ChatGPT answers, unedited

For an agency with a remote team, I’d shortlist Planable and Agorapulse. Your requirements are unusually specific: comments/feedback should stay attached to each post, issues should be resolvable, and clients should be able to approve individual posts rather than approving an entire calendar.

My shortlist

Why I'd look at Planable first

Planable is particularly built around content collaboration, rather than just social scheduling. Team members can comment, reply, react, resolve feedback, tag people, use annotations/suggestions, and maintain versions directly on a post. Planable Planable

Most importantly for you, you can send an individual post to a specific client for approval, and the client gets a dedicated approval queue. Approval records show who approved and when. Planable Planable

You can structure it roughly like:

Writer → Account manager → Client → Scheduled

with feedback happening directly on the post instead of:

Slack → email → Google Doc → "which version did you approve?" → Slack again.

Planable also supports required approval and more complex multi-level approval workflows. Planable

When I'd choose Agorapulse instead

Choose Agorapulse if you want the collaboration/approval system plus a stronger all-in-one social management operation, particularly around the social inbox.

It supports external client reviewers through Shared Calendars, where clients can comment, request changes, or approve individual posts. AgoraPulse Support

It also has multi-step post approval workflows and, notably, Inbox Approval Workflows: you can require a second person to approve a team member's outgoing reply before it actually goes live. AgoraPulse Support AgoraPulse Support

That latter feature could be valuable if your agency wants to control not just scheduled posts but also client-facing community management/replies.

My practical recommendation

If your core workflow is:

Create → collaborate → client comments → revise → client approves → publish

I'd start with Planable.

If it's:

Create/schedule → client approval + social inbox + team permissions + controlled replies

I'd investigate Agorapulse.

I wouldn't start with Buffer for this particular requirement: it has agency permissions and approval access, but its approval model is less aligned with the rich post-level feedback/resolution workflow you're describing. support.buffer.com

If you tell me how many clients, team members, and social accounts you manage, I can narrow this down further and compare the likely plans/cost structure for your agency.

For a remote agency managing content/posts through client approval, I’d look for a tool with:

• Per-post client approval/rejection
• Internal comments and threaded feedback
• Clear revision → resubmit → approve workflows
• Client access without exposing internal agency discussions
• Content calendar and scheduling
• Approval history/audit trail
• Multiple clients/brands and team permissions

A few common categories fit well: dedicated social-media approval platforms, project-management tools with approval workflows, or all-in-one agency platforms.

If you tell me how many clients/posts you manage and which channels (Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.), I can compare the current options and recommend a setup.

For a remote agency managing social/content work, I’d prioritize a tool that has:

• Per-post comments and internal discussion
• Clear review → revision → approval workflows
• Client approval requests without giving clients your whole workspace
• Content calendars / scheduling
• Notifications and an audit trail of who approved what

Best fits

1. Planable — probably my first choice. It’s built around content collaboration and approvals, so clients can review individual posts, comment, request changes, and approve. Great for agencies.
2. Airtable — best if you want highly customizable workflows. You can build statuses like Draft → Internal Review → Client Review → Changes Requested → Approved → Scheduled, with automations and client-facing views.
3. ClickUp — best if the social workflow is part of a broader agency operation. Strong tasks, comments, approvals, dependencies, and team management, though the client-review experience isn't as specialized as Planable.
4. Frame.io — excellent if you're primarily reviewing video/design assets and need detailed, asset-level client feedback. Less ideal as the central social publishing calendar.

My pick: If your main problem is “client needs to approve each post before we publish it”, start with Planable. If you need a broader agency operating system with lots of custom processes, choose Airtable or ClickUp.

If you tell me how many clients/posts you manage per month and whether you also need scheduling/publishing, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 options and compare pricing/features.

For a remote social/content agency, I’d look for a workflow that handles:

• Client approval per post
• Internal comments and @mentions
• Revision/resolution tracking
• Clear “needs client / needs internal / approved” states
• Notifications without relying on email
• Multiple clients/brands in one workspace
• Approval history/audit trail

Best fits

• Planable — probably my first pick if the core workflow is content → client comments → revisions → approval → publishing. It’s designed around post-level collaboration and approvals.
• Sprout Social — better if you also need substantial publishing, analytics, inbox, and team workflow capabilities. More enterprise-oriented.
• Hootsuite — strong publishing/approval infrastructure, particularly for larger teams, though the collaboration experience may feel less agency-focused than Planable.
• ClickUp — excellent if you want to manage the whole agency operation, not just social posts. You can build custom statuses, client approval tasks, comments, automations, and revision workflows, but you’ll need more setup.
• Frame.io — especially good if your “posts” involve lots of video/design assets and you need detailed creative review rather than primarily social scheduling.

My recommendation: if you're asking specifically for “each post gets sent to the client, client comments, we resolve/revise it, then client approves”, start with Planable. If you need a broader agency project-management system around that process, look at ClickUp.

If you tell me how many clients/team members you have and whether you need the tool to actually publish to Instagram/LinkedIn/etc., I can narrow it down to 2–3 options and compare pricing/workflows.

For an agency with a remote team + client approval on every individual post, I’d prioritize a tool where feedback, revisions, approval status, and publishing are all attached to the specific post/version—not scattered across Slack/email. Tareno Tareno

My shortlist

• Planable — best overall for your use case. It’s particularly strong for visual post review, client comments, internal notes, approval workflows, and keeping feedback attached to the content. It also supports one-click approval and approval history. Planable Tareno

Pick this if: your biggest problem is “client says change this, designer fixes it, then which version did they approve?”

• Tareno — best if you want a broader agency operating system. It combines client workspaces, content boards, approvals, scheduling, reporting, repurposing, roles, and workflow automation. Tareno

Pick this if: you want to manage the whole lifecycle: brief → production → internal review → client approval → scheduling → reporting → repurposing.

• Sprout Social — best for a larger/more mature operation. Its approval workflows support multiple steps and multiple users, with permissions around who can publish/approve. Sprout Social Support

Pick this if: you also need sophisticated social inbox, analytics, listening, and enterprise-style permissions.

• SocialPilot / Sendible — worth considering if agency scheduling, client management and reporting are more important than deep review collaboration. Current comparisons put SocialPilot toward agency scheduling approvals and Sendible toward client dashboards/reporting. Tareno

What I'd implement

For your team, I'd make the workflow:

Brief → Draft → Internal review → Changes → Client review → Client comments → Revision → Client approval → Scheduled → Published

And make these rules non-negotiable:

• Every post has an owner.
• Client feedback stays on the post, not in Slack.
• Client can Approve or Request changes on that exact version.
• An unapproved post cannot be published.
• Revision history makes it obvious what was approved.
• Internal comments are separated from client-facing comments.
• Approval triggers the next step automatically.

That matches the core characteristics of a proper agency approval workflow: version-specific feedback, approval gates, and a record of who approved what. planmygrid.com lemonpost.co

My pick: Planable if you're primarily solving the collaboration/approval problem. Tareno if you're trying to build a more complete agency operations workflow around it.

If you tell me how many clients, team members, and social accounts you manage, I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 and compare the pricing/features for your exact setup.

For a remote agency managing social/content work, I’d look for a workflow that handles:

• Internal comments and threaded feedback
• Assigning/resolving revisions
• Client approval per individual post
• Clear status like Draft → Internal Review → Client Approval → Approved → Scheduled
• Client access without exposing your whole workspace
• Notifications and an audit trail

Best fits

• Planable — probably my first choice if this is specifically social-media posts. Built around content approval, comments, client collaboration, and approval workflows.
• ContentStudio — good if you also want publishing/scheduling and broader social-media management alongside approvals.
• Hootsuite — stronger as an all-in-one social management platform; useful if approval is part of a larger publishing operation.
• Asana — excellent for internal agency project management and client review workflows, but you'd generally pair it with a social publishing tool.
• ClickUp — very flexible if you want to build a custom agency workflow, though it can take more configuration.

If your main requirement is “client needs to approve/reject/comment on each post,” I’d start with Planable. If you tell me roughly how many clients/posts you manage and whether you need scheduling/publishing too, I can narrow it to the best 2–3 options and compare pricing/workflows.

For a remote agency team that needs comment/resolution workflows and client approval requests tied to each post, you’ll usually want a social media/content approval platform rather than a general project manager.

Here are strong options depending on your workflow:

Best all-around agency workflow tools

• planable.io — Probably the closest fit for “client reviews a post, leaves comments, approves/rejects, team resolves feedback.”

