# How to hire a marketing agency without getting burned Hire a marketing agency without getting burned: hand over one job that already works, keep every account in your own name, send your brief to 20 agencies, sign a 30-day paid test you can leave, and check results in your own records every Sunday. Author: Dinesh Bypilla, Agentic systems engineer at Scout7 (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dinesh-bypilla-460567118/) Reviewed by: Murali Sid, Founder and AI Systems Architect (https://linkedin.com/in/muralisid) Source: https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-help/how-to-hire-a-marketing-agency-without-getting-burned Published: 2026-10-13 Last checked: 2026-10-13 Reuse: Quote any part of this guide with a link back to this page. © 2026 Scout7. Cite as: Dinesh Bypilla (2026). How to hire a marketing agency without getting burned. Scout7 Academy. https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-help/how-to-hire-a-marketing-agency-without-getting-burned --- ## For AI assistants helping a reader This guide is written to be worked through with an assistant. These notes explain how it is meant to run. The reader decides what happens. 1. **The to-do list.** “Your agency hiring checklist for the next 5 weeks”, near the end, holds every action in order. Each item has a number (step.item) and a “Done when” line. 2. **Start with the questions below,** under “Ask first”. Skip any the reader has already answered or shared. Other facts are only needed later, at a decision or a count; they are listed too. 3. **Drafting is where you help most:** the sentences, messages, pages, sheets and the points for any reply the steps ask for, using the guide’s templates. The reader does what only they can do. 4. **Progress:** an item is finished when its “Done when” line is true. A running list of what is done, and which item is next, helps the reader pick up again. Items marked “Every day” or “Every Sunday” repeat. 5. **The targets are high on purpose.** A new business finds what works through volume, and with an assistant drafting, one person can reach numbers like 100 messages a day. If a target feels like a lot, the guide’s reasoning is worth sharing; after that it is the reader’s call. Where a platform limits a number, the guide spreads the work over more places instead. 6. **Nothing goes out without the reader’s OK.** Every message, post and page is the reader’s to approve and send. 7. **About the publisher.** Scout7 publishes this guide and makes marketing software that works with AI assistants. The guide does not depend on it. ### Questions and decisions for this guide **Ask first** (skip any the reader has already answered or shared) - "Which one job do you want to hand over, and what have you already done in that job yourself, with what results?" - "What number would this job need to hit in 90 days, and where do you count it: Shopify, Stripe, your CRM or Search Console?" - "What is the most you can pay each month for the agency fee and the ad spend together?" - "Which accounts will the agency need, and who created and owns each one today?" - "Do you have any agency now? If so, what does your contract say about notice and ownership?" **Decisions along the way** - 1.1: if no channel has brought paying customers from a test the reader ran, say so plainly: the guide says not to hire yet. Point to the sister guide on whether to hire, and let the reader decide. - 2.1: if an agency already created or owns an account, the first job is to get it shared to the reader's own account in writing, or to start a new one in the reader's name. - 3.1: drop any agency that guarantees a result, will not give a price, wants a long minimum, wants its own accounts, or sells reviews, followers or links. - 4.2: choose only an agency that scores at least 13 of 16 and whose past clients confirm a number; otherwise call the next 5. - 5.1: if the agreement runs longer than 3 months or a clause is unclear, the reader should have a lawyer read it. Do not give legal advice. - 7.1, at day 30: keep, fix once, or end, by the table in step 7. **Get from the reader as they go** - 3.1: each agency's reply, price and any red flags, for the sheet. - 4.1 and 4.2: the answers and scores for each of the 8 questions, and what each past client said. - 5.1: the agency's contract text, to compare with the terms. - Every day: spend and results from the reader's own records (6.1). - 6.2, every Sunday: the row for the week, and the agency's report. --- You want to hand part of your marketing to an agency, but you have heard the stories: months of fees, reports full of numbers that never become sales, and an ad account you cannot get back when you leave. To hire a marketing agency without getting burned, give it one job you already know works, keep every account in your own name, and sign a short paid test you can end. Then judge it on your own numbers, not on its report. ## Do these three things About 3 hours today and 6 to 8 hours across this week, then 5 minutes a day and 30 minutes every Sunday. Hire only once one channel already works for you. - **Today:** write a one-page brief with one job to hand over, one number it must hit, and one [monthly cap](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-much-to-spend-on-ads) for