What to brief a consultant so the study answers go/no-go clearly

Most businesses commissioning a feasibility study hand over a rough problem statement and assume the consultant will figure out what to investigate. Then halfway through, disagreements surface: the consultant has tested assumptions you didn't know were being tested, or skipped aspects you thought were core. The study arrives on time but doesn't answer the question you actually needed answered. The fault isn't dishonesty—it's vague handover.

A feasibility study is only as useful as its brief. A consultant cannot read your mind, and a good one won't pretend to. What they need is clarity upfront about your decision, your constraints, and what "success" of the study looks like. The time you invest in articulating this saves months of rework and makes the final recommendations actionable.

The decision the study must inform

Start by naming the go/no-go decision you're trying to make. Are you deciding whether to launch a new product line, expand to a second location, enter a new market, or pivot your service offering? Be specific. "Should we grow?" is not specific. "Should we open a second salon in the Midrand area by Q2 next year?" is.

Once you've named it, tell the consultant what happens if the answer is yes, and what happens if it's no. This forces you to think through the stakes. If the study says no, can you pivot to a smaller pilot instead? If it says yes, do you have the capital and team lined up, or does it trigger another decision loop? A consultant asking these questions is doing their job; answering them honestly saves them from recommending something you can't execute.

What you know and where you're stuck

Good consultants start by absorbing what you've already learned. Share your existing data: sales figures, customer feedback, internal team notes, conversations with accountants or bank managers, rough market research you've done, competitor moves you've noticed. This isn't them starting from scratch; it's them building on your foundation.

Then be explicit about what you're uncertain of. Maybe you know demand exists locally, but you don't know if it scales to other suburbs. Maybe you have a working product but no idea whether buyers will pay what you need to charge. Maybe you understand the regulatory landscape but not the operational complexity of running two sites at once. Naming these gaps tells the consultant where to dig.

Constraints and non-negotiables

Every feasibility study happens inside real-world limits. Budget matters—a shallow desktop study costs differently from on-the-ground interviews and prototyping. Timeline matters; if you need answers in six weeks, the consultant's approach shifts. Geography, staff availability, customer access, and confidentiality concerns all shape what's possible.

Flag these upfront. If you can't afford primary research, say so—the consultant will adjust method and manage expectations. If a competitor can't find out you're studying a move, mention it. If you only have access to ten customer conversations rather than a hundred, that's a real constraint. Consultants who hide feasibility issues from you are a red flag; ones who acknowledge them and explain the trade-offs are being honest.

The output format that matters

How will you use the study? Will you present it to a board, take it to a funder, show it to investors, or use it to convince your co-founder? Different audiences need different evidence. A bank funding a new store wants rigorous market sizing and cash-flow scenarios. A stakeholder in your business might need a simpler summary with a clear recommendation and one-page rationale. A funder demanding the study before release often has specific reporting requirements.

Tell your consultant who's reading the output and what decisions they'll make from it. Ask what they'll include: quantified risks, sensitivity analysis, scenarios (best case, base case, worst case), a clear recommendation, or all of the above. Confirm whether they'll do a debrief meeting to walk through the logic, not just hand you a report.

Clarity at the outset—your decision, your data, your constraints, your audience—transforms the study from a vague investigation into a tool built for your exact situation. When you and the consultant agree on these four anchors, the work moves forward without friction and lands with answers you can actually act on. If you're ready to brief a study properly, the right consultant on Strove will help you frame these questions before work begins.