• Post-level comments and discussions
• Approval workflows (client approval before publishing)
• Version history
• Internal vs client comments
• Good for agencies managing multiple brands
• aproove.com — More focused on creative review/approval workflows.

• Useful if your agency handles lots of visual assets
• Markups, annotations, approvals, audit trails
• filestage.io — Strong for client proofing.

• Clients can comment directly on designs/videos/files
• Approval status tracking
• Good if social posts are part of a larger creative production pipeline

If you also need scheduling + publishing

• sproutsocial.com

• More enterprise social management
• Client approvals, permissions, reporting
• Better if analytics and publishing at scale matter
• buffer.com

• Simpler and cheaper
• Good for smaller teams
• Less robust for complex client review loops
• hootsuite.com

• Mature social management platform
• Team permissions and approvals
• Often used by larger organizations

If you want a project-management hub

• clickup.com or asana.com can work if your process is more like: - Draft post → internal review → client task → revisions → approval → publish
• But they are less natural for “client comments directly on the post creative.”

My shortlist for an agency:

1. Planable — best match for social posts + client approvals.
2. Filestage — best if clients review lots of designs/videos.
3. Sprout Social — best if publishing, analytics, and enterprise permissions matter.
4. ClickUp + a proofing tool — best if you already run your whole agency in a PM system.

A typical agency workflow would be:

Content calendar → Draft post → Internal approval → Client approval request → Client comments → Team resolves comments → Client approves → Schedule/publish → Reporting

If you tell me your stack (Slack, Notion, ClickUp, HubSpot, etc.), number of clients, and whether you need Instagram/TikTok/LinkedIn publishing, I can narrow it down.

For a remote agency managing social/content posts, I’d look for a tool with:

• Per-post client approval — client can approve/reject and leave comments directly on the post.
• Resolution workflow — comments become actionable tasks, with statuses like Open → In progress → Resolved → Re-approval.
• Client-specific access — clients see only their own projects/content.
• Internal vs. client comments — crucial for remote agency teams.
• Content calendar + approvals — ideally without needing to stitch together several apps.
• Audit trail/versioning — so you know what was approved and what changed afterward.

My shortlist

If this is specifically social-media content, I’d start with Planable. If you're approving lots of designs, videos, PDFs, ads, or other creative assets, Ziflow or Filestage are stronger.

If you tell me (1) what kind of posts/assets you manage, (2) team size, and (3) whether clients need to log in or can approve by email/link, I can narrow it to the best 2–3 options and compare pricing/features.

For a remote agency managing social content for multiple clients, I’d use Planable.

Why it fits your workflow:

• Per-post client approvals — clients can review and approve individual posts.
• Comments and resolution — feedback stays attached to the actual post, rather than getting lost in Slack/email.
• Team workflow — assign work and move content through drafting → internal review → client approval → scheduled.
• Multi-client workspaces — useful when your agency manages several brands.
• Approval visibility — you can pull pending approvals across clients instead of chasing people manually.

I’d structure the workflow as:

Draft → Internal review → Client feedback/comments → Resolve → Client approval → Scheduled

I found Planable specifically positioned for agency teams and multi-brand organizations, including client approvals and content calendars. A plugin connection is available if you want to use it with ChatGPT.

For a remote agency workflow where you need internal comments, issue resolution, and client approval requests on individual posts/assets, you’ll want a client collaboration + content approval platform rather than just a project manager.

Here are strong options depending on your workflow:

Best overall for agencies: Filestage

• Upload designs, videos, PDFs, social posts, campaigns, etc.
• Clients can comment directly on the asset.
• Clients can approve/reject with a clear audit trail.
• Version control prevents “which file is final?” problems.
• Good for agencies managing many clients.

Best if your workflow is:

Draft → internal review → client comments → revisions → client approval → publish

Best for social media/content teams: Planable

• Built around social posts.
• Clients can comment and approve individual posts.
• Visual calendar view.
• Approval flows per client/team.
• Good for marketing agencies managing Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.

Best if your workflow is:

Create 30 posts → send approval requests → client approves each post → schedule

Best all-in-one agency workspace: ClickUp

• Tasks can represent each post/deliverable.
• Comments, mentions, statuses, approvals, automations.
• Client guests can be added with limited access.
• Strong for internal operations.

Best if you need:

Content + client projects + deadlines + team management in one place

Best for design-heavy agencies: Ziflow

• Very strong markup/comment workflows.
• Clients can annotate creative files.
• Approval routing and proof history.
• Common in creative production teams.

Best if you produce:

• Ads
• Videos
• Packaging
• Brand assets
• Design revisions

Best budget/simple option: Trello + approval checklist

• Each card = a post.
• Comments + attachments.
• Move cards through: - Draft
• Internal Review
• Client Review
• Approved
• Scheduled

Works, but client approvals are less polished.

My recommendation by agency type

A common agency stack is:

• ClickUp → internal project management
• Planable → social post creation + client approvals
• Google Drive/Dropbox → asset storage
• Slack/Teams → internal communication

If you tell me your agency type (social media, web/design, video, ads, etc.) and number of clients/team members, I can narrow it down.

My recommendation by agency type

For a remote agency team that needs comment threads, resolution workflows, and client approvals on each individual post, you’re looking for a content collaboration / social media approval platform, not just a project manager.

Good fits:

Best overall: Planable

• Clients can review each post individually
• Inline comments on posts
• Comment resolution (mark discussions done)
• Approval workflows (client approval required before publishing)
• Roles/permissions for clients, editors, managers
• Good for agencies handling many brands

Best if your workflow is:

Draft → Internal review → Client comments → Revisions → Client approval → Publish

Best for larger agencies: Sprout Social

• Strong approval workflows
• Client/team permissions
• Publishing + reporting in one place
• Better when you manage many accounts and need analytics
• Usually more expensive

Best for creative-heavy teams: Filestage

• Excellent commenting and approval experience
• Clients don’t need much training
• Great for videos, graphics, campaigns, PDFs, and social assets
• Less focused on direct social publishing

Best if you already use project management: ClickUp or Asana

• Custom workflows: - Post idea
• Copy draft
• Design ready
• Client review
• Changes requested
• Approved
• Scheduled
• Good for mixed agency work
• Client commenting is less purpose-built than Planable/Filestage

If you mainly do social media management

I’d shortlist:

1. Planable — best match for “approve this exact post”
2. Sprout Social — best for enterprise/social teams
3. Filestage — best for creative review
4. ClickUp — best if you need a full agency operating system

A typical agency stack would be:

• Planable → client post approvals
• Slack → internal communication
• ClickUp/Asana → projects, deadlines, assignments
• Google Drive/Dropbox → asset storage

If you tell me:

• number of clients/brands,
• whether posts are for Instagram/LinkedIn/TikTok/etc.,
• whether clients need to approve every post,
• and your monthly budget,

I can narrow it to 1–2 options.

For a remote agency managing social posts with client approvals, comments, and resolution workflows, I’d look at a social-media approval/workflow platform rather than a generic project manager.

A few strong fits:

• Sprout Social — best if you want robust client approval, internal workflows, comments, and publishing in one system.
• Planable — particularly good for agencies: clients can review individual posts, comment, request changes, and approve content.
• Hootsuite — mature publishing/approval workflows and good for larger teams.
• Agorapulse — good combination of publishing, approvals, collaboration, and social inbox management.

My pick for your workflow

If the core requirement is:

Draft post → internal review → client gets approval request → client comments/requests changes → team resolves → client approves → publish

I'd start with Planable. It's designed around collaborative content review, so the client doesn't need to participate in a complicated project-management system.

If you're also managing lots of incoming social comments/messages and engagement, I'd lean toward Sprout Social or Agorapulse.

If you tell me roughly how many clients, posts/month, and team members you have, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 options and compare pricing/workflows.

For an agency with a remote team, you’ll want a tool that handles content production → internal review → client approval → revisions → final signoff. The best fit depends on whether you’re mostly doing social/content, design, marketing campaigns, or general client work.

