Do social media agencies charge for meetings?

Key takeaways

Most social media agencies include a set amount of meeting time in the retainer, usually a monthly review call of 30 to 60 minutes. Extra meetings come out of the hours you pay for, at an indicative £75–£100 an hour. Shorter, regular calls cost less than long, frequent ones.

• A monthly 30 to 60 minute review call is usually included.
• Extra meetings use paid hours at roughly £75–£100 an hour.
• Every meeting hour is an hour not spent on content.
• Written updates replace many meetings at no cost.

Are meetings included in a retainer?

Usually some are. A typical retainer includes onboarding calls and a regular review, often monthly. Beyond that, meetings come out of the same hours that pay for content and replies. Check the scope says how much meeting time is included and how extra time is treated.

• Social media agency pricing in the UK
• What is included in a social media retainer?

How much does extra meeting time cost?

Extra meeting time is usually charged at the agency's hourly rate, indicatively £75–£100 an hour at typical UK retainer levels, or deducted from your included hours. A weekly hour-long call with two agency staff can use eight or more hours a month. These are indicative figures, not a GBL price list.

• Social media agency hourly rates in the UK

Why do meetings matter to the fee?

Agency hours are finite. Time spent in meetings is time not spent writing, designing or replying. A retainer that looks generous on paper can deliver less content if much of it goes on calls. The right balance is enough contact to stay aligned, and no more.

How do you keep meetings useful?

Keep a fixed monthly review with a short agenda: results, what worked, what changes next month and any upcoming events. Handle approvals and questions in writing between calls. Invite only the people who make decisions.

• One monthly review with a set agenda.
• Approvals in a shared calendar, not on calls.
• Only decision makers invited.
• Notes and actions sent after each call.

• A monthly social media review you can do in 30 minutes

When are more meetings worth paying for?

More contact is worth it during onboarding, launches, rebrands and crises, when decisions need to be made quickly. Outside those periods, weekly calls rarely add enough to justify the hours they take from content.

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see with UK clients moving from another agency: weekly status calls took up much of the retainer, yet posts were still late. Global Bridge Labs (GBL) runs a monthly review with a written report and uses a shared calendar for approvals, so more of the fee goes on the work itself.

• See client work
• Social Media Marketing for UK businesses

Meeting time checklist

Agree these in the scope.

• Meetings included each month.
• How extra meeting time is charged.
• Who attends from each side.
• How approvals happen between calls.
• When extra calls are expected, such as launches.

• Social media agency expenses: travel, shoots and extras
• Will my social media agency work for my competitors?

Next step

Tell us how often you like to meet suppliers. We will suggest a rhythm that keeps you informed without eating into the work.