The Founder's Guide To Choosing A Paid Ads Agency

I see this all the time. Founders who are brilliant at what they do, stuck on the growth treadmill because they can't find the right people to run their ads. They've either been burned by a slick-talking agency that delivered nothing but a big invoice, or they're paralysed by choice, scrolling through endless lists of "Top 10" agencies that all look and sound the same. The struggle is real, especially when you feel like you're shouting into the void without knowing who to trust.

The good news is, there's a better way to do this. It's not about finding a local provider you can have a coffee with. It's about finding a true partner with the right expertise. This is my no-nonsense guide to cutting through the noise and finding a paid ads agency that will actually help you scale your business, based on my years of being in the trenches and seeing what works and what absolutely doesn't.

So, why is searching for a "local" agency a massive mistake?

Let's get this out of the way first. The idea that you need a local agency is a relic from a pre-internet era. Your goal isn't to find someone in the same postcode; your goal is to find the absolute best expert for your specific business, your niche, and your customers. The chances of that person being located down the road are, frankly, tiny.

By limiting your search to London, Manchester, or wherever you are, you're immediately cutting yourself off from 99% of the available talent. We've run campaigns for clients all over the world from our UK base. The tools we use—Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn, analytics platforms, Slack, Zoom—are all location-independent. What matters is deep, proven experience in your sector. Have they scaled a SaaS business like yours before? Do they understand the nuances of high-ticket eCommerce? Have they navigated the complexities of B2B lead generation on LinkedIn?

One campaign we worked on was for a medical job matching SaaS. We took their Cost Per User Acquisition from a painful £100 down to just £7. That wasn't because we knew the local area; it was because we understood the platform, the audience, and the strategy needed to get results. That's the kind of expertise you should be hunting for. Making the right choice is tough, but this guide will show you how to choose an agency that drives profit.

How to spot the cowboys: The red flags you can't ignore

The paid ads world is full of agencies that are great at marketing themselves but terrible at marketing their clients. Learning to spot them quickly will save you a world of pain and wasted budget. Here's what to look out for.

Vague promises and guaranteed results
This is the biggest one. If anyone promises you a "guaranteed 5x ROAS" or "we'll double your leads in 30 days," run for the hills. Tbh in paid advertising, you can't really promise anything. There are far too many variables—market conditions, competitor actions, platform algorithm changes, your own offer and website performance. A real expert will never guarantee an outcome. Instead, they'll talk about their process, their methodology for testing, and the realistic potential based on their experience and your data. They'll show you a plan to get to the goal, not a fantasy number plucked from thin air.

No relevant case studies
"We've worked with hundreds of businesses" is a meaningless statement. You want to see proof. Ask them for 2-3 case studies of clients who are as similar to you as possible. Same industry, similar business model, similar target audience. If they can't provide them, it's a huge red flag. It either means they have no experience in your area, or their results weren't good enough to write about. And if they just show you a logo on their website, that's not a case study. You need the full story: the problem, the strategy, the execution, and the numbers. Hard numbers. Revenue, cost per lead, ROAS, LTV. Anything less is just fluff.

The hard sell on a long contract
A confident agency doesn't need to lock you into a 12-month contract from day one. They should be confident enough in their ability to deliver results that they're happy with a shorter initial term, like 3 months, or even a rolling monthly agreement after an initial setup period. A long contract protects a bad agency, not a good client. They're betting on you being too invested to leave even when things aren't working. It's a sign of their insecurity, not their commitment.

Blaming the algorithm
When you ask why results are dipping, and the first answer is "Oh, it's the Facebook algorithm update" or "Google's been a bit funny this week," be very wary. While algorithms do change, a good agency's job is to navigate that. They should be testing, adapting, and have contingency plans. Using the algorithm as a scapegoat is often code for "We don't know what's wrong."

So what does a good agency actually look like?

Alright, enough of the doom and gloom. There are plenty of fantastic agencies out there. You just need to know what to look for. These are the green flags that tell you you're talking to a potential winner.

They talk strategy, not just tactics
A great agency won't immediately start talking about keywords or ad creative. They'll start by asking about your business. Who is your ideal customer? What's the lifetime value of that customer? What's your sales cycle? What are your margins? They'll want to understand your entire funnel, from the first click to the final sale. They know that paid ads are just one piece of a bigger puzzle. Anyone can set up a campaign; very few can build a profitable growth engine. It can feel like an impossible task, so consider whether you need to hire a paid ads expert to help you out.

Their initial call is a consultation, not a sales pitch
This is a massive tell. We offer a free initial consultation where we'll often review a potential client's existing ad account right there on the call. The goal is to provide immediate value. You should walk away from that first conversation with at least two or three actionable ideas you could implement yourself. If you leave the call feeling like you've just been through a timeshare presentation, they're not the one. You want a partner who is generous with their expertise from the very beginning. This builds trust and gives you a taste of what it would be like to work with them.

