Should an agency be a partner or own your portfolio?
Partner access and portfolio ownership give an agency very different levels of control over your business.
Is this your situation?
You are deciding whether an agency should connect to your business as a partner or hold ownership of your portfolio. You want to know which choice keeps you in control of your assets.
What it is
A partner is another business, such as an agency or client, that your business works with. Adding a partner gives that business access to assets you share with them, such as Pages, Instagram accounts or ad accounts. A partner must have its own business portfolio before it can be given access to your assets. A partner with full control of a shared asset can manage everything about it but cannot share it with another business. Only the organization that owns a business asset can share it with another business portfolio.
How Facebook handles this
- Partners can see assets shared with them in their own business portfolios.
- Giving a partner access requires full control of your business portfolio.
- Partners with partial access to a shared asset are limited to the specific tasks assigned.
- Removing a partner from a business portfolio requires full control of the business portfolio.
- Removing a partner is a different action from removing someone in your organization.
Side by side
| Aspect | Partner access | Portfolio ownership |
|---|---|---|
| Who holds assets | Only the organization that owns a business asset can share it with another business portfolio. | You want the agency to work on assets your organization owns, not the agency. |
| Access level | A partner can be given either full control or partial access to a shared asset. | Full control can manage everything in the portfolio, including people, tools and assets. |
| Deleting assets | A partner with full control can manage everything but cannot share the asset with another business. | Full control of the portfolio can delete it. |
| Removing access | Removing a partner requires full control of the portfolio. | Removing a partner differs from removing someone in your organization. |
Common mistakes
- Treating partner access as ownership A partner with full control of an asset can manage it but cannot share it with another business.Why it happens: You assume control of one asset equals owning the whole portfolio.Already happened: See who really owns a Facebook Page. Reclaim a Facebook Page From a Rogue Agency or Employee
- Giving an agency portfolio-level control by mistake A partner's assigned permissions may prevent you from giving full control of that asset.Why it happens: You expect to grant full control and find the option missing.
- Assuming the agency can always be added as a partner A partner must have their own business portfolio to get access.Why it happens: You look for the agency before they have set up a portfolio.
If this changes who is in control
You want to confirm whether your agency holds partner access or ends up owning the portfolio outright. Review how your agency relationships are set up using the partner access checklist.
Quick reference
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Can a partner share your assets further? | A partner with full control can manage everything but cannot share the asset with another business. |
| Who can give a partner access? | Only people with full control of the business portfolio can share assets with partners. |
| Who can remove a partner? | Removing a partner requires full control of the business portfolio. |
| What must a partner have first? | A partner must have a business portfolio before being given access. |
| Can partial-access partners assign full control? | With partial access, a partner can only assign people in their own portfolio the assigned tasks. |
| Is removing a partner the same as removing a person? | Removing a partner is different from removing someone in your organization. |
Frequently asked questions
Does giving an agency full control of a Page mean they own it?
Full control of a business asset can be given without full control of the business portfolio.
Can an agency share my Page with its own clients?
A partner with full control of a business asset cannot share it with another business.
What does an agency need before I can share assets with it?
It must have its own business portfolio.
Who can remove an agency's access?
Someone with full control of your business portfolio.
Keeping track of who has access
Confusion between partner access and ownership often builds over months as different people set up agency relationships. Delvia helps you see which agencies hold partner access and which hold ownership, in one view.
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