How to Start a TikTok Agency

Starting a TikTok agency is one of the most direct ways to turn your social media skills into a real, profitable business. With millions of brands still struggling to crack the code of short-form video, the opportunity is massive. This guide breaks down the essential steps to launch your agency, from mastering your craft and defining your services to landing your first clients and scaling your operations.

Master the Platform: Niche Down and Build Your Proof of Concept

You can't sell a service you haven't mastered. Before you even think about building a website or reaching out to prospects, you must have an undeniable, expert-level understanding of TikTok. This goes far beyond just knowing how to use the app, it's about understanding its ever-shifting culture, algorithm, and community standards.

Find Your Niche

The most successful agencies don't just "do TikTok." They "do TikTok for a specific type of client." Specializing allows you to become the go-to expert in an industry, charge premium rates, and develop repeatable systems. A generalist approach means you're competing with everyone, a niche approach means you’re competing with almost no one.

Consider industries that are traditionally "boring" but have huge potential on TikTok:

• Lawyers or law firms
• Dentists and orthodontists
• Home service companies (plumbers, electricians, roofers)
• B2B SaaS companies
• Financial advisors
• Local coffee shops or restaurants

By picking a niche, you'll understand their target audience, lingo, and pain points far better than a general agency ever could. You'll become "The TikTok Agency for Plumbers" instead of just another marketing agency.

Build Your Own Case Study

The single best way to sell your TikTok services is to show tangible results. The easiest way to get those results? Do it for yourself first.

Create a TikTok account dedicated to your agency or a personal brand within your chosen niche. Your goal is to grow this account to showcase your skills. This is your living resume. It proves you understand:

• Trendspotting: Can you identify and adapt rising trends and sounds before they become oversaturated?
• Content Creation: Can you shoot and edit engaging, native-looking TikToks that don't feel like traditional ads?
• Community Management: Do you know how to write captions that get a conversation started and reply to comments in a way that fuels engagement?
• Algorithm Nuances: Do you understand video hooks, pacing, and calls-to-action that keep viewers watching and signal value to the algorithm?

Having an account with 10k, 20k, or 50k+ followers is a powerful sales tool. When a potential client asks if you can get them results, you can just show them your profile. It's irrefutable proof of concept.

Define Your Services and Structure Your Business

Once you’ve built your expertise and proof of concept, it's time to package your skills into something you can actually sell. Most brands don't want to buy "TikTok consulting", they want to buy a clear, tangible outcome. Don't be vague. Be specific about what clients get when they hire you.

Create Your Service Packages

Tiered packages work well because they give clients options and a clear path to upgrade. Here’s a common structure to start with:

Package 1: The "Strategy" or "Starter" Tier

• Monthly strategy calls and content brainstorming sessions.
• A detailed monthly content calendar with prompts, trending audio suggestions, and script ideas.
• Performance analytics and a monthly report.
• Who it's for: Companies with an in-house team that can execute but need direction and expert guidance.

Package 2: The "Done-With-You" or "Content" Tier

• Everything in the Starter Tier.
• Professional video editing for a set number of videos per month (e.g., 12-15 TikToks). The client is responsible for filming the raw footage based on your prompts.
• Hashtag research and caption writing.
• Scheduling and posting.
• Who it's for: Brands that have someone who can be the "face" but lack the time or skill for professional editing and management.

Package 3: The "Done-For-You" or "Full Service" Tier

• Everything in the Content Tier.
• Content creation (filming on-site or using your own creators).
• Daily community management (replying to comments and messages).
• Influencer marketing outreach and management.
• Managing their TikTok ad spend.
• Who it's for: Businesses that want to completely outsource their TikTok presence and see aggressive growth.

Structuring Your Offers: Packages, Pricing, and Paperwork

How you charge will determine your business's financial health. While project-based pricing can work, most successful agencies run on monthly retainers. This creates predictable recurring revenue for you and ensures a continuous effort for the client.

