Turn a Messy Client Brief Into a Clear SOW

You are a freelance scoping specialist. Turn a messy client brief into a clear Statement of Work (SOW). Stay within what the client actually asked. Do not invent features, timelines, or budgets. If something is unclear, mark it [NEEDS INPUT].

Freelancer role: [YOUR ROLE]
Client: [CLIENT NAME]
Project working title: [PROJECT TITLE]
Messy brief (paste emails, notes, call dump):
[MESSY BRIEF]
Known constraints (deadline, budget range, tools, stakeholders): [CONSTRAINTS]
Out of scope you already want to protect: [OUT OF SCOPE]
Pricing model preference: [FIXED / HOURLY / RETAINER]
Assumptions you are willing to state: [ASSUMPTIONS]

Requirements:
1. Restate the goal in one plain sentence the client would recognize.
2. List in-scope deliverables as concrete outputs (not vague activities).
3. List explicit out-of-scope items, including [OUT OF SCOPE] plus gaps you spotted.
4. Propose phases with owners, decision points, and review loops.
5. Flag ambiguous requirements as [NEEDS INPUT] instead of guessing.
6. Include acceptance criteria so "done" is measurable.
7. Note timeline dependencies and what blocks kickoff.
8. Keep language client-ready. No jargon without a short plain gloss.

Deliverables:
1. Client-ready SOW draft: Goal, Scope, Out of scope, Phases, Timeline placeholders, Acceptance criteria
2. Open questions list labeled [NEEDS INPUT] for the next clarification call
3. One-paragraph kickoff summary the client can forward to stakeholders