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If your marketing agency just landed a new client—or you’re about to—your next step is sending a social media strategy proposal.
This is the document that outlines your strategic game plan: what you’ll do, how you’ll do it, and how it will help the client grow their presence and performance on social media.
In this article, you’ll learn exactly how to craft a strong social media strategy proposal—from what to include to how to present it with confidence. Plus, we’ve included a free, customizable template to help you get started fast.
What Is a Social Media Strategy Proposal Exactly?
A social media strategy proposal is a document you send to a client to explain how you plan to approach their social media. It outlines the strategy you recommend—what platforms to focus on, what kind of content to create, and how it will support their bigger business goals.
Why Should You Create a Social Media Strategy Proposal?
Any professional social media agency should provide two key documents at the start of a client relationship: a contract and a strategy proposal. The social media contract sets the legal and financial terms; the strategy proposal shows the client exactly what they’re getting from your agency in terms of deliverables, platforms, timelines, and goals.
It:
- Explains what you’ll be doing and why
- Shows how your plan ties into the client’s overall goals
- Helps avoid confusion, misaligned expectations, or scope creep later on
Things to Include in a Social Media Strategy Proposal
Now that you know why the strategy proposal matters, let’s look at what actually goes into one.
Each section plays a role in showing the client you understand their needs and have a solid plan for moving forward. Here’s what to include:
Executive Summary
This is your opening pitch—the short, punchy overview that gives your client a snapshot of what’s inside the proposal. It should highlight the core goals, your general approach, and the impact they can expect. Think of it like the TL;DR that lets decision-makers quickly see the value you’re bringing to the table. Keep it brief (no more than a few paragraphs) and focus on clarity.
Business and Marketing Goals
Your strategy has to serve a larger purpose. This section connects your proposed social media efforts to the client’s bigger business and marketing goals—whether that’s brand awareness, lead generation, sales, or customer loyalty.
Use any discovery work or client input you’ve gathered to reflect their priorities accurately. This is also a good place to show that you’ve listened and understand what success looks like from their perspective.
Target Audience and Persona Insights
To create content that connects, you need to know who you’re speaking to. This section outlines the client’s ideal audience, including demographics, interests, behaviors, and pain points. If you’ve done marketing persona development, include 1–2 profiles to bring the audience to life.
You can also tie this to how audience insights will shape content themes, voice, or platform choices. If the client hasn’t defined their audience yet, this section can guide them in doing so.
Platform Recommendations
Not every business needs to be on every platform. This section explains which social platforms you recommend using and why. Your recommendations should be based on the client’s goals, audience behavior, and industry context, not just social media trends.
For example, a B2B brand might lean on LinkedIn, while a visually driven DTC brand might focus on Instagram and TikTok. Be clear about what each platform will be used for (e.g., Instagram for brand storytelling, LinkedIn for thought leadership), and explain how they’ll work together to deliver results.
Content Plan
Outline what kinds of content you’ll create (e.g., videos, stories, carousels), what themes or messages you’ll focus on, and how often you’ll post. You don’t need to build a full content calendar here, but a sample week or monthly outline helps. You can also mention your process for content approval and scheduling. To help visualize your plan, link to or reference a visual content calendar.
Engagement and Community Management
Posting content is only half the job—social media is, after all, social. In this section, explain how you’ll manage audience interactions, respond to comments and messages, and represent the client’s brand voice online. Outline any community guidelines, tone of voice notes, or escalation plans for handling sensitive issues or crises.
If relevant, share your process for moderating user-generated content or responding during off-hours. You can also touch on how you’ll gather feedback from interactions to inform future strategy.
Budget Breakdown
Clients want to know where their money is going—and why. This section should include a clear breakdown of costs related to your services: strategy, content creation, ad spend, tools, reporting, or anything else. Be transparent and realistic. If you’re using paid ads, explain how that spend will be allocated across platforms. If you charge separately for community management or design, note that here.
📖 Related Read: How to Price Social Media Management If You’re an Agency
KPIs and Measurement Plan
How will the client know the strategy is working? This section outlines the key performance indicators (KPIs) you’ll track, how often you’ll report on them, and what success looks like.
Choose metrics that match the client’s goals, like engagement, reach, conversions, click-through rates, or follower growth. Avoid vanity metrics unless they tie to a real objective. You can also include a brief overview of your reporting tools or cadence (e.g., monthly reports with insights and recommendations).
Best Practices for Presenting Your Proposal to a Client
Once your strategy proposal is written, it’s time to present it to your client. Here’s what to do👇
1. Customize It for the Client
You want to show your client that you’ve done your homework about their business and the market they’re in—customizing your proposal is the best way to do that.
Use their brand name, speak to their industry and goals, and avoid anything that feels cookie-cutter. Even small touches like adding their logo or brand colors go a long way in making the proposal feel thoughtful and specific.
2. Use Visuals to Communicate Strategy
A wall of text won’t get your point across. Use visuals like sample content, platform mockups, charts, or timeline graphics to illustrate your ideas. Visuals make your proposal easier to understand and more engaging to review.
They also help clients picture what your work will look like in action. This is especially important when your audience includes non-marketers who may not speak in KPIs and content pillars.
3. Walk Them Through It Live
Sending a PDF is fine, but presenting it live is better. Set up a call to walk the client through your proposal step by step. This gives you the chance to explain your thinking, answer questions, and adjust expectations in real-time.
It also helps avoid misunderstandings that could come from reading a document cold. If a live meeting isn’t possible, record a short walkthrough video to guide them.
Where and When to Present It
There’s no one-size-fits-all timing, but ideally, it should follow your discovery call and precede content production. Depending on the situation, you can present it:
- As a pitch deck during the sales or proposal stage
- As a kickoff plan once the contract is signed
- Alongside your client onboarding documents
- Together with the contract to clarify scope and direction
Free Social Media Strategy Proposal Template
Need a jumpstart? Use this free template as a starting point to build your own customized proposal. It’s designed to help you present your ideas clearly, professionally, and in line with everything we covered above.
👉 Download it here
FAQs
Most proposals are 2–5 pages, depending on the scope of work. Keep it concise but detailed enough to cover key sections like goals, audience, platforms, content, budget, and KPIs.
Yes, but it should always be customized. Use a base template to save time, then tailor it with the client’s brand, goals, and platform needs for a more professional and personalized approach.
Wrapping up
Social media proposals help you lay out your strategy for the client so there are no surprises down the line. They clarify your plan, show you’ve thought things through, and help build trust before the work even begins.
The next step is delivering that strategy—and for that, you might want to check out Gain.
Gain is a social media management tool built specifically for agencies. It helps you streamline client collaboration with automated social media content approvals, dedicated workspaces for each client, and auto-scheduling across all major platforms. With everything organized and centralized, your team can move faster, make fewer mistakes, and scale without the stress.
Try it at no cost today!