Best options

1. clickup.com — best all-around agency workflow

Good if you need:

• Client-specific projects/spaces
• Tasks with comments and @mentions
• Proofing/revision discussions
• Approval statuses (“Needs Client Review,” “Approved,” “Changes Requested”)
• Automations and dashboards

Typical setup:

• Task = one post/asset
• Statuses: - Draft
• Internal Review
• Client Review
• Revisions Needed
• Approved
• Scheduled/Published

2. frame.io — best for video/design-heavy agencies

Good if clients need to:

• Comment directly on a video frame
• Request specific changes
• Approve final versions
• Avoid messy email feedback

Especially useful for:

• Video editors
• Creative agencies
• Production teams

3. asana.com — clean client collaboration

Good for:

• Marketing calendars
• Campaigns
• Client-facing task approvals
• Remote teams that prefer simplicity

4. monday.com — visual agency operations

Good if you like:

• Kanban-style boards
• Client pipelines
• Content calendars
• Easy status tracking

5. planable.io — best for social media agencies

Built around:

• Individual social posts
• Client approval flows
• Comments on posts
• Scheduling after approval

My recommendation for your use case

If you’re an agency managing many client posts, I’d usually choose:

• Social media agency: Planable + ClickUp
• Creative/video agency: Frame.io + ClickUp
• Full-service marketing agency: ClickUp alone (with client guest access)

A solid workflow would look like:

1. Team creates post draft
2. Internal reviewer leaves comments
3. Client gets approval request
4. Client comments directly on the post
5. Revisions happen in the same thread
6. Client clicks approve
7. Post moves to scheduling

Avoid using email for approvals if possible—the biggest win is keeping feedback attached to the actual asset.

For a remote agency team that needs post-by-post client approvals, comments, revisions, and resolution tracking, you’ll usually want a client collaboration / proofing platform rather than a generic project manager.

Here are strong options depending on your workflow:

My picks by agency type

Social media/content agency
→ Planable
Typical workflow:

1. Writer/designer creates post draft
2. Internal review
3. Client gets approval request
4. Client comments on the exact post
5. Team resolves comments
6. Client approves
7. Post moves to scheduled/published

Creative/design agency
→ Filestage or Ziflow
Better if you need:

• PDF/design markups
• multiple client reviewers
• legal/brand approvals
• audit trails

Full-service remote agency
→ Combine:

• ClickUp for project management
• Filestage or Planable for client approvals

A good agency workflow usually needs these features:

• Per-asset approval status: Draft → Internal Review → Client Review → Changes Requested → Approved → Published
• Comment threads attached to the actual post/file
• Assigned owner for each revision
• Client-only guest access
• Approval deadlines/reminders
• Version history so nobody asks “which file is final?”

If you mean social posts specifically (Instagram/LinkedIn/TikTok/etc.), I’d lean toward Planable. If you mean ads, graphics, videos, websites, and creative deliverables, I’d lean Filestage/Ziflow.

For a remote agency team, you’ll want something that handles content production + internal comments + client approvals at the post/asset level. The best fit depends on whether you’re managing mostly social posts, creative assets, websites, or broader client work.

Best options for agency workflows

Planable — best for social/content agencies

• Client sees each post exactly as it will appear.
• Clients can comment, request edits, and approve/reject individual posts.
• Approval flows can be set per client.
• Good for distributed teams because everything is tied to the actual post.
• Works well for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X, etc.

Best if your workflow is:

Draft → internal review → client feedback → revisions → client approval → schedule

ContentCal / Adobe alternatives — good for structured calendars

• Strong calendar planning.
• Better if you manage many brands and need visibility across campaigns.
• Adobe absorbed ContentCal, so many teams now look at Adobe’s marketing tools or alternatives.

Sprout Social — best for larger agencies

• Client approvals and permissions.
• Reporting, publishing, listening, and team workflows.
• More enterprise-oriented.
• Usually more expensive.

Airtable + automation — best customizable option

Build a content pipeline:

Statuses

• Idea
• Copywriting
• Design
• Internal review
• Client review
• Changes requested
• Approved
• Scheduled
• Published

Fields

• Client
• Platform
• Caption
• Creative file
• Due date
• Client approval status
• Feedback/comments

Good if you have unique processes across clients.

ClickUp — best if content is only one part of your agency

• Tasks per post.
• Comments and attachments.
• Client guests.
• Approval statuses.
• Good for agencies doing marketing, design, web, SEO, etc.

My shortlist by agency type

For a typical remote social/content agency, I’d start with Planable because the client approval experience is the closest to “approve this exact post” rather than “approve a task.”

If you tell me:

1. number of clients,
2. platforms (Instagram/LinkedIn/etc.),
3. whether clients need login access or just email approvals, and
4. your budget per month,

I can narrow it down.

For a remote agency team that needs comment threads, resolution workflows, and client approvals on each post, you’ll want a tool built around content review and approval, not just project management.

Here are the strongest options depending on your workflow:

Best overall for social/content agencies

Planable

Best fit if you manage social posts, campaigns, and client approvals.

• Clients can comment directly on individual posts
• Approval workflows (approve, reject, request changes)
• Version history and revisions
• Content calendar view
• Separate workspaces per client
• Good for agencies with many accounts

Great for: social media agencies, marketing teams, client-facing content reviews.

Best for design-heavy creative approvals

Frame.io

Best if posts include video, motion graphics, ads, or creative assets.

• Timestamped comments on videos
• Client review links
• Approval states
• Version comparison
• Clear “what needs fixing” workflows

Great for: video agencies, ad creatives, production teams.

Best all-in-one agency project management

ClickUp

Good if you need approvals plus internal operations.

• Tasks per post
• Comments and mentions
• Custom approval statuses
• Client guests
• Automations
• Docs, calendars, dashboards

Great for: agencies managing strategy → creation → review → publishing.

Best for polished client collaboration

Ziflow

Designed specifically for creative proofing.

• Client proof links
• Markups/comments
• Approval routing
• Automated reminders
• Audit trails

Great for: larger creative agencies with formal approval processes.

If your workflow is mostly social scheduling

Sprout Social

or

Buffer

These are better when the main need is:

• scheduling
• publishing
• client sign-off before going live

They’re less powerful for detailed creative revisions.

My recommendation by agency size

• 1–10 people, lots of clients: Planable
• Creative/video-heavy agency: Frame.io + ClickUp
• 10–50+ people with formal approvals: Ziflow or ClickUp
• Need social publishing + approvals: Planable or Sprout Social

A common agency stack is:

ClickUp (internal tasks) → Planable (client approvals) → Buffer/Sprout (publishing)

If you tell me what kind of posts you mean (social media, blogs, ads, email campaigns, video, etc.) and how many clients/users you have, I can narrow it down.

For a remote agency managing social posts with client approvals, comments, and revision/resolution workflows, I’d look at a social media approval platform rather than a generic project-management tool.

Best fits

• Sprout Social — Best overall if you want robust client approval workflows, internal collaboration, publishing, and reporting in one system.
• Agorapulse — Particularly good for agencies: client approvals, content calendars, comments, publishing, and team workflows are straightforward.
• Planable — My pick if post-by-post client feedback and approval is the core requirement. Clients can review content, leave comments, request changes, and approve without getting buried in your internal workflow.
• Hootsuite — Strong publishing and approval capabilities, especially for larger teams, though it can feel heavier.
• Later — Good if visual planning is particularly important, but I’d put it behind Planable/Agorapulse for agency approval workflows.

What I’d choose

If your workflow is roughly:

Agency drafts post → internal reviewer comments → resolve revisions → send to client → client comments/requests changes → agency revises → client approves → publish

I'd start with Planable. Its workflow is centered around collaborative content review, rather than bolting approvals onto a broader social-management system.

If you also need social inbox/community management, analytics, and publishing at scale, I'd lean toward Agorapulse or Sprout Social.

If you tell me how many clients/users you have and which platforms you publish to (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.), I can narrow it to the best 2–3 and compare pricing/workflows.

For a remote agency team that needs comment threads, resolution workflows, and client approval requests on each post, you’ll want a tool built around content review + approvals, not just project management. The best fit depends on your content type (social, design, video, web, etc.).

