Why You Shouldn’t Hire an Advertising Agency
Your business needs clear goals, clean tracking, and a partner that creates ROI, not busywork. Too many companies are stuck with agencies providing little more than fluff that can’t be tracked and a list of vanity metrics (that again, do little to grow the business).
Marketing shouldn’t be about performing a list of activities for the sake of checking a box.
Neither should an agency just be someone you hire to “do marketing stuff” on your behalf.
You don’t want an agency.
You want outcomes.
You need revenue, margin, and a simple way to know what’s working.
This post is the honest playbook: when not to hire an agency, what to do first, and how to buy outcomes instead of activity. There’s also a vendor scoring checklist you can steal.
The Problem With “Hiring an Agency”
Too many agencies sell activities. But you need outcomes measured by revenue, CAC, and payback.
Most companies hire an “advertising agency” because it feels safe. You get smart people, a plan, and a monthly retainer. But here’s where the wheels wobble:
Misaligned incentives: Agencies get paid for time, not impact. Hours billed ≠ value created.
Activity theater: Reports get thicker while revenue stalls. Vanity metrics crowd out real ones.
Channel-chasing: The plan changes every month: “Now it’s TikTok.” “Now it’s CTV.” “Now it’s AI.” Your scoreboard never stabilizes.
If you want to break that cycle, stop buying hours. You need to start buying specific outcomes tied to your business model. Every decision should be anchored to revenue, customer acquisition cost (CAC), gross margin, and payback period.
This is where you need to know and understand your numbers.
What You Need First
Put the scoreboard up: one revenue goal, clean events, and a simple ROI model you can explain in 30 seconds.
You wouldn’t launch a season without a scoreboard. Yet companies still “do marketing” without a basic ROI model. Lay this foundation before you spend another dollar:
Define the business goal. New revenue? Pipeline? Payback in ≤ X months?
Baseline your numbers. Current lead volume, close rate, average order value, gross margin, and sales cycle.
Install tracking. Events tied to real value: qualified form fills, booked calls, purchases.
Build a simple ROI model. (Revenue from marketing – Spend) ÷ Spend. It’s not perfect, but it points you in the right direction.
Want the fast path? Start with Marketing Budget Benchmarks for ranges and allocations, then run your numbers in the Marketing ROI tool to sanity-check CAC and payback.
How Much Should You Spend? (Benchmarks that don’t lie)
You need to have a clear budget to a payback targe. Your CAC must fit margin and cash flow, not vibes or round numbers.
Ask “How much should we spend?” and the internet throws darts. Here’s the grounded version:
Use revenue share as a guardrail, not a gospel. Industry surveys peg average marketing budgets at a single-digit percent of revenue; that’s a gut-check, not a rule.
Tie spend to payback. If your payback target is 12 months and gross margin is 70%, that sets the ceiling on what you can afford per acquisition.
Balance brand and performance. Overweighting “last-click” channels can starve long-term growth.
Pressure test your budget with real math, not wishful thinking. Use our Marketing Budget Benchmarks for realistic ranges by business stage, then validate with the Marketing ROI calculator.
Agency Red Flags
If a vendor can’t explain your CAC, payback, and margins in plain English, don’t hire them.
Here’s the short list:
“We’ll sort the strategy after we start.” Translation: they’re selling hours, not outcomes.
“Trust the process—report next month.” You should know exactly what’s measured and why before kickoff.
“We own the data and the ad accounts.” Non-starter. You must control your assets, data, and log-level access.
“We’re a full-service agency.” Great. What results do you own? Ask for outcomes, proof, and payback windows.
Just yesterday, I was talking with the owners of a company who voiced their frustration with their current agency. Repeatedly, they had asked two straightforward questions and never given the answer.
The test is simple: in the first meeting, ask them to explain your economics back to you—CAC, LTV, margin, payback, sales cycle. If they can’t speak your numbers, they can’t manage your money.
The Simple Evaluation Framework
Score partners on goals, proof, plan, and payback—anything under 14/20 doesn’t start.
