# Client onboarding checklist for agencies

> A client onboarding checklist for ad agencies: agreement, access, tracking, brand inputs, goals and reporting, with the exact steps for Meta and Google Ads access.
- **Author**: Marxx
- **Published**: 2026-10-31
- **Category**: Checklists
- **URL**: https://marxx.ai/library-templates/client-onboarding-checklist-for-agencies

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A client onboarding checklist for an ad agency covers six things before you spend a rupee: the agreement, account access, tracking, brand inputs, goals and a reporting rhythm. Do it in week one. Fixing a broken setup after ads go live costs the client money.

Copy this into a doc and tick it off with each new client.

## The checklist

```
CLIENT ONBOARDING: [Client] | Start date: [date]

1. AGREEMENT
[ ] Scope signed: what you run and what you do not
[ ] Fee and payment terms agreed
[ ] Who pays Meta and Google: client card or agency
[ ] Who owns the ad accounts, Pages and creative
[ ] Approval rules: who signs off ads, and how fast

2. ACCESS (ask for partner access, not a login)
[ ] Meta: partner access to the ad account and the Page
[ ] Instagram account connected
[ ] Google Ads: client account linked to your manager account
[ ] Website, analytics and store admin
[ ] Domain verified for Meta

3. TRACKING
[ ] Pixel and Conversions API firing
[ ] One test purchase or test lead seen in Events
[ ] Conversion events agreed
[ ] UTM and ad naming rules agreed

4. BRAND AND PRODUCT
[ ] Logo, fonts, colours, product photos
[ ] Top sellers, margins, stock limits
[ ] Reviews, support chats, past ad exports
[ ] Claims the brand cannot make
[ ] Competitors the client watches

5. GOALS AND MONEY
[ ] Target cost per purchase or lead
[ ] Break-even ROAS worked out
[ ] Monthly budget and a spend cap
[ ] Share of budget for testing
[ ] Calendar: sales, launches, festivals

6. RHYTHM
[ ] Weekly report day and format
[ ] Monthly review date
[ ] One contact on each side
[ ] Where you chat: WhatsApp group, Slack or email
[ ] Who to call if an ad account is blocked
```

## How access works (checked 2026-10-20)

**Meta.** The client opens Settings in Meta Business Suite, clicks Partners under Users, then Add, then Give a partner access to your assets. They enter your business portfolio ID, pick the assets and choose full or partial access. They need full control of their portfolio to do this, and two-factor authentication must be on. See [Meta's steps](https://www.facebook.com/business/help/1717412048538897).

**Google Ads.** In your manager account, open Accounts, then Sub-account settings, click the plus button and choose Link existing account. Enter the client's Customer ID and send the request. The client accepts it under Admin, Access and security, Managers. See [Google's steps](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7459601).

Partner access keeps the asset in the client's portfolio, so the client stays the owner and you can be removed cleanly.

## Worked example: agree the numbers in week one

Say the client sells a product at INR 1,200 and keeps INR 480 (40%) after product cost and shipping. Break-even ROAS is 1 / 0.40 = 2.5. Every INR 100 of ad spend must bring INR 250 in sales, because INR 250 x 40% = INR 100. That only breaks even. For a profit, the target must be higher, say 3.0.

Write the number down in week one. See [break-even ROAS](/glossary/break-even-roas). Nobody should have to argue about it in month two.

## Tips

- Send the access steps with the checklist in one email.
- Make the first call about goals, not creative.
- If the client already has ad accounts, run the [account audit checklist](/templates/account-audit-checklist-meta-ads) first.
- Before the first ad goes live, use the [launch checklist for Meta ads](/templates/launch-checklist-for-meta-ads).
- Set reporting up on day one with the [weekly ad report template](/templates/weekly-ad-report-template) and the [monthly client report template](/templates/monthly-client-report-template).

Marxx has client-isolated agency workspaces, priced per workspace with unlimited seats, so each client's data stays apart. See [client workspaces](/features/client-workspaces).

## FAQ

### Should clients give me their login?

No. Ask for partner access. The account stays in their name, and you can be removed without a password change.

### How long should onboarding take?

Plan for one week to settle access, tracking and goals. Allow longer if tracking needs fixing.

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