Best options for an agency workflow

Planable — best for social media agencies

Good if you create posts for clients and need:

• Per-post client approval requests
• Inline comments on each post
• Approval status tracking (draft → review → approved → published)
• Client access without giving full workspace control
• Content calendars

Strong choice for: social media management, marketing agencies, content teams.

planable.io

Filestage — best for creative agencies

Good for:

• Video, PDFs, designs, campaigns, documents
• Timestamp comments on videos
• Annotation on files
• Structured review rounds
• Client approval gates

Strong choice for: branding, video production, creative studios.

filestage.io

Ziflow — best for larger agencies

Good for:

• Formal proofing workflows
• Multiple reviewers
• Version comparisons
• Approval records/audit trails
• Enterprise client workflows

Strong choice for: agencies with many clients and complex approval chains.

ziflow.com

ClickUp — best if you need everything in one place

Good for:

• Tasks + approvals
• Client portals
• Comments
• Automations
• Agency operations

Less specialized for visual/content approvals, but excellent if your team already manages projects there.

clickup.com

Asana + proofing integrations

Good for:

• Client projects
• Assignments
• Deadlines
• Approval checkpoints

Better for operational workflows than detailed creative review.

asana.com

My recommendation by agency type

• Social media agency: Planable
• Video/design/branding agency: Filestage or Ziflow
• Full-service marketing agency: ClickUp + a proofing tool
• Small remote team (5–20 people): Planable or ClickUp
• Enterprise agency with many client reviewers: Ziflow

A typical workflow I’d set up:

1. Strategist creates post brief
2. Designer/copywriter creates draft
3. Internal review → comments resolved
4. Client receives approval request
5. Client comments directly on the post
6. Team resolves comments
7. Client clicks approve
8. Post moves to scheduled/published

If you tell me what kind of posts you mean (social posts, ads, videos, blogs, designs, etc.) and team size/client count, I can narrow it to the best stack.

If you’re running an agency with a remote team and need per-post client approvals, internal comments/resolutions, and a clear workflow, I’d look at these categories:

• Best overall: a social media management platform with client approval workflows.
• Best for complex agency workflows: a project-management tool where each post is an item/task and approvals are explicit workflow states.
• Best for visual/content-heavy teams: a review-and-approval platform designed around creative assets.

If you tell me which channels you manage (Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.), roughly how many clients/posts per month, and whether clients need to log in to approve, I can narrow it down to 3–5 specific tools and compare approval flow, commenting/resolution, client access, scheduling, and price.

For a remote social/content agency where you need:

• Team discussion and comments on each post
• Internal review before the client sees it
• A client approval request attached to each individual post
• Clear approve / request-changes states
• Multiple approval steps when needed
• A calendar showing what is drafted, pending, approved, and scheduled

I’d shortlist these:

1. planable.io — best fit for a content-first agency

This is probably my first choice if your main problem is getting content from draft → internal review → client approval → publishing.

It keeps the conversation attached to the actual post, supports internal comments, @mentions, annotations, required approvals, and client-facing review. Its current Pro+ workflow can require approval before publishing, while Enterprise adds multi-level approval. Planable

Best for: agencies with lots of client content and a remote creative team.

2. agorapulse.com — best if publishing + engagement matter too

Agorapulse is particularly strong if you want the approval workflow plus a full social-management platform.

You can send an individual post to an external client for approval; the client can comment, request changes, or approve it. You can also create multi-step approval workflows, including internal and external stakeholders. Agorapulse Help Centre Agorapulse Help Centre

Best for: agencies that also need social inbox/community management, reporting, scheduling, etc.

3. sproutsocial.com — best for larger/more sophisticated teams

Sprout supports multi-user, multi-step publishing approval workflows and permissions, including workflows designed specifically for agency/client relationships. Sprout Social Support

Best for: larger agencies where permissions, governance, reporting, and social listening are as important as the content workflow.

What I'd choose

For the workflow you described, I'd start with Planable and Agorapulse. The key distinction is that Planable feels more like a content collaboration/approval workspace, whereas Agorapulse feels more like a complete social media management system with strong approval features.

If you tell me roughly how many clients, team members, and posts/month you handle, I can narrow it down and compare the actual plan/pricing and client-seat setup for you.

For a remote agency where you need per-post comments, internal resolution workflows, and client approval requests, you’ll want something closer to a content collaboration + approval platform rather than a normal project manager.

Here are the strongest fits:

Best overall agency workflow tools

Planable

Best fit if your workflow is:
draft post → team comments → revisions → client approval → publish

Strengths:

• Clients can comment directly on each post
• Approval buttons/workflows (client can approve/reject)
• Visual calendar
• Version history
• Good for social agencies managing many clients
• Keeps feedback attached to the actual post instead of buried in email/Slack

Good for: social media agencies, marketing teams, content calendars.

planable.io

ContentStudio

Good if you also need:

• Scheduling
• Social publishing
• Analytics
• Client workspaces

Strengths:

• Client approval workflows
• Content review
• Multiple brands/workspaces

contentstudio.io

Airtable + approval automation

Best if your agency has custom processes.

Example setup:

• Record = social post
• Fields = copy, creative, status, client, due date
• Comments = feedback thread
• Automations = notify client when approval needed

Pros:

• Extremely customizable
• Works for larger agencies with unusual workflows

Cons:

• Not as client-friendly out of the box

airtable.com

ClickUp

Better if the agency manages more than social:

• Websites
• Design projects
• Video
• Campaigns
• Retainers

Strengths:

• Tasks with comments
• Client guests
• Approvals
• Automations

Weakness:

• Client approval experience feels more like project management than reviewing content.

clickup.com

If your main pain is client feedback chaos

Also look at:

• Filestage — excellent for clients reviewing designs, videos, PDFs, and creative assets.

filestage.io

• Ziflow — strong for creative proofing and agency workflows.

ziflow.com

My shortlist by agency type

If your workflow is specifically "client opens a post, leaves comments on the image/copy, approves it, and the team gets notified", I’d start with Planable. If you need project management across many service lines, I’d lean ClickUp + a proofing tool.

For a remote agency managing social/content for clients, I’d strongly consider planable.io.

It maps unusually well to the workflow you described:

• One workspace per client — keeps each client’s content, team, calendar, and approval process separate. Planable Planable
• Internal team review first — your team can discuss drafts privately before the client sees them.
• Comments directly on each post — feedback stays attached to the actual content rather than getting lost in Slack/email.
• Resolve feedback — comments can be marked resolved once changes are made. Planable Planable
• Client approval per post — you can send an approval request and require approval before the post can be scheduled/published. Planable
• Revision/version history — useful when a client says, “Wait, what happened to the previous caption?” Planable
• Client doesn't necessarily need a full account for occasional approval; Planable supports sharing a post link for feedback. Planable
• Remote-team friendly — notifications can work through email, Slack, push, and the in-app inbox. Planable

The workflow I'd use

Draft → Internal comments → Resolve revisions → Send client approval → Client comments/requests changes → Resolve → Client approves → Schedule → Publish

That's much cleaner than trying to bolt approvals onto Asana/ClickUp/Slack.

Planable Pro is probably the sweet spot for an agency: it's currently $49/workspace/month, supports required approvals, 10 social pages/workspace, unlimited users, and version history. Planable

If you have complex sequential approvals (e.g. strategist → account manager → legal → client), that's where Planable Enterprise's multi-level approvals become relevant. Planable

Two alternatives worth looking at

• Mydrop — particularly interesting if your clients hate logging into software; its positioning is around no-login client approval, post-level comments, and approval links. MydropAI MydropAI
• Filestage — better if your agency reviews lots of design/video/files beyond social posts. Reviewers can be invited without creating accounts, and internal/client review rounds can be separated. Filestage Help

My pick: Planable if the core business is social/content management. Filestage if you're primarily a creative/video/design agency. Mydrop if minimizing client friction is your #1 priority.

If you tell me how many clients you have, how many people are on your team, and whether you need social scheduling too, I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 options and compare the actual costs.

If you’re a remote social/content agency and your key requirement is:

Post → internal comments/revisions → client approval → publish

I’d shortlist these:

1. agorapulse.com — my pick for your use case

It’s particularly well suited to an agency workflow. You can:

• Draft and schedule posts.
• Have your remote team comment, request changes, and approve internally.
• Send an individual post to a client for approval.
• Let clients comment, request changes, or approve from a Shared Calendar.
• Build multi-step approval workflows for posts. Agorapulse Help Centre Agorapulse Help Centre
• Keep the approval history attached to the post rather than having feedback scattered across Slack/email.
• Manage the actual social inbox as well, including assigning and monitoring incoming comments/messages. Agorapulse

The client can essentially get: “Here’s the post → comment/request changes → approve.” Agorapulse

Best if: you want one system for publishing + client approvals + team collaboration + social inbox.

2. sproutsocial.com — best for a more sophisticated operation

Sprout has robust multi-user approval workflows, including multiple approval steps and external approvers. Rejected posts retain the feedback and can be edited/resubmitted. Sprout Social Support

It’s stronger if you're building a larger agency operation with lots of permissions, reporting, social listening/inbox, etc.

