Publishing Stack Selection (Onboarding)

Publishing Stack Selection (Onboarding)

1. 01

   Count the channels the client actually publishes to today, not the ones in the pitch deck

   Pull 90 days of post history per network. A client posting to four networks needs a scheduler; a client with eleven networks and a Substack newsletter needs an API layer or a migration path.

2. 02

   Map approval complexity before shortlisting vendors

   If more than two people sign off on copy, a pure scheduler will break the workflow. Confirm who drafts, who approves, and whether approval happens inside the tool or in email.

3. 03

   Confirm account permission model and client ownership of credentials

   Document whether the client holds admin on each network and whether the tool supports delegated access. Tools like bundle.social expose publishing through a REST API and SDK, which suits agencies that need programmatic control rather than a shared login.

4. 04

   Test reporting depth against the retainer's reporting obligation

   If the client contract promises monthly performance reporting, verify the scheduler exports post-level metrics. A Pinterest-first tool such as Tailwind reports pin performance well but will not cover a LinkedIn and TikTok reporting request.

5. 05

   Run a two-week parallel publish on one client account

   Publish live from the candidate tool while the incumbent keeps running. Compare scheduled-versus-actual timestamps and catch timezone or queue failures before the whole roster migrates.

6. 06

   Price the engagement on strategy and delivery scope, not an assumed client-count threshold

   Per-profile pricing models such as Quuu's single-plan structure make seat math easy to forecast, but the retainer should reflect the content volume and review cycles the agency actually staffs.

7. 07

   Log the vendor's monetization terms and set a quarterly re-read

   Roughly 60% of 175 AI tools changed monetization-relevant terms between June and October 2026, so capture the current terms in the client file and diarize a review before the next contract cycle.