What should happen in the first 90 days with a new marketing agency for a supplement brand?
In the first 90 days, a new agency for a supplement brand should secure brand-owned access, audit every claim against your evidence, fix tracking, and agree a sales baseline before spending at scale. Then it should repair product pages, listings and email flows, launch a few campaigns from approved claims, and finish with a quarterly review against that baseline.
- Claims come before copy: a supplement agency should inventory every claim and match it to your substantiation before writing new ads.
- Days 1–30 are setup: access in the brand's name, a tracking audit and a signed-off baseline by sales channel.
- Days 31–90 are fixes and focused campaigns, judged on first orders and repeat orders, not clicks.
- Check subscriptions and reviews early: ROSCA and the FTC rule on fake reviews both shape what the agency can launch.
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What does a good 90-day onboarding look like for a supplement brand?
A good onboarding for a supplement brand runs in three phases. Days 1–30 settle access, data ownership, a claims inventory and a tracking audit. Days 31–60 fix product pages, listings and email flows, then launch tightly scoped campaigns. Days 61–90 optimize against first orders and repeat purchases, and end with a written quarterly review.
Supplement brands carry a risk most other healthcare clients do not. Every ad, product page, influencer post and email is a product claim. A new agency that writes fast copy before it understands your substantiation file can create legal exposure in the first week. So the order matters more than the speed.
The second risk is measurement. A brand that sells on its own store, on Amazon and perhaps in retail sees sales arrive from several places at once. If the agency does not agree on a baseline per channel before it spends money, nobody can tell later whether growth came from the new work or from a marketplace trend.
What to confirm on the kickoff call
- Which products and which sales channels are in scope for the first quarter.
- Who on the agency side will review claims, and who on your side approves them.
- What will be finished and checkable at day 30, day 60 and day 90.
- Which metric the first report will lead with: first orders, repeat orders or subscription starts.
This is the order we follow on supplement and D2C health brand engagements. You can use it as a yardstick for any agency you are considering.
What should the agency deliver week by week in the first 90 days?
Weeks one to four belong to access, paperwork, the claims inventory and a sales baseline. Weeks five to eight belong to fixes on product pages, listings and email, plus the first campaigns. Weeks nine to thirteen belong to optimization, creative testing and the quarterly review. Use the table below as a checklist on weekly calls.
| Weeks | What the agency does | What you should be able to check |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Kickoff; access list for store, ad accounts, analytics, email platform, marketplace seller account and social profiles; signs agreements, including a BAA where any protected health information could be involved | Signed paperwork; brand-owned accounts with the agency as a user; named account owner |
| Week 2 | Claims inventory: every claim on labels, product pages, listings, ads and emails, matched to your substantiation file | A spreadsheet of claims marked keep, revise or remove, reviewed by your regulatory adviser |
| Week 3 | Tracking audit: purchase events, subscription events, UTM rules, pixels and what consumer data each tag sends | A written list of every tag and the fixes needed |
| Week 4 | Baseline by channel: own store, marketplace, wholesale or retail; new versus returning customers; subscription starts and cancellations | A one-page baseline both sides sign off |
| Weeks 5–6 | Quick wins: product page rewrites within approved claims, listing clean-up, review request flow, welcome and replenishment emails | A dated change log |
| Weeks 7–8 | First campaigns: branded and high-intent search, one or two paid social tests with pre-approved creative, a small creator test with written disclosure rules | Campaigns tied to purchase events; creative approval records |
| Weeks 9–11 | Optimization: shift budget toward products and audiences that produce first orders and repeat orders; refresh creative; tune subscription offers within the rules | Weekly notes on what changed and why |
| Weeks 12–13 | Quarterly review against the baseline; plan for the next quarter | A written review with a recommendation for each channel |
Thirteen weeks is a calendar quarter, which is why the review lands at the end of week thirteen. If an agency proposes to skip the claims inventory or the baseline to launch faster, ask what they will measure against and who carries the risk if a claim is challenged.
What should be done in the first 30 days with a supplement marketing agency?