Downside: generally a heavier/more expensive platform than you need if your main problem is simply getting content approved.

3. Planable — worth considering if content collaboration is the priority

I'd put Planable on the shortlist if your team cares more about visual content planning, discussions, revisions and approvals than having the most comprehensive social inbox/listening platform.

What I'd choose

For your description, I'd go:

Agorapulse → Planable → Sprout

Specifically, I'd structure your workflow like:

Content creator → Internal review → Account manager/QA → Client approval → Scheduled/published

And make every post its own approval object, rather than having clients approve an entire monthly calendar. That makes comments like “change the second sentence” or “client wants a different image” unambiguous and keeps the final sign-off attached to that exact post.

If you tell me how many clients/accounts you manage and roughly how many people are on the team, I can narrow this down to the best 1–2 options and compare their current pricing/features.

For an agency with a remote team + client-by-client approvals + comments/revisions on individual posts, I’d use Planable as the first tool to evaluate.

Why it fits your workflow particularly well:

• Comments live directly on each post rather than getting scattered across Slack/email.
• Team members can @mention each other, suggest exact copy changes, and resolve comments when the issue is fixed. planable.io
• You can keep internal agency comments private from the client, then expose the polished post for client review. planable.iosupport.sproutsocial.com
• Clients can comment, request changes, and explicitly approve a post.
• You can make approval required before publishing, rather than relying on someone remembering to get a thumbs-up. planable.iosupport.sproutsocial.com
• It supports multi-level approvals if, for example, your account manager approves first and then the client gives final approval. planable.io
• Once approved, posts can be configured to automatically schedule, which closes the loop nicely. planable.iosupport.sproutsocial.com
• Each client can have their own workspace, keeping multiple accounts separated. planable.io

The workflow I'd set up

Brief → Draft → Internal review → Client review → Revisions → Client approval → Scheduled

For example:

Copywriter creates post
↓
Designer attaches creative
↓
Account manager reviews internally
↓
Client receives approval request for that specific post
↓
Client comments “Change the CTA”
↓
Team revises + resolves comment
↓
Client clicks Approve
↓
Post schedules

That is much closer to what you're describing than a generic project-management tool.

What about Sprout Social?

Sprout Social is worth considering if you also need heavy-duty social publishing, analytics, and engagement management. Its approval workflows support multiple steps/users for outgoing posts. support.sproutsocial.com

But if your biggest pain is “our remote team and clients need a clean place to review → comment → revise → approve each piece of content,” I'd lean Planable. Its product is much more centered around that collaboration/approval experience. planable.io

My shortlist:

1. Planable — best fit for your described workflow
2. Sprout Social — better if analytics/engagement are equally important
3. Agorapulse — worth comparing if you want an all-around social management platform

If you tell me how many clients/users you have and which platforms you manage (IG, FB, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.), I can narrow this down and compare the actual pricing + approval features for your agency.

For an agency with a remote team + client-by-client social content, I’d start with Planable.

Planable is unusually well matched to what you described:

• Comments directly on each post — your copywriter, designer, account manager, and client can discuss the actual post instead of losing feedback in Slack/email.
• Internal vs. client-facing comments — your team can resolve issues internally before the client sees the draft. planable.io
• Per-post approval — you can require approval before a post can be scheduled/published. planable.io
• Approval requests — assign specific people to approve and keep a visible pending/approved status.
• Visual feed/calendar — clients review content in something much closer to how it will actually appear.
• Version history — useful when a client says “I approved that version, not this one.” planable.io
• It supports multiple clients/workspaces, which is important for an agency setup. planable.io

The workflow I'd implement

Brief → Draft → Internal comments → Internal approval → Client approval request → Client comments/changes → Final approval → Schedule → Publish

The important part is that comments, requested changes, and the approval are attached to the individual post.

For example:

Designer uploads creative → strategist comments → designer resolves → account manager submits to client → client comments “change CTA” → team revises → client approves → post becomes publishable.

That eliminates the classic agency mess of “approved in Slack, but which version?” planable.io

What I'd compare against

My pick: Planable. If your primary pain is “our remote team needs to collaborate, resolve comments, then send individual posts to clients for explicit approval before publishing,” it is probably the closest match rather than buying a huge all-in-one social suite.

If you tell me how many clients/users you have and which platforms you publish to (IG, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.), I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 and compare the actual plans/pricing.

For an agency with a remote team + client-by-client approvals + comments/resolution on each post, I’d start with Planable.

Why it fits your workflow particularly well:

• Comments live on the actual post, rather than getting scattered across Slack/email. Team members can @mention each other, and comments can be marked resolved. planable.io
• Client approval is built into each post. You can require approval before a post can be scheduled/published. help.planable.io
• You can have different approval workflows per client, which is useful if Client A needs one approver while Client B needs internal → client approval. help.planable.iohelp.planable.io
• Clients can be given Approver access, and Planable supports sharing individual posts for occasional external reviewers. help.planable.iohelp.planable.io
• It gives your remote team a visual content calendar/feed, version history, internal comments, annotations, and approval status in the same place. planable.io

The workflow I'd set up

Writer/designer → internal review → client approval → scheduled

For example:

1. Strategist creates post
2. Copy/design person works on it
3. Internal team comments directly on the post
4. Issues get resolved there
5. Account manager submits it for client approval
6. Client comments or approves
7. If changes are requested → back to team
8. Once approved → schedule/publish

That is much cleaner than trying to coordinate this through Slack + Google Docs + email.

One alternative worth considering

Sprout Social is stronger if you also need a serious social-management/analytics/engagement platform. It has multi-step approval workflows, permissions, separate client environments, and agency-oriented features. support.sproutsocial.com

My pick:

• Planable → best if your biggest problem is content collaboration + client approvals.
• Sprout Social → better if you need full-scale social publishing, inbox/engagement, reporting, and approvals.

If you tell me how many clients/team members you have and which platforms you post to (IG, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.), I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 options and compare pricing/workflows.

For an agency with a remote team, I’d shortlist Agorapulse, Planable, and Sprout Social—but based specifically on your requirements, Agorapulse is probably the best fit.

My pick: Agorapulse

agorapulse.com

It maps unusually well to your workflow:

• Per-post client approval: assign an individual post to a client; they can approve, reject/request changes, or comment. Agorapulse Help Centre Agorapulse Help Centre
• Client access without making them full team members: use Shared Calendars for external clients. They can review scheduled content and approve it. Agorapulse
• Internal team workflow: assign posts to designers, copywriters, account managers, etc., with internal-only comments.
• Multi-step approvals: you can create workflows such as Copywriter → Account Manager → Client, with multiple approval steps and options requiring everyone to approve. Agorapulse Help Centre
• Resolution loop: client requests changes → post is rejected → your team edits it → sends it back for approval. The conversation stays attached to the post. Agorapulse Help Centre
• Remote-team collaboration: comments, assignments, notifications and approval status stay with the content rather than being scattered across Slack/email. Agorapulse

One important caveat: the full multi-step Approval Workflow functionality is on Agorapulse's Custom plan, while individual post approvals are available on lower tiers depending on plan. Agorapulse Help Centre Agorapulse Help Centre

How I'd compare the alternatives

Sprout Social is particularly strong if you also need sophisticated social inbox/customer-service workflows. Its Message Approval Workflows support multiple users and steps, and it also has Reply Approvals for incoming social responses. Sprout Social Support Sprout Social

But if the core problem is:

“Our remote agency creates posts, the client needs to review each one, comment/request changes, and explicitly approve it before publishing.”

I'd start with Agorapulse.

A workflow I'd implement is:

Draft → Internal review → Client approval → Approved → Scheduled/published

with a comment thread attached to every post and no publishing while the post is awaiting approval. That gives you a clean audit trail instead of approval decisions living in Slack, email, or WhatsApp. Agorapulse Help Centre Agorapulse Help Centre

If you tell me how many team members/clients you have and which social platforms you manage (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.), I can narrow this down to the best 2–3 tools and their current pricing.

For a remote agency team, you’re looking for a mix of project management + proofing/feedback + client approval workflows. The best fit depends on whether your work is mostly social/content, design, video, web, or general marketing.

