How to brief a social media agency (UK campaign checklist)

What to take away

Write the social media agency brief before you ask for prices. It sets the goal, audience, channels, monthly output and budget.
Name who signs off content, and how fast. Approval delays are the main cause of missed launch dates.
UK briefs should assign responsibility for ASA and CAP code compliance, plus UK GDPR duties for user-generated content.
Set a measurement plan and a review date, so renewal is a decision rather than a default.

Why the brief decides the campaign

An agency quotes against what it can see. A brief that names channels, output and approvals gets a tighter price than a request for better engagement.

The brief also creates a paper trail. When scope grows, both sides can check whether the extra work sits inside the retainer or needs a separate fee.

For smaller teams it settles the build-or-buy question early: if the brief demands daily community management, comparing in-house social media with an agency usually points to hiring.

What a UK brief should cover

Use a fixed set of headings so quotes are comparable. A checklist:

Objective:State the business outcome, the campaign objective and the action you want people to take.
Audience:Describe who the campaign is for, including relevant audience insights and the UK locations or markets to target.
Channels:Name each platform, such as Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn or X, and say what role it should play.
Scope and deliverables:Specify formats, quantities, publishing frequency and whether community management is included.
Budget:Separate the agency fee, content production and paid media spend; identify anything outside the budget.
Compliance and rights:Name who checks claims against the CAP Code and who handles UK GDPR duties for user content. Set out content rights and ownership under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Assets and access:List the accounts and permissions the agency will need, plus brand guidelines, existing content, source files and other required assets.
Approvals and timetable:Name the approver, give the approval route and turnaround, and state the launch date and any key milestones.
Measurement and review:Define objective-linked KPIs, reporting frequency and format, and the date for reviewing results.

UK brief checklist

Commercial goal with a number
Audience segments and regions
Channels and monthly output
Voice and banned claims
Compliance owner for CAP Code
UGC lawful basis and consent
Approvals, reporting, contract terms

Advertising claims that reach UK consumers fall under the CAP Code, so the brief should say who checks copy before it runs. The Advertising Standards Authority publishes the codes on its advertising codes page.

If the campaign reposts customer photos, reviews or comments, the agency needs a lawful basis and a record of consent under UK GDPR. The ICO guide to the UK GDPR sets out consent and retention expectations.

Briefing step by step

Draft the brief in this order. Each step should fit on a single page.

Decide the business outcome and campaign objective, then describe the action you want the audience to take.
Define the audience and the UK markets or locations the campaign should reach.
Choose the platforms and explain the role of each channel.
Set the deliverables, publishing frequency and any community-management scope; list the assets and account access needed.
Set the budget, separating agency fees, production and paid media, and give the timetable and launch date.
Assign responsibility for compliance, content rights, sign-off and measurement. Name the approver, KPIs, reporting frequency and review date.
Build a shortlist from Social Partner’s UK social media agency directory and send each agency the same brief. Compare proposals against the same scope, channel experience, reporting approach, access requirements and contract terms.

Briefing order, one page each

Agree commercial goal and metric
Map audience and channels
Set monthly output per channel
List assets you will supply
Confirm compliance checks
Agree approval turnaround and cover
Fix reporting, review and notice

The questions an agency asks matter more than its first price. Spelling out the brief first makes agency red flags to watch easier to spot, because you can see who has read it.

Setting a budget the agency can work to

Give one monthly figure, split into agency fee and paid media, and say what sits outside it.

The agency can then show which parts of the brief fit the money and which need a second phase. Ask for the fee in days, so you can compare agencies quoting different scopes. Set the paid media budget separately, because fees and ad spend are usually invoiced apart.

If you may move the work in-house later, the ONS release on business activity, size and location gives sector and size counts that help frame the comparison.

Worked example: a £2,500 monthly retainer

Illustrative figures, not market rates.

Illustrative monthly figure

Agency retainer£2,500
Paid media spend£1,500
Content production, averaged£600
Tools and reporting£150

For a £2,500 monthly retainer, an illustrative package might be 16 posts, four short videos and a fortnightly report. If the brief also asks for daily community management, expect the quote to rise or the promised output to fall.

Common questions

How long should a social media agency brief be?

Two pages is usually enough for a single campaign, and one page for a monthly retainer. Length matters less than naming the goal, output and approval route.

Should the brief include the budget?

Yes. A stated range lets the agency shape the work to the money instead of guessing. Ask what changes if the budget moves up or down.

Who owns the content the agency produces?

Set this out in the contract. Most agencies assign copyright on final payment, but raw files, source footage and account access should be listed explicitly. In the UK, copyright is governed by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988; state in a written agreement who owns or may use each deliverable.

Do paid ads need separate approval?

Paid activity usually needs a named sign-off because the CAP Code applies to ads as well as organic posts. Build a 48-hour approval window into the brief.