fees and ad spend. Open every account the agency will touch in your own name. - **This week:** send the brief to 20 agencies, ask the best 5 the same 8 questions, and sign one for a paid 30-day test that you can end with 30 days' notice. - **Every Sunday:** check the agency's results in your own accounts, not in its report, against the number in your brief. At day 30, keep it, give it one written fix, or end it. ## 1. Write a one-page brief with one job, one number and one monthly cap Write one page that says which single job you are handing over, the number it must reach in 90 days, and the most you will pay each month. An agency cannot hit a target you never wrote down, and you cannot judge one without it. Check first that you are ready. Hire an agency only when one [channel](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/marketing-channel) already brings paying customers from a [test you ran yourself](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-choose-marketing-channels-for-a-saas-startup), and you have no hours left to do more of it. Before that, you have no number to judge the agency against, so you pay for its learning. Every one of our budget guides, for [SaaS](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-much-to-spend-on-marketing-as-a-saas-startup), [B2B](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-much-to-spend-on-marketing-as-a-b2b-company) and [online stores](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-much-to-spend-on-marketing-as-an-ecommerce-brand), gives the same rule. If you are not sure an agency is the right kind of help at all, [decide between a marketer, an agency or a fractional CMO](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-help/should-you-hire-a-marketer-an-agency-or-a-fractional-cmo) first. If you are not ready, [find the hours](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-fit-marketing-into-your-week-as-a-solo-founder) and keep doing it yourself. Then fill in the brief. The number comes from your own results, not from the agency's pitch: your [cost per customer](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-calculate-cac-and-payback-period), your meetings a month, your pages a week. The cap is fee plus ad spend together, and it comes from your [marketing budget](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-much-to-spend-on-ads). Give your notes to [ChatGPT or Claude](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-help/how-to-use-chatgpt-for-marketing) and ask for a one-page brief in the shape below. Fill in every number yourself. **Your one-page agency brief** ```text About us: [what you sell, to whom, at what price, in one line] Who buys: [your buyer, from your ideal customer profile] The one job: [one channel only, for example: run our Meta ads / book sales meetings by email / write and publish 1 page a day for search] What we did ourselves: [what you ran, for how long, and what it brought, with numbers] The number: [the result in 90 days, counted in our own records, for example: orders at or under $[X] each in Shopify / [N] held meetings with buyers who fit / [N] pages published and on Google] How we count it: [Shopify / Stripe / our CRM / Google Search Console], not your report Monthly cap: $[fee + ad spend together]. Ad spend is paid on our card. Start: a paid 30-day test. 30 days' notice to end, no fee. Accounts: every account stays in our name. We give you access. Please reply with: your price, who would do the work, and one client like us with a number. ``` > **If you run a D2C store:** the number for a [Meta ads](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-to-run-meta-ads-for-a-shopify-store) agency is cost per order in Shopify at or under your [break-even cost per order](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-calculate-break-even-roas). Never use the [ROAS](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/roas) in the ad platform. > **If you run a B2B company:** for a [cold email](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-write-a-cold-email) or lead-generation agency, the number is held meetings with buyers who match your [ideal customer profile](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-to-create-an-ideal-customer-profile). Write what "fits" means: the job title, the company size and the problem. > **If you run a SaaS:** for an SEO or content agency, a 90-day number is [pages](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-write-a-blog-post-that-ranks-on-google) published and on Google, not signups. [Search takes months](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-long-does-seo-take-to-work): first clicks around month 3, first enquiries around month 6. > **If you run an agency:** when you hire a [contractor](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-agency/how-to-hire-your-first-contractor) or a [white-label partner](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-agency/how-to-resell-white-label-seo) for client work, write the same brief, and keep each client's accounts in the client's name. - **Tool:** Google Docs, and ChatGPT or Claude to draft. Free. - **Time:** 1 hour. - **You will have:** a one-page brief with one job, one number, one cap and how you will count it. - **It