What would you fix first?
A good answer
One problem, why it matters, and the first step they would take.
Ask to see
A quick look at your website, Google profile, or current lead path.
Contractor agency hiring checklist
7 Checks Before You Hire a Contractor Marketing Agency
Reddit can give you names. These seven questions help you figure out who can show real work, explain their numbers, and give you control of your accounts.
- 7 hiring checks
- 5 public threads reviewed
- No pay-to-play list
RSP Field Guide · Hiring Check 01
Ask every agency the same seven questions
You do not need a marketing degree for this. Listen for a straight answer, then ask to see the proof.
Have you worked with contractors like me?
A good answer
They name the trade, market, work they handled, and when they did it.
Ask to see
A live page, report, or campaign they actually worked on.
What will you report?
A good answer
What changed, what happened, and what they want to do next.
Ask to see
A sample report with calls, forms, estimates, or booked work when tracked.
Who owns my accounts?
A good answer
You know who owns each account, who has admin access, and what you can export.
Ask to see
The ownership list for your domain, website, Google profile, analytics, and ads.
What exactly am I paying for?
A good answer
Clear work, clear timing, and a clear person responsible for each part.
Ask to see
The written scope and delivery schedule.
What happens if I cancel?
A good answer
You know the notice period, what stops, and how to take your data with you.
Ask to see
The cancellation and offboarding language in the agreement.
07
What is the smallest useful first step?
A good answer
A focused audit, fix, or test that gives you something real to review before the scope gets bigger.
Ask to see
The deliverable, finish date, and decision you will make when it is done.
Do this on the sales call
Check your access before you hang up
Open your domain registrar, Google Business Profile, or analytics account on your phone. Make sure you can log in and see who has admin access.
If the agency says you will own everything, ask them to put that in the agreement.
Saw itHeard itStill missing
Account accessOwner check
DomainCan you log in?CHECK
Google profileAre you an owner?CHECK
AnalyticsCan you see the data?CHECK
Three logins tell you more than a slide deck.
Three quick rules
Keep the decision simple
Ask what they actually did
A logo in a portfolio tells you very little. Get the agency's role, dates, and live work.
Make the report lead somewhere
You should leave each report knowing what changed and what happens next.
Put ownership in writing
The agreement should say who owns every account, file, and piece of customer data.
How we built the checklist
Where the seven questions came from
We reviewed five public Reddit discussions and the current search results on August 17, 2026. The page keeps the hiring questions that came up again and again.
Roscoe Site Pro sells contractor marketing services. This page does not rank RSP or any other agency. Payment cannot change the checklist.
See the five Reddit threads
- Contractor paying 33k a year to “marketing agency”
- Has anybody worked with a good marketing agency?
- Marketing companies
- Looking for agencies with contractor experience
- Agencies that never give clients account access
Public posts can be anonymous, promotional, or incomplete. We used them to find questions worth asking. They do not prove who the best agency is.
Straight answers
Contractor agency questions
How do I check an agency's contractor experience?
Ask to see live work in your trade or a similar local service business. Then ask what the agency actually handled and when.
What should I own?
Your agreement should clearly name who owns the domain, website, Google Business Profile, analytics, ad accounts, creative files, and customer data.
What should an agency report?
The report should show what the agency changed and what happened to calls, forms, qualified inquiries, estimates, or booked work when those outcomes are tracked.
Are Reddit agency recommendations reliable?
They can give you names and questions to ask. Anonymous comments do not prove who will do good work for your business.
When should I fix lead follow-up first?
Fix follow-up when good calls or forms are already coming in and nobody can show what happened next.
RSP Lead Leak Map
Find the first weak handoff before you buy more marketing
Send RSP your business name, trade, city, and website. We will check the path from a Google search to the first call or form and show you what needs attention first.
Find My First Leak