Woohoo, you're about to sign your first freelance social media management client! But wait - anxiety comes over you... NOW WHAT?

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What do you do when a potential client is ready to sign on the dotted line?

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Where do you even get a dotted line?

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Don't stress! We'll walk you through everything you need to know about how to onboard a new social media management client!

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The best part about the onboarding process is that it's a process. Having a template for each onboarding document will help you save time when you sign new clients, and it also helps your new clients feel comfortable with your professionalism.

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So let's make your onboarding process (even if you don't have your first client yet, this will be great to have set up + ready to go when you do obtain a client).

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Social Media Proposal Template

 

A Social Media Proposal Template ultimately outlines some of your ideas on how you can help the potential client with their social media profiles. This is typically sent after they've expressed interest in your services, and when you email over this document, it will help them determine whether your prices and ideas are in line with what they need.

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Social Media Manager Client Contract

 

Never, ever, EVER start a job without a client contract in place. Before starting any work for a client, send a contract to them to review + sign.

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It should specifically outline the services you will provide and the cost to your client, who pays for expenses, a clause that outlines who owns the work you create, termination details (so your client can't walk away without a 30-day notice - I promise, it helps!) and more!

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Client Onboarding Questionnaire

 

Create a cohesive list of questions to ask your client in order to learn more about their business, goals, target market, competitors and their past social media efforts - really, any questions you need to ask in order to develop your Social Media Strategy.

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Social Media Audit Template

 

A Social Media Audit will analyze the current situation of your client's social media profiles, what's doing well, and what could be improved on.

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Social Media Strategy Template

 

A Social Media Strategy is the most important document after a client contract. A Social Media Strategy presents the work that you plan on implementing for your client using the questions from the Client Onboarding Questionnaire and the Social Media Audit.

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It should outline:

• your client's goals

• their target market

• analyze their competitors in depth

• which social media platforms they should be active on

• what type of content they should be using

• what their KPIs are (aka what success looks like for them)

• what tools you should be using to achieve these goals.

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Invoicing Software

 

I recommend finding an invoicing software that makes it easy (if not automated) to send out your invoices every month + track your expenses. Xero, Wave, and Quickbooks are some of the best.

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Overwhelmed? Yep, that's expected! 

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Luckily, we've packaged all of this up into our Social Media Manager Starter Kit. It has ALL the templates you need to kickstart your freelance career and impress your new clients with a streamlined onboarding process, including the necessary contract, templates and checklists.

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These are the EXACT templates that I use to sign new clients + onboard them seamlessly and professionally (aka say goodbye to the 1485 back-and-forth emails, and say hello to impressing your new clients!)