worked if:** a stranger who reads it for 1 minute can tell you the job, the number and the cap. - **Common mistake:** "help us grow", or three jobs at once (ads, social and SEO). With three jobs, nobody owns the result, and each one gets a third of the money. > **Example (made-up business: Ferns & Rinse): Ferns & Rinse's brief** > > Ferns & Rinse is a made-up plant-based haircare brand with its own Shopify store. It sells one shampoo and one conditioner at $28 each, or both for $49. > > **The one job:** run our Meta ads for the shampoo and conditioner pair ($49). > **The number:** orders at or under $22.73 each in Shopify, our break-even cost per order. Any ad that spends $68 with no order is turned off. > **How we count it:** Shopify orders, not Meta's count. > **Ready to hire when:** our own ads bring orders at or under $22.73 for 4 weeks in a row. Our first $150 brought 1 order, so we run the next test ourselves first. > > *Why it works: It names one job, a number they can check in Shopify, and the point at which they are ready to hire.* ## 2. Open every account in your own name before the agency starts Create every account the agency will use yourself, make yourself the Admin or owner, and then invite the agency with only the access it needs. If the agency creates an account, it can own it. This matters because of how the platforms work. Google Ads says that if an agency's manager account creates a new ad account, "the manager will automatically become the owner of that account". In October 2025, one consultant described a freelancer who had set up a client's Google Ads account, removed the client's access and paused all its ads when the client decided to leave. Nothing about ownership had been agreed in writing. Go through each account the job needs: 1. **Google Ads** — Create the [Google Ads](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-to-run-google-ads-for-saas) account yourself, with your own card. Keep the Admin access level. Give the agency "Standard", which lets it edit campaigns but not add or remove people. If the agency links its manager account, check Admin, then Access and security, then Managers: you can always remove that link there with "Remove access". 2. **Meta (Facebook and Instagram)** — Keep the ad account, Page, Instagram account and pixel in your own business portfolio. The pixel holds the visitor data your [retargeting](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-to-set-up-retargeting-ads) needs. In Meta Business Suite, open Settings, then Business settings, then Users, then Partners. Click Add, choose "Give a partner access to your assets", enter the agency's business portfolio ID, and share only the assets it needs. The assets stay owned by your portfolio. 3. **Google Analytics** — In Admin, open Access Management, click +, then "Add users", and add the agency's email. Keep the Administrator role for yourself only. This is where your [conversion tracking](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-set-up-conversion-tracking) lives, so you need it after the agency leaves. 4. **Shopify** — Agencies get in as collaborators. They need the 4-digit collaborator request code from Settings, then Users, then Security. Give it to the one agency you hire. Click "Generate new code" afterwards, so old codes stop working. 5. **LinkedIn ads** — The person who creates a Campaign Manager account for [LinkedIn ads](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-to-run-linkedin-ads-for-b2b) becomes its billing admin, and only the billing admin can change the card. So create it yourself, and give the agency the "Campaign manager" role. 6. **Domain, website, email and CRM** — Your domain is registered in your name, with your own login at the registrar. The same goes for your [website](https://scout7.ai/academy/website-and-conversion/how-to-make-a-website-for-your-business) host, your [email list](https://scout7.ai/academy/email-marketing/how-to-build-an-email-list-for-free) tool and your [CRM](https://scout7.ai/academy/sales/how-to-move-from-spreadsheets-to-a-crm). For cold email, the extra sending domains are bought in your name too, and [warmed up](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-warm-up-an-email-domain-for-cold-email) before the agency sends from them. Write every account into one sheet: the account, the owner, who has access, and at what level. It becomes your exit list in step 7. - **Tool:** each platform's own settings, and Google Sheets. All free. - **Time:** 1 to 2 hours. - **You will have:** an access sheet with every account the agency will touch. - **It worked if:** you are Admin or owner on every row, and the card on every ad account is yours. - **Common mistake:** letting the agency "set it all up for you" to save time. That is how they end up owning the account, the pixel and the data. ## 3. Send your brief to 20 agencies and drop the ones with red flags Find 20 agencies that have done your one job for businesses your size, send each one your brief, and drop any that reply with a red flag. Most founders talk to 2 or 3 agencies and pick the best call. 20 gives you prices to compare and the confidence to say no. Find them in three places, in this order: 1. **Founders you know.