Choosing an agency often decides whether the marketing budget works or “disappears”. Here is a checklist without empty phrases.
1. Who actually works on the account?
Ask for the name and role of the person optimizing campaigns. If the answer is only “the team”, dig deeper. Junior rotation without context is expensive.
2. How do they measure success?
Good answers: CPL/CPA, ROAS, qualified leads, revenue. Weak answers: only likes, reach, “brand awareness” with no business link (unless you consciously buy awareness).
3. What do they do in the first 30 days?
Look for: audit → tracking → structure → launch → optimization. If they “turn everything on” immediately, be careful.
4. Ranking or ROAS guarantees
Guaranteed #1 on Google is a red flag. A serious agency commits to process, transparency and work on agreed KPIs — not magic in a contract.
5. What does reporting look like?
You should see: what was spent, what came in, what changed and why. A 40-slide PDF with no decision is decoration.
6. Contract and exit
Read notice periods and ownership of accounts (Ads, pixel, content). You should control the assets.
7. Fit for SMEs
Large agencies are not automatically better for a small company. Look for a model close to an internal team: speed, directness, budgets that must pay off.
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- What does a digital marketing agency do? (clear and concrete)
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- SEO or Google Ads — what first for a small business?
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