How to choose a marketing agency in Halifax: nine questions to ask before you sign

Most agency pitches sound the same: strategy, growth, engagement, a slide with logos. The differences show up three months in, when you are either watching new customers arrive or reading a report that explains why they have not. Here is what to ask before you sign, whether you are talking to us or to anyone else in Halifax.

1. Who actually does the work?

The person on the call is often not the person who will write, shoot, edit or run your ads. Ask who is on your account day to day, where they are, and how you reach them. One point of contact who knows your business is worth more than a big team you never speak to.

2. Can I see work for a business like mine?

Not logos. Actual reels, posts and campaigns, with a sentence on what they were for. If the agency has done restaurants and you run a plumbing company, ask how the approach changes. The honest answer is usually "quite a lot".

3. Who owns the content?

You should. Every video, photo and caption made for your business should be yours to keep and use anywhere, including after the contract ends. If the answer is anything other than "you do", walk.

4. What happens to my accounts?

Your Instagram, Facebook, Google Ads and Google Business Profile should stay in your name with you as the owner. The agency gets access, not ownership. This matters most on the day you part ways.

5. What will I get each month, exactly?

"Content" is not a deliverable. A number of reels, a number of posts, a number of shoot days, a report on a given date: that is a deliverable. Get it in writing before you see a price.

6. How do you decide what to make?

Good agencies start with your customer: what they search for, what they watch, what stops them from buying. Weak ones start with a template. Ask what research they do before the first shoot.

7. How is ad spend handled?

Ad spend should be paid by you, directly to Meta or Google, from your own ad account. A management fee on top is normal. Spend that disappears into a single bundled invoice is not.

8. What does the report look like?

Ask for a sample. You want plain numbers that connect to your business: enquiries, bookings, calls, sales where they can be tracked. Reach and impressions are context, not results.

9. What is the minimum term, and why?

Content and social take a few months to compound, so a minimum term is reasonable. It should come with a reason and an exit that does not punish you. Ask what happens if it is not working after ninety days.

What good looks like

An agency that answers all nine without flinching, shows you work for businesses like yours, and puts the deliverables in writing before the price. That is the bar we hold ourselves to. If you want to see how we answer them, book an exploration call and ask us the hard ones first.