Customer onboarding checklist prompt: free ChatGPT template
Updated · By Robert Breen
Use this the day a deal closes and the new customer is waiting to hear what happens next. B2B onboarding goes wrong in the gaps: nobody told the customer which login they need, who runs the training or when the first review happens. This prompt turns what you promised in the sale into a checklist with two owners, your team and theirs, each task dated from the start day. It differs from a new-hire onboarding list or a welcome email: this is the working plan both sides follow for the first 30 days.
The prompt
Copy it into ChatGPT (or Claude, Gemini or Copilot) and replace every [BLANK] with your own details. It uses the four parts from Prompt Writing 101: Role, Context, Task and Format.
Role: You are a customer success manager planning the first weeks for a new business customer. Context: The customer is [CUSTOMER], starting on [START DATE]. They bought [WHAT THEY BOUGHT]. What we promised in the sale: [PROMISES]. Their team: [THEIR TEAM]. Our team: [OUR TEAM]. What we need from them to start: [WHAT WE NEED]. How we will know onboarding is done: [DONE MEANS]. Task: Write an onboarding checklist for the first 30 days. Group tasks by week, give each task an owner (a person from the lists above), a due date counted from the start date, and a one-line "done when". Put everything we need from the customer in week one and mark the ones that could delay the start. Include a first check-in meeting and a 30-day review. Don't add tasks that contradict the promises above, and flag any promise that no task covers. Format: A table per week with the columns: task, owner, due date, done when. After the tables, a short list called "Risks to the timeline" and a three-line summary the customer can read.
Fill in the blanks
[CUSTOMER]- The customer's company name.
[START DATE]- The day onboarding begins.
[WHAT THEY BOUGHT]- The product or service and plan.
[PROMISES]- What you promised during the sale, such as training or a launch date. Pull it from your CRM notes or proposal.
[THEIR TEAM]- Who on their side is involved and their roles.
[OUR TEAM]- Who on your side is involved and their roles.
[WHAT WE NEED]- Access, data, logos or approvals you need from them.
[DONE MEANS]- The outcome that tells you onboarding succeeded, in plain words.
Example, filled in
A made-up example from the free lesson Build an AI Demo Request Form That Qualifies Leads. Northwind Scheduling Software is the made-up software company from the sales lessons. The customer and every promise below are invented for this example.
Role: You are a customer success manager planning the first weeks for a new business customer. Context: The customer is Calloway Dental Group, a made-up clinic chain, starting on Monday, November 3. They bought the Team plan for three clinics. What we promised in the sale: a live first clinic within two weeks, a one-hour front desk training session, and text reminders switched on from day one. Their team: Priya Nair, office director; Marcus, IT contact; one front desk lead per clinic. Our team: Sam, account manager; Lena, customer success. What we need from them to start: a list of staff, each clinic's opening hours and Marcus's approval to connect their calendar. How we will know onboarding is done: all three clinics are booking appointments in the system and text reminders are going out. Task: Write an onboarding checklist for the first 30 days. Group tasks by week, give each task an owner (a person from the lists above), a due date counted from the start date, and a one-line "done when". Put everything we need from the customer in week one and mark the ones that could delay the start. Include a first check-in meeting and a 30-day review. Don't add tasks that contradict the promises above, and flag any promise that no task covers. Format: A table per week with the columns: task, owner, due date, done when. After the tables, a short list called "Risks to the timeline" and a three-line summary the customer can read.
What a good answer looks like
- Week one holds the items you need from them: staff list, opening hours and Marcus's approval, flagged as start blockers.
- The first clinic goes live within the two weeks you promised.
- Each task names a real owner, such as Lena or Marcus, and a calendar date.
- "Risks to the timeline" notes that Marcus's approval gates everything else.
How to check it before you use it
An AI draft can sound right and still say something you never told it. Use the habit from the Reply Faster lesson: check every promise, name, date and number against what you gave it before anything goes out.
- Count the due dates from the start day and check that none lands on a weekend or a holiday.
- Compare the checklist with the proposal. Every promise needs a task, and the AI may have missed one.
- Share only the customer-facing version, and keep your internal risk notes internal.
- Send it to the customer's main contact and ask them to confirm their tasks and dates.
Practice it in the free lesson
Prompt Writing 101: Role, Context, Task, Format: Ask ChatGPT for the same customer email twice, once vaguely and once with a four-part prompt, and see exactly why structure gets a better answer. You do every step yourself in a practice copy of ChatGPT, and nothing touches your real accounts.
Also useful: Build an AI Demo Request Form That Qualifies Leads
Terms used here
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