What should a social media marketing proposal include?

Observations about the client's current profiles, the business goal, chosen platforms, content pillars, a posting plan, who produces the content, an approval process, community management hours, reporting metrics, packages and terms covering minimum term and ownership.

How do I price social media management?

Sell monthly packages priced by platforms, posts per week, content production and community management hours. Price content days and paid social management separately, and offer a one-off audit for clients not ready for a retainer.

How many posts a week should I propose?

As many as you can produce well and the client can supply material for. Consistency matters more than volume, so propose a rhythm you can keep every week and adjust it once you see what performs.

Should the client give me their passwords?

Avoid it. Ask to be added through each platform's business tools, such as Meta Business Suite for Facebook and Instagram. The client keeps control, and access can be removed cleanly if you part ways.

Which metrics should a social media report include?

Start with what's closest to the business goal: link clicks, enquiries or sales from social. Then saves, shares, comments and profile visits, reach per platform, top posts and community response times.

Should paid ads be part of a social media proposal?

They can be, as an option. Keep the ad budget separate from your fee, have the platform bill the client directly, and price the campaign management on its own line.

Can I use this template for Upwork or Freelancer.com bids?

Use the short bid version as your first message, then send the full proposal once the client replies and you've had a proper look at their profiles.

Proposal template

Social media marketing proposal template

Updated 23 October 2026

Quick answer

A social media marketing proposal should name the platforms you'll manage and why, set out content pillars and a posting plan per platform, and explain how content gets approved. It should also cover community management hours, how paid social and its ad budget are handled, which metrics you'll report monthly, and two or three packages. Copy the template below and replace each [bracket] with the client's details.

The social media marketing proposal template

Social media clients often say they want "more followers" or "to be more active". A good proposal turns that into something you can deliver and measure: which platforms, what kind of content, how often, who approves it, who replies to comments, and what success looks like after three months.

This template covers organic content, community management and optional paid social, with packages priced by platforms and volume. It also deals with the practical things that sour social media relationships: slow approvals, missing photos, password sharing and reports full of vanity numbers.

The filled-in example further down uses a fictional client. Its names, volumes and prices are illustrations, so use your own.

Social media marketing proposal for [Client business name]

Prepared for: [Client name], [Company]
Prepared by: [Your name], [portfolio link or example accounts]
Date: [date]
Valid until: [date]

1. Where you are now
[Company] is active on [platforms]. Looking at your profiles over the last [3 months]: [observation 1, e.g. posts are irregular, with gaps of two to three weeks], [observation 2, e.g. comments and messages often go unanswered], [observation 3, e.g. video posts get more engagement than anything else]. You'd like social media to [the goal, e.g. bring in more bookings / build awareness in (city)].

2. Goals and how we'll measure them
Main goal: [e.g. more enquiries from Instagram and Facebook, tracked with link clicks and messages].
Supporting: engagement (saves, shares, comments), reach on each platform, reply time to messages.
Baseline: I'll record current numbers in month 1 and report against them.

3. Platforms and content plan
Platforms: [e.g. Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok], because [where the audience is].
Not included for now: [platforms left out and why].
Content pillars: [Pillar 1], [Pillar 2], [Pillar 3], [Pillar 4].
Posting plan:
- [Platform 1]: [X] posts a week ([formats, e.g. 2 short videos, 1 carousel]) plus [X] stories
- [Platform 2]: [X] posts a week ([formats])

4. Scope of work
- Monthly content calendar, captions and hashtags
- Graphics and [X] short videos edited per month [from your footage / from a content day]
- Scheduling and publishing
- Community management: replies to comments and messages [days and hours], aiming to reply within [X hours]
- [Paid social: campaign set-up and management, with ad spend paid by you to the platform]
- Monthly report and planning call

5. Timeline
Week 1: kick-off call, brand voice note, access set-up and audit of current profiles.
Week 2: first content calendar sent for approval.
Week 3: publishing begins.
Month 3: review results against the baseline and adjust the plan.

6. Investment
Option A, Starter: [1 platform], [X] posts a week, comments and messages on weekdays. [price] per month.
Option B, Growth (recommended): [2 to 3 platforms], [X] posts a week including short video, community management [days], monthly content day. [price] per month.
Option C, Growth plus paid social: everything in B, plus paid campaign management. [price] per month, ad budget paid separately.
One-off profile audit and strategy: [price].

