When choosing a marketing agency, don't look at a pretty portfolio. Look at three things: cases with numbers in a similar industry, a clear work process and ad budget transparency. The 7 questions below help you check this in a single meeting.
A great many people choose an agency by price. Then they find out that with a cheap service, a large part of the budget went to something other than ads.
In short:
- Ask for cases with numbers, not beautiful design.
- Ask for the process step by step.
- Find out who the ad budget is paid to.
- The KPI should be MQL or something close to sales, not leads.
1. What cases do you have in my industry?
Ask with numbers: how much ad spend, how many leads, how many sales. "We increased brand awareness" is not a number.
For a B2B IT company, cases like these mean something: $1,124 in ads → 24 B2B sales, $3,240 in 3 months → 15 sales.
2. What happens in the first 3 months?
A good agency names the stages clearly: research, strategy, packaging, content, testing, optimization. "We'll turn on ads and see" is not a plan.
3. Where is the ad budget paid?
The best model is when the client pays the ad budget to the platforms directly and pays the agency only for its services. Then you see where every dollar went.
4. What will the KPI be?
If an agency is responsible only for the number of leads, it will deliver cheap, low-quality leads. Cost per MQL or the number of meetings is a better KPI. Details: Is a cheap lead good.
5. Do you work with the sales process?
What happens after a lead comes in? Does the agency exchange reports with your sales team? Does it track which leads turn into sales? Without that, it is just a "lead supplier."
6. Who will do the work?
Who is assigned to the project: PM, performance manager, SMM, production? Who do you talk to directly?
7. What can't you do?
An honest agency names its limits: "We are responsible for MQL, and we work on sales together with your team." A "100% result guarantee" is a warning sign.
Conclusion
In short, choosing an agency means choosing a partner.
- Ask for cases with numbers.
- Look at the 3-month plan.
- Check budget transparency.
- Move the KPI closer to sales.
- Clarify the team and the limits.
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About the author. Safarmurod Abduroziqov is the founder and CEO of AURA Digital: 6 years in marketing, 50+ IT projects, ~$1M in managed ad budget. Telegram · LinkedIn
Frequently asked questions
How do you choose a marketing agency?
By cases with numbers in a similar industry, a clear work process, ad budget transparency and a KPI close to sales.
Can an agency guarantee results?
An honest agency is responsible not for sales but for the metrics within its own work (for example, MQL). A "100% guarantee" is a signal to be careful.
Is it okay to choose a cheap agency?
Don't look at the price, check where the budget goes. With a cheap service, very little money may go to ads.
How long should the contract with an agency be?
At least 6 months: the strategy, testing and scaling stages need time.