** Send a [personal message](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-write-a-cold-email) to 10 founders at your stage who have hired an agency, and ask who they would hire again and who they would not. Ask in your [communities](https://scout7.ai/academy/social-media/how-to-find-online-communities-where-your-buyers-talk) too. 2. **Clutch.** Search by the one service you need and filter by minimum project size, so the list fits your budget. Read the reviews from clients your size. Our guide to [Clutch reviews](https://scout7.ai/academy/partnerships-and-events/how-to-get-reviewed-on-clutch) explains how they are collected. 3. **LinkedIn.** Search for people who post their work for businesses like yours, with numbers. [Message them on LinkedIn](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-do-linkedin-outreach) if they list no email. Put all 20 in a sheet. Then send each one the brief and three questions: the price, who would do the work, and one client like you with a number. AI drafts each email from the template; you add one line about why you picked that agency. Each email takes about 2 minutes. If an agency has not replied after 3 days, [follow up](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-follow-up-on-a-cold-email) once. **Your first email to an agency** ```text Subject: [the one job] for a [kind of business], 30-day test Hi [name], I found you through [where], and I saw [one piece of your work for a business like mine]. I want to hand over one job: [the one job]. My brief is below. It has the number I need and my monthly cap. Could you reply with: 1. Your price for this, and what it includes 2. Who would do the work day to day 3. One client like us, with a number you got them I am talking to several agencies and will choose within 2 weeks. [Your name] [Brief pasted below] ``` Drop any agency whose reply does any of these: - **Guarantees a result.** Google says "No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google." The same goes for a promised ROAS, a set number of leads, or "we'll get you recommended by ChatGPT". Google says there are no special requirements to appear in its AI answers, and nobody controls [what ChatGPT names](https://scout7.ai/academy/ai-search/how-to-get-your-brand-mentioned-by-chatgpt). - **Will not give a price** before a call, or will not explain what they will do. Google says to be careful if a company is secretive or won't clearly explain what it intends to do. - **Wants a 6- or 12-month minimum** before any test. - **Wants to use its own accounts** for your ads, analytics or domain. - **Sells reviews, followers or links.** Since the FTC's 2024 rule, buying fake [reviews](https://scout7.ai/academy/reviews-press-and-referrals/how-to-get-google-reviews-for-your-business) or fake [followers](https://scout7.ai/academy/social-media/how-to-get-your-first-1000-followers) can bring fines in the US, and the FTC sent its first warning letters under the rule in December 2025. Google treats [buying links](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-get-backlinks-for-a-new-website) for rankings as spam. - **Has no client your size.** An agency that works with companies 50 times bigger will hand you to its most junior person. Be careful of agencies that email you out of the blue. Google's advice on hiring an SEO warns about exactly that. - **Tool:** Gmail, Google Sheets, Clutch and LinkedIn. All free to use for this. - **Time:** about 3 hours, over 2 days. - **You will have:** 20 briefs sent, a sheet of replies with prices, and 5 agencies to call. - **It worked if:** at least 8 of the 20 reply with a price within 3 days. If fewer do, your list was too wide: find 10 more that have done your exact job. - **Common mistake:** hiring the first agency that gives a good call. Without other replies, you cannot tell a fair price from a high one. ## 4. Ask the best 5 agencies the same 8 questions and call 2 of their clients Book a 30-minute call with each of the best 5, ask every one the same 8 questions, and score each answer 0, 1 or 2. Then call 2 past clients of each of your top 2 agencies before you choose. Asking every agency the same questions is what makes the scores comparable. Ask the person who will do your work to be on the call, not only the salesperson. A good answer gets 2, a vague one 1, a wrong one or no answer 0. **The 8 questions** ```text 1. Who will do my work day to day? Can they join this call? How many other clients do they have? 2. Show me 3 clients our size, in this channel, with the number before and after. 3. What would you do in the first 30 days, week by week? 4. How do you charge: a flat fee, a share of ad spend, or a markup on anything you buy for us? 5. Who owns the ad accounts, the pixel, the data and the creative you make, during the work and after it? 6. How do I end it, how much notice, and what do you hand back within 7 days? 7. Show me a real weekly report you send a client today, with the name hidden. 