7. What I need from you
- Access through each platform's business tools (not passwords)
- Logo, brand colours, fonts and any brand guidelines
- Photos and videos from the business each week, or time for a content day
- Approval of each month's calendar within [X] working days; anything without comments by then goes ahead
- A named contact for complaints, refunds and anything sensitive

8. Terms
Payment: monthly in advance. Ad spend is billed to you by the platforms.
Term: [3] months minimum, then rolling with [30] days' notice.
Ownership: your accounts, followers and data are always yours. Content I create for you is yours once paid. Stock or licensed music and images follow their own licences.
Results on social media depend on many factors, including the platforms' own changes. I commit to the plan, the consistency and honest reporting.

9. Next steps
1. Choose a package, or tell me what to adjust.
2. I'll send the agreement and first invoice.
3. We book a kick-off call and I send the first calendar within [X] working days.

[Your name]
[email] | [phone or messaging link]

Replace every [bracket] with your own details. Want a version written for a specific client brief? Paste it into the free proposal generator.

What to include in a social media marketing proposal

Start with what you noticed on the client's current profiles. One or two honest observations, such as long gaps between posts or comments going unanswered, show you've looked before quoting.

The business goal behind social media: enquiries, bookings, sales, hiring, or brand awareness in a new market.
Platforms, chosen for where the client's audience spends time, and the ones you're leaving out.
Three to five content pillars, the themes every post fits into.
Posting plan per platform: formats (short video, carousels, stories, static posts) and how many per week.
Content production: who shoots photos and video, who writes captions, who designs graphics.
Approval workflow and the content calendar timing.
Community management: which hours, how fast you reply, and what gets escalated to the client.

Content pillars, posting plans and approvals

Content pillars stop the feed becoming random. A local café might use behind the scenes, menu and specials, regulars and community, and events. A software company might use product tips, customer stories, team and culture, and industry commentary. Every post should fit one pillar.

Agree a monthly rhythm: you send the content calendar for the next month by a set date, the client has a fixed number of working days to approve or comment, and anything not commented on by then goes ahead. Without that rule, approvals become the bottleneck.

A brand voice note: words to use and avoid, tone, emoji use, how to talk about competitors.
A shared folder where the client drops photos and videos from the business each week.
Room for timely posts outside the calendar, such as news, trends or events, with a quick approval route.
Platform specs change often, so check current sizes and formats on each platform's help pages rather than relying on old guides.

Community management and paid social

Replying to comments and messages is where a lot of the value is, and a lot of the hidden hours. Say which hours and days you cover, how quickly you aim to reply, and what you'll pass to the client: complaints, refunds, press, legal questions or anything you're unsure about.

If you run paid social, treat the ad budget as the client's money: billed by the platform to the client's card inside their own ad account, with your management fee shown separately. Ask for access through the platform's business tools (for example, Meta Business Suite for Facebook and Instagram) rather than sharing passwords.

Social media reporting: metrics that mean something

Follower count is easy to report and rarely what the client needs. Lead with the metrics closest to the business goal, and use reach and engagement to explain why things moved.

Business results: link clicks, enquiries, bookings or sales from social, tracked with UTM tags on every link.
Engagement that signals interest: saves, shares, comments and profile visits, not just likes.
Reach and impressions per platform, and how they changed from last month.
Top three posts and what they had in common, plus the posts that underperformed.
Community: messages handled, average reply time, and anything escalated.
Next month's plan: what you'll repeat, what you'll test and what you need from the client.

How to price social media marketing

Social media management is easiest to sell as monthly packages, priced by the number of platforms, posts per week, content production and community management hours. Content creation days (a half or full day of shooting at the client's business) and paid social management are often priced separately. A one-off audit and strategy is a good entry point for clients who aren't ready for a retainer.

Ask for a minimum term, for example three months, so there's enough time to find what works, then a rolling monthly agreement with notice.

Number of platforms and posts per week.
Video: filming and editing short-form video takes far longer than static posts.
Who supplies photos and footage: the client, stock, or you.
Community management hours and weekend cover.
Paid social management and the size of the ad budget.
Reporting depth and meetings.

Social media marketing proposal example

Illustration only: a fictional client with made-up numbers and prices.