Use this 10-point checklist. Score each 0–2 (0 = missing, 1 = partial, 2 = dialed). Anything under 14/20 doesn’t start.
Goal clarity. One revenue goal. One payback target. One primary conversion.
ICP fit. Clear customer, problem, and buying motion.
Channel fit. Why this channel now? Based on economics, not trends.
Proof. Case studies or examples relevant to your size and sales cycle (not just “impressions”).
Plan. 90-day sprint with milestones, owners, and risk list.
Tracking. GA4 events, CRM integration, and shared definitions for “lead,” “SQL,” and “sale.”
Cost. Fees mapped to outcomes (base + performance/milestone).
Timeline. When will we know if it’s working?
Owner. One DRI (directly responsible individual) for the KPI.
Communication. Identify a clear line of communication (you shouldn’t be dialing by directory when you need to get a hold of someone).
Don’t Hire an Agency. Hire Outcomes.
Buy a result, not a relationship, and prove payback before you sign a retainer.
Do three things this week:
Run the numbers. Use a simple ROI model. Start here.
Scope one sprint. Pick one business outcome for 90 days. Choose channels that fit your economics.
Score your vendors. Use the 10-point checklist. Tie pay to milestones. Keep your accounts and data.
Want help pressure-testing your plan? Begin with our Marketing Budget Benchmarks, then run the ROI math to see if paid media makes sense for you right now:
Vendor Scorecard
Vendor Scorecard
Score each item 0–2 (0 = missing, 1 = partial, 2 = dialed). Anything under 14/20 doesn’t start.
When an Agency Makes Sense
When you hire an agency, you need to ensure parameters are installed from the beginning: A clear diliniation of ownership, one to two metrics, and a clean, simple way to identify whether the goal is being achieved.
There are cases where an expert team is the right call—short, scoped, and specialized:
Fix a leak. GA4 overhaul, conversion tracking, or paid search rescue.
Ship a sprint. 90-day launch for a product, location, or seasonal offer.
Borrow a spike. You need deep expertise for a narrow window (e.g., complex PPC restructure).
If you do hire, lock the scope to a measurable end-state: tracking clean, CAC reduced by X%, or cost per lead down by Y%. Most importantly, tie fees to the business outcome, not the number of meetings.
FAQ
Why shouldn’t I hire an advertising agency right away?
Because agencies sell activities, not outcomes. Until you have goals, tracking, and a payback target, a retainer amplifies noise, not profit. Build the scoreboard first, then buy scoped outcomes. Start with the ROI calculator.
When does hiring an agency make sense?
For specialized, time-boxed sprints: fixing analytics, rebuilding PPC, or launching a campaign with clear success metrics. Start/stop defined. Owner assigned. Fees mapped to the outcome.
How much should I spend on marketing?
Budget to a payback target. Use revenue share as a gut-check, but your CAC must fit margin and cash flow. Use Marketing Budget Benchmarks to set ranges, then validate with the ROI tool.
What’s the simplest way to calculate marketing ROI?
Start with: (Revenue from marketing – Spend) ÷ Spend. It’s directional and fast. Add attribution depth later once your events are clean.
How should I adapt for AI search (GEO/LLMO)?
Write quotable content with sources, structure, and schema. Aim to get into the answer, not just “rank.”
Hire outcomes.
If it doesn’t move revenue, margin, or payback, don’t buy it. That’s the whole game. Most retainers reward activity; your business rewards results. Put the scoreboard up, prove one 90-day sprint, then decide if you need outside help—and pay them to hit a number, not to attend meetings.
Here’s your next move:
Run the math. Set a payback target and sanity-check CAC/CPL/CPC with simple pencil-math.
Scope one sprint. One owner, one metric, clear exit criteria.
Score partners. Use the vendor scorecard and demand asset ownership and plain-English reporting.
If the numbers work, great! Scale with confidence. If they don’t, you just saved a year of fees.
Start here: sanity-check your spend with Marketing Budget Benchmarks and run your numbers in the Marketing ROI Calculator. If the math says “go,” we’ll help you define a sprint you can grade.