Handing over your Facebook page feels like handing over your phone number. It’s how customers find you, and if it goes quiet or goes wrong, that’s your name on it, not theirs. A few straight questions before you sign up sorts out who’s worth it.

Who actually owns the page?

Make sure the page stays registered to you, not to the agency. If they ever stop trading, or you fall out, you should be able to walk away with your page, your followers and your history intact. Ask this one first.

Who approves posts before they go out?

Some agencies post first and tell you after. Ask whether you see and approve every post before it’s live. If the answer is no, or it’s vague, that’s worth knowing now rather than after a post goes out with the wrong price on it.

Where do the photos come from?

Stock photos of someone else’s van, on your page, don’t fool anyone round here. Ask if posts are built from your own job photos, and how they get them off your phone and onto the page. If it’s stock images of a smiling stranger in a hard hat, keep looking.

What happens to reviews?

Ask how they handle asking customers for reviews. Is it automatic, is it something you have to remember to do yourself, or does someone chase it at the right moment? Reviews are the single biggest thing that turns a page visit into a phone call.

What’s the actual price, and what’s extra?

Ask for the full monthly cost including any extras: ad spend, photography, logo work, one-off setup fees. A price that’s vague at the start usually isn’t vague by accident.

Can you leave easily?

Ask what happens if you want to stop. A rolling monthly arrangement with no long tie-in is normal and fair. A long contract with a cancellation fee is a sign they’re expecting you to want out.

My own answers

Since I’ll get asked anyway: the page stays yours, nothing goes live without your say so, every post comes from your own job photos, reviews are chased for every customer at the right moment, the full price is on the pricing page, and you can cancel with notice, no long tie-in.

Quick answers

Should my Facebook page stay in my own name?

Yes. Whoever runs it for you, make sure you’re listed as the page owner, not just an editor.

What if I don’t like a post before it goes out?

With Toflin you see everything first. You can ask for changes or pull a post before it’s published.

Is a long contract normal for social media management?

No. A rolling monthly arrangement is standard and fairer to you.

Written by Tony Flynn, who runs Toflin from Carluke and works with trades across Lanarkshire. Want a hand with any of this? Call 01698 598763 or see the prices.