How to decide between hiring a marketing consultant or an ad agency

This is your ultimate guide for the pros ands cons of Marketing Consultants vs Ad agencies

When you are searching for an outsourced person or team to help your company’s marketing ROI, you will come across both consultants and ad agencies.

So how to decide? The most important component to consider is getting the best return for your business based on your specific goals.

Lots of agencies and consultants provide similar offerings and both often make promises that are too good to be true.

Thus, it’s incredibly important for your budget to make the right decision so you don’t get burned.

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Ad Agencies

What you need to know about ad agencies

What is an advertising agency?

An advertising agency is a company of many people often with varying skill sets which helps businesses create and manage their advertising campaigns and meet their client goals.

The capabilities of an ad agency can vary widely — some focus exclusively on one or a handful of channels, while others pride themselves on being a full-service agency that can support any channel as well as conduct research.

The channels managed by an ad agency can focus exclusively on or combine any of the following:

SEM (search engine marketing aka paid search)
Display
SEO (search engine optimization)
Social Media (and can be platform-specific)
Influencer Marketing
Affiliate Marketing
Lead Generation
Branding
Television (traditional ad buying)
Connected TV
Print (magazines, newspapers)
Direct Mail (postcards, flyers, etc)
Out-of-Home (OOH)
Video
Photography
Public Relations
Events
Guerilla Marketing
Gifting
Quantitative/Qualitative Research
Etc.

The ultimate goal of an advertising agency is to help their clients effectively promote their products or services to their target audience at the most opportune time with the best messaging WHILE remaining cost-effective for the agency.

How much time will an advertising agency spend on my account?

What the ad agencies say:

The amount of time an advertising agency spends on your account will depend on a variety of factors, including the size and complexity of your business, the goals of your advertising campaign, and the resources available to the agency. In general, larger and more complex accounts may require more time to manage, while smaller and simpler accounts may require less time.

Specific tasks that an advertising agency performs for your account may also impact the amount of time they spend on it. Some tasks that vary greatly in execution time are:

Conducting market research (longer)
Developing advertising strategies (longer)
Creating and managing ad campaigns (longer)
Analyzing data and results (shorter)
Reporting on progress (shorter)

It’s also important to note that the amount of time an advertising agency spends on your account may vary over time, depending on the needs of your business and the progress of your advertising campaign.

Some agencies may offer packages or retainers that include a set amount of time for managing your account, while others may charge on an hourly basis.

It’s a good idea to discuss your specific needs and budget with the agency to determine the best approach for your business.

The behind-the-scenes truth:

It would be remiss to not include that advertising agencies make more money by having more clients.

The more clients they can take on without having to increase their staffing improves their profitability.

This is a necessary “evil” considering agencies should then be able to afford to offer additional perks and training to their employees. Theoretically, the clients should also reap rewards from this in terms of consistency and skill with their account managers.

Unfortunately, not all advertising agencies operate with an altruistic budgetary structure.

Some agencies will squeeze profits to pad executive pockets, spend on frivolous expenditures (think over-the-top office parties and concerts), invest in swanky offices, hire more unqualified staff, or reinvest just in the sales team (to win more clients).

This means that some clients are not getting the white-glove care, time, and effort that they may have been promised, are expecting, or are told they are receiving.

Fortunately, there are steps clients can take to insure their agency is not taking advantage of them.

When should you consider hiring an advertising agency?

You should foremost consider hiring an advertising agency if you want to launch an ongoing and/or extensive campaign but don’t have the knowledge or resources to do it yourself/ in-house, AND you have the budget to spend on it.

An advertising agency can help you research your target audience, but this is most likely an overreaching promise with the exception of full-service and research agencies. Be warned though, research is an expensive activity.

The amount of work an ad agency can do on your behalf is abundant.

Agencies should create compelling messaging (I’d dare venture to say that the vast majority of famous taglines and campaigns were created by agencies rather than in-house).

Ad agencies should also select the right mediums, manage logistics, track performance, maintain reporting, conduct testing, and keep a positive relationship with you, the client.