Social media marketing proposal for Copper Kettle Café

Where you are now
You post on Instagram every two or three weeks and Facebook rarely. Your reels of the coffee being made get far more views than photos of the menu. Several messages asking about private bookings went unanswered last month.

Goal
More private event bookings and weekday visits. Tracked through link clicks, booking messages and a "mention Instagram" offer at the till.

Platforms and content
Instagram and Facebook. TikTok left for later.
Pillars: behind the counter, specials and seasonal menu, regulars and the neighbourhood, events.
Instagram: 3 posts a week (2 reels, 1 carousel) plus daily stories. Facebook: the same posts, plus events.

Scope
Monthly calendar, captions, 8 edited reels from a half-day content shoot, scheduling, replies to comments and messages Monday to Saturday within 4 hours, monthly report.

Investment
A, Instagram only, 3 posts a week: $450 per month
B, Instagram and Facebook, content day, community management: $850 per month (recommended)
C, B plus paid social management: $1,100 per month, ad budget separate

Use your own real work, numbers and prices in yours.

Short social media marketing bid for Freelancer.com or Upwork

Marketplace clients read short bids, not documents. Send this first, and the full proposal once they reply.

Hi [client name],

You need someone to run [platforms] for [business] consistently, because [current situation, e.g. posting has been irregular and messages are going unanswered], and you want it to bring in [enquiries / bookings / sales].

Here's how I'd approach it:
1. Review your current profiles and agree three or four content pillars that fit your brand
2. Send a monthly content calendar for approval, then create, schedule and publish everything
3. Reply to comments and messages, and report monthly on clicks, enquiries and engagement

[proof: an account you manage, with what changed after you took over]

Quick question: can you send photos and videos from the business each week, or would a monthly content day suit you better?

I can start within [timeline] for [price] per month.

[Your name]

More on bids in our Freelancer proposal template and how to bid on Freelancer.

Mistakes that lose social media marketing clients

Promising follower numbers or viral posts. Reach depends on the platforms' own changes, which nobody controls.
Leaving approvals open-ended, so content waits for days and the calendar falls apart.
Asking for passwords instead of access through the platforms' business tools.
Forgetting community management hours in the price, then answering messages at weekends for free.
Reporting only followers and likes instead of clicks, enquiries and the engagement that signals interest.
Proposing every platform at once when the client's audience is mainly on one or two.

More proposal templates

Frequently asked questions

What should a social media marketing proposal include?: Observations about the client's current profiles, the business goal, chosen platforms, content pillars, a posting plan, who produces the content, an approval process, community management hours, reporting metrics, packages and terms covering minimum term and ownership.
How do I price social media management?: Sell monthly packages priced by platforms, posts per week, content production and community management hours. Price content days and paid social management separately, and offer a one-off audit for clients not ready for a retainer.
How many posts a week should I propose?: As many as you can produce well and the client can supply material for. Consistency matters more than volume, so propose a rhythm you can keep every week and adjust it once you see what performs.
Should the client give me their passwords?: Avoid it. Ask to be added through each platform's business tools, such as Meta Business Suite for Facebook and Instagram. The client keeps control, and access can be removed cleanly if you part ways.
Which metrics should a social media report include?: Start with what's closest to the business goal: link clicks, enquiries or sales from social. Then saves, shares, comments and profile visits, reach per platform, top posts and community response times.
Should paid ads be part of a social media proposal?: They can be, as an option. Keep the ad budget separate from your fee, have the platform bill the client directly, and price the campaign management on its own line.
Can I use this template for Upwork or Freelancer.com bids?: Use the short bid version as your first message, then send the full proposal once the client replies and you've had a proper look at their profiles.

MoreGigs is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Freelancer.com. You're responsible for how you use your Freelancer account and for following Freelancer's own terms.

Proposal template

Social media marketing proposal template

Updated 23 October 2026

Quick answer

The social media marketing proposal template

The filled-in example further down uses a fictional client. Its names, volumes and prices are illustrations, so use your own.

Social media marketing proposal for [Client business name]

Prepared for: [Client name], [Company]
Prepared by: [Your name], [portfolio link or example accounts]
Date: [date]
Valid until: [date]

1. Where you are now
[Company] is active on [platforms]. Looking at your profiles over the last [3 months]: [observation 1, e.g. posts are irregular, with gaps of two to three weeks], [observation 2, e.g. comments and messages often go unanswered], [observation 3, e.g. video posts get more engagement than anything else]. You'd like social media to [the goal, e.g. bring in more bookings / build awareness in (city)].

