The Planted Marketing Onboarding Process
Starting with a new marketing agency can feel like a big leap. We get it. That's why we've designed our onboarding process to be as clear and straightforward as possible so you know exactly what's happening, what we need from you, and what to expect at every stage.
Before anything else, we get on a free discovery call to learn about your brand, your goals, your challenges, and what you're hoping to achieve through marketing. If we're a good fit, we'll put together a recommended scope of work and proposal for your review.
Once you're ready to move forward, we send over your contract, invoice, and an invite to your dedicated Airtable workspace. Inside Airtable, you'll find your client questionnaire, a comprehensive set of questions covering your brand, your audience, your competitors, your voice, your goals, and anything else we need to understand your business deeply before we build your strategy.
We ask for the questionnaire to be completed within 3 business days so we can get your kickoff call scheduled and keep things moving.
Once your questionnaire is in, we schedule your kickoff call. This is where we go deeper - talking through your questionnaire responses, asking follow-up questions, and getting a full picture of your brand and what you're working toward. This call is the foundation for everything that comes next.
With everything we've learned, the Planted Marketing team gets to work building your custom marketing strategy. This includes your audience analysis, competitive research, messaging framework, content pillars, channel recommendations, and your content roadmap for the months ahead. Your strategy is reviewed with you on a call and nothing moves forward until you're happy with the direction.
Delivered in 2-3 weeks from onboarding call.
Once the strategy is approved, we begin optimising your existing digital presence - website, social profiles, SEO - and creating your first month of content. All content is built in your Airtable workspace, where you can review, leave feedback, and approve everything before it goes live. Your input at this stage is important, we want the content to sound like you.
Timing: Created within one week delivering strategy
Around weeks five to six from signing, everything goes live. Content begins publishing, campaigns launch, and your brand starts showing up consistently across your channels. We handle all the execution, you focus on running your business.
From here, we move into your monthly retainer rhythm. We create and publish your content, monitor performance, manage your channels, and continuously refine based on what the data tells us. At the end of each month, you receive a detailed performance report. We meet monthly on a recurring call to review results, discuss priorities, and align on the month ahead.
The Tools We Use to Stay Aligned
We keep things simple, transparent, and easy to access so you always know what's happening with your marketing.
Airtable
Airtable is where everything lives. Your content calendar, individual content pieces, copy drafts, and assets are all organized here. You can review and comment on specific posts before they go live, track what's scheduled, and stay in the loop without needing to be in constant communication. Think of it as your marketing dashboard.
Reporting
We track your analytics weekly on a shared Google Sheet so you can check in whenever you want a pulse check on performance. At the end of every month, you'll receive a detailed written report covering the full month's stats, highlights, what worked, and what we're adjusting going forward.
Monthly Zoom Call
We meet monthly on a recurring Zoom call to review your performance report, discuss priorities, share upcoming content plans, and stay strategically aligned. Between calls, we're always available via email for questions, feedback, or anything that comes up.
Your Role in the Process
We handle the heavy lifting but great marketing is a collaboration. Here's what makes the process run smoothly on your end:
- Complete the client questionnaire within 5 business days of signing
- Show up to your kickoff call ready to talk about your brand, your goals, and your audience
- Review and approve content in Airtable within the agreed turnaround window
- Provide feedback clearly and promptly, the faster you review, the faster we publish
- Attend your monthly calls or notify us in advance if you need to reschedule
- Keep us in the loop on any business updates, promotions, or launches coming up, the more we know, the better we can plan
Frequently Asked Questions About Getting Started
How long does it take to get started after signing?
The first piece of content typically goes live around weeks 4 or 5 from your contract signing date. This timeline includes your kickoff call, questionnaire review, strategy development, and first month of content creation. We move as quickly as you do on your end.
How much input do I have over the content?
A lot. All content is built in your Airtable workspace for your review and approval before anything goes live. We want the content to sound like you and represent your brand accurately – your feedback at the review stage is essential.
What if I want to make changes to my services or retainer scope?
Scope adjustments can be discussed at any monthly call or via email at any time. We’re flexible and understand that business needs evolve. Changes to scope are confirmed in writing and reflected in your next invoice cycle.
How do I communicate with the team between calls?
Email is our primary channel for questions and updates between calls. For content-specific feedback, Airtable is the best place – comments go directly on the content piece so nothing gets lost.
What if I’m not happy with the strategy or content direction?
We review your strategy with you before anything is executed – nothing moves forward without your approval. If something isn’t landing right, we’d rather know early and get it right than push forward with something that doesn’t feel like you. Open communication is the most important ingredient in this process.
Do you work with clients outside the US?
We primarily serve clients across the United States and Canada and work fully remotely, so as long as we can find a time that works across time zones, location is rarely a barrier.
Let's get to work!
If you've read through all of this and it feels right, that's a good sign. The next step is a free discovery call so we can learn about your brand and make sure we're genuinely a good fit before anything else. Book your time here.