The hidden costs of staying with the wrong digital marketing agency

If you suspect your agency is putting your business on autopilot, you might be wondering if a different team could better solve your digital marketing challenges. But is it worth the effort to make the break? Here are three hidden costs to consider as you make your decisions.

Switching digital marketing agencies is no easy task, and it might seem safer to stay with the agency you already have. But continuing to invest in an underperforming agency—or even just one that isn’t fully engaged with your goals—can be costly in more ways than you might think. 

“I spend a lot of time helping marketers figure out if they’re getting the most bang for their buck,” says Chris Fowler, VP of Paid Media & Strategy at Voro, a digital agency that’s known for solving complex challenges in creative ways.

Chris says he often hears from marketing leaders who say, “I feel like I could be doing a better job than my marketing agency.” When that’s the case, there can be risks with staying too long. Here are a few: 

1. You could be wasting money (and time) on underperforming campaigns.
   If you find yourself paying for marketing campaigns that aren’t generating the results you expect—particularly if this is happening over and over again— it’s time to adjust either your expectations or your strategy. Not every campaign can be a smashing success, but if your agency isn’t coming to the table with fresh thinking, and if they aren’t analyzing results to find ways to continually improve, your marketing dollars simply aren’t working as hard as they could be. When that’s the case, it can be an expensive choice to settle for the status quo.
   
2. You could be losing revenue.
   The truth is, not every agency approaches digital marketing the same way. Some teams are more creative (and aggressive) about finding and targeting the right audiences. Staying too long with an agency that’s following the same formula with every client could mean your competitors are gaining customers you’re missing, and it could be significantly cutting into your revenue opportunities.
   
3. You could be missing out on valuable insights. 
   When you’re working with a smart digital team, they’ll make you smart too. They’ll uncover opportunities in your data, and they’ll also translate those findings into clear, actionable insights for you. Instead of just providing a dashboard of acronyms, the best agency partner will reveal trends and make you aware of potential concerns—and opportunities. If you’re not feeling smarter at the end of your agency meetings, you’re missing out on what’s possible.
   

If you suspect your agency has put you on autopilot, it may be time to make the leap to a new partner. Yes, the effort to switch can be significant, but you might see a payoff sooner than you expect.

“No agency can—or should—guarantee results,” says Chris, “but there are definitely certain approaches that deliver consistently better outcomes over time. That’s the kind of work we do at Voro.”

Chris Fowler
VP of Paid Media / Voro