2. Goals and how we'll measure them
Main goal: [e.g. more enquiries from Instagram and Facebook, tracked with link clicks and messages].
Supporting: engagement (saves, shares, comments), reach on each platform, reply time to messages.
Baseline: I'll record current numbers in month 1 and report against them.

3. Platforms and content plan
Platforms: [e.g. Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok], because [where the audience is].
Not included for now: [platforms left out and why].
Content pillars: [Pillar 1], [Pillar 2], [Pillar 3], [Pillar 4].
Posting plan:
- [Platform 1]: [X] posts a week ([formats, e.g. 2 short videos, 1 carousel]) plus [X] stories
- [Platform 2]: [X] posts a week ([formats])

4. Scope of work
- Monthly content calendar, captions and hashtags
- Graphics and [X] short videos edited per month [from your footage / from a content day]
- Scheduling and publishing
- Community management: replies to comments and messages [days and hours], aiming to reply within [X hours]
- [Paid social: campaign set-up and management, with ad spend paid by you to the platform]
- Monthly report and planning call

5. Timeline
Week 1: kick-off call, brand voice note, access set-up and audit of current profiles.
Week 2: first content calendar sent for approval.
Week 3: publishing begins.
Month 3: review results against the baseline and adjust the plan.

6. Investment
Option A, Starter: [1 platform], [X] posts a week, comments and messages on weekdays. [price] per month.
Option B, Growth (recommended): [2 to 3 platforms], [X] posts a week including short video, community management [days], monthly content day. [price] per month.
Option C, Growth plus paid social: everything in B, plus paid campaign management. [price] per month, ad budget paid separately.
One-off profile audit and strategy: [price].

7. What I need from you
- Access through each platform's business tools (not passwords)
- Logo, brand colours, fonts and any brand guidelines
- Photos and videos from the business each week, or time for a content day
- Approval of each month's calendar within [X] working days; anything without comments by then goes ahead
- A named contact for complaints, refunds and anything sensitive

8. Terms
Payment: monthly in advance. Ad spend is billed to you by the platforms.
Term: [3] months minimum, then rolling with [30] days' notice.
Ownership: your accounts, followers and data are always yours. Content I create for you is yours once paid. Stock or licensed music and images follow their own licences.
Results on social media depend on many factors, including the platforms' own changes. I commit to the plan, the consistency and honest reporting.

9. Next steps
1. Choose a package, or tell me what to adjust.
2. I'll send the agreement and first invoice.
3. We book a kick-off call and I send the first calendar within [X] working days.

[Your name]
[email] | [phone or messaging link]

Replace every [bracket] with your own details. Want a version written for a specific client brief? Paste it into the free proposal generator.

What to include in a social media marketing proposal

Start with what you noticed on the client's current profiles. One or two honest observations, such as long gaps between posts or comments going unanswered, show you've looked before quoting.

The business goal behind social media: enquiries, bookings, sales, hiring, or brand awareness in a new market.
Platforms, chosen for where the client's audience spends time, and the ones you're leaving out.
Three to five content pillars, the themes every post fits into.
Posting plan per platform: formats (short video, carousels, stories, static posts) and how many per week.
Content production: who shoots photos and video, who writes captions, who designs graphics.
Approval workflow and the content calendar timing.
Community management: which hours, how fast you reply, and what gets escalated to the client.

Content pillars, posting plans and approvals

A brand voice note: words to use and avoid, tone, emoji use, how to talk about competitors.
A shared folder where the client drops photos and videos from the business each week.
Room for timely posts outside the calendar, such as news, trends or events, with a quick approval route.
Platform specs change often, so check current sizes and formats on each platform's help pages rather than relying on old guides.

Community management and paid social

Social media reporting: metrics that mean something

Follower count is easy to report and rarely what the client needs. Lead with the metrics closest to the business goal, and use reach and engagement to explain why things moved.

Business results: link clicks, enquiries, bookings or sales from social, tracked with UTM tags on every link.
Engagement that signals interest: saves, shares, comments and profile visits, not just likes.
Reach and impressions per platform, and how they changed from last month.
Top three posts and what they had in common, plus the posts that underperformed.
Community: messages handled, average reply time, and anything escalated.
Next month's plan: what you'll repeat, what you'll test and what you need from the client.