Here are strong options:

For your exact requirement — “comment/resolution workflows and client approval requests per post” — I’d shortlist:

1. Social/content agency:

Planable or Kontentino

• Clients review individual posts
• Leave comments on each post
• Approve, reject, or request changes
• Useful for calendars with many pieces of content

2. Creative agency (design/video/assets):

Filestage or Ziflow

• Better proofing
• Cleaner approval history
• Less back-and-forth in email/Slack

3. Full-service agency with many projects:

ClickUp + Filestage

• ClickUp = internal operations
• Filestage = client review layer

A workflow I see work well:

Draft → Internal review → Client approval request → Client comments → Team resolves comments → Client final approval → Scheduled/published

If you tell me:

• agency type (social media, branding, ads, web, video, etc.)
• team size
• number of clients
• whether clients need login access or just email approval

I can narrow it to 2–3 choices.

For an agency with a remote team, where you need internal comments → revisions/resolution → client approval on each post, I’d shortlist these:

1. Planable — my first choice

Best if collaboration and approval are the core problem.

• Comments and @mentions live directly on each post.
• Team can suggest/edit copy and resolve feedback before sending externally.
• You can create different approval flows per client/brand.
• Clients can review the actual post and approve/comment.
• Approval can trigger scheduling automatically.
• Occasional approvers can use a shared post link rather than becoming full users. planable.ioplanable.io
• Its agency workflow specifically supports multi-level approvals, specific feedback, an approval-request inbox, and email approvals. planable.ioplanable.io

I'd choose this if your biggest headache is:

"There are 5 people commenting on a post, someone needs to resolve the edits, then the client needs to give the final green light."

2. Agorapulse — best if you also need strong social management

Agorapulse is particularly good if you want the approval system plus a serious publishing/social-inbox platform.

It supports internal and external approvers, comments, reject/request-changes states, and posts won't publish while they're rejected. support.agorapulse.com

You can also create multi-step approval workflows, e.g.:

Creator → Account Manager → Client → Scheduled

and external clients can participate through Shared Calendars. support.agorapulse.com

Choose this if: your agency also needs community management, social inboxes, reporting, and publishing in the same system.

3. Sprout Social — best for larger/enterprise agencies

Sprout has multi-step, multi-user approval workflows, rejection notes, resubmission, and approval activity tracking. support.sproutsocial.com

I'd lean toward it if you're managing lots of clients, sophisticated permissions, reporting, and enterprise processes. For a smaller agency, it may be more platform than you need.

My recommendation

For your exact description, I'd start with Planable. The important distinction is that you're not merely looking for a scheduler—you want a post-level conversation and resolution system with an explicit client sign-off state. Planable is particularly centered around that workflow. planable.ioplanable.io

If you tell me roughly how many clients/posts per month and how many people are on your team, I can narrow it down to the best 2 and compare pricing, client access, approvals, comments, Slack integration, and white-labeling.

For what you described, I’d start with Planable.

Your requirements map unusually well to it:

• Remote agency team: separate workspaces per client, team-only/internal comments, @mentions, and content-specific discussions. planable.iohelp.planable.io
• Comment → resolution workflow: comments live directly on the post, can be replied to, assigned via @mention, and resolved once addressed. planable.iohelp.planable.io
• Client approval per post: each post can be sent for approval, with the client approving or commenting on that specific post. Required approval prevents publishing until approval happens. planable.io
• Internal vs. client feedback: your team can discuss issues privately before exposing the post to the client. planable.iohelp.planable.ioplanable.io
• Version control: Planable keeps version checkpoints, so revisions don't turn into “final-v7-REALLY-FINAL.” planable.iohelp.planable.ioplanable.io
• Agency-friendly pricing: paid plans are priced per workspace rather than per seat, with unlimited users—useful for a distributed team with lots of collaborators. planable.io

My shortlist

Sprout is the one I'd consider if your agency also needs a much broader social-management platform. Its approval workflows support multiple steps/users and external approvers on Advanced, but it is a heavier platform. support.sproutsocial.com

One important Planable caveat: required approval is on Pro, while true sequential multi-level approval (e.g. Account Manager → Creative Director → Client) is Enterprise. help.planable.io

So if your desired workflow is:

Writer/Designer → internal review → revisions/resolution → client gets approval request → client approves/rejects → schedule/publish

…I'd pick Planable Pro first.

Planable

If you tell me roughly how many clients/posts you handle per month and whether clients need to log in, I can narrow this down to the best 2–3 options and tell you which one I'd actually buy.

For an agency with a remote team + client-by-client post approval + comments/revisions, I’d shortlist these:

1. Planable — my first choice

Best if your biggest problem is collaboration and revision chaos.

• Comments live directly on each post.
• Team members can @mention each other.
• Comments can be resolved once addressed.
• Text suggestions/annotations make copy revisions much clearer.
• Internal comments can stay hidden from clients.
• Clients can approve posts, and approval can trigger scheduling.
• Supports multi-level approvals for more complex agency workflows. planable.io

This is particularly good if your workflow is:

Writer → internal review → revisions → account manager → client approval → publish

2. Agorapulse — best if publishing/inbox management matters too

Agorapulse is stronger if you want the approval system combined with a more comprehensive social-media-management platform.

Clients can review, comment, request changes, and approve individual posts through a Shared Calendar. It also supports multi-step approval workflows, including internal and external stakeholders. support.agorapulse.com

The downside for your specific requirement: Planable's post-level collaboration/resolution experience is more purpose-built for iterative creative review.

My pick

For what you described, I'd start with Planable. It keeps the conversation, revisions, approval status, and final version attached to the actual post instead of scattering them across Slack/email/docs. planable.io

If you tell me roughly how many clients/posts per month and whether clients need to log in, I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 options and compare pricing/workflows.

For a remote social/content agency where the key requirement is:

Draft → internal comments/revisions → client sees the post → client requests changes or approves → approved post can publish

I’d start with Planable.

Why Planable fits your workflow

• Comments live directly on each post, rather than getting scattered across Slack/email.
• Team members can @mention each other, suggest copy changes, and resolve comments once the issue is fixed. planable.io
• You can keep internal comments hidden from clients, which is particularly useful for an agency. planable.io
• You can create approval flows per client/workspace, including internal review before the client gets involved.
• Clients can review the actual post preview and approve it or provide feedback.
• Approval can be tied to scheduling, so the workflow becomes essentially approved = ready to publish. planable.ioplanable.io
• For occasional approvers, Planable supports shareable post links, so you don't necessarily have to make every client a full user. planable.ioplanable.io

The workflow I'd set up

Agency team
→ Draft post
→ Internal review
→ Resolve internal comments
→ Submit for client approval
→ Client: Approve / Request changes
→ If changes: team revises → resubmits
→ If approved: schedule/publish

That is very close to the workflow you're describing.

Two alternatives worth considering

Sprout Social — better if you also want a more comprehensive social-management platform, particularly publishing, analytics, social inbox, permissions, etc. It has multi-step approval workflows and external approvers. support.sproutsocial.com

Ziflow — I'd consider this if your agency reviews lots of creative assets beyond social posts (video, design, PDFs, ads, etc.) and needs a serious proofing/approval system rather than primarily a social media planner.

My pick for your exact description: Planable. It's particularly strong when the pain is "our remote team and clients are constantly losing track of feedback and which version was approved." planable.io

If you tell me how many clients/posts you manage per month and whether you need social scheduling + analytics too, I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 options for your agency.

For an agency with a remote team + client approval on every post + comments/revisions tied to the post, I’d shortlist these:

1. Planable — my first choice

This is probably the closest match to what you described.

• Team comments directly on each post
• Clients can comment on the actual post, rather than emailing feedback
• Comments can be resolved
• Internal-only comments keep your team's discussion separate from the client
• Required approvals can prevent a post from moving forward until the client signs off
• Approval requests/notifications are built into the workflow
• Visual feed/calendar makes it easy for clients to see what they're approving
• Supports multi-level approvals if you eventually need internal → client → final approval. planable.io

Ideal workflow:
Draft → Internal comments → Resolve changes → Client approval request → Client comments/approval → Schedule → Publish

2. Sprout Social — best if you need a bigger all-in-one platform

Sprout has robust multi-step, multi-user approval workflows and external approvers. Rejected posts can come back with a note, be revised, and resubmitted. support.sproutsocial.com

I'd choose it if you also need social listening, inbox/customer care, analytics and reporting. For pure agency content collaboration, it can be more platform than you need.

3. Sendible — worth considering for agency operations

Particularly interesting if client dashboards, reporting, white-labeling and approvals are as important as the actual content-review experience.