Furthermore, an absolute slam-dunk benefit of an ad agency is they do the same work for a wide variety of clients. Meaning, they have a lot of diverse experiences that they can leverage on your behalf.

This value alone is why I tend to prefer hiring marketers with agency backgrounds vs solely in-house experience. In-house can provide a lot of depth, but only in one very specific use case. Whereas agencies have the opportunity to experiment and explore at a much higher velocity.

Additionally, with an ad agency, you often have more than one person overseeing your account so clients benefit from multiple perspectives, skillsets, and experiences. Plus, account managers will be surrounded by peers in their industry that they can use as a sounding board when they’re at a loss or have experimental ideas.

Hiring an advertising agency can save you time and effort, and can ultimately help you achieve your advertising goals.

If you are needing to scale your marketing program, don’t have the skillset in-house, or want specialty support an agency can be a game-changer.

When should you NOT hire an advertising agency?

There are more than a few reasons why you may not want to hire an advertising agency.

If you are on a tight budget
and can’t afford the retainer, percent of spend, or additional fees you may want to handle your advertising efforts in-house or outsource the work to an organization with lower costs (such as freelancers, consultants, etc.).

You should never hire an agency expecting to pay them using the profits they generate for you. It takes a long time (often a minimum of 3-4 months) to get campaigns launched and rolling, and profits are never guaranteed (even if they swear you’ll make loads of money from their genius, no-fail methodology). The one potential exception is if the contract is on a profit-share agreement where you only pay if you make money.

It is worth noting that there are revenue-share agreements that do NOT necessarily factor in CAC (customer acquisition cost) or COGS (cost of goods sold), so they may not actually be profitable agreements for you.
If you have a very specific vision
for your advertising campaign and want complete control over every aspect of it, you may not want to work with an agency, as they likely will bring their own ideas and strategies which may not align with yours.
You have no clear goals
and are hoping the agency can help you create them. Beware, if the agency sets your goals they will always be in the favor of the agency keeping your contract and not necessarily maximizing and pushing the limits to benefit your business.
You have no one to oversee the agency
and meet with them on a recurring basis. Laid-back clients will receive laid-back results. Account managers are busy and will naturally take the path of least resistance. The clients that require transparency and consistently ask valid questions will naturally get higher quality work.
If you are just starting out,
have a limited budget, and have limited knowledge of what works. In this case, you may not need the full scope of services an advertising agency offers and charges for. You may be better served by focusing on creating the early stages of an online presence and testing messaging and audiences to determine what resonates and what works best for YOU – start small and sustainable to gradually build your way into a more robust program.

Ultimately, the decision to hire an advertising agency should be based on your specific needs and circumstances. If you are on a tight budget, want complete control, or alternatively have no real interest in the function you may want to handle things yourself or work with a freelancer you trust.

What are the limitations of an advertising agency?

Advertising agencies are limited by many factors, including:

Client budget
Advertising agencies have to work within a predetermined budget set by you, the client. This can limit the scope of their work and the types of campaigns they can create. It is quite common for clients to have unrealistic expectations of what can be achieved within their budgets.

It is far better to have an ROI-driven budget that’s flexible so long as the campaigns meet or exceed a specific ROI than to have a rigid set amount. This enables agencies to continue getting volume, testing, and launching new initiatives. Having a flexible budget is often preferential to account managers as well who are, in return, empowered with more growth opportunities so long as they achieve.

However, if your finances literally dictate that you cannot exceed a set amount it is imperative your agency is aware of this, so they do not spend more under any circumstances.
Time constraints
Some campaigns often require strict deadlines that agencies must work within. This can limit the amount of time that agencies must come up with creative ideas and produce high-quality work.

For example, if you hire an agency three months before your big Black Friday push and expect direct mail to accompany that initiative — you’re severely impeding the quality due to uncontrollable and deadlines (both by the direct mail company and the delivery date).

As mentioned earlier, account managers often work for several clients simultaneously – so there are natural time constraints within their availability as well.

