Asking the right questions before hiring a digital marketing agency can save your business months of wasted budget and frustration. Here are the 15 most important questions — and what the answers should tell you about whether the agency is the right fit.
Questions About Track Record and Experience
These questions reveal whether the agency has proven success with businesses like yours.
- Can you share case studies from businesses in my industry or similar revenue size in the Philippines?
- What is your average client retention rate, and what do clients typically cancel for?
- Can I speak to 2–3 existing clients as references?
- How long have you been operating in the Philippine market?
- What are the most common reasons campaigns underperform — and how do you handle it?
Questions About Strategy and Approach
These reveal how the agency actually thinks — not what they say in the pitch.
- What strategy would you recommend for my specific business — and why?
- How do you identify which channels should be prioritized?
- How do you stay ahead of Google algorithm changes and platform updates?
- What does your onboarding process look like? How long before campaigns go live?
- How do you handle underperforming campaigns — what is your optimization process?
Questions About Team and Account Management
These protect you from the bait-and-switch scenario where senior talent wins the pitch and juniors execute the work.
- Who specifically will manage my account — what is their experience level?
- How many other accounts does my account manager handle?
- Who do I contact if something goes wrong or needs urgent attention?
- What is your average response time for client queries?
- Will I have direct access to the team, or does everything go through one contact?
Questions About Pricing, Contracts, and Ownership
These are the questions most business owners are too polite to ask — but are the most important.
- Is the ad spend separate from the management fee? What platforms handle it directly?
- Will I have full ownership and admin access to my ad accounts, website, and content?
- What is the minimum contract term — and what are the exit conditions?
- Are there any performance guarantees or service level agreements?
- What happens to my accounts and assets if I end the engagement?
Questions About Reporting and Transparency
A transparent agency will welcome these questions enthusiastically. An evasive agency is telling you something.
- What reports will I receive — how often and in what format?
- Which KPIs will you track, and how do they tie to my business goals?
- Will I have access to live dashboards to check performance anytime?
- How do you attribute leads and revenue back to specific campaigns?
- What tools and platforms do you use — and am I locked into their subscriptions?
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it normal for agencies to decline to share client references?+
Some agencies protect client confidentiality, which is legitimate. But they should be able to share anonymized case studies with clear performance data. An agency with nothing to show is a red flag.
What is a red flag in an agency proposal?+
Guaranteed rankings, vague deliverables, no transparency on ad spend, lock-in contracts without performance clauses, and extreme low pricing below market rates are all red flags.
Should I ask about staff turnover?+
Yes. High account manager turnover means your campaign strategy will constantly reset. Ask how long the team has been together and what the average employee tenure is.
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