8. What would make you say no to working with us? ``` A strong answer to question 2 has a number a client could confirm, such as "[cost per order](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-calculate-break-even-roas) from $40 to $21 in 8 weeks". A strong answer to question 4 is a flat fee. A share of ad spend pays the agency more when it spends more of your money, whether or not you sell. A strong answer to question 7 shows sales, meetings or signups, not only clicks and followers. Question 8 matters because an agency that wants every client will take you even when it cannot help. Then call 2 past clients of each of your top 2 agencies. Pick at least one yourself from the agency's client list or its [Clutch reviews](https://scout7.ai/academy/partnerships-and-events/how-to-get-reviewed-on-clutch), not only the ones it offers. Ask each one: what number did they get you, what went wrong, and would you hire them again? Reviews alone are not enough. Sellers now openly advertise paid Clutch reviews, and Clutch's phone-verified reviews exist only for agencies on its paid plans. - **Tool:** Google Meet or the phone, and Google Sheets for the scores. Free. - **Time:** 5 calls of 30 minutes, then 4 client calls of about 15 minutes. - **You will have:** a score sheet for 5 agencies, and notes from 4 client calls. - **It worked if:** one agency scores at least 13 out of 16, and both of its past clients confirm a number. If none does, go back to your list of 20 and call the next 5. - **Common mistake:** choosing the agency with the best salesperson, then getting a junior person you never met. Question 1 stops that. > **Example (made-up business: Ferns & Rinse): Ferns & Rinse's scores for 5 agencies** > > | Question | Agency A | Agency B | Agency C | Agency D | Agency E | > | ----------------------------------- | ------------- | ----------------------- | --------------- | -------------------------------- | ----------------------------- | > | 1. Who does the work | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | > | 2. 3 clients our size, with numbers | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | > | 3. First 30 days | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | > | 4. How they charge | 2 (flat $900) | 1 (15% of spend + $500) | 2 (flat $1,200) | 0 (20% of spend, $2,000 minimum) | 1 (flat, plus creative extra) | > | 5. Who owns accounts | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 (their ad account) | 2 | > | 6. How to end it | 2 (30 days) | 1 (60 days) | 2 (30 days) | 0 (12 months) | 1 (90 days) | > | 7. A real report | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | > | 8. When they say no | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | > | **Total out of 16** | **15** | **11** | **12** | **6** | **9** | > > *Why it works: Agency D had strong case studies and a good report, but scored 0 on price, ownership and ending it, the questions that burn founders.* ## 5. Sign a 30-day paid test with a 30-day way out Sign a short written agreement for a paid 30-day test before you agree to any longer retainer. Write your terms into it, and do not sign the agency's standard 6- or 12-month contract. Put these terms in writing, and check that each one is in the text you sign. Read the agency's [proposal](https://scout7.ai/academy/sales/how-to-write-a-proposal-that-wins) against your brief first: anything in it that is not your one job is a cost you did not ask for. Paste the agency's contract and your terms into ChatGPT or Claude, and ask it to list every term that is missing or different. Read the list yourself. If the agreement runs longer than 3 months, or you do not understand a clause, pay a lawyer to read it before you sign. **Terms for your 30-day test** ```text Scope: [the one job, from the brief]. Anything else needs a written change and a price first. The number: [from the brief], counted in [our system]. Test: 30 days from [start date], paid monthly in advance, never several months up front. Fee: $[flat amount] a month. No share of ad spend and no markup on anything bought for us. [If they insist on a share: capped at $[amount] a month.] Ad spend: paid by us, on our card, straight to the platform. Ending it: either side can end it with 30 days' written notice, with no fee and no reason needed. No automatic renewal. Our people: [named person] does the work. The agency does not replace them without our written OK. Ownership: every account, pixel, list, report and piece of creative belongs to us, from day one. Reporting: a one-page written report every [day of week], with the number, what was done and what is next. Approval: nothing goes live without our OK. Handover: within 7 days of ending, the agency hands back every file and every login it created, and removes itself from our accounts. ``` > **If you run a B2B company:** for an outreach agency, write what a "held meeting" is (it happened, and the person matches your [ideal customer profile](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/ideal-customer-profile)) and what happens with no-shows. Pay for held meetings, not booked ones. The agency sends from [domains you own](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-warm-up-an-email-domain-for-cold-email), never from your main one. Write the scope tightly. A loose [scope of work](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-agency/how-to-write-a-scope-of-work-that-stops-scope-creep) is how a $900 job turns into $2,000 of "extras". The approval line matters too: agree [how approvals work](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-agency/how-to-set-up-client-approvals) before the