10 Questions You Should Be Asking Your Paid Media Agency
Finding the best digital marketing agency partnerships ultimately shapes the success of your campaigns. The ideal agency is a team that shares your goals and works with transparency and clarity. Below, we’ll cover ten key questions to ask before signing on. This way, you’re able to select a partner who understands you and delivers the best results.
Finding the Best Agency Partner for Growth
Choosing from among the best marketing agencies to partner with means finding a team that’ll serve as an extension of your own. You’re not just looking for people to run ads. You’re looking for a group that understands your goals, audience, and growth plans. These questions enable you to go beyond the sales pitch and learn how an agency actually operates. The ideal partner will be transparent, proactive, and focused on long-term results rather than just achieving quick wins.
Questions to Vet Your Next Paid Media Agency
Once you’ve found a few promising agencies, you’ll want to dig deeper. The proper questions will reveal how they think, plan, and measure success. Digital advertising efficacy is often overestimated, as one study found that brand search ad performance was overstated by up to 4,100% on eBay, and similar tests on Facebook ads showed an overestimation of 4,000%. That’s why it’s vital to ask how an agency actually measures results beyond surface-level numbers.
What Is Your Client-to-Strategist Ratio?
If your agency’s strategist manages too many clients, their attention gets spread thin. Ask how many accounts each strategist oversees and how they divide their time between planning, optimization, and reporting. A lower client-to-strategist ratio typically means a more focused strategy and better communication. It also ensures you know who your primary point of contact will be and how involved they’ll be in everyday decisions.
How Do You Develop a Media Strategy?
Ask how the agency builds a strategy that fits your goals, audience, and market. A strong paid media advertising agency uses data and experience to guide decisions rather than templates. They should explain how they balance short-term performance with long-term growth. If they take a similar approach for everyone, that’s a red flag. Learn more about what a paid search agency brings to your campaign planning.
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The 80/20 rule in digital marketing means that about 80% of your results usually come from just 20% of your efforts. For example, a small number of your ads, keywords, or customers may drive most of your traffic or sales. This rule helps marketers focus on what’s working best so they can get better results without wasting time or money.
What Is Your Approach to AI and Automation in Paid Media?
AI now plays a sizable role in digital advertising. However, it shouldn’t replace human judgment. Ask how the agency uses automation to improve performance while still keeping calculated control. For AI-driven campaigns like Performance Max or Advantage+, find out what guardrails they use to review placements and results. The goal is to use AI for better insights. You don’t want it left running unchecked.
Eyeful’s Expert Insight
“While it is important to understand the updates, new campaign types, etc., as we’re seeing across all platforms with evolution of AI, data is king. Especially when you also consider all the privacy updates. Being data (1st party, data partners, analytics, etc.) focused will allow clients to embrace the future as data is going to inform the platforms.”
How Do the Teams Cross-Collaborate?
Strong collaboration between SEO, paid media, social, and creative teams keeps campaigns consistent and successful. Each channel should share insights that shape messaging, targeting, and creative direction. When teams work together, you get better use of your budget and better results across every platform.
Want to see how teamwork improves performance? Explore what a social media marketing agency can do for your brand.
How Do Creative and Media Work Together in Your Process?
Creative and media should always work side by side. Great ad concepts come from data and audience insights, not guesswork. When creative and media teams collaborate, your ads remain relevant and engaging. The best agencies test visuals, copy, and formats regularly to see what connects with people and drives better results across all channels.
How Do You Measure Campaign Success and What Does Your Reporting Process Look Like?
Ask how the agency defines success beyond impressions or clicks. The best partners connect results to your business goals rather than vanity metrics. Reports should be easy to understand and include insights you can act on, not just spreadsheets full of numbers. Transparent reporting shows how your budget is performing and where there’s room to improve and grow.
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Look for reviews that talk about real results, clear communication, and long-term support. The best reviews will mention how the agency helped solve problems, hit business goals, and stayed transparent along the way. Watch out for vague praise with no details—it’s the specifics that really show what the agency is like to work with.
Are You Experienced With Media Mix Modeling and Incrementality Testing?
A skilled paid media advertising agency should understand how to measure what’s actually generating growth. Media Mix Modeling and incrementality testing let you know which channels create additional revenue rather than just capturing existing demand. These techniques use controlled experiments to show cause and effect, so you can invest your budget wisely.
In fact, a beauty brand using incrementality testing for Performance Max campaigns found an incremental ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) of £6, meaning every £1 spent drove £6 in new revenue.
Can You Share a Case Study From a Client With Similar Goals?
Ask your paid media advertising agency for examples of past work that match your goals or industry. Seeing actual results lets you understand their process and what success looks like. A good case study should highlight the challenge, strategy, and outcome. You shouldn’t only see the final numbers. It also gives you a sense of how they think and solve problems for clients like you.
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Related Article: Decoding the Synergy Between Paid and Organic Search
Wondering how paid and organic search can work together without overlap? This case study shows how a healthcare tech brand used deep analysis to prove their paid brand ads were adding real value—not just replacing organic clicks.
How Do You Stay Ahead of Industry Changes and Platform Updates?
Digital marketing changes quickly, and you need an agency that keeps up. Ask how they track new trends and platform updates. A proactive agency will have regular training and testing that is always current. This shows you that they’re invested in learning and adapting so your campaigns don’t fall behind.
Eyeful’s Expert Insight
“It’s two things - it’s being proactive and anticipating trends and coming up with adaptive strategies vs. being reactive and relying on tactics that worked in the past. Focusing on innovation and teaching our partners about what the future looks like, and how we will navigate it with expertise and partnership.”
What Does Your Fee Structure Include?
Before signing on, make sure you understand precisely what you’re paying for. Ask for a clear breakdown of fees to see if it’s a flat retainer, a percentage of ad spend, or both. A transparent agency will outline what’s included in your agreement and what might cost extra. This clarity lets you plan your budget and build a fair, open partnership from the very beginning.
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A strong marketing partnership starts with clear goals, open communication, and defined roles. You’ll want to agree on strategy, timelines, and how success will be measured. The best partnerships feel like an extension of your team, with regular check-ins and shared responsibility for results.
Turning the Correct Questions Into Real Partnerships
Finding the ideal digital marketing agency partnership requires more than a good pitch. It requires asking the correct questions as well. The answers you get will show how an agency thinks, communicates, and measures success. This will ultimately let you choose a perfect growth partner rather than just a vendor.
Key Takeaways:
Ask questions that reveal how the agency works behind the scenes.
Look for transparency in strategy, reporting, and pricing.
Prioritize collaboration between creative, paid, and analytics teams.
Evaluate how they use AI and data to guide, not replace, strategy.
Focus on agencies that tie results to your business goals.
Next Steps:
Review your current agency relationships using these questions.
Compare responses from multiple agencies before making a decision.
Request case studies and reporting samples to see their approach in action.
Schedule a discovery call to discuss how they tailor strategies to your goals.
Keep communication open and revisit performance regularly.
If you’re ready to build a winning strategy with a transparent, data-driven partner, learn more about our digital and eCommerce consulting service.