Additionally, some clients will set aggressive “success” deadlines which put an extraordinary burden on agencies to deliver wins in a short amount of time. If this window is too short (less than 4 months) the agency may never have had a real chance to succeed.
Client preferences
Agencies are hired to serve the needs and goals of their clients. This means that they must work within the parameters set by the client and may have to compromise on creative ideas if they do not align with the client’s vision.

Due to the nature of the contract, agencies often have less ability to firmly push back if they feel a client is making an unwise decision. In-house teams are much better suited for this type of push-and-pull dynamic. If an agency is fearful that the client will cancel the contract, they may cower from pushing the advice they truly believe will make you more successful.
Client capabilities
Agency-client relationships are two-way streets. More often than not the agency will need or require the client to complete something for them — most often a technical back-end implementation, such as a cookie, update data tracking so they can see the full funnel, or create new landing pages.

If the client drags their feet or is unable to complete the task the agency will, in turn, be constrained on what they can fully execute.

One common hurdle agencies face after the onboarding phase is having the client update their site messaging to match wins the agency has identified.

Having a consistent message across mediums builds confidence with consumers and is a critical component of a strong conversion rate and LTV.
Legal limitations
There are many laws and regulations governing advertising, such as truth in advertising laws and rules around the use of specific imagery or language. Agencies must be aware of these regulations and ensure that their campaigns comply with them.
Ethical standards
Black hat marketing is considered either outright unethical or shady practices that are widely frowned up in terms of best practices and platform requirements. Unfortunately, sometimes what may seem like a clever idea is actually a really bad idea that can have stern consequences.
Market competition
The advertising industry is highly competitive, and agencies must strive to produce unique and effective campaigns in order to stand out from the client’s competition. This is extremely challenging and requires a lot of hard work, research, testing, experience, and time.

Overall, the main limitations of advertising agencies are the constraints they face in terms of budget, time, client preferences, legal and ethical requirements, and market competition. These limitations can make it difficult for agencies to produce the most effective and creative work possible.

Marketing Consultants

everything you need to know about Marketing Consultants

What is a marketing consultant?

A digital marketing consultant is an experienced marketer, often self-employed or part of a consulting firm, who helps businesses and organizations create, plan, and implement their marketing strategies. This may include research, development, and/or execution of campaigns on a wide variety of digital channels, as well as analyzing data and making recommendations for improvement.

Marketing consultants may also double as marketing coaches who can evaluate existing teams, provide mentorship and training, support the hiring process, and advise executives.

Digital marketing consultants may work with a variety of clients or specialize in a particular niche. They can support small businesses, large corporations, non-profit organizations, etc.

Key responsibilities of a marketing consultant include:

Researching and analyzing the target audience and market
Determining the areas of greatest opportunity
Prioritizing marketing initiatives
Architecting and potentially implementing digital marketing campaigns
Tracking and analyzing data to measure the effectiveness of campaigns
Providing recommendations for improvement based on data analysis
Staying up to date with industry trends and best practices in digital marketing
Communicating with clients to understand their needs and goals, and providing regular updates on the progress

The capabilities and scope of a marketing consultant or marketing coach vary with each individual and firm. Some marketing consultants may only focus on strategy and advisement while others hope to own the full marketing workload.

How much time will a marketing consultant spend on my business?

The amount of time that a marketing consultant spends on your business will depend on the specific needs of your business and the services that the consultant is providing.

This can range anywhere from a few hours a week to several hours a day depending on the scope of the project.

Clients tend to have a clearer understanding of how much time a consultant will be able to invest in a given week or month, as opposed to advertising agencies where it’s much murkier.

When should you consider hiring a marketing consultant?