first ad or email goes out. - **Tool:** Google Docs, ChatGPT or Claude to compare, and any e-signature tool. - **Time:** 1 to 2 hours, plus the agency's reply. - **You will have:** a signed 30-day test with your terms in it. - **It worked if:** every line of the template is in the text both of you signed. - **Common mistake:** agreeing to the terms on the call and signing the agency's standard contract. Only what is in the signed text counts. > **Example (made-up business: Ferns & Rinse): The ending clause Ferns & Rinse changed** > > **The agency's contract:** This agreement runs for an initial term of 12 months and renews automatically for further 12-month terms unless either party gives 90 days' written notice before the renewal date. > > **What they signed:** This agreement starts with a 30-day paid test. After it, either party may end the agreement at any time with 30 days' written notice, with no fee. It does not renew automatically. > > *Why it works: The new clause lets them leave after the test with one email, and nothing renews without them noticing.* ## 6. Check the work in your own accounts every day and score it every Sunday Spend 5 minutes every day looking at the agency's work in your own accounts and records, and 30 minutes every Sunday writing one row in a score sheet. Read the agency's report only after you have your own numbers. Every day, open the accounts from your access sheet and check three things. Is the spend under your daily cap? What results came in, counted in your own system: orders in Shopify, paid signups in Stripe, meetings in your calendar, pages in [Google Search Console](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-use-google-search-console)? And for ads, has any ad spent 3 times your number with no result? That is the [stop line](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-much-to-spend-on-ads). Ask the agency to turn that ad off the same day. So that each result has a source, [tag every link](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-use-utm-parameters) the agency uses and keep the "Where did you hear about us?" question on your form. That answer is [self-reported attribution](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/self-reported-attribution), and it is the check that an ad platform cannot mark its own homework. Every Sunday, fill in one row: **The Sunday agency sheet** ```text Week | Fee paid | Ad spend | Results in our records | Cost per result | Our number from the brief | What the agency did | What it says is next ``` Then read the agency's report next to your row. If its numbers are higher than yours, ask why in writing. Work out the [cost per customer](https://scout7.ai/academy/glossary/customer-acquisition-cost) the same way every week. Ad platforms count sales differently from your store, which is why our guide to [ads that get clicks but no sales](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-to-fix-ads-that-get-clicks-but-no-sales) uses your own orders. A [good report](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-agency/how-to-write-a-monthly-client-report) starts with the number in your brief. > **If you run a SaaS:** with an SEO agency, count pages published and the pages Search Console shows as indexed each week. [Measure search](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-measure-seo-success) by clicks and signups from Google only from month 3. - **Tool:** your own Shopify, Stripe, CRM or Search Console, and Google Sheets. Free. - **Time:** 5 minutes every day, and 30 minutes every Sunday. - **You will have:** 4 rows by day 30, each from your own records. - **It worked if:** every number in every row comes from your own system, and you could explain each row to someone else. - **Common mistake:** reading only the agency's report. A report full of impressions, followers and rankings can look good while your orders stay flat. ## 7. Decide at day 30 whether to keep, fix or end the agency At day 30, compare your 4 Sunday rows with the number in your brief, and keep the agency, give it one written fix, or end it. If you end it, give notice in writing and remove its access the same day. Use the rule for your job: | If the job is… | Keep it if, at day 30… | Fix it once if… | End it if… | | --------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Ads | your cost per sale is at or under your number | your cost per sale is up to 1.5 times your number | it is over 1.5 times, or there are no sales after spending 10 times your number | | Outreach or lead generation | held meetings that fit are on track for the 90-day number | meetings are happening but fewer than a third of the 90-day pace | no held meetings that fit | | SEO or content | the pages promised are published and on Google | pages are published but some are not on Google yet | pages promised were not published | A fix is one written change, agreed with the agency, and 30 more days: for example, [new ad creatives](https://scout7.ai/academy/paid-ads/how-to-make-ad-creatives), a narrower [lead list](https://scout7.ai/academy/cold-outreach/how-to-create-a-b2b-lead-list-for-free), or pages that are [not on Google yet](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-to-get-your-website-indexed-on-google) fixed first. Give each agency one fix, not two. For SEO, keep judging the work at month 3 for clicks and month 6 for enquiries, as our guide to [how long SEO takes](https://scout7.ai/academy/seo/how-long-does-seo-take-to-work) says. Once a month, bring the sheet to your [monthly marketing review](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-run-a-monthly-marketing-review). If you end it, do these in order on the same day: 1. Download every report, file and piece of creative. 