Social Media Management for Agencies: Complete Operations Guide
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Managing one account is simple. Managing 10+ clients with different brands, approval workflows, and expectations requires systems.
Here's how to build agency operations that scale.
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Without systems, quality drops as you add clients.
The Monthly Client Cycle
Week 1: Strategy & Planning
- Review last month's performance
- Client strategy calls
- Plan content themes
Week 2: Content Creation
- Create month's content (use AI tools to speed this up)
- Generate your agency's own authority content with our Marketing Agency Post Generator
- Design assets with AI carousel makers
- Build content queues
Week 3: Refinement
- Client review and feedback
- Implement revisions
- Final approvals
Week 4: Execution & Reporting
- Monitor live content
- Active engagement
- Prepare monthly reports
A client hasn't approved their content and it's due to post tomorrow. What should you do?
Avoiding Cross-Posting Disasters
The nightmare: posting Client A's content to Client B's account.
Prevention checklist:
- Separate workspaces per client
- Color-coded calendars
- Mandatory preview before scheduling
- Two-person review for sensitive accounts
- Client name visible in all workflows
Client Onboarding Essentials
Collect before starting:
Brand assets
- Logo files (all formats)
- Color codes
- Font preferences
- Brand guidelines
Account info
- Platform credentials
- Existing analytics access
- Competitor accounts
- Past performance data
Expectations
- Posting frequency
- Approval process
- Reporting schedule
- Communication preferences
Use a standardized intake form. Missing info causes delays.
A new client wants to start posting immediately but hasn't provided brand guidelines. What do you do?
Pricing Your Services
What to include in pricing:
- Content creation time
- Strategy and planning
- Engagement time
- Reporting time
- Client communication
- Tool costs (pro-rated)
- 1-2 revision rounds
- Profit margin (20-40% minimum)
For detailed pricing strategies, see how to price social media services.
Team Scaling Ratios
Adjust based on service level and client complexity.
Your content creator is managing 6 clients and quality is slipping. What's the solution?
Handling Approvals
Level 1: Internal Review
- Team member creates content
- Another reviews before client sees
Level 2: Client Review
- Content submitted for approval
- Client comments/approves/rejects
- Revision cycle if needed
Level 3: Final Check
- Approved content scheduled
- Final verification before posting
Managing slow approvers:
- Set clear deadlines in contracts
- Send reminder notifications
- Build buffer time into schedules
- Consider auto-approval clauses after X days
Reporting That Clients Value
Include:
- Key metrics (engagement, reach, growth)
- Top-performing content
- What worked and why
- Recommendations for next month
Skip:
- Vanity metrics without context
- Walls of data without insights
- Comparisons that make you look bad
Frequency:
- Weekly for intensive campaigns
- Monthly for standard clients
- Quarterly for strategic reviews
Common Agency Mistakes
Reducing Client Churn
Prevent churn by:
- Setting realistic expectations upfront
- Regular communication (not just reports)
- Showing ROI clearly
- Addressing issues proactively
- Building relationships, not just delivering tasks
Warning signs:
- Less responsiveness
- Questioning every invoice
- Comparing you to competitors
- Reducing scope requests
Quick Start for New Agencies
With 1-3 clients:
- Build processes as you go
- Document what works
- Invest in proper tools early
With 4-10 clients:
- Standardize onboarding
- Create client templates
- Consider first hire
With 10+ clients:
- Dedicated account managers
- Specialized roles
- Formal quality control
Agency success comes down to systems. The agencies that build scalable, documented, efficient operations can deliver consistent quality regardless of which team member is working on which client.
That's the difference between an agency that grows and one that hits a ceiling.
Related Resources
- Best Social Media Management Software - Tools comparison for agencies
- How to Price Social Media Services - Pricing strategies
- AI Social Media Post Generator - Speed up content creation
- Social Media Scheduler Guide - Automate multi-client posting
- Repurpose Blog Content - Maximize client content
- 30-Day Social Media Calendar - Template for client calendars
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