Questions to ask before you hire an agency
Most agencies look alike on a pitch deck. These questions show you the difference before you sign, and they are the same ones we would want a client to ask us.
Choosing an agency is hard because most of them look alike from the outside. The same services, the same polished case studies, the same promises. The differences show up later: in how they measure success, who actually does the work, and how they behave when something is not working.
These are the questions we would ask if we were hiring an agency ourselves. They are also the questions we are happy to be asked.
1. How will you measure whether this is working?
This is the most important question, and the answer tells you a lot. If it is only followers, reach and likes, the work may look busy without moving the business. Ask how they will connect the work to enquiries, orders or sales, and what they will show you each month.
2. How many clients like us do you look after?
An agency stretched across too many accounts gives each one a little less attention. You are not looking for a number so much as an honest answer about how much time and care your brand will get.
3. Will our work be made for us, or adapted from a template?
Templates are not always bad, but your brand should not look like someone else's. Ask how they will learn your business, your audience and your voice, and how the work will change as they learn more.
The differences between agencies show up in how they measure success and how they behave when something is not working.
4. How do you use AI, and who checks the work?
Almost every agency uses AI now. The real question is how. Used well, it lets a team make more and move faster. Used carelessly, it produces generic work. Ask who reviews each piece before it reaches you, and how they keep it true to your brand.
5. How often will we hear from you?
Good reporting is set to the work. A live campaign needs closer contact than a monthly content plan. Ask what a normal week and a normal month look like, and what happens when something needs a decision quickly.
6. What happens when something is not working?
Every campaign has weeks that do not go to plan. What matters is whether you hear about it early, with a clear idea of what to change, or late, when it is harder to fix.
7. How do we get started, and how long does it take?
A clear start says a lot about how the rest will go. Ask what the first conversation covers, when you will see a proposal, and what has to happen before work begins.
8. How long do your clients usually stay?
Long relationships are one of the best signs that an agency delivers. If clients keep coming back, and recommending them to others, the work is probably doing its job.
How we would answer
At 8LM, we measure our work against sales: return on investment, and month-on-month sales for online stores we run. We keep our client list small and choose clients we fit with, build everything around each brand, and use AI with the judgement kept human. Clients with active campaigns hear from us every week, and everyone has a monthly review. After a discovery call, you will have a proposal within 24 hours. And most of our clients stay with us for one to two years and longer.