and What You Need to Know About Yourself First
So you’re thinking about hiring a marketing agency.
Maybe your internal team is stretched thin.
Maybe your campaigns have plateaued.
Maybe you just want someone to finally get your business results.
Whatever the reason, I’m glad you’re doing your research—because this isn’t just about choosing the agency with the slickest website or a stack of case studies. It’s about choosing a partner. One that understands your goals, communicates like a human, and isn’t afraid to challenge your thinking when it matters.
But here’s the part no one likes to say out loud:
Before you interview them, you need to be ready to talk about you.
Step 1: Get Clear on What You Need
Let’s be honest—too many companies come to agencies expecting a miracle, without being clear on what success even looks like. That’s a recipe for misalignment from day one. Before you schedule that discovery call, get clear on the following:
- What are your goals?
Not just “we need more traffic” or “we want more sales.” What are your actual business objectives? Are you launching a new product? Reclaiming lost market share? Scaling after funding? - What’s worked—and what hasn’t?
Be honest. Have you run campaigns before? What channels? What failed and why? The more transparent you are, the stronger the agency’s strategy will be. - What internal resources do you have?
Got a dev team on standby? A content writer in-house? If not, are you expecting the agency to fill those roles? Spell it out. - How involved do you want to be?
Some clients want a weekly deep dive. Others want a once-a-month executive summary. Either is fine—just be upfront about your expectations.
Step 2: Ask the Right Questions
This isn’t a passive process. Agencies are not all created equal. Some are all bark, no bite. Some pitch senior talent and hand you off to interns. Some overspend just to hit spend minimums. You need to dig deeper.
Here are the questions you should absolutely be asking before signing anything:
1. Who’s actually managing my account?
Because I’m not hiring your sales team—I’m hiring the people doing the work. Are they experienced? Are they full-time staff? Will I get access to them?
2. What does communication look like?
How often will we meet? What channels are we using—Slack, email, phone, carrier pigeons? How quickly do you respond to urgent issues?
3. What’s your approach to budgeting?
Are you performance-driven? Do you optimize or “set it and forget it”? Are you willing to say no if a budget is too small to be effective?
4. How do you handle campaign performance when things go south?
Because let’s be real—at some point, they will. I want to know if you pivot, test, or panic. Honesty and a plan matter more than perfection.
5. What’s your collaboration style with in-house teams or other vendors?
If you can’t play nice with the rest of my stack, it’s not going to work. Alignment across teams is non-negotiable.
6. How do you track success?
If you’re still throwing CTR and impressions at me in 2025, we have a problem. I want strategy, KPIs tied to business goals, and visibility into what’s working and what’s not.
Step 3: Treat It Like a Relationship—Because It Is
This is more than a transaction. You’re choosing a partner to represent your brand, manage your spend, and guide strategy. That means trust, transparency, and mutual accountability.
If you’re not honest about your goals, your resources, and your expectations, you can’t expect your agency to deliver. And if they’re not clear, communicative, or strategic from the start—run.