They have expert knowledge and experience to provide you with valuable insights and guidance.
They can help you create and implement a marketing strategy tailored to your specific business needs.
They can help you stay on top of the latest trends and technologies in the marketing world.
They can help you identify and target the right audience for your product and services.
They can help you develop and execute marketing campaigns that get results.
They can save you time, money and resources by helping you focus on your core business.
They can help you measure and analyze the success of your marketing efforts.
They can help you identify new opportunities for growth and expansion.
They can provide you with valuable feedback and advice on how to improve your marketing efforts.
They can help you create a comprehensive marketing plan to ensure your success.
They can help you maximize the return on your marketing investment.
They can help you create and maintain an effective online presence.
They can help you develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders.
They can help you develop and execute effective social media marketing strategies.
They can provide you with creative, out-of-the-box ideas and solutions.
They can provide you with access to specialized resources and expertise.
They can help you stay ahead of your competitors.
They can help you create more engaging and effective content.
They can help you develop and manage effective campaigns across different channels.
They can help you make informed decisions about your marketing investments.

When should you NOT hire a marketing consultant?

A marketing consultant may not have the expertise needed to address your specific needs.
A marketing consultant may not have expertise in the industry you are in.
Costs can be high and ongoing.
They may not have the right contacts to get the job done.
They may not have the same level of commitment to your project.
You may not get the ROI you are expecting.
They may not have the same vision as you.
You may not be able to trust their advice.
They may not have the same level of passion and enthusiasm as you.
There may be a language barrier between you and the consultant.

What are the limitations of a marketing consultant?

Limited Knowledge: The primary limitation of a marketing consultant is that their knowledge is limited to the current trends and marketing strategies. They may not be aware of the latest trends and tools available in the market.
Cost: Marketing consultants usually charge a fee for their services. Depending on the type of consultancy and the scope of the project, this fee can be expensive.
Time Constraints: Most marketing consultants have limited time available to complete the project. This can be a major limitation in terms of the effectiveness of the project.
Lack of Experience: Many marketing consultants lack experience in the specific industry or field they are working in. This can lead to mistakes or ineffective strategies.
Conflicting Priorities: There may be conflicting priorities between the consultant and the client, which can lead to communication issues or disagreements. It is important to clearly define the objectives of the project from the outset and set clear expectations.

The main Differences

The key differentiating factors

What is the difference between a digital marketing consultant and an advertising agency?

Marketing consultants and ad agencies have many commonalities in their capabilities. They both research, strategize, plan, prioritize, develop, execute, analyze, test, and report. Similarly, they both also vary greatly from one to the next in their skillset and scope.

However, there are critical key differences between them that are important to consider:

Marketing consultants often operate individually or as part of a small team. It’s much easier to know “what you’re getting” with a consultant vs an agency. Agencies often inflate titles (so clients feel more confident) and rotate account managers meaning clients are less likely to maintain the breadth of experience they may initially be offered.
Marketing consultants are often more embedded into the business than an agency is, although in both situations this is largely dependent on the client’s willingness. If having someone more involved with a higher understanding of your business is appealing, then a marketing consultant may better suit your needs.
Marketing consultants and marketing coaches often offer fractional support. If you need more leadership than in-the-weeds execution an agency is not likely the best choice.
Marketing consultants are a better choice if you have a temporary need such as a marketing audit, a one-time project, or the need for occasional advisement.
Ad agencies, particularly full-service, are likely able to do a much wider variety of work than a marketing consultant (or a smaller agency). They should have many departments for varying skill sets – such as research, creatives, media buyers, campaign managers, etc.

So if budget is not your main limitation and you need a full-scale media blast including commercials, print, OOH, display, and more to increase your brand awareness a full-service agency is your best bet.
If you’re not interested in having an in-house marketing department but want to reap the benefits of a wide variety of ongoing marketing efforts an agency may be better suited for your hands-off approach than a marketing consultant who is more likely to want to bring you along for the journey.

However, we would not recommend a hands-off approach with agencies as the amount and quality of the work they do for you is likely to suffer with lackadaisical supervision.
Contrarily, if you are hoping to learn and/or better understand marketing initiatives, have a deep curiosity or inquisitive nature, like being kept in the loop or having the final say, then a marketing consultant is likely a better option.

