Done For You, Done With You, or advisory: what the engagement models mean.

The Three Models

Every PBA listing states how the practice works: Done For You, Done With You, or a mixture of the two. Advisory work is a lighter form of Done With You and is worth understanding on its own.

Done For You

The practice does the work on your behalf: writing, design, social media management, website updates, media outreach, speaking applications. You supply raw material through interviews, recordings and approvals, and the practice turns it into finished output.

It suits people whose time is the scarcest resource: executives, busy founders, athletes in season. The trade off is distance. The more someone else produces in your name, the more effort it takes to keep it sounding like you. Good Done For You practices invest heavily in learning your voice, and they never publish in your name without your approval.

Done With You

You do the work, and the practice directs it. Expect strategy sessions, frameworks, templates, assignments, and review of what you produce. You write the posts, record the videos and take the meetings; the practice tells you what to do next and how to do it better.

It suits people who want to own the skill, who enjoy creating, or whose voice is hard for anyone else to replicate. The trade off is your time. A Done With You engagement only works if you do the homework.

Advisory

Advisory engagements provide strategy and judgment without execution or close coaching. They often take the form of periodic sessions or on-call access. Advisory suits people with a team that can execute, such as a communications department or an assistant, or people who mainly need a sounding board for decisions.

Mixtures

Most practices blend models. A common pattern is Done For You for the foundation, such as positioning, website and profiles, followed by Done With You for ongoing content. Ask exactly which parts are which, because "we handle it" can mean very different things.

How Practices Charge

Separate from the model is the billing structure. You will usually see one of these:

• Monthly retainer: an ongoing fee for an agreed scope. Common for Done For You work, where output continues month to month.
• Fixed project: a defined deliverable for a defined fee, such as an audit, a positioning project, a website, or a launch.
• Per session: a fee for each strategy or coaching session. Common in advisory and Done With You work.
• Hourly: less common in personal branding, more common in consulting.

Each structure has strengths. A retainer suits ongoing execution but can drift if the scope is vague. A project has a clear end but may leave you without support afterward. Per session billing is flexible but depends on you keeping momentum between sessions. This wiki does not quote prices; every PBA listing shows a price tier on one scale, and every listed practice has committed to stating fees and terms up front.

Choosing the Right Model

Ask yourself four questions.

1. How many hours a week can I honestly give this?
2. Do I want to learn to do this myself, or have it done?
3. How distinctive is my voice, and how hard would it be for someone else to write as me?
4. Do I already have people who can execute a plan?

Little time and no team points toward Done For You. Time and a wish to build the skill points toward Done With You. A capable team points toward advisory. If you are unsure, start with a fixed project, such as an audit or a positioning engagement, and decide on the ongoing model once you have seen how the practice thinks. Find Your Match asks how involved you want to be and weighs it in every score.

What to Get in Writing

Whatever the model, the proposal should say what is delivered, how often, by whom, what you are expected to provide, and how approvals work. For Done For You work it should also say who owns the accounts and content, and that nothing publishes in your name without your sign off.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Done For You mean in personal branding?

The practice carries out the work on your behalf, such as writing, design, social media and outreach, using material and approvals you provide. You spend less time, but you need a clear approval process so the output still sounds like you.

What does Done With You mean?

You do the work yourself under the practice's direction. It provides strategy, frameworks, coaching and feedback. It takes more of your time and builds your own skill.

Is a retainer or a project better?

Neither is better in general. Retainers suit ongoing execution; projects suit defined deliverables like an audit or a website. Many clients start with a project and move to a retainer once they trust the practice.

Can I switch models partway through an engagement?

Often yes, if the agreement allows it. Ask at the start how a change of scope is handled and how much notice either side must give.

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