What I'd pick for your use case

My recommendation: start with Planable. Its whole product is built around keeping the post, discussion, revisions, and approval together, which sounds exactly like the problem you're trying to eliminate. planable.io

One thing I'd specifically test in your trial: how your clients handle approval. Planable's approval workflow is excellent, but its client/member model may matter if some of your clients are resistant to creating/logging into accounts. planable.io

If you tell me roughly how many clients/posts per month and whether you need scheduling + reporting too, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 and compare their current pricing.

For an agency with a remote team + client approvals + per-post comments/change requests, I’d prioritize a tool where the post itself is the source of truth—not Slack/email/Google Docs. That gives you a clear chain of draft → internal review → client review → changes → approval → scheduling. www.planmygrid.com

My shortlist

1. HeyOrca — best agency-oriented choice

• Separate client workspaces
• Remote team collaboration
• Client approval via shareable links, so clients don't need to log in
• Feedback attached to the posts
• Scheduling + publishing + reporting in the same system
• Particularly good if you're managing multiple clients/brands. www.heyorca.com

2. Planable — best if discussion/review is the priority

This is the one I'd look at if your biggest problem is "the client/team needs to discuss this exact post, make revisions, then approve it." Planable is heavily oriented around collaborative content review, comments, internal feedback and approvals. mydropai.comtareno.co

3. Vista Social — best if you want the broader social-management stack

It combines multi-step client approval, inline comments and approval locks with scheduling, unified inbox/comment management, reporting and other agency functionality. vistasocial.com

What I'd choose for your workflow

If your workflow is roughly:

Strategist → Content creator → Internal reviewer → Client → Client requests changes → Creator fixes → Client approves → Scheduler publishes

I'd start with HeyOrca or Planable.

If you want the most agency/client-management feel, I'd lean HeyOrca.

If you want the best collaborative commenting/revision experience, I'd lean Planable.

If you also need social inbox + reporting + publishing + approvals in one broader platform, I'd investigate Vista Social.

One thing I'd make non-negotiable: clients should be able to comment/approve an individual post and the approval should be tied to that specific version. Otherwise you eventually get the classic "but I approved the old caption" problem. mydropai.comtareno.co

If you tell me how many clients/accounts you manage and which platforms (IG, FB, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.), I can narrow this to the best 1–2 options and compare their pricing/workflows.

For an agency with a remote team, you’re looking for a content collaboration + approval workflow tool (not just a project manager). The key features you mentioned are:

• per-post comments
• threaded feedback
• mark comments resolved
• client review links
• client approval/rejection per asset/post
• version history
• social/content calendar support

Good options:

My shortlist by agency type:

• Social media agency: Planable
• Brand/design/content agency: Filestage or Ziflow
• Video agency: Frame.io
• Full-service agency needing operations + approvals: ClickUp + a proofing tool

A workflow that works well:

1. Team drafts post → internal review
2. Client gets approval link
3. Client comments directly on the post
4. Designer/social manager resolves comments
5. Client clicks Approve
6. Approved content moves to scheduling/publishing

If you have multiple clients, multiple posts per week, and non-technical clients, I’d lean toward Planable first. If your clients review PDFs, designs, videos, ads, and campaigns rather than just social posts, Filestage/Ziflow are stronger.

For a remote agency team that needs comments, resolution workflows, and client approvals on each post, you’ll want a tool built around content review + approvals, not just project management. The best fit depends on whether you mean social posts, design assets, videos, or general client deliverables.

Best options for agency workflows

If you’re a social/content agency

I’d start with Planable. A typical workflow:

1. Strategist creates post →
2. Copy/design team uploads draft →
3. Internal review comments →
4. Mark revisions resolved →
5. Send client approval request →
6. Client approves or requests changes →
7. Schedule/publish

It is specifically designed around “one post = one approval object,” which matches your requirement.

If you produce heavier creative assets

Use Ziflow or Filestage:

• Client clicks directly on an image/video/PDF
• Leaves comments pinned to specific areas
• Team resolves comments
• Client signs off

If you want an all-in-one agency operating system

A common stack is:

• ClickUp → projects, deadlines, team workload
• Planable → social content approvals
• Slack → internal communication
• Google Drive/Dropbox → asset storage

A few questions would narrow this down:

1. Are the “posts” mainly social media posts (Instagram/LinkedIn/etc.) or creative deliverables (ads, videos, graphics)?
2. Do clients need to log in and approve themselves, or do you just need internal approval tracking?
3. Roughly how many clients/posts per month?

For an agency with a remote team, you probably want a tool that handles (1) internal production, (2) threaded feedback/comments, (3) client approvals per asset/post, and (4) an audit trail of what changed and who approved it.

My shortlist:

My recommendation by agency type:

• Social media/content agency: ClickUp or Filestage
  • Each post = a task
  • Statuses: Draft → Internal Review → Client Review → Changes Needed → Approved → Scheduled
  • Client comments stay attached to the post

• Creative/design/video agency: ClickUp + Frame.io
  • ClickUp runs projects
  • Frame.io handles detailed creative feedback

• Small remote agency (5–20 people): Start with ClickUp only
  • Avoid tool sprawl
  • Create templates per client
  • Give clients guest access only to approval areas

A good workflow looks like:

1. Team member creates post/task
2. Internal reviewer checks it
3. Move status to Client Approval Needed
4. Client gets notified
5. Client chooses:
   • Approve
   • Request changes
   • Reject
6. Feedback becomes assigned tasks
7. Final approval locks the version

If you tell me:

• agency type (marketing, design, video, dev, etc.)
• team size
• number of clients
• whether clients need login access or just approval links

…I can narrow it to a specific stack.

If you mean a social/content agency with a remote team, where each post needs internal comments/resolution and then a client approval step, I’d prioritize tools built around proofing + approvals, not just project management.

Best fits

1. Ziflow — best for formal approval workflows
   • Upload each post/creative as a proof
   • Team members can comment directly on the asset
   • Resolve comments/issues
   • Send approval requests to clients
   • Clear audit trail of who

For a remote agency team, you probably want a client approval workflow tool, not just a project manager. The key features to look for:

• each post has its own thread/comments
• clients can approve/reject individual posts
• revision history (who changed what)
• internal vs client comments
• statuses like Draft → Internal Review → Client Review → Approved → Scheduled
• client access without forcing them into your whole workspace

A few good fits:

Best dedicated approval workflow

Planable
Good if your pain point is “clients are commenting everywhere.” It’s built around reviewing content, leaving feedback, and approving posts. tareno.co

Best all-in-one agency social workflow

Sendible
Better if you need scheduling, client management, reporting, and approvals together. www.techradar.com

Best for simpler client approvals

Pallyy
Useful for agencies that want a shared calendar where clients can review, comment, and approve posts via a client-facing link. pallyy.com

Best if you already run projects in a PM tool

Use:

• ClickUp or Asana for production workflow
• pair it with a social approval tool for client-facing review

A workflow I’d set up:

1. Content strategist creates post brief
2. Copy/design team drafts post
3. Internal reviewer checks brand/legal
4. Client gets “Approve / Request Changes” on that specific post
5. Changes reopen the task automatically
6. Approved posts move to scheduling queue

For most agencies with remote teams, I’d shortlist:

• 5–20 clients: Planable
• 20+ clients + reporting needs: Sendible
• Lean boutique agency: Pallyy
• Complex creative production (video/design/web too): ClickUp + a dedicated approval layer

The biggest thing: avoid using Slack/email for approvals. You want the approval decision attached to the actual post asset, otherwise revision history gets lost. tareno.co

For an agency with a remote team + client-by-client post approvals + comments/resolution, I’d shortlist these:

1. Planable — best overall fit.

It’s built around collaborative content review: teammates can comment, @mention, suggest edits, and resolve comments; clients can review the actual post preview and approve/reject it. You can also keep internal comments hidden from clients. planable.io

2. Agorapulse — best if you also want strong publishing/inbox management.

It supports external client approvers, per-post approval requests, comments, and multi-step approval workflows. support.agorapulse.com

3. Sprout Social — best for a larger/more complex agency.

It has multi-step workflows, internal/external approval, rejection comments, and a dedicated external approval stream. It's powerful, but likely more platform than you need if approvals are the main requirement. support.sproutsocial.com

My pick for your use case

Start with Planable. The workflow maps very closely to what you're describing:

Writer/designer → internal review → comments + resolve → client approval request → client comments/changes → approve → schedule/publish.

