# Discovery questions – answered (template)

Use this as a one-pager or brief when scoping an analytics implementation. Replace placeholders with the client’s actual answers.

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## 1. What does success look like for this implementation in 6–12 months?

**Example:**  
We have a single, trusted view of the customer across website and app. Stakeholders can answer “where do leads come from?”, “which content drives signups?”, and “do logged-in users convert better?” without manual stitching. Reporting is in place for the board (traffic, conversions, funnel) and for marketing (campaign and channel performance). No “we can’t see that” for core journeys.

**Capture:** [Objectives in 6–12 months; “single view”, “self-serve reporting”, “no manual exports”, etc.]

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## 2. Which decisions do you expect to make using this data?

**Example:**  
- Where to invest budget (channel/campaign attribution).  
- Which content and journeys to optimize (funnels, drop-off).  
- Whether to fix or retire underperforming flows (product/feature usage).  
- How to segment and target (audience definitions, user properties).

**Capture:** [List decisions: budget, product, content, audience, reporting cadence.]

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## 3. Who are the main audiences you need to understand?

**Example:**  
- Anonymous visitors (intent, content consumed, first touch).  
- Leads (form submissions, lead source, segment).  
- Customers / logged-in users (activation, feature use, retention).  
- By segment: e.g. enterprise vs SMB, by region or product line.

**Capture:** [Personas or segments; what “understand” means for each.]

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## 4. Which user actions or outcomes must be tracked as events or conversions?

**Example:**  
- **Conversions:** form submit, signup, trial start, purchase, key in-app actions (e.g. “project created”).  
- **Events:** page/screen views, key clicks (CTA, nav), video progress, search, file downloads, outbound links.  
- **Parameters:** value, currency, item/product, campaign, content type, step name.

**Capture:** [List must-have events and conversions; note any GA4 recommended events already in use.]

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## 5. Are there key funnels or journeys we need to measure end-to-end?

**Example:**  
- **Lead-gen:** Landing → content/scroll → form view → form submit → thank-you (and optionally CRM sync).  
- **Product:** Signup → first use (e.g. “first project”) → core action → upgrade or churn.  
- **Content:** Home → category → article → signup or share.

**Capture:** [Name 1–3 critical funnels; include cross-domain steps if users move between site/app/portal.]

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## 6. Is this primarily e-commerce, lead-gen, content, or product usage—and does that affect what “conversion” means?

**Example:**  
- **Lead-gen:** Conversion = generate_lead (form submit), maybe “contact_request” or “demo_request” as secondary.  
- **Product usage:** Conversion = key in-app events (e.g. “first_report_created”), plus signup and optionally subscription_start.  
- **E-commerce:** Conversion = purchase; add add_to_cart, begin_checkout, etc.  
- **Content:** Conversion might be “newsletter_signup”, “content_share”, or “lead” after reading.

**Capture:** [Primary type; definition of “conversion” and any secondary conversions.]

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## 7. Which domains, apps, or platforms must be included in a single view of the customer?

**Example:**  
- Main marketing site (e.g. example.com).  
- App or portal (app.example.com, portal.example.com).  
- Blog or help (blog.example.com, help.example.com).  
- Any white-label or partner domains where the same user can land.

**Capture:** [List all domains/apps that must share one user journey and one GA4 property.]

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## 8. Are there third-party tools (payment, chat, forms) that must be part of the same journey?

**Example:**  
- Payment: Stripe, PayPal (checkout on same or different domain).  
- Forms: HubSpot, Typeform, Calendly (form submit as conversion; may need server-side or API).  
- Chat: Intercom, Drift (chat started / lead identified).  
- Ads: Meta, Google (need events for attribution and audiences).

**Capture:** [List tools; note whether they’re same-domain, iframe, or redirect; and if server-side or consent is required.]

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## 9. What is already implemented (GA4, GTM, tags) and what is missing?

**Example:**  
- **In place:** GA4 property and stream(s); GTM on main site; basic page_view; maybe one or two custom events.  
- **Missing:** Cross-domain linking; consistent events for key funnels; conversion events in GA4; correct attribution (e.g. first-touch for lead-gen); server-side or consent-friendly setup if required; full coverage on app/portal.

**Capture:** [Current GA4/GTM state; list of “have” vs “need”; migration from UA or other tool if relevant.]

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## 10. Who has access to GA4/GTM today, and who needs to approve or deploy changes?

**Example:**  
- **Access:** Marketing has GA4 viewer; one developer has GTM edit.  
- **Approve:** Marketing lead and tech lead sign off on new tags and events.  
- **Deploy:** Changes go through dev/staging then production; no direct publish to prod from external parties.

**Capture:** [Names or roles for access, approval, and deployment; any change-control process.]

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## 11. Are there compliance, consent, or cookie constraints we must respect?

**Example:**  
- **Consent:** Must not set marketing/analytics cookies before consent (e.g. GDPR, CCPA). Need consent mode or server-side with limited triggers.  
- **Cookies:** First-party only where possible; SameSite, Secure; consider server-side for sensitive or cross-domain.  
- **Data:** No PII in events; data retention and processing terms aligned with legal.

**Capture:** [Regions and rules (GDPR, CCPA, etc.); consent platform if any; cookie and PII constraints.]

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## Quick reference: question → use

| Question | Use |
|----------|-----|
| Success in 6–12 months | Scope and success criteria; avoid creep |
| Decisions using data | Reporting and attribution requirements |
| Main audiences | Segmentation and user properties |
| Events/conversions | Event model and conversion scope |
| Key funnels | Cross-step tracking and funnel reports |
| E‑commerce/lead-gen/content/product | Event and conversion definitions |
| Domains/platforms | Cross-domain and data-layer scope |
| Third-party tools | Server-side and integration scope |
| Already implemented / missing | Migration vs net-new; no rework |
| Access and approval | Change control and handoff |
| Compliance/consent | Cookie and server-side approach |
