Ownership and access
Who owns the account, who controls access, and what happens if the relationship changes later?
Onboarding checklist
Questions to Ask Before Onboarding an Agency Ad Account Provider
A buyer who cannot ask the right questions before onboarding ends up discovering the answers later, when the cost of confusion is much higher.
This guide gives buyers the question set they should use before they say yes: ownership, funding, qualification, support, appeals, reporting, and legal reachability. It is intentionally practical because the category punishes vague assumptions.
Decision lens
Compare trade-offs clearly before you commit to a path.
Decision framing
If a provider cannot answer these clearly, the buyer risk is still too high
Payment and funding
Which payment methods are supported publicly, who bears payment-method fees, and what funding mechanics should be clarified before launch?
Eligibility and acceptance
Which categories are accepted, which are refused, and what does compliance review actually mean in practice?
Support and appeals
What support is included after onboarding, what must the client still provide, and what outcomes are never guaranteed?
Reporting and operating rhythm
How are reporting, issue handling, and optimization support structured after the account goes live?
Legal and trust reachability
Are privacy, terms, acceptable use, support, and contact paths visible before form submission, or only after the sales process starts?
Question bank
Ask these questions before you commit to onboarding
- How do you define account ownership and who controls critical access?
- Which payment methods are available publicly, and who absorbs payment-method fees?
- What categories are hard no's, and which cases require additional review?
- What does support include after onboarding, and how are appeal-related cases handled?
- How are reporting and ongoing optimization support structured?
- Where can I review your privacy, terms, acceptable use, and support pages before submitting?
Key note
The onboarding conversation is where most category risk gets hidden
Aggressive provider pages are designed to make the buyer ask fewer questions, not better questions. That is usually where the long-term trust problem starts.
Review how Portcast onboarding works
FAQ
Questions that usually block the decision
Short answers to common questions that come up during provider evaluation.
Why is this guide separate from the provider-evaluation guide?
The evaluation page covers decision criteria. This guide focuses specifically on the question set a buyer should use right before onboarding.
Should a buyer ask about legal guides before onboarding?
Yes. In this category, legal reachability and trust-page visibility are not minor details. They are part of the buyer's due diligence.
What is the right next page after this checklist?
Usually the onboarding process page, followed by the payment, ownership, and support pages, then contact if the fit still looks strong.