That avoids the common agency mess of Slack + email + spreadsheets + a separate scheduler.

If you tell me roughly how many clients and team members you have, I can narrow it down to the best 2–3 options based on cost and workflow.

For a remote agency, I’d choose based on whether you need social post approvals or general creative/client deliverable approvals. The key features you want are:

• client can comment directly on the post/asset (not email threads)
• approve / request changes per item
• version history
• internal team review before client review
• client portal or share link
• status tracking (Draft → Internal Review → Client Review → Approved → Scheduled)

A few strong fits:

Best if you’re a social/content agency

• Agorapulse — good for agencies managing many client accounts, with scheduling, collaboration, approvals, and reporting. www.techradar.com
• Sendible — built with agencies in mind; useful if you need client management, publishing workflows, and white-label options. www.techradar.com

Best if approvals are the main pain point

• Filestage — strong for creative reviews where clients need to leave feedback on files, videos, designs, and documents.
• Ziflow — better for larger creative teams handling lots of review cycles.
• ClientProof — lightweight agency approval workflow with client review links and approval tracking. clientproof.app

Best if you need an agency operating system

• Workzone — combines project management, proofing, requests, and approvals for creative/marketing teams. www.workzone.com

My shortlist by agency size

A workflow I’d set up:

1. Team drafts post
2. Internal reviewer comments
3. Client receives approval link
4. Client clicks Approve or Request Changes
5. Changes create a new version
6. Approved items move automatically to scheduling

Avoid using Slack/email/Google Docs as the approval record — they’re fine for discussion but weak for proving who approved what version. signofftool.com

If you tell me your agency type (social media, design, video, web, marketing) and number of clients/team members, I can narrow this to 2–3 options.

Based on the features you mentioned, you need a social media management platform with both team collaboration and client-facing approvals—not just a scheduler.

Here's how I'd narrow it down:

1. Agorapulse
   • ✅ Unified inbox with comment assignment and resolution workflows
   • ✅ Assign comments to team members
   • ✅ Internal approval workflows
   • ✅ Client approval before publishing
   • Best if engagement management (comments, DMs, moderation) is just as important as scheduling. www.techradar.com

2. Vista Social
   • ✅ Per-post client approval
   • ✅ Inline comments on drafts
   • ✅ Unified inbox with comment assignment
   • ✅ Built with agencies in mind
   • Strong choice for remote teams handling multiple clients. vistasocial.com

3. Sendible
   • ✅ Client approval workflows
   • ✅ Team permissions
   • ✅ White-label features
   • Better if reporting and client portals matter. www.techradar.com

4. SocialPilot
   • ✅ Content approval workflows
   • ✅ Agency pricing is generally competitive
   • ⚠️ Engagement inbox is less advanced than Agorapulse or Vista Social. www.techradar.com

For your requirements specifically

If you need:

• Remote team collaboration
• Comment assignment/resolution
• Client approval on every individual post
• Multiple clients

I'd rank them:

1. Agorapulse — best overall if community management is a major part of your work.
2. Vista Social — best balance of approvals, collaboration, and agency-focused features.
3. Sendible — great if white-label reporting is important.

One workflow feature I'd specifically look for is version-locked approvals: if a post changes after the client approves it, the approval is automatically revoked so no edited version is published without a fresh sign-off. Agencies consistently cite this as a valuable safeguard. www.reddit.com

If you're managing 10+ clients, I can also recommend the most cost-effective option based on your team size and the number of social accounts.

Based on your requirements:

• Remote team collaboration
• Internal comment/resolution workflows
• Client approval required for each post before publishing

I'd prioritize these options:

1. Planable ⭐ Best overall

This is probably the closest fit.

Pros

• Per-post approval workflow
• Internal comments separate from client comments
• Multiple approval stages (team → client)
• Visual previews for each social platform
• Version history so approvals are tied to a specific draft
• Built specifically for agencies with multiple clients www.reddit.com

Best if: Content approvals are a major part of your process.

2. HeyOrca

Excellent if your clients aren't very technical.

Pros

• Clients can approve without creating an account
• Per-post comments
• Approval statuses (Draft, Needs Revision, Approved)
• Great visual calendar
• Unlimited client reviewers on many plans www.heyorca.com

Best if: You have lots of clients reviewing content.

3. Hootsuite

Best for larger agencies that also manage engagement.

Pros

• Post approval workflows
• Comment and inbox assignments
• Approval before publishing
• Team permissions
• Message moderation workflows www.hootsuite.com

Best if: You also need social inbox management.

4. Agorapulse

Strong choice if responding to comments is part of your service.

Pros

• Team inbox
• Assign comments to teammates
• Approval workflows
• Excellent reporting
• Good client management www.techradar.com

If your biggest pain is approvals

Many agencies report that these features matter most:

• Approval tied to a specific version of the post
• Internal review before the client sees it
• Client comments on the post itself
• Automatic reset to "Needs approval" if the content changes after approval
• Clients reviewing through a simple link instead of creating an account www.reddit.com

My recommendation

• Small–mid agency (3–30 people): Planable
• Client experience is your top priority: HeyOrca
• Need comment moderation + approvals: Agorapulse
• Large agency with complex permissions: Hootsuite

If you tell me:

• how many team members you have,
• roughly how many clients you manage,
• and whether you need approval only or also comment moderation on live posts,

I can narrow it down to the one that best fits your workflow and budget.

For an agency with a remote team, you probably want two layers:

1. Internal project management (tasks, owners, deadlines, client status)
2. Client proofing/approval (comments on the actual asset, revision history, approvals)

I would avoid trying to make clients live inside your PM tool. A dedicated proofing tool usually gives a much cleaner “comment → revise → approve” flow. filestage.iowww.ziflow.com

Good setups:

Best overall agency stack

• PM: Asana or ClickUp
• Approvals: Ziflow

Why: Your team runs projects in the PM tool, while clients review designs, PDFs, videos, webpages, etc. in Ziflow. It supports structured proof workflows, comments, versioning, and approval tracking. filestage.iowww.ziflow.com

Best if you do lots of marketing/design deliverables

• Filestage + your existing PM tool

Filestage is built around client feedback: reviewers comment directly on files, approvals are tracked, and review rounds can be structured. filestage.io

Best for video-heavy agencies

• Frame.io + a PM tool

Great if clients need timestamped video feedback.

Budget/simple setup

• Trello or Notion internally
• Google Drive/Dropbox for files
• A proofing tool only when client approval is needed

A workflow I’d recommend:

Client request → PM task created → Internal review → Client proof link → Client comments → Assigned revisions → Final approval → Archive/version lock

For a typical creative agency (branding, web, ads, social, video), my shortlist would be:

1. Asana + Ziflow (most agency-friendly)
2. ClickUp + Filestage (more all-in-one)
3. Frame.io + Asana (video-first)

If you tell me your agency type (design, dev, marketing, video, ads) and team size, I can narrow it to one stack.

Based on your requirements:

• Remote team collaboration
• Internal comments and resolution workflows
• Client approval per individual post
• Agency use case (multiple clients)

I'd prioritize these options:

1. urlHootsuiteturn0search5 — Best if you also need a mature social inbox. You can create approval chains, review posts and replies before publishing, assign work to teammates, and manage permissions. It's well suited to larger agencies, though it's on the pricier side. www.hootsuite.com

2. Sendible — One of the strongest agency-focused platforms. It includes content approvals, client collaboration, multiple workspaces, and white-label features. If your agency manages many client accounts, it's a solid balance of features and cost. www.techradar.com

3. Agorapulse — Great if comment management is as important as publishing. It combines approval workflows with a collaborative inbox where comments can be assigned, discussed, and marked as resolved. www.techradar.com

If your biggest pain point is client approvals, look for these features regardless of platform:

• Per-post approval status (Draft → Review → Approved)
• Threaded comments attached to each post
• Internal comments hidden from clients
• Version history
• Automatic re-approval if an approved post is edited
• Clients can approve via a shareable link without creating an account (this consistently comes up as a major productivity win for agencies). www.reddit.com

If I had to recommend one without additional constraints:

• Best overall agency workflow: Sendible
• Best for engagement + approvals: Agorapulse
• Best enterprise/team governance: Hootsuite

A couple of questions will narrow it down:

• Approximately how many team members and clients do you have?
• Do you need the tool to publish posts too, or is it only for review and approval?