What to actually do in week one with a new client

The first week with a new social media client sets the tone for the entire relationship. Rush it — jump straight to posting — and you'll spend the next two months correcting course based on feedback you could have gotten up front. Here's a concrete order of operations that avoids that.

Day 1-2: get access before you do anything else

Nothing productive happens until you have admin or editor access to the actual accounts, not screenshots the client sends you. Request access to the business Instagram, Facebook Page, any ad accounts you'll touch, and their brand asset folder (logo files, product photos, brand guidelines if they exist). If they don't have a brand guideline document, that's useful information too — you'll need to establish tone and visual rules yourself in week one.

Day 2-3: run the 30-day audit

Before proposing anything new, pull the last 30 days (or as much history as exists) of their posts and note format, engagement, and posting frequency. This does two things: it tells you what's actually worked before you override it with your own ideas, and it gives you concrete talking points for the strategy call instead of generic suggestions that could apply to any business.

Day 3-4: the expectations call

This is the call most freelancers skip or rush, and it's the one that prevents the most future friction. Cover explicitly: which platforms, posting frequency, who has final approval on captions and images, turnaround time for approvals, how they want to be contacted for urgent issues (a bad review, a PR problem), and what a 'good month' looks like to them in their own words — more followers, more DMs, more bookings, or something else entirely.

• Confirm platforms and posting frequency in writing, not just verbally on the call
• Get explicit answers on who approves content and how fast they'll respond
• Ask what a 'good month' means to them, specifically — don't assume it's follower growth
• Set the reporting format and date now, so it's not improvised later

Day 5: draft a one-page content plan for week one, not week twelve

Resist the urge to hand over a full month's calendar in week one — you don't have enough signal yet about what resonates with this specific audience. Instead, propose 3-5 posts for the coming week based on the audit findings, explain briefly why each one is included, and get sign-off. This builds trust fast because the client sees you referencing their actual account history, not a generic template.

“Our take: the expectations call is the cheapest friction-prevention available, and skipping it to start posting sooner is usually paid back with interest in month two.”

Week one deliverable: a short written recap

End the week by sending a short written summary: what you found in the audit, what you agreed on the call, and the plan for week two. This isn't just professional politeness — it's a paper trail that prevents 'I thought we agreed on X' disputes two months into the relationship, and it gives the client something concrete to point to if they need to justify the retainer internally to a partner or manager.