• Monthly Retainers: For a new agency, starter packages might range from $1,000 - $2,500/month. Full-service retainers could be $5,000/month or much higher, depending on the scope of work and the client's size. Don't undersell yourself, managing TikTok well is a valuable skill.
• Legal Contracts: Always use a contract. Don't start any work without a signed agreement that outlines the scope of work, payment terms, contract length, and how either party can terminate the relationship. You can find templates online, but it’s wise to have a lawyer review it.
• Business Structure: Set up a proper business entity, like an LLC, to protect your personal assets. This also makes you look more professional when it's time to send invoices and sign contracts.

Your First Five Clients: The Art of Outreach and Building a Pipeline

With skills and packages ready, the next challenge is finding clients. This is where most aspiring agency owners stall, but with the right strategy, you can build momentum quickly.

Leverage Your Existing Network

Your first client might be closer than you think. Post on your personal social media (LinkedIn is great for this) announcing your new agency and the services you offer. Share your own case study account. Reach out to friends, family, and former colleagues. You're not looking for a handout, you're looking for connections to business owners who might need help.

The "Free Value" Outreach Method

Cold outreach feels spammy when it's all about you. Shift the focus to being all about them. This method works incredibly well:

1. Find a Prospect: Identify a brand in your niche that is either not on TikTok or is doing a poor job. Look for blurry videos, off-trend content, or zero engagement.
2. Record a Quick Video Audit: Use a tool like Loom to record a 5-minute video of you auditing their existing TikTok (or their competitors'). Give them 2-3 genuine, highly specific pieces of advice they could implement immediately. For example: "I noticed you’re using this sound from 3 months ago. Here’s a new one that’s trending in the plumber niche right now. You could remake your last video with this sound and a faster hook, and it would likely perform much better."
3. Send a Simple Email: Send them an email with a subject like "A few ideas for your TikTok" and embed the Loom video. Don't ask for a meeting or try to sell them. Just say you're a fan of their brand and thought of a few ideas for them.

This approach gives value first. You're showing your expertise, not just talking about it. The response rate is dramatically higher than generic cold emails because you've already proven you can help.

Execution and Scaling: Building Systems for Growth

Landing clients is one thing, keeping them happy and growing your agency is another. Success here comes down to creating repeatable systems and workflows. Everything you do should be documented so it can eventually be handed off to a future team member.

The Client Onboarding Process

The moment a client signs the contract, a smooth onboarding process sets the right tone. Your process should include:

• Welcome Kit: A simple document that outlines communication channels, points of contact, and what to expect in the first 30 days.
• Intake Form: A questionnaire to gather brand assets (logos, fonts), access to their accounts, and important details about their brand voice, target audience, and goals.
• Kickoff Call: A meeting to finalize the strategy, set KPIs (Key Performance Indicators), and confirm the workflow for content approvals.

The Content Workflow

This is the engine of your agency. A clear workflow prevents chaos and ensures quality. It usually looks something like this:

1. Ideation: Research and brainstorm video ideas based on trends, content pillars, and client goals.
2. Scripting: Write out a brief script or shot list for each video.
3. Filming: The client films the raw footage (or your team does).
4. Editing: You (or your editor) edit the videos, adding captions, effects, and music.
5. Approval: Send the finished videos to the client for feedback using a system that's easy for them (a shared folder, a platform like Frame.io, etc.).
6. Scheduling: Once approved, schedule the content using a social media management tool.
7. Analytics & Reporting: At the end of each month, compile a report showing performance against your KPIs (views, follower growth, engagement rate, website clicks) and outlining the strategy for the next month.

When you're ready, you can hire specialists for each stage of this process - like a freelance video editor or a virtual assistant to handle scheduling. Your documented workflow will make it easy to plug them into your system.

Final Thoughts

Building a successful TikTok agency is about combining creative platform expertise with smart business systems. By choosing a niche, demonstrating your value with a solid proof of concept, and creating structured packages, you build a foundation that can attract and retain high-quality clients.

Creating those client workflows is where many new agencies get stuck in a mix of spreadsheets and endless email chains. From our own experience running marketing teams, we know the headaches of managing video approvals and scheduling content across different accounts. That’s why we built Postbase to be a video-first platform, it uses a clean, visual calendar so you can plan, schedule, and report on all your client TikToks and Reels from one place without wrestling with a tool built for the text-and-photo era of social media.