They obsess over your numbers
A good agency understands that their success is tied to your success. They should be just as, if not more, interested in your business metrics (profit, LTV, sales conversion rate) as they are in ad metrics (CTR, CPC). They should be asking to see your Google Analytics, your CRM data, anything that helps them connect ad spend to actual revenue. They're not just trying to get you cheap clicks; they're trying to make you money. It can feel overwhelming, especially when hiring an agency when you feel clueless about paid ads, but focusing on the right metrics is the only way forward.

Your Secret Weapon: The Lifetime Value (LTV) Calculation

Before you can even have a sensible conversation with an agency, you need to know your numbers. The most important number isn't your budget; it's what a customer is actually worth to you. Most founders wildly underestimate this, which leads them to chase cheap, low-quality leads. When you know your LTV, you know how much you can truly afford to spend to acquire a customer, which changes the entire game.

Forget gut feelings. Let's do the maths. This is the exact formula we use to guide our clients' strategy. Play around with the sliders to see how small changes in churn or revenue can have a massive impact on what you can afford to spend on ads.

Once you've done this, you can walk into a conversation with an agency and say, "My LTV is £10,000. I can afford to spend up to £3,333 to acquire a customer. Can you build me a strategy to do that profitably?" That is a completely different, and far more powerful, conversation than "Can you get me leads for under £50?".

What kind of costs and results should I realistically expect?

This is the million-dollar question, isn't it? The honest answer is: it depends. It's affected by your industry, your offer, your target country, and a dozen other factors. But I can give you some realistic ballpark figures based on the hundreds of campaigns we've run. These are benchmarks to help you gauge whether what an agency is telling you is reasonable.

Generally, for simple conversions like a lead form fill (e.g., for a service business) or a newsletter signup, you're looking at a different cost structure than for a direct eCommerce sale. Traffic in developed countries like the UK, US, and Australia is more expensive but often higher quality than in developing countries.

For example, we ran a campaign for a home cleaning company and got their cost per lead down to £5. For an HVAC company in a competitive market, it was closer to $60. For a B2B software client targeting decision-makers on LinkedIn, we achieved a $22 CPL, which was fantastic for them. The numbers above are a guide. If an agency quotes you something wildly outside these ranges, you should ask them to justify it with specific data.

The Agency Vetting Process: A Step-by-Step Flowchart

Feeling overwhelmed? Don't be. Finding the right agency is a process of elimination. Follow these steps, and you'll filter out the noise and be left with only the genuine contenders. I've mapped it out for you below.

What about going in-house instead of hiring an agency?

This is a question that comes up a lot, especially as a business starts to scale. There are pros and cons to both, and the right answer depends entirely on your stage and resources. Deciding between a PPC agency or building an in-house team is a major decision for any UK founder.

Hiring an agency is best when:

• You need expertise and results, fast. A good agency brings years of experience across multiple accounts and platforms from day one. You're buying speed and avoiding a costly learning curve.
• You don't have the budget for a full-time, senior-level marketing hire (which in the UK can easily be £60k+ plus benefits, NI, etc.). An agency often costs less than a junior salary but gives you access to a whole team of specialists.
• You want to test multiple channels. An agency will likely have experience across Google, Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc., whereas an in-house hire might only specialise in one.

Building an in-house team makes sense when:

• You have scaled to a significant ad spend where the agency's fee becomes more than a senior salary.
• Your business is complex and requires someone to be deeply embedded in the company culture and product development every single day.
• You have a proven, repeatable marketing funnel and now you just need someone to run and optimise the machine, rather than build it from scratch.

For most early-stage and growth-stage businesses, an agency is the more capital-efficient and faster route to results. You can always bring it in-house later once you've proven the model and have the revenue to support it.

Your next step

Finding the right partner to manage your paid advertising is one of the most important decisions you'll make for your business's growth. Don't rush it. Don't settle for a local agency just because they're convenient. And definitely don't fall for flashy promises that can't be backed up with cold, hard data.

Focus on expertise, a proven track record in your specific niche, and a partner who is willing to get in the trenches with you and understand your business goals. Take your time with the vetting process, ask the tough questions, and trust your gut. A great agency relationship is a partnership that can transform your business, while a bad one is just a costly mistake. For a complete walkthrough, check out this no-BS hiring guide for paid ad agencies.

If you're currently running ads and feel like you're stuck, or if you're thinking about starting and want to do it right from the beginning, the offer I made earlier stands. We offer a completely free, no-obligation 20-minute strategy session where we'll look at your business and give you actionable advice. It's not a sales call. It's a chance for you to get an expert second opinion and see how we think. If we're a good fit, great. If not, you'll still walk away with valuable insights you can use immediately.