The first 30 days should produce brand-owned access to every account, a claims inventory checked against your evidence, a tracking audit that shows what each tag collects, and an agreed sales baseline by channel. None of this is visible to customers. All of it decides whether the next 60 days are safe and measurable.
Access and ownership
Your store, ad accounts, analytics, email platform, marketplace seller account, domain and social profiles should belong to the brand. The agency should be added as a user. Accounts created in an agency's name can mean lost data, audiences and reviews if you part ways later.
The claims inventory
This is the step that sets supplement onboarding apart. The agency should collect every claim you currently make and sort it. Under DSHEA, supplements may make structure/function claims but may not claim to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease. The FDA guidance on structure/function claims explains that the claim needs substantiation, the label needs the standard disclaimer, and FDA must be notified no later than 30 days after marketing with the claim. The FTC Health Products Compliance Guidance adds that health benefit claims need competent and reliable scientific evidence, generally randomized, controlled human trials. Your agency should not judge the evidence alone. It should flag questions for your regulatory counsel. Our label and claims review checklist shows the fields to capture.
Tracking and consumer health data
Many supplement brands are not HIPAA covered entities. That does not make health-related browsing data free to share. The FTC has acted against companies that passed consumers' health information to advertising platforms, and its Health Breach Notification Rule can apply to some health apps. Ask the agency to list each pixel and what it sends, especially on quiz, intake or condition-related pages. Confirm the right setup with counsel.
The baseline
Record orders, revenue, new versus returning customers, subscription starts and cancellations for each sales channel over a recent comparable period. Agree it in writing. Without it, day-90 results become a debate.
What quick wins and campaigns should come in days 31–90?
Days 31–60 should fix what loses sales today and launch a small number of campaigns built from approved claims. Days 61–90 should move budget toward products and audiences that bring first orders and repeat orders, refresh creative, and close with a quarterly review. Expect explainable progress, not a sudden spike.
Quick wins that usually come first
- Product pages: clear ingredient and dosage information drawn from the label, approved benefit language, the FDA disclaimer where a structure/function claim appears, and answers to the questions customers ask before buying.
- Marketplace listings: titles, bullets and images aligned with the same approved claims. Our Amazon listing compliance guide covers the common problems.
- Reviews: a neutral request sent to all buyers. The FTC rule banning fake reviews and testimonials took effect in October 2024 and bars fake reviews and incentives conditioned on positive or negative sentiment.
- Email: welcome, replenishment and win-back flows for consenting subscribers.
Subscriptions need their own check
If you sell subscribe-and-save or auto-ship, the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act requires clear disclosure of material terms before billing information is collected, express informed consent before charging, and a simple way to stop recurring charges. The FTC's broader click-to-cancel rule was vacated by a federal appeals court in July 2025, but ROSCA and state auto-renewal laws still apply. Your agency should review checkout and cancellation flows with counsel before pushing subscription offers.
The first campaigns
Most brands get the clearest early signal from branded and high-intent search plus one or two paid social tests. Google and Meta both restrict some supplement ingredients and health claims, so ad copy should come from the approved claims list. Creator posts need clear disclosure under the FTC Endorsement Guides. Optimize toward purchases and repeat purchases, not clicks or add-to-carts.
What does the supplement brand need to provide during onboarding?
The brand needs to provide account access, the substantiation file behind each claim, a person with authority to approve claims and budgets, honest sales data by channel, inventory and margin information by product, and time for a weekly call. Most onboarding delays come from missing evidence or slow approvals, so line these up before you sign.
- Access: invitations to every account in the week-one list, including your marketplace seller account if it is in scope.
- Evidence: the studies, formulation documents and any third-party testing behind each claim. If you rely on a clinical study, see our guide to marketing a supplement clinical study.
- A regulatory reviewer: in-house or outside counsel who signs off claims, influencer briefs and subscription terms.
- Commercial priorities: hero products, margin tier per product, stock levels and launch dates, so campaigns do not sell what you cannot ship.
- Brand assets: approved photography, label files and any certifications you are permitted to reference.
- Time: a weekly 30-minute call through the first quarter.
