Reviews
Part of Search advertising: an intent and outcome framework
Choosing a search advertising agency through an open, unpaid process
Best search advertising agencies should be compared through an open, unpaid 2027 process covering strategy, controls, account ownership, evidence, fees, and exit.
What to take away
- The best agency for your account is the one that scores highest against your written assignment, your evidence request and your own reference calls.
- Paid placement, sponsorship and partner badges never enter the score. Label them as advertising or leave them out.
- Run a fixed six to eight week review, then a paid pilot, and expect 40 to 80 hours of your own time.
- Keep one dated verification note beside every shortlist entry.
The selection process, fixed before first contact
The selection process
- Write a one-page assignmentbusiness goal, markets, monthly media budget, work you keep in-house, outcomes you will measure. Give it two weeks and have finance and legal sign it.
- Demand one evidence pack from every candidatelegal entity, ownership, delivery locations, named proposed team, dated platform certifications, principal-media policy, conflicts, minimum fee, contract length, subcontractors, data use and security position, two references.
- Publish submission rules with the request. Same questions, one deadline, a page limit, no speculative campaign build unless you pay for it.
- Score written answers before anyone presents, because chemistry comes after the paper round. Ask what each firm would drop from your account, then check that against search advertising, which sorts what to keep from what to cut.
- Script the presentations. Give each finalist 45 minutes and the same three questions on failure, escalation and exit.
- Call two references per finalist. Ask for monthly spend, the named team, what broke and who fixed it.
- Run a 30 to 60 day paid pilot on a fixed budget before you sign anything long.
Candidate lanes, named examples and proof to request
Build a longlist across lanes, not inside one. Verify every name yourself on a stated date, because ownership and staffing change.
Candidate lanes and proof
| Lane | Examples to verify | Proof to request |
|---|---|---|
| Independent paid-search specialist | Tinuiti, Rise Interactive, KlientBoost | Named team, account scale, negative-list controls |
| Full-service performance agency | Wpromote, Direct Online Marketing | Responsibility map across search, creative, landing pages |
| Enterprise media network | GroupM, Publicis Media, Omnicom Media Group | Local coverage, conflict policy, audit rights |
| Vertical specialist | Scorpion for legal and home services, Cardinal Digital Marketing for healthcare | Comparable scope, current specialist staff |
| B2B demand agency | Directive, Refine Labs | Offline outcomes, CRM values, pipeline checks |
| Retail and commerce specialist | ROI Revolution, Feedonomics | Feed controls, margin data, net economics |
Agency Lanes and Proof
Candidate lane
- Independent paid-search specialist
- Focused execution
- Full-service performance agency
- Search with creative
- Enterprise media network
- Many markets
- Vertical specialist
- Unusual category
- B2B demand agency
- Long qualification
- Retail and commerce specialist
- Feeds, margin
When to include
- Independent paid-search specialist
- Named team, controls
- Full-service performance agency
- Responsibility map
- Enterprise media network
- Coverage, audit rights
- Vertical specialist
- Comparable scope
- B2B demand agency
- Offline outcomes
- Retail and commerce specialist
- Catalog controls
Proof to request
- Independent paid-search specialist
- Full-service performance agency
- Enterprise media network
- Vertical specialist
- B2B demand agency
- Retail and commerce specialist
Nothing above is an endorsement or a ranking. Ask how each firm would work inside the search advertising tools you already own, since ownership and query controls decide who holds your data.
Register each candidate in one row, with dates and a named internal owner:
- Legal entity, ownership, delivery locations, screenshot dated
- Named proposed team and current roles
- Signed disclosure of conflicts, principal-media practice and minimum fee
- Two references with spend level and permission to call
- Submission timestamp against your deadline
- Correction and removal policy the agency can use later
Scorecard weights and a worked Example
Set the weights before submissions arrive.
Scorecard weights
| Criterion | Weight | What a 5 looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Business diagnosis | 15 | Names your funnel constraint and the metric that proves it |
| Query and claim governance | 15 | Match types, negative lists, a claim review process |
| Downstream outcome quality | 15 | Qualified leads or margin, not form fills |
| Experimentation | 10 | Fixed test calendar with decision rules |
| Financial transparency | 10 | Fee basis and any rebate or principal buying disclosed |
| Named staffing | 10 | The people who run the account, with hours |
| Account ownership and exit | 10 | Your account, your data, usable export |
| Security and data use | 5 | Retention, access control, subprocessors |
| Communication | 5 | Cadence, escalation path, one owner |
| References | 5 | Two comparable clients, called by you |
Score each criterion from 1 to 5, multiply by the weight and divide by 5. A credible firm explains how expected click rate, ad relevance and landing page experience move Quality Score and Ad Rank, as Google Ads guidance on Quality Score sets out.
Compare a promised cost per acquisition against search advertising benchmarks you can defend, because a number with no baseline is a sales line.
On my weights, Candidate A reaches 84 and Candidate B 82. A wins on team and governance, B on outcomes and security. Fit beats reputation. With no pilot, raise the weights on staffing and exit.
Fees, effort and the pitch bill
Ranges below are typical market figures, not quotes. Confirm each in writing.
Fees and effort
- Agency fee
- 10 to 20 percent of media spend, or a flat retainer
- Small to mid retainer
- $2,000 to $15,000 a month
- Onboarding
- $1,000 to $10,000, one time
- Internal review time
- 40 to 80 hours across marketing, finance, legal, security
Case-study percentages are advertising claims. The FTC advertising substantiation policy expects a reasonable basis before an objective claim goes out, so ask for raw account data behind any figure.
Cross-border buying and clauses to settle in writing
A registered business can claim GST/HST input tax credits on advertising paid to Canadian suppliers, so net cost differs between a US and a Canadian agency.
PIPEDA sets consent and transparency duties for the tracking you hand over, as OPC compliance guidance explains. In Quebec, commercial advertising must respect the Charter of the French Language. Whatever market you buy in, work through the search advertising checklist so ownership, claims and reconciliation are settled rather than assumed.
