1. Wide Range of Services
Traditional marketing agencies tend to offer everything under the sun. But with such a comprehensive array of services, they likely don’t have specific focuses and will try to sell you all of it. These services can range from digital marketing and social media management to billboard advertising and print materials. They offer everything you could ever need for your marketing and they likely want you to invest in most of it.
Traditional marketing agencies can be beneficial for businesses looking for a one-stop shop for all their marketing needs. If you’re a larger business that has the budget to invest in huge marketing campaigns, then an agency like this is probably for you.
2. Large Contracts and Commitments
Agencies typically require long-term contracts and significant financial commitments. To sign with them, you’ll likely have to hand over a pretty hefty start-up fee. That’ll be followed by signing a contract that requires you to work with them for a certain number of months (or years). You won’t be able to just jump in and do something for a few months to see how it goes and cancel if you don’t like it. You’re almost always signing on for big campaigns, big contracts, and big commitments.
Once again, engaging with a traditional agency often means signing up for extensive campaigns with high upfront costs and ongoing monthly fees, which is fine for big businesses. However, this can be daunting for small businesses, startups, and solopreneurs who may struggle to meet these intense financial requirements.
3. Lack of Flexibility
Traditional agencies are not known for their flexibility. They have a set strategy and they want you to follow it. They usually prefer to bundle services, making it difficult for clients to pick and choose specific plans.
For example, let’s say you want to try one specific marketing tactic that you feel confident could help your business, like building ongoing social media content. You’ve got everything else marketing-related handled, but you want to try out getting expertise from someone else for your social media. Unfortunately, you usually can’t go to a traditional agency for just that. They’re going to want to sell you a bunch of other stuff because that’s how their business model works and that’s how they make money. This setup doesn’t give customers as much autonomy over their own marketing plans as they would like.
4. External Relationship
Relationships with traditional agencies often feel more external than internal. While they work for you, they operate as an outside entity, which can sometimes create a disconnect between your business and their marketing efforts. Obviously, they’re a hired external source, but you should still feel like you have a close confidant that you trust to take care of your business.
It’ll most likely feel like they are working for you instead of working with you. If you want something that feels more like an extension of your team, then a traditional agency is probably not your best option.
5. High Costs and Onboarding Fees
As we already mentioned, traditional agencies almost always have high onboarding fees. Then even after those upfront costs, the monthly service fees are going to be just as high. The starting price for agency services is likely at least $5,000 per month, with some requiring a minimum of $10,000.
Yes, they’re going to be giving you “the works” but that comes with a high price tag. Again, it’s great if that’s what you’re looking for, but for smaller companies who want to have a say in the specific services they’re paying for, a traditional agency is simply too much of an investment.
