and supply photos, existing accounts (domain, email, old site, social media), budget range, deadline and who makes decisions.
A proposal turns discovery into an offer: the problem, the solution, what you will deliver, the timeline, the price and the next step.
The scope is the most important part. Write:
In scope: the pages, features and integrations you will build, listed one by one.
Out of scope: things people often assume are included (writing all the text, logo design, photography, paid ads, extra languages).
Deliverables and acceptance: what "finished" means, for example "all pages live, forms tested, client approved in writing".
Revisions: how many rounds of changes are included at each stage.
Client responsibilities: content and photos by a date, one person who approves, answers within an agreed number of days.
Timeline: milestones, and what happens to the dates if the client is late.
Scope creep is when small extra requests pile up until the project is much bigger than agreed. The answer is not "no", it is a change request: write the new item, its price and its effect on the timeline, and start only after the client agrees in writing.
Pricing models (choose on purpose, in your currency): a fixed price for a defined scope; an hourly or daily rate for open-ended work; a monthly fee for ongoing maintenance (Lesson 4). This course does not tell you what to charge, and no price guarantees income.

Discovery question	Why it matters
"What should a visitor do on the site?"	Sets the main goal and the call to action
"Who writes the text and supplies photos, and by when?"	Late content is a frequent cause of late projects
"Do you already own a domain or a builder account?"	Decides who owns what (Lesson 3)
"Who approves the work?"	Avoids conflicting feedback from several people
"What is not needed now but may come later?"	Helps you write "out of scope" honestly

Step by step

Write a discovery question list (10 to 15 questions) based on the table.
Run a discovery call with a real or practice client. Take notes in their words.
Write a one-page proposal: problem, solution, deliverables, timeline, price model, next step.
Write the scope with five headings: In scope, Out of scope, Acceptance, Revisions, Client responsibilities.
Write a change request template: item, reason, price, new deadline, client approval and date.
Read the scope as if you were the client. Underline every word that could mean two things ("simple", "a few pages") and replace it with a number or a list.
Check: someone who was not on the call can read your scope and say exactly what will be delivered and what will not.

Watch on YouTube

How to charge more when clients change the scopeMichael Janda · YouTube · youtube.com

Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.

LESSON 01Discovery, proposals and scope

LESSON 01 / ANIMATED LESSON / AI VOICE00:00 / 01:00

Voice

Read the video script

[Host] "Most website projects go wrong before anyone opens the builder. They go wrong in the first conversation."
[Text on screen: Goal. Pages. Content. Accounts. Approver. Deadline.] "In discovery, ask about the goal, the pages, who writes the content, who owns the accounts and who approves."
[Screen: a scope with In scope and Out of scope columns] "Then write the scope. What's in, what's out, what finished means, and how many rounds of changes."
[Screen: a change request form] "When the client asks for more, don't argue. Write a change request with a price and a new date."
[Host] "Clear scope protects you and the client."

Try it now

Write a complete discovery-to-scope pack for a practice client, for example a small bakery that wants online orders: question list, call notes, a one-page proposal, the scope and one example change request (the client now wants a second language).

ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude

Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.

For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.

I'm learning "Web Business Lead: manage client sites" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "Discovery, proposals and scope".

What the lesson teaches:
- Before this course: Site Systems: bookings, payments and integrations (course 7.6.3). You should already be able to build a multi-page business site with forms, bookings, payments, an email list and integrations, and to check privacy and accessibility basics. This course is about running sites for other people.
- Discovery is the first conversation, before any price. Ask about: the business and its customers, the goal of the site (calls, bookings, sales, information), the pages and features needed, who will write the text and supply photos, existing accounts (domain, email, old site, social media), budget range, deadline and who makes decisions.
- A proposal turns discovery into an offer: the problem, the solution, what you will deliver, the timeline, the price and the next step.
- The scope is the most important part. Write:
- In scope: the pages, features and integrations you will build, listed one by one.
- Out of scope: things people often assume are included (writing all the text, logo design, photography, paid ads, extra languages).
- Deliverables and acceptance: what "finished" means, for example "all pages live, forms tested, client approved in writing".

The exercise I'm working on:
Write a complete discovery-to-scope pack for a practice client, for example a small bakery that wants online orders: question list, call notes, a one-page proposal, the scope and one example change request (the client now wants a second language). ---

I'm stuck. Please:
1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example.
2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step.
3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.

I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "Discovery, proposals and scope" from the course "Web Business Lead: manage client sites".

Here's what the lesson says:
Before a builder builds a house, they sit with the family and ask: how many rooms, what budget, when do you move in? Then they write it down and both sides sign. If the family later wants a swimming pool, that is a new job with a new price. A website project works the same way.

The activity:
Write a complete discovery-to-scope pack for a practice client, for example a small bakery that wants online orders: question list, call notes, a one-page proposal, the scope and one example change request (the client now wants a second language). ---

Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words.
Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.

Open Claude

My notes

I learned this

02