September 16, 2024

In the digital marketing world, I’ve learned that collaboration is key for getting effective campaigns set up quickly, for faster results. For brands and creative agencies partnering with a media buying agency, sharing social media account access is essential to enable the effectiveness of ad campaigns. This process ensures fast and seamless execution, optimization, and reporting, critical for achieving the desired marketing outcomes. However, many brands and creative agencies face challenges when it comes to sharing account access securely and efficiently. Getting access shared more quickly and smoothly will allow your campaigns to reach your audiences faster and more effectively.

So, what’s the best way to set up and share this access?

1. Determine the Level of Access Needed

Before granting access to your new media partner, it’s crucial to determine the specific level of access the media buying agency requires. Different social media platforms tend to offer various roles and permissions, from full administrative control to limited access for managing ads. Understanding these roles helps protect your sensitive information while giving the media buying agency the access they need to perform their duties effectively.

Admin Access: Provides full control over the account, including managing settings, users, and content. This level of access is not always necessary for media buyers.

Advertiser Access: Allows users to create, edit, and manage ads but not access other account settings or content. This is usually sufficient for most media buying agencies.

Analyst Access: Grants permission to view performance data without making changes. Useful for reporting and monitoring purposes.

By identifying the appropriate level of access for your media partnership, you can maintain security while ensuring that your media buying agency has the tools they need to manage all your campaigns quickly and efficiently.

2. Use Platform-Specific Access Tools

Each social media platform has its own method for granting access, and requires specific information about the media agency you want to share access with. Establishing a new partnership with a media buying agency will involve more detailed instructions on how to set up the access to your accounts. Here’s a general summary of how we have most of our clients share access on the most popular platforms:

Facebook and Instagram (Meta Business Suite):

To grant access to your Facebook and Instagram pages, you will need to know your new media partner’s business ID or email address associated with their Meta Business account. In your own Meta Business Suite (formerly Facebook Business Manager) you just pull up the “Settings” and select “People” or “Partners” and click “Add” to enter the media agency’s business ID or email. After assigning them the appropriate role, clicking “Save” will grant them access to your Facebook and Instagram pages.

Twitter/X:

For this platform, find out what username your new media agency will use for accessing your account. In your Ads account settings, there will be a section for “Account Access.”  Here is where you can enter that username, and select the level of access they require, such as “Campaign Manager” or “Analyst.”  Once you’ve saved your changes, X/Twitter will notify your new media partner of their new access.

LinkedIn:

Here, you will use an email address that your media agency will provide you. Within your LinkedIn Campaign Manager, you just choose the appropriate ad account and add a new user in the “Manage Access” section. Simply enter the media buying agency’s email, select their role (e.g., “Campaign Manager”) and confirm to save your changes.

By working with these platform-specific tools, you can easily grant access to your new media partner while still maintaining control over your social media accounts. They can get to work behind the scenes to set up your campaigns without changing the way you post on social media.

2. Set Up a Clear Access Management Policy

It’s a good idea to establish a clear access management policy. This kind of policy can be helpful for maintaining security and accountability with your new media partner. This policy should outline:

Who has access: List the names, roles, and responsibilities of everyone with account access.

What level of access they have: Specify what each person or agency can and cannot do on the account.

When access should be reviewed: Regularly review and audit access levels to ensure only necessary parties have access.

How to handle access changes: Create a procedure for adding or removing access, especially if a partnership changes or ends.

Having a carefully designed and maintained access management policy will help prevent any unauthorized access to your accounts, and will ensure that you and your new media partner both understand the responsibilities for working on your accounts and campaigns.

Sharing social media account access with your media buying agency is crucial for a successful partnership, ensuring a secure, efficient, and effective collaboration. This shared access enables media buying agencies to optimize campaigns in real-time, enhance targeting, and provide detailed reporting, all of which contribute to achieving your marketing goals. By following these best practices, brands and creative agencies can maximize their advertising impact and drive better results in their digital marketing efforts.