Payments and client work
From enquiry to paid project: what should stay connected?
The useful handoff from enquiry to paid project preserves the customer’s request, the agreed scope, commercial status and delivery responsibility. Each stage needs a decision and an owner. Moving information between tools is helpful only when those decisions remain clear.
Give each stage a clear exit condition
Enquiry: enough information exists to understand the request.
Qualification: the business decides whether it can help.
Deal: scope and commercial terms are discussed and recorded.
Payment: the applicable collection arrangement is configured and its status checked.
Project: the delivery team receives the agreed work and customer context.
Support: the client has a clear route for questions after delivery.
Do not label a sale as paid because a payment link was sent. Do not start delivery from a vague enquiry if the team still needs to agree the work.
Explore the connected Client Craft workflow to see how this approach fits the product.
Use a handoff checklist
Carry the agreed scope, customer contact, outstanding questions, payment status and next owner into delivery. Record changes when the conversation alters the work. A project should not rely on the salesperson repeating everything from memory.
Client Craft connects deals, Stripe Connect payment workflows, projects and client support with the customer workspace. Provider connection and configuration are required for payment collection. Verify the actual setup rather than assuming that a deal automatically creates or funds a project.
Example: a consultant agrees a two-stage engagement
Illustrative example: a consultant agrees an initial assessment followed by optional implementation. The deal records the assessment scope and its commercial arrangement. The project receives that specific agreement, while the optional stage remains a separate decision.
This prevents the delivery team from treating the original broad enquiry as the final scope. Review the handoff whenever the agreement changes, including work that is postponed, rejected or cancelled.
Deal-to-project handoff brief
Customer: the agreed contact and decision maker.
Scope: what the team will deliver and what is excluded.
Agreement: the approved proposal or recorded commercial decision.
Payment: the agreed terms and verified payment state.
Delivery owner: the person taking responsibility for the work.
First milestone: the next deliverable and agreed timing.
Open questions: dependencies that still need a decision.
Support: how the client can ask for help after delivery.
Before starting, have the delivery owner read the brief and confirm the missing information. This sample is a process checklist; it does not imply that payment automatically starts a project or that an enquiry alone authorizes work.
Frequently asked questions
Does a won deal automatically create a finished project? No. The team must preserve the actual agreed scope, payment conditions, responsibilities and outstanding decisions as work moves into delivery.
Can the workflow include recurring payment collection? Client Craft describes one-time and recurring payment collection through Stripe Connect. The applicable provider setup, payment terms and workspace configuration still matter.
When should the delivery team take over? Define the handoff around the actual agreement. Identify what is ready to deliver, what remains conditional and who owns each outstanding action.
Sources and next reading
Client Craft product capabilities · Service scope and responsibilities
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