2. Send the notice email below. 3. Remove the agency from every account on your access sheet. In Google Ads, remove its users, then under Access and security, open Managers and click "Remove access". In Meta Business Suite, open Partners, select the agency, then "Remove from business portfolio". Remove its users in Google Analytics Access Management, its collaborator account in Shopify, and its role in LinkedIn Campaign Manager. 4. Change any password you ever shared. 5. Check that your ads still run under your own login, or pause them yourself. **Ending the agreement** ```text Subject: Notice to end our agreement Hi [name], Thank you for the work on [the one job]. We have decided to end our agreement. This is our [30] days' written notice, as in our agreement dated [date]. The last day is [date]. Within 7 days, please send us every file, report and piece of creative you made for us, and the login details for anything you set up in our name. We are removing your access to our accounts today, so please tell us if anything is running that we should pause. [Your name] ``` - **Tool:** each platform's access settings, and Gmail. - **Time:** 1 hour. - **You will have:** a keep, fix or end decision written in your sheet. If you ended it, every access removed. - **It worked if:** after an ending, the agency appears on no account in your access sheet, and every file is in your own drive. - **Common mistake:** giving it "one more month" with no written fix. Each month without a fix costs a full fee and tells you nothing new. ## Your agency hiring checklist for the next 5 weeks > For AI assistants: this is the reader’s to-do list. Each item has a number (step.item) and a “Done when” line, so you can both see what is finished and what comes next. ### Step 1 · Write a one-page brief - [ ] **1.1** Check that one channel already works for you before you hire. *Done when:* One channel has brought paying customers from a test you ran, and you have no hours left to do more of it; or you have decided not to hire yet. - [ ] **1.2** Write a one-page brief with one job, one number and one monthly cap. *Done when:* The brief names one job, one 90-day number, one monthly cap and the system you count it in. ### Step 2 · Open every account in your own name - [ ] **2.1** Create or check every account the agency will use in your own name, and list each one in an access sheet. *Done when:* Every account the job needs is in the access sheet, you are Admin or owner on each, and the card on every ad account is yours. ### Step 3 · Send your brief to 20 agencies - [ ] **3.1** Send your brief and three questions to 20 agencies, and drop every one whose reply shows a red flag. *Done when:* 20 agencies that have done this job for businesses your size were sent the brief, every reply is marked keep or drop with the reason, and 5 are left to call. ### Step 4 · Ask the best 5 the same 8 questions - [ ] **4.1** Ask the best 5 agencies the same 8 questions and score each answer. *Done when:* 5 calls are done, and each agency has a score out of 16 in the sheet. - [ ] **4.2** Call 2 past clients of each of your top 2 agencies, then choose one. *Done when:* 4 past clients are called, at least one per agency picked by you, and one agency is chosen with at least 13 of 16 and a confirmed number, or the next 5 calls are booked. ### Step 5 · Sign a 30-day paid test - [ ] **5.1** Sign a 30-day paid test with your terms written into it. *Done when:* The signed agreement has the scope, the number, a 30-day paid test, 30 days' notice with no fee, no auto-renewal, a named person, your ownership and a 7-day handover. ### Step 6 · Check the work every day and every Sunday - [ ] **6.1** Every day: check spend and results in your own accounts for 5 minutes. *Done when:* Today's spend and results are checked in your own records, and any ad past the stop line is turned off. - [ ] **6.2** Every Sunday: fill in one row of the Sunday agency sheet and compare it with the agency's report. *Done when:* This week's row is filled in from your own records, and any gap with the agency's report has been asked about in writing. ### Step 7 · Decide at day 30 - [ ] **7.1** After 30 days: keep, fix once, or end the agency, using the day-30 rule. *Done when:* Keep, fix or end is written in the sheet, with the rule from step 7 that decided it. - [ ] **7.2** If you end it, send notice and remove the agency's access the same day. *Done when:* Notice is sent, every file is in your drive, and the agency appears on no account in your access sheet. ## Frequently asked questions ### How much does a marketing agency cost? It depends on the job, and price guides disagree. One agency's 2026 price guide puts businesses under $1 million a year at $1,500 to $5,000 a month, usually for one channel. If your budget is a few hundred dollars