How to price social media marketing

Ask for a minimum term, for example three months, so there's enough time to find what works, then a rolling monthly agreement with notice.

Number of platforms and posts per week.
Video: filming and editing short-form video takes far longer than static posts.
Who supplies photos and footage: the client, stock, or you.
Community management hours and weekend cover.
Paid social management and the size of the ad budget.
Reporting depth and meetings.

Social media marketing proposal example

Illustration only: a fictional client with made-up numbers and prices.

Social media marketing proposal for Copper Kettle Café

Where you are now
You post on Instagram every two or three weeks and Facebook rarely. Your reels of the coffee being made get far more views than photos of the menu. Several messages asking about private bookings went unanswered last month.

Goal
More private event bookings and weekday visits. Tracked through link clicks, booking messages and a "mention Instagram" offer at the till.

Platforms and content
Instagram and Facebook. TikTok left for later.
Pillars: behind the counter, specials and seasonal menu, regulars and the neighbourhood, events.
Instagram: 3 posts a week (2 reels, 1 carousel) plus daily stories. Facebook: the same posts, plus events.

Scope
Monthly calendar, captions, 8 edited reels from a half-day content shoot, scheduling, replies to comments and messages Monday to Saturday within 4 hours, monthly report.

Investment
A, Instagram only, 3 posts a week: $450 per month
B, Instagram and Facebook, content day, community management: $850 per month (recommended)
C, B plus paid social management: $1,100 per month, ad budget separate

Use your own real work, numbers and prices in yours.

Short social media marketing bid for Freelancer.com or Upwork

Marketplace clients read short bids, not documents. Send this first, and the full proposal once they reply.

Hi [client name],

You need someone to run [platforms] for [business] consistently, because [current situation, e.g. posting has been irregular and messages are going unanswered], and you want it to bring in [enquiries / bookings / sales].

Here's how I'd approach it:
1. Review your current profiles and agree three or four content pillars that fit your brand
2. Send a monthly content calendar for approval, then create, schedule and publish everything
3. Reply to comments and messages, and report monthly on clicks, enquiries and engagement

[proof: an account you manage, with what changed after you took over]

Quick question: can you send photos and videos from the business each week, or would a monthly content day suit you better?

I can start within [timeline] for [price] per month.

[Your name]

More on bids in our Freelancer proposal template and how to bid on Freelancer.

Mistakes that lose social media marketing clients

Promising follower numbers or viral posts. Reach depends on the platforms' own changes, which nobody controls.
Leaving approvals open-ended, so content waits for days and the calendar falls apart.
Asking for passwords instead of access through the platforms' business tools.
Forgetting community management hours in the price, then answering messages at weekends for free.
Reporting only followers and likes instead of clicks, enquiries and the engagement that signals interest.
Proposing every platform at once when the client's audience is mainly on one or two.

More proposal templates

Frequently asked questions

What should a social media marketing proposal include?: Observations about the client's current profiles, the business goal, chosen platforms, content pillars, a posting plan, who produces the content, an approval process, community management hours, reporting metrics, packages and terms covering minimum term and ownership.
How do I price social media management?: Sell monthly packages priced by platforms, posts per week, content production and community management hours. Price content days and paid social management separately, and offer a one-off audit for clients not ready for a retainer.
How many posts a week should I propose?: As many as you can produce well and the client can supply material for. Consistency matters more than volume, so propose a rhythm you can keep every week and adjust it once you see what performs.
Should the client give me their passwords?: Avoid it. Ask to be added through each platform's business tools, such as Meta Business Suite for Facebook and Instagram. The client keeps control, and access can be removed cleanly if you part ways.
Which metrics should a social media report include?: Start with what's closest to the business goal: link clicks, enquiries or sales from social. Then saves, shares, comments and profile visits, reach per platform, top posts and community response times.
Should paid ads be part of a social media proposal?: They can be, as an option. Keep the ad budget separate from your fee, have the platform bill the client directly, and price the campaign management on its own line.
Can I use this template for Upwork or Freelancer.com bids?: Use the short bid version as your first message, then send the full proposal once the client replies and you've had a proper look at their profiles.

MoreGigs is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Freelancer.com. You're responsible for how you use your Freelancer account and for following Freelancer's own terms.