5 Signs Your Marketing Agency Is Wasting Your Money
In This Article
Hiring a marketing agency should be the best investment your contracting business makes. But the reality is that too many agencies take advantage of business owners who are too busy to check on the details. If any of these five signs look familiar, it is time for a serious conversation with your agency or a new agency entirely.
The Signs
1. They Cannot Show You Where Your Leads Come From
If your agency cannot open a dashboard and show you exactly how many leads you got this month, which channels they came from, and what your cost per lead is, they are flying blind. They should be tracking calls, form submissions, and ad clicks with precise attribution. “We are building awareness” is not a metric.
2. You Do Not Own Your Accounts
Your Google Ads account, your Google Business Profile, your website domain, your social media accounts — you should own all of them. If your agency set them up under their accounts, you are trapped. If you leave, you lose everything. A good agency sets up everything under your name and gives you full access.
3. They Report Rankings Instead of Revenue
Ranking #1 for “best plumbing tips for homeowners” is worthless if it does not generate a single phone call. What matters is ranking for keywords that people search when they need to hire someone right now: “plumber near me,” “emergency plumber [city],” “plumbing repair cost.” Ask your agency which keywords are driving actual revenue.
4. They Have Not Updated Your Website in Months
If your agency manages your website and nothing has changed in three months — no new content, no performance improvements, no conversion optimization — what are you paying for? A website is not a one-time project. It needs fresh content, updated testimonials, and ongoing improvements to convert better.
5. Communication Is a One-Way Street
You should never have to chase your agency for updates. A good agency sends proactive monthly reports, schedules regular check-in calls, and reaches out when something important happens (good or bad). If you only hear from them when your invoice is due, that tells you everything.
What a Good Agency Looks Like
- You own all your accounts and assets
- Monthly reports with clear lead numbers and cost per lead
- Proactive communication, not just when the invoice is due
- They ask about your business goals, not just your marketing budget
- They specialize in your industry or similar service businesses
- They can show case studies with real numbers from real clients
When to Walk Away
If you have brought up these concerns and nothing changes within 30 days, it is time to leave. Make sure you have access to and ownership of all your assets before giving notice. Download all your data, change any shared passwords, and have a transition plan ready for the new agency or your in-house efforts.
Looking for a Marketing Partner That Actually Delivers?
Let ProToBoss handle your marketing so you can focus on what you do best.
More Resources for Home Service Businesses