Agency Client Onboarding Checklist

Account coordinator creates the client and the first job in Workamajig (or Function Point / Advantage). Set the client code, billing contact, and AOR vs. project flag at creation — changing the code later breaks time entries and reports.

Map the client side: day-to-day contact, final approver, legal reviewer, AP contact, and procurement. Approver-vs-day-to-day confusion is the most common reason rounds drag — get the named approver in writing before round one.

Strategist captures the business challenge, target audience, and the KPIs the client will judge work against — brand-lift, ROAS, share-of-search, NPS, qualified leads. Vague success metrics here means a vague post-mortem nine months from now.

Project, retainer, or AOR — each has a different SOW shape, billing cadence, and resourcing pattern. AOR engagements need a category-exclusivity conversation before signature; retainers need a monthly hours / scope ceiling.

List every deliverable with format, version count, rounds of revisions, and channel. Cutdowns (15s, 6s, 9:16) and adapts (English / Spanish, broadcast / online) are billable assets — name them explicitly. Vague SOWs are how scope creep gets absorbed without a change order.

Name the AE / Account Supervisor, CD or ACD, lead Strategist, and Producer. Resource them in Float or Workamajig at confirmed allocation — "TBD" allocations don't survive contact with a kickoff.

Get this in writing in the kickoff doc. The day-to-day routes feedback; only the named approver signs off on rounds. Mixing the two is the fastest way to round 5 looking nothing like round 1.

Create the DAM workspace (Bynder, Brandfolder, or whatever the agency standard is) with subfolders for brand assets, working files, final deliverables, and rights documentation. Set permissions before uploading anything — old logos in a shared folder will get used.

Get the current brand book, logo lockups (vector AI / SVG and raster PNG at multiple sizes), color specs (Pantone, CMYK, RGB, HEX), typography licenses, and any motion / sonic guidelines. Confirm font licensing covers agency use — Adobe Fonts and Monotype licenses are not transferable.

Create the Frame.io (or Wipster / Ziflow) project, set review-link expirations, and add client reviewers at the right permission level. Reviewers comment; only the named approver clicks approve.

MSA covers the relationship; SOWs reference it. Confirm work-for-hire and IP assignment language survives termination, and that any pre-existing agency tools (frameworks, templates) are carved out. Freelancers added later need their own NDA + IP assignment before first deliverable.

If the engagement includes any influencer, creator, or endorsement work, write down the disclosure standard now — "#ad" or "Sponsored by [Brand]" in the first three lines, applied to whitelisted and dark posts the same as organic. FTC 16 CFR Part 255 enforcement is the agency's risk as much as the brand's.

Submit the agency W-9 and any vendor-portal forms (Coupa, Ariba, SAP Concur). Get the client's PO process and Net terms (Net 30 vs Net 60 vs Net 90) in writing — this drives the agency's working-capital exposure on pass-throughs.

Set up the recurring monthly retainer invoice with the agreed hours envelope and overage rate. Schedule the monthly burn-report cadence so the client sees hours-used vs. hours-remaining — surprises at month 11 of a 12-month retainer end relationships.

Account team, creative leads, strategy, and producer attend on the agency side; day-to-day, approver, and any specialist stakeholders on the client side. Pre-read the discovery doc and SOW 48 hours in advance — kickoff is a working meeting, not an introduction.