It’s not necessarily diplomatic to say, but generally speaking, agencies would prefer to be trusted and not questioned, whereas marketing consultants are often quite keen on teaching and providing insights, learnings, and failures.
If you have a decent-sized budget, are lacking an in-house team or specialty focus, and have a long-term (12 months or more) complex campaign that could benefit from the eyes and expertise of multiple people then an ad agency may also be the right path for you.

It’s worth noting that many marketing consultants also operate as an agency, so they may not need to be ruled out immediately if you identify with the above.

Don’t forget that budget is not only your ad spend but also the fees associated with a marketing consultant or ad agency. If the work is viewed as a requirement or necessity you should compare the cost of hiring in-house vs hiring an agency and/or marketing consultant since the work will have to be completed one way or another. Agencies or marketing consultants may seem much more appealing put in this perspective due to their lack of benefits and hiring costs.
If you have a need for deep expertise, management, and execution in a niche area on an ongoing basis a specialty ad agency may be preferential.
Creative needs, such as video production and photography, are more likely to be agency-driven than with a marketing consultant.

In general, a digital marketing consultant is a more specialized and focused leadership resource, while an advertising agency often offers a wider range of skillsets and long-term day-to-day management of campaigns.

When should you hire a digital marketing consultant over an advertising agency?

There are a few key differences between digital marketing consultants and advertising agencies that may influence your decision on which type of professional to hire.

Digital marketing consultants are typically independent contractors or small businesses that offer specialized expertise in a particular area of digital marketing, such as search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, or email marketing. They are often hired to provide specific, tactical advice and recommendations to help businesses improve their online presence and reach.

On the other hand, advertising agencies are typically larger organizations that offer a wider range of marketing and advertising services, including both digital and traditional media. They are typically hired to develop and execute comprehensive marketing campaigns that span multiple channels and touchpoints.

Ultimately, the decision to hire a digital marketing consultant or an advertising agency will depend on the specific needs and goals of your business. If you have a specific problem or challenge that you need help with, or if you are looking for more targeted, specialized expertise in a particular area of digital marketing, a consultant may be the better choice. If you are looking for a full-service marketing partner to help you develop and execute a comprehensive marketing strategy, an advertising agency may be the better choice

The cost of digital marketing consultants and advertising agencies can vary widely depending on a number of factors, such as the size and scope of the project, the level of expertise and experience of the consultant or agency, and the market rates in the region where the work is being done.

In general, digital marketing consultants tend to be less expensive than advertising agencies, since they usually work on a smaller scale and may not have the same overhead costs. However, the cost of a digital marketing consultant can still vary significantly depending on the specific services they offer and the level of expertise they bring to the table.

Advertising agencies, on the other hand, tend to have more resources and a larger team of professionals working on a project, which can drive up the cost. They also may have a wider range of services available, such as media buying, creative development, and strategic planning, which can add to the overall cost.

It’s important to carefully consider the cost of digital marketing consultants and advertising agencies in relation to the value they can bring to your business. It may be worth investing in a more expensive option if it can bring a higher return on investment, but it’s also important to carefully evaluate the costs and benefits of each option before making a decision.

Overall, the role of a digital marketing consultant is to help businesses and organizations effectively reach and engage their target audience through various digital channels and platforms

There are several reasons why you might choose to hire a marketing consultant rather than an ad agency for your business. Here are a few:

Cost: Marketing consultants are typically more affordable than ad agencies, especially for small businesses with limited budgets.
Flexibility: Marketing consultants are more flexible than ad agencies, and can tailor their services to your specific needs and goals. This means you can get exactly the help you need, without paying for services you don’t need.
Expertise: Marketing consultants are typically experts in a specific area of marketing, such as social media or content marketing. This means they can provide highly specialized advice and support, which can be particularly valuable for businesses that are looking to improve in a specific area.
Independence: Marketing consultants are independent contractors, so they don’t have the same conflicts of interest that can sometimes arise with ad agencies. This means they can provide unbiased, objective advice and support to help your business succeed.

Overall, hiring a marketing consultant can be a cost-effective and flexible way to get the expert advice and support you need to grow your business

The
Bottom Line

What it all means

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