Agree on reporting rhythm early. On our Goals-Driven engagements, monthly goals are agreed with the client and tracked live on Ichelon Agency OS, with a report every Monday. Retainers start from $499/month, custom-scoped to the products and channels in play.
What are the red flags in a supplement agency's first 90 days?
The clearest red flags are copy written before anyone reviewed your claims, disease language in ads or listings, accounts opened in the agency's name, reports that lead with clicks or reach instead of orders, no written baseline, and influencer posts without disclosure. One of these is worth raising immediately. Several together suggest the onboarding is failing.
| Red flag | Why it matters | What to ask for |
|---|---|---|
| New copy before a claims inventory | Unreviewed claims can draw FTC or FDA attention and platform rejections | The claims inventory first, reviewed by your counsel |
| Words like treats, cures or prevents a disease | Disease claims are outside what a supplement may say under DSHEA | Rewrites as structure/function claims, with evidence attached |
| Accounts in the agency's name | You may lose audiences, data and history on exit | Brand-owned accounts with agency user access |
| Reports show reach and clicks only | Activity is not revenue | First orders, repeat orders and cost per first order by channel |
| Creator posts with no disclosure | Conflicts with the FTC Endorsement Guides | A written creator brief with disclosure rules and claim limits |
| Subscription offers pushed without checkout review | ROSCA requires clear terms, consent and simple cancellation | A checkout and cancellation review with counsel |
| Review requests only to happy buyers | Conflicts with FTC rules on reviews | One neutral request to every buyer |
If you are reviewing agency paperwork now, compare it with our supplement agency contract checklist. To see how we would run your first quarter, book a call with the US team.
Related pages from the US team
Supplement and D2C health brand marketing
How Ichelon Consulting US plans and runs supplement brand marketing.
Supplement agency contract checklist
What to agree in writing before onboarding begins.
Supplement agency RFP template
Questions to ask agencies before you choose one.
Supplement brand marketing audit checklist
Measure your starting point before day one.
Every practice welcome — Goals-Driven engagements from $499/mo
We benchmark your last 90 days, agree monthly goals with you, and track them live on Ichelon Agency OS with a report every Monday. Performance-Linked Payout Models are available. Our US leadership is based in Dallas, and strategy calls run in US business hours.
Common questions
What should a supplement brand expect in the first 30 days with a new marketing agency?
In the first 30 days a supplement brand should expect brand-owned access to every account, a claims inventory matched to its evidence file, a tracking audit listing each pixel and what it sends, and a written sales baseline by channel. Little of this is visible to customers, but it makes later campaigns safe and measurable.
Why does a supplement agency need a claims inventory before writing ads?
Every supplement ad, listing and email is a product claim. Under DSHEA, supplements may make structure/function claims with substantiation and the FDA disclaimer, but not disease claims. The FTC expects competent and reliable scientific evidence. A claims inventory lets counsel approve wording once, so new copy reuses language that has already been checked.
How long should it take to see results from a new supplement marketing agency?
Expect setup and fixes to fill most of the first 60 days, with campaign data building in days 61–90. Many brands see clearer signal from search and listing fixes before paid social settles. Judge the agency at day 90 against the written baseline, using first orders and repeat orders by channel rather than clicks.
What should a supplement brand provide to its agency during onboarding?
Provide account access, the substantiation behind each claim, a named regulatory reviewer, sales data by channel, product margins and stock levels, approved brand assets and time for a weekly call. Missing evidence and slow approvals cause most onboarding delays, so prepare them before signing the agreement.
What are warning signs that a supplement marketing agency onboarding is going wrong?
Warning signs include new copy written before claims are reviewed, disease language in ads or listings, accounts opened in the agency's name, reports that show clicks but not orders, no agreed baseline, undisclosed creator posts and subscription offers launched without a checkout review. Raise any one immediately and ask for a written fix.
A note on this guide: it explains marketing practice, not legal advice. Rules on privacy, advertising and insurance change and vary by state, so confirm anything compliance-related with your own counsel.
Planning to switch or hire a supplement agency?
Book a 30-minute call with the US team. We will walk through how we would run your first 90 days, starting with claims, tracking and a baseline.
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