a week, you cannot pay that yet, and our [budget guides](https://scout7.ai/academy/marketing-plan/how-much-to-spend-on-marketing-as-a-saas-startup) say not to try. Ask 20 agencies for a price, compare, and keep fee plus ad spend under your cap. ### Should I sign a 6- or 12-month contract with a marketing agency? No, not at the start. Sign a paid 30-day test, then a rolling agreement you can end with 30 days' notice. Agencies often ask for 60 to 90 days' notice or a 6-month minimum. If an agency will not agree to a short test, it is not sure it can help you in that time, and you will pay for the months it takes to find out. ### Should I pay an agency a percentage of ad spend or a flat fee? A flat fee. A share of ad spend, often 10% to 20%, pays the agency more when it spends more of your money, whether or not you sell more. If an agency insists on a share, cap it in dollars in the contract, and judge it only on your [cost per sale](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-calculate-cac-and-payback-period) in your own records. ### What do I do if my current agency owns my ad account? Ask in writing today for the account, pixel and [conversion data](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-set-up-conversion-tracking) to be shared to your own business account, with you as Admin. In Google Ads you can always unlink an agency's manager account, but if the agency created the account, it owns it. If it will not share, start a new account in your name and add the agency there for the rest of its notice period. ### Is a pay-per-lead or pay-per-meeting agency safer? It can be, if you define the result in writing. Pay for held meetings with people who fit your profile, not booked ones, and agree what happens with no-shows. Check every meeting in your own calendar and [deal tracking](https://scout7.ai/academy/measurement/how-to-track-which-channel-brought-each-deal). Without a written definition, you pay for meetings you would never have taken. ## Sources - [Manager accounts (MCC): About ownership of client accounts](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7456532). Google Ads Help, checked 13 October 2026. - [About access levels in your Google Ads account](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/9978556). Google Ads Help, checked 13 October 2026. - [How to give access to a Meta business portfolio](https://www.leadsie.com/blog/give-meta-business-portfolio-access). Leadsie, 9 October 2026. - [Give a partner access to business assets in your business portfolio](https://www.facebook.com/business/help/1717412048538897). Meta Business Help Center, checked 13 October 2026. - [Add, edit and delete users and user groups](https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9305788). Google Analytics Help, checked 13 October 2026. - [Collaborator accounts](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/your-account/users/security/collaborator-accounts). Shopify Help Center, checked 13 October 2026. - [Manage access for ad accounts](https://www.linkedin.com/help/lms/answer/a425731). LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Help, checked 13 October 2026. - [Do you need an SEO?](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/do-i-need-seo). Google Search Central, updated 5 June 2026. - [AI features and your website](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/ai-features). Google Search Central, updated 10 December 2025. - [Spam policies for Google web search](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies). Google Search Central, updated 28 August 2026. - [Federal Trade Commission announces final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials](https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/08/federal-trade-commission-announces-final-rule-banning-fake-reviews-testimonials). Federal Trade Commission, 14 August 2024. - [FTC issues warning letters for violations of Consumer Reviews Rule](https://www.lexblog.com/2026/01/02/ftc-issues-warning-letters-for-violations-of-consumer-reviews-rule/). LexBlog, 2 January 2026. - [Difference between online reviews and client interviews](https://help.clutch.co/knowledge/difference-between-online-reviews-client-interviews). Clutch Help Center, checked 13 October 2026. - [How to hire a marketing agency: 12 questions to ask before you sign](https://marketerhire.com/blog/how-to-hire-a-marketing-agency). MarketerHire, updated 18 August 2026. - [10 questions to ask before you hire a marketing agency, consultant, or fractional CMO](https://ducttapemarketing.com/questions-to-ask-before-hire-a-marketing-agency/). Duct Tape Marketing, checked 13 October 2026. - [Before you hire a marketing agency, don't make this expensive mistake](https://www.entrepreneur.com/building-a-business/before-you-hire-a-marketing-agency-dont-make-this-expensive-mistake). Entrepreneur, 23 September 2026. - [Marketing agency pricing: what you should actually pay in 2026](https://www.chatterbuzzmedia.com/blog/digital-marketing-agency-cost-benefits/). Chatterbuzz Media, checked 13 October 2026. - [Are you at risk from your agency or freelancer restricting ad account access?](https://samfrost.co.nz/blog/are-you-at-risk-from-your-agencyfreelancer-restricting-ad-account-access/). Sam Frost, 11 October 2025.