Questions to Ask a Meta Ads Agency Before You Hire One
Direct Answer: Before you hire a Meta ads agency, ask questions in six areas: proof that they have run accounts like yours, how they make and test creative, who owns the ad account and data, what they measure and report, how they charge and what the contract locks you into, and what happens in the first 30 days. Good agencies answer with specifics and show you their work. Vague answers, guaranteed results and any plan to run ads in an account they own are red flags.
How to use these questions
Use these questions on a sales call with every agency on your shortlist, write down the answers, and score them the same way so you compare like with like. The goal is not to catch anyone out. It is to find out how the agency actually works before you hand over your ad account and budget.
Pay as much attention to how an agency answers as to what it says. A team that knows its process will answer quickly and with examples. A team that is selling a promise will change the subject, talk about "proprietary systems" without explaining them, or tell you what results to expect before it has seen your numbers.
Send the account ownership and pricing questions in writing before the call, so the call itself can focus on proof, creative and measurement.
Proof and fit
The first thing to find out is whether the agency has run Meta ads for brands like yours, at a similar spend, and can show it. An agency that is great at lead generation for local businesses may not know how to scale a Shopify store with a $50 product. Ask:
- 1. Which ecommerce brands at our stage and price point have you run Meta ads for, and can we speak to one of them?
- 2. Can you walk us through a real account, with the client's permission, rather than showing screenshots of ROAS?
- 3. Who will run our account day to day, what is their experience, and how many other accounts do they manage?
Good answer vs red flag
A good answer names relevant brands or categories, offers a reference call, and is clear about who does the work. Many agencies cannot share client accounts openly, and that is fine, but they should be able to show results in context: spend, time period, what changed and what the margin looked like.
Red flags: only screenshots of a single great day, results with no spend or time frame attached, a senior person on the sales call who disappears after signing, or a vague answer about how many accounts each media buyer looks after.
Creative
Ask how the agency makes and tests ads, because creative is now the main lever in most Meta accounts. Targeting is now broad and largely automated, so the ads do most of the work of finding buyers. Ask:
- 4. Who makes the ads: your team, freelancers, creators or us? How many new concepts will you test each month?
- 5. How do you decide what to test, and how do you decide whether a test won or lost?
- 6. Who owns the creative, the raw footage and the creator usage rights when we stop working together?
Good answer vs red flag
A good answer describes a testing rhythm, how new concepts differ from small variations of the same ad, and the metrics used to judge a test, such as cost per purchase and thumb-stop rate, over a set amount of spend. It should also be clear on who pays for creators and that you keep the files and usage rights you paid for.
Red flags: "we will use your existing ads", no answer on volume, testing judged on likes or clicks, or creative that stays with the agency when you leave. If the agency does not make creative, that can still work, but ask who will, how fast, and who writes the creative strategy behind the briefs.
Account ownership and access
Your ad account, pixel, catalogue and business portfolio should always belong to you, with the agency added as a partner. Getting this wrong can cost you your ad history and data if the relationship ends. Ask:
- 7. Will the ad account, pixel or dataset, catalogue and Page all stay in our business portfolio?
- 8. What access level do you need, and how do we remove it if we part ways?
- 9. Whose payment method will be on the ad account, and who pays Meta directly?
Good answer vs red flag
A good answer is simple: everything lives in your business portfolio, the agency requests partner access to the assets it needs, and your card or invoicing pays Meta directly. Removing a partner should take you a few clicks.
Red flags: running your ads from an ad account the agency owns, asking for your personal Facebook login, asking to be the only admin, or paying Meta on your behalf without a clear reason in the contract. If an agency insists on its own account, you lose the history and data when you leave, and a policy problem on its side can affect your ads too.
Measurement and reporting
Ask what number the agency will manage your account to, because an agency that optimizes to Meta-reported ROAS alone can look good while your bank balance does not. The target should come from your margins and be checked against your store data, not only against Ads Manager. Ask:
- 10. What is the main number you manage to, and how will you set the target from our margins?
- 11. How do you handle the gap between what Meta reports and what Shopify shows?
- 12. Will you check our pixel and Conversions API setup, including event deduplication, before spending more?
- 13. What goes in a weekly report, and who walks us through it?
Good answer vs red flag
A good answer talks about break-even ROAS or a target cost per acquisition built from your product cost, shipping and fees, and about checking results at a total business level, such as revenue against total ad spend, alongside platform numbers. The agency should plan to audit tracking first, because every decision after that depends on it. Reports should explain what changed, why, and what happens next.
Red flags: promising a specific ROAS before seeing your account, reporting only Meta's numbers, no interest in your margins, or reports that are a dashboard link with no commentary.
Pricing and contract
Ask exactly how the agency gets paid, what the fee covers and how long you are committed for, and get the answers in writing. Ask:
- 14. How do you charge, and what exactly does the fee include?
- 15. What is the minimum term, the notice period, and what happens to our assets when it ends?
- 16. Is creative production included, or is it a separate cost? Are there setup fees?
Good answer vs red flag
A good answer gives a clear fee structure, a written scope, and a notice period you can live with. Longer commitments are not automatically bad, since Meta accounts take time to test properly, but there should be a sensible exit if the work is not delivered.
Red flags: pricing that changes once you ask for detail, long lock-ins with no performance review points, hidden creative or "tech" fees, and guaranteed results. No agency controls Meta's auction, your product or your margins, so a guarantee usually means fine print you will not like.
