The template
1. Client details
- Full name
- Phone number
- Email address
- Date of birth
- How they found you
- Preferred contact method
2. Service requested
- Service or treatment
- First visit or returning client
- Preferred date and time
- Anything booked alongside it
- Budget range (optional)
3. History and health
- Previous treatments and when
- Known allergies
- Current medications
- Skin or health conditions
- Pregnancy or nursing
- Anything that reacted badly before
4. Goals and expectations
- What result they want
- What they have already tried
- How much upkeep they will realistically do
- Any event or deadline
5. Policies
- Cancellation and no-show policy acknowledged
- Late arrival policy acknowledged
- Aftercare instructions will be followed
- Photos may be taken (optional, opt-in)
6. Consent and signature
- Information given is accurate
- Consent to the service described
- Consent to store the details for records
- Client signature
- Date
01
Send it before the appointment, not at the door
A form filled in at reception gets rushed answers. Sent with the booking confirmation, it gets honest ones — and gives you time to flag a contraindication before the client has travelled to you.
02
Ask only what changes your work
Every field should change the service, the products, the timing, or the price. If an answer would not change anything, it is a field you maintain for no return.
03
Make the risky questions easy to answer
Allergies, medications, and past reactions belong in one clearly labelled block with plain wording. Clients under-report when the question sounds clinical or accusing.
04
Store answers where you will actually see them
Keep the completed form with the client record, not in an email inbox. Before every repeat visit, re-read the last one and ask what has changed since.
Common questions
- What should a client intake form always ask?
- Contact details, the service being booked, relevant history or contraindications, allergies and medications, previous treatments, expectations for the result, and a signature line with the date. Everything else is optional.
- How long should the form be?
- One page. Clients abandon long forms, and anything you do not act on is data you now have to store. If a question would not change how you deliver the service, remove it.
- Can I use this as a digital form?
- Yes. Copy the sections into any form builder, booking system, or document. The structure matters more than the tool you send it through.
- Do I need consent language?
- Include a short consent and privacy line stating what the information is used for and how long you keep it, then have the client sign. Rules differ by country, so check your local requirements before you collect health details.