What if our agency created the accounts?

Ask them to make your business the owner and keep manager access for themselves. If they refuse or stall, check your contract before you escalate.

Is it safe to share one login with our provider?

No. Give each person their own login with the lowest access level they need. Shared logins make it hard to remove access later.

Multi-factor authentication asks for a second proof, such as a code on your phone, so a stolen password alone is not enough to take over the account.

Marketing Account Ownership Inventory

Make a spreadsheet with one row per account and five columns: Account, Owner, Who else has access, Multi-factor authentication (MFA) on?, and Recovery email or phone. Your business should own every account, and vendors should have their own logins. Never store passwords in the sheet; use a password manager.

← All information topics

Website, domain, and email

These accounts decide whether your website and email stay online. Losing one can take the business offline.

Domain registrar: confirm the account is in your business's name.Owner · Once
DNS: note where DNS is managed (often the registrar or host).Either · Once
Hosting: confirm you have your own admin login.Owner · Once
Business email: confirm an admin account belongs to the business.Owner · Once
Website admin: confirm at least one owner-level login is yours.Owner · Once
Turn on MFA for each of these accounts.Owner · Once

Google accounts

Use a business-controlled Google account, not a personal Gmail or an agency account, as the owner.

Google Business Profile: confirm the business is primary owner.Owner · Once
Google Analytics 4 (GA4): confirm the business has Administrator access.Owner · Once
Search Console: confirm the business is a verified owner.Owner · Once
Google Ads: confirm the account and billing are under your business.Owner · Once
Local Services Ads (LSA): confirm your business controls the account and billing.Owner · Once
Record the recovery phone and email for the owning Google account.Owner · Once

Social, reviews, and phone tracking

These accounts are easy to forget until someone leaves.

Meta (Facebook and Instagram): confirm the business portfolio and Pages are owned by you.Owner · Once
Review sites such as Yelp or industry directories: record who claimed each listing.Owner · Once
Bing Places and Apple Business: record the login owner.Either · Once
Call tracking: confirm who owns the tracking numbers and what happens to them if you cancel.Owner · Once
Booking, scheduling, and form tools: record the account owner.Owner · Once

Keep the inventory current

An inventory is only useful if someone updates it.

Store the inventory in a shared business folder with limited access.Owner · Once
Review who has access to every account.Owner · Quarterly
Remove access the day an employee or vendor leaves.Owner · When something changes
Update recovery emails and phones when staff change.Owner · When something changes
Check domain and SSL/TLS certificate renewal dates.Owner · Quarterly

Marketing Account Ownership Inventory

Website, domain, and email

Google accounts

Social, reviews, and phone tracking

Keep the inventory current

How to use this resource.

Verify against current sources.

Read the reasoning behind this resource.

Turn the checklist into focused monthly work.

Marketing Account Ownership Inventory

Agency offboarding

Questions before hiring

Monthly owner checklist

Turn the checklist into focused monthly work.