Hiring a marketing agency gives you creative talent, a range of expertise, fresh ideas and more of your own time. The main drawbacks are the cost, an agency that may not know your industry, and sharing its attention with other clients.

A whole team taking care of your brand sounds appealing, and it frees you to focus elsewhere. But it costs money, and most marketing agencies charge a sizable fee for their services. That could end up costing you more than handling your marketing on your own or hiring a freelancer.

So, what are the pros and cons of hiring a marketing agency? This article covers the biggest benefits and the possible downsides of having an agency handle your company’s marketing.

Before you hire, ask who will do the work, how often you will review it together and what happens when priorities change. If you are comparing staffing models, read our boutique versus large agency guide.

The Pros

Advertising agency revenue has been growing steadily for most of the last decade. This attests to the fact that more and more executives are looking for marketing agencies to help them promote their business.

They must be onto something, right? Let’s start with the pros of hiring a marketing agency.

#1: Creative Minds

Creativity is at the top of any discussion on the pros and cons of hiring a marketing agency. Most marketing agencies have creative directors with a lot of experience when it comes to creating marketing campaigns. Under those creative directors, there are whole teams of talented copywriters, designers, and animators ready to put their creativity to work. These people can take a simple business concept, such as selling products, and turn it into a campaign, a website or a billboard people remember.

Even if you think of yourself as a creative person, your advertising talents can hardly be compared to those of experts with multiple years of experience in the industry. Chances are you won’t be able to create a memorable campaign on your own. And one memorable campaign can do a lot for your business. You can always check the Cannes Festival of Creativity to see what creative minds are capable of.

#2: Areas of Expertise

A full-service marketing agency has whole departments dedicated to different aspects of marketing. At the head of these departments, you will find senior managers with years of experience. Whether you need a new website, a TV commercial, or social media management, your agency can provide you with all these services.

That matters because covering several channels lets you reach a broader audience, and managing all aspects of your brand keeps its image consistent.

Agencies also have quite a few different experts on staff outside of marketing. Need a pro designer to spruce up that old sales presentation? There’s a designer for that. What about that tired website? Work with the agency’s development team to bring it up to modern standards. That’s one of the best parts of working with an agency. The cost of hiring one or two people can get you a lot more skills.

If search is part of the brief, ask who will implement the technical fixes, edit the content and check what visitors do next. Our Rhode Island SEO services page sets out what that work includes and shows a past project where we built the lead-capture side.

#3: New, Different Ideas

Being in your business for a long period, you can start revolving around the same ideas all the time. Your campaigns start to look alike, and you keep using the same words to describe things. You keep trying to come up with new creative ideas but it starts getting more and more difficult. That’s normal. We all have our own writing styles and ways of thinking, and there is a limit to how long you can produce quality content when trying to promote the same thing all the time.

A marketing agency can bring fresh ideas to the table. New people look at your company from different angles.

Also, a group usually thinks better than one person. Agencies often hold brainstorming sessions where several people trade opinions to find the best solution. These sessions can produce campaigns that one person alone in front of a laptop might never come up with.

#4: More Time for You

Hiring a marketing agency allows you to focus your attention on other things. Rather than monitoring Google analytics every day and hunting for freelancers to design your social media posts, you can concentrate on macromanagement. That matters for your business growth. You need to let go of the idea that you have to be involved in all aspects of your company.

Instead, let your agency take care of your marketing activities, and focus on the big picture: improving and growing your business.

The Cons

Hiring a marketing agency isn’t right for every business. Deciding between an agency or in-house for university admissions? Here is how a New England office can split the work. We’ve covered the pros, so now let’s look at the disadvantages. If you decide to interview agencies, make sure to ask these 51 questions.

#1: The Expenses

A marketing agency is also a business. This means it has its own salaries, taxes, and other expenses that need covering. To do this, it has to set a price for its services. However, most agencies are transparent about their prices, and their invoices are very clear and honest. They may also be willing to make compromises regarding their fee structure, so you may end up paying less than you expected.

That being said, an agency will almost never provide a service for free. Even after a year of cooperation, if you need them to produce an extra Facebook post, they will likely charge you for it. Out of all the pros and cons of hiring a marketing agency, the cost is the most likely deal-breaker if you can’t justify or afford it.

#2: Lack of Industry Experience

Some agencies have only worked in a small number of industries. If you come from a niche industry, there is a chance some marketing firms know nothing about your field. Have this in mind when looking for an agency. Choosing between a boutique agency or a large one in Providence? Here is how they compare for B2B companies. Look at their previous work and make sure that they have worked with clients from your field before.

In the beginning of your professional relationship with a marketing agency, they will need more guidance and monitoring. However, as time goes by, they will learn more about your business and industry. Eventually, you will be able to lean on them for all of your marketing activities.

#3: Different Clients, Different Priorities

While you are focused solely on your business, your marketing agency has a lot of different clients. Recent studies show that SEO specialists in large agencies personally handle as many as 17 accounts. Some of them may pay for more services than you, which means they get more attention and enjoy a higher priority status. This can sometimes lead to project deadlines being pushed.

However, a good agency will always set realistic deadlines and manage their priorities. No client should feel less important than another. If you’re thinking about hiring a marketing agency, ask their account managers how many clients they handle. This should give you a good idea about their workload.

The Bottom Line

Consider these pros and cons of hiring a marketing agency before making the final decision. If you feel like your business can benefit from new ideas and dedicated experts, start your search for an agency that fits. If you are still unsure about the expenses, have in mind that most agencies can offer you short-term trial contracts. This way, you can see if you like their work and whether it brings you any measurable results.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a marketing agency cost?

Agencies charge a fee for their services, and the cost can end up higher than handling marketing yourself or hiring a freelancer. Most agencies are transparent about prices and may be willing to compromise on fee structure, but they will almost never do extra work for free. Ask each agency for its fee structure.

Is it better to hire an agency or do marketing in-house?

An agency gives you a team of creative, design, development and strategy people for the cost of a retainer, and frees your time for running the business. The trade-off is the expense and sharing the agency’s attention with its other clients.

How long is a contract with a marketing agency?

Terms vary by agency. Most agencies can offer a short-term trial contract, so you can see whether you like their work and whether it brings measurable results before committing longer.

What if an agency has not worked in my industry?

Look at its previous work and confirm it has served clients in your field. Expect to give more guidance at the start; agencies learn your business and industry over time.