How Meta ads agency pricing models work
Meta ads agencies usually charge in one of three ways, or a mix of them: a percentage of ad spend, a flat monthly retainer, or a performance fee. Each model rewards the agency for something different, so the right one depends on your stage and what you want the agency to focus on. The table compares them without market prices, because rates vary widely by scope, spend and what is included.
- If you choose a performance model, agree in writing what data the fee is based on, such as Shopify revenue or contribution margin, and what the baseline is.
- Whatever the model, compare total cost, including creative, against the contribution margin the agency needs to add to pay for itself.
- Ask how the fee changes as you scale, so you know what you will pay at double your current spend.
| Model | How it works | What it rewards | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of ad spend | The fee is a share of what you spend on Meta each month, often with a minimum fee. | Managing and growing spend. | The agency earns more when spend rises, whether or not that spend is profitable. |
| Flat retainer | A fixed monthly fee for an agreed scope of work. | Predictable work and planning. | Scope creep, and no direct link between the fee and results. |
| Performance fee | Part or all of the fee is tied to an outcome, such as revenue or profit above a baseline. | Hitting the agreed outcome. | How the outcome is measured. Revenue-based fees can reward discounting and attributed sales that would have happened anyway. |
| Hybrid | A base retainer plus a performance or spend-based element. | A balance of stable work and growth. | Complex terms that are hard to check. Make sure you can audit the numbers. |
Agency, freelancer or in-house?
An agency is not always the right answer. If you spend enough to keep one person busy full time and you can manage them, an in-house media buyer can work well. Our comparison of agency and in-house options covers the trade-offs, and our guide to DTC agency cost goes deeper on judging value.
Onboarding and the first 30 days
Ask what the agency will do in the first 30 days, because a good onboarding plan tells you more about how it works than any pitch deck. The first month should be about understanding the business, fixing tracking and setting up a testing plan, not about doubling your budget. Ask:
- 17. What will you do in the first 30 days, week by week?
- 18. What do you need from us, such as margins, product data, past ads, access and approvals?
- 19. When, and on what numbers, should we judge whether this is working?
Good answer vs red flag
A good answer covers an account and tracking review, a look at your margins and offers, a creative and testing plan, and a clear first round of launches. It sets a realistic review point and admits that not every early test will work.
Red flags: rebuilding the whole account on day one with no review, no questions about your margins or customers, and no agreed point at which you will judge progress. If you want an independent view before you commit, a fixed-scope Meta ads audit is a lower-risk first step than a long contract.
A simple agency scorecard
Score each agency from 0 to 2 in each area after the call: 0 for a red flag or no answer, 1 for a reasonable but vague answer, and 2 for a specific answer backed by evidence. An agency that scores 0 on account ownership should be ruled out whatever its total, because that risk is hard to undo.
| Area | Scores 2 when the agency | Scores 0 when the agency | Score (0 to 2) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proof and fit | Shows relevant work in context and offers a reference | Shows only screenshots or results with no context | |
| Creative | Explains volume, testing method and ownership | Has no plan for new creative | |
| Account ownership | Works as a partner in your business portfolio | Wants to run ads from its own account | |
| Measurement | Sets targets from your margins and audits tracking | Promises a ROAS before seeing the account | |
| Pricing and contract | Gives a clear written scope and exit terms | Guarantees results or hides fees | |
| Onboarding | Has a week-by-week first month and review point | Plans to scale spend straight away |
Ask us the same questions
We are a Meta ads agency, so we are on the other side of these calls too. Put every one of these questions to us. If you would like a starting point before any agency conversation, our Brand Growth Audit reviews your account, tracking, creative and margins and gives you the plan whether or not you hire us.
Frequently Asked Questions
What questions should I ask a Meta ads agency?
Ask about six areas: proof that they have run accounts like yours, how they make and test creative, who owns the ad account and data, what they measure and report, how they charge and what the contract commits you to, and what they will do in the first 30 days.
What are the red flags when hiring a Meta ads agency?
The biggest red flags are running your ads from an account the agency owns, asking for your personal Facebook login, guaranteeing a ROAS or revenue figure, reporting only Meta's numbers, hiding creative or setup fees, and long lock-ins with no review point.
How do I choose a Meta ads agency for ecommerce?
Shortlist agencies that have run Meta ads for ecommerce brands at your stage, ask each the same questions, score the answers on proof, creative, ownership, measurement, pricing and onboarding, and speak to a reference client before you sign.
Should the agency own my Facebook ad account?
No. The ad account, pixel or dataset, catalogue and Page should stay in your business portfolio, with the agency given partner access. That way you keep your data and history if you change agencies, and you can remove their access yourself.
How do Meta ads agencies charge?
Most charge a percentage of ad spend, a flat monthly retainer, a performance fee tied to revenue or profit, or a hybrid of these. Rates vary widely by scope and spend, so compare total cost, including creative, against the margin the agency needs to add.
Go deeper
- Meta Ads Agency for Ecommerce: See how we run Meta ads for DTC brands, and put these questions to us.
- Meta Ads Audit: A fixed-scope review of your account before you commit to any agency.
- How Much Does a DTC Agency Cost?: Pricing models and how to judge value against your margins.
- Agency vs In-House Media Buyer: When hiring your own media buyer makes more sense than an agency.
- How to Choose a Google Ads Agency for DTC: The same vetting approach, applied to Google Ads.
Browse all ecommerce playbooks | Meta ads agency | Explore 150+ verified case studies | Free ROAS calculator
Explore more
More playbooks
- BFCM 2026 Ad Strategy: Meta Ads Playbook
- What Is ROAS? Formula, Meaning & Examples
- DTC Performance Marketing Agency Explained