The digital assets checklist for trades businesses

Why digital assets go missing

Trades companies tend to build their marketing in a hurry. A friend sets up the website. The founder creates a Google listing on a personal Gmail account. An agency opens the ad account under its own name. A technician who handles social media uses his own login. Years later, nobody remembers.

It only matters when something changes, and then it matters a lot:

• a partner leaves and still holds the domain
• an agency relationship ends and the ad account history goes with it
• a business is sold and the buyer discovers the listing with all the reviews belongs to the seller personally
• the founder retires and the next generation can't log into anything

The checklist

Work through each item and record four things: where it lives, whose name or account holds it, who else has access, and whether the business could regain control if that person disappeared tomorrow.

1. Domain name

The address of the website and usually the company's email. Record the registrar, the account holder, the renewal date and the payment method. Whoever controls the registrar account can usually change where the domain points.

2. Website and hosting

Record the hosting provider, the account holder and who has administrator access to the site itself. Ask whether the business has a copy of the site files or can get one.

3. Business email

If staff use addresses at the company domain, record the provider and the administrator. If the company still uses a personal email address on its invoices and listings, note that too.

4. Google Business Profile

Often the single biggest source of calls. Record which Google account holds owner access, who else is a manager, and the profile's name and address details. Reviews live here.

5. Other listings and review sites

Directories, industry listings and review platforms. Record each one, the login holder and whether the details (name, phone, hours) match the Google profile.

6. Ad accounts

Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, Meta and any others. Record the account owner, the billing payment method, who has administrator access and whether an agency controls the account. The account's history has real value for future campaigns.

7. Analytics and call tracking

Website analytics, call-tracking numbers and any dashboards. Record who owns each account. Tracking numbers in particular can disappear when an agency relationship ends.

8. Phone numbers

The main business number and any tracking or text numbers. Record the carrier, the account holder and whether the number is on a business or personal plan. A number printed on vehicles and years of invoices is hard to replace.

9. Social media pages

Record each platform, who holds administrator rights and whether at least two people in the business have access.

10. Brand materials

Logo files, vehicle-wrap artwork, photography and video. Record where the originals are and who created them. Your lawyer can advise on whether any rights questions arise.

11. Business name records

Note the registered business or corporate name and where it's recorded through the Ontario Business Registry. Check that the name on your listings and website matches what's registered, or that any difference is intentional.

Who should hold control

The practical principle is simple: the business should control its own assets, and more than one trusted person should have access.

• Use business-owned accounts and addresses wherever possible, not personal ones.
• Give agencies and freelancers access as users or managers, not as owners.
• Keep at least two people with administrator access to each critical asset.
• Store the register somewhere safe and update it when anything changes.

When an agency or freelancer ends a relationship, control should stay with the business without negotiation. If a provider insists on owning a client's ad account or domain, that's worth questioning before signing anything. Our own referred-client marketing works in accounts the business owns.

When to bring the register to your lawyer

The register is most valuable at moments of legal change. Take it to your lawyer when:

1. Incorporating an existing sole proprietorship, so assets held personally can be considered.
2. Bringing in a partner or shareholder, so everyone knows what the business actually holds.
3. A partner is leaving, especially one who set up the marketing.
4. Buying a business, so you know what you're actually getting and who controls it.
5. Selling or passing the business on, so the buyer or successor can take over without disruption.
6. Ending a dispute over a business name or brand.

Your lawyer decides what, if anything, the documents should say. Our role, if the owner wants it, is to help compile the register and then carry out the practical marketing work once the legal side is settled. The lawyer referrals page explains how that works.

After a change: protecting search visibility

When control changes hands or a business is renamed, a few practical steps help keep the calls coming:

• Update the existing listing rather than creating a new one, so reviews and history are kept.
• Change details consistently across the website, listings and directories, ideally within the same week.
• Keep the old phone number working if at all possible, even if a new one is added.
• Redirect old web pages to their new equivalents instead of deleting them.
• Tell existing customers about the change, for example on invoices and in follow-up messages.

Common mistakes

1. Assuming the agency's account is the client's account.
2. Only one person with access, who then leaves.
3. Domain renewals on an expired credit card, which can let the domain lapse.
4. Creating a fresh Google listing after a rename, splitting reviews between two profiles.
5. Leaving the register until closing week, when there's no time to fix anything.

Where to go next

If you advise trades businesses, share this checklist with clients before any significant change. If you're an owner, start your register today; it costs nothing. For help compiling it or marketing the business afterwards, call, text or email, or read about how referrals work and our FAQ.