Make Agencies Deliver: Your Growth Playbook

For businesses seeking growth, understanding how to effectively manage advertising agencies is paramount. But simply hiring an agency isn’t enough; you need a strategic approach to ensure they’re delivering the results you need. Are you ready to stop leaving your marketing budget to chance and start driving real, measurable growth?

## Step 1: Setting Up Your Project in AgencyPilot 3.0

AgencyPilot 3.0 is our go-to project management platform for collaborating with external advertising agencies. It allows for transparent communication, task tracking, and performance monitoring, all in one place.

### Creating a New Project

1. Log in to AgencyPilot 3.0. The login screen has been redesigned recently, which is a nice improvement.
2. In the left-hand navigation, click the “Projects” tab.
3. Click the “New Project” button in the upper right corner.
4. A “Create New Project” modal window will appear.
5. Enter the Project Name. For example, “Q3 2026 Paid Social Campaign.”
6. Select the relevant advertising agency from the “Agency” dropdown menu. If the agency isn’t listed, you’ll need to add them under the “Agencies” tab first.
7. Set the Project Start and End Dates. Be realistic; padding the timeline can prevent unnecessary stress later.
8. In the “Project Brief” section, provide a concise overview of the project goals, target audience, and key performance indicators (KPIs). Be as specific as possible here. I had a client last year who skipped this step and the entire campaign was off-target from the start.
9. Click “Create Project“.

Pro Tip: Add all relevant stakeholders from your internal team to the project to ensure everyone is kept in the loop.

Common Mistake: Neglecting to define clear KPIs from the outset. This makes it impossible to accurately measure the agency’s performance.

Expected Outcome: A new project created in AgencyPilot, with the advertising agency and internal team members invited to collaborate.

### Adding Tasks and Assigning Ownership

1. Within the newly created project, click the “Tasks” tab.
2. Click the “Add Task” button.
3. Enter the Task Name. For example, “Develop Creative Concepts for Facebook Ads.”
4. Assign the task to the appropriate team member at the advertising agency using the “Assignee” dropdown.
5. Set the Due Date.
6. In the “Description” field, provide detailed instructions and any relevant files or links. The richer the details, the better.
7. Click “Create Task“.
8. Repeat steps 2-7 for all tasks required for the project.

Pro Tip: Break down large tasks into smaller, more manageable subtasks to improve clarity and accountability.

Common Mistake: Failing to provide sufficient context or instructions for each task, leading to misunderstandings and delays.

Expected Outcome: A comprehensive list of tasks assigned to the advertising agency, with clear deadlines and instructions.

## Step 2: Optimizing Ad Creative with Meta Ads Manager’s AI Assistant

Meta Ads Manager has become essential. In the “Ads” section of your campaign, you can now leverage its AI-powered Creative Assistant to generate variations of your ad copy and visuals. A recent eMarketer report found that AI-assisted creative development can improve ad performance by up to 15%. If your Facebook Ads are failing, it may be time to take a look at this.

### Accessing the Creative Assistant

1. In Meta Ads Manager, navigate to the ad set you want to optimize.
2. Click on the ad you want to edit.
3. Scroll down to the “Ad Creative” section.
4. Click the “Creative Refresh” button. This opens the AI-powered assistant.

Pro Tip: Start with your highest-performing ads as a baseline for the AI to generate variations.

Common Mistake: Over-relying on the AI without providing clear brand guidelines or creative direction. The AI is a tool, not a replacement for strategic thinking.

Expected Outcome: The Creative Assistant generates several variations of your ad creative, offering fresh perspectives and potentially improving performance.

### Generating Ad Variations

1. In the “Creative Refresh” window, you’ll see options to generate variations for:

• Headline: The AI will suggest alternative headlines based on your existing one, incorporating relevant keywords and emotional appeals.
• Description: The AI will rewrite your ad description to be more engaging and persuasive.
• Image/Video: The AI can suggest different crops, filters, or even entirely new images or videos based on your target audience and ad objective. Be careful with this; the AI is good, but not perfect.
• Call-to-Action: The AI will recommend different CTAs to encourage clicks and conversions.

1. For each element, click the “Generate” button. The AI will provide several options.
2. Review each variation carefully. Select the ones that align with your brand and marketing goals.
3. Click “Apply” to implement the chosen variations to your ad.
4. Run A/B tests to determine which variations perform best.

Pro Tip: Don’t be afraid to experiment with different variations. The AI can sometimes generate unexpected but highly effective creative options.

Common Mistake: Accepting all AI-generated suggestions without critical evaluation. Ensure that all creative elements align with your brand voice and messaging.

Expected Outcome: A series of A/B tests running with AI-generated ad variations, providing data-driven insights into which creative elements resonate best with your target audience.

## Step 3: Expanding Your Reach with Google Ads’ Demand Gen Campaigns

Google Ads’ Demand Gen campaigns are designed to reach new customers across Google’s visual surfaces, including YouTube, Discover, and Gmail. The “Audience Expansion” feature, powered by AI, helps you automatically discover new audiences beyond your initial targeting.

### Setting Up a Demand Gen Campaign

1. In Google Ads Manager, click “Campaigns” in the left-hand navigation.
2. Click the “New Campaign” button.
3. Select “Leads” or “Website traffic” as your campaign goal.
4. Choose “Demand Gen” as the campaign type.
5. Set your budget and bidding strategy. I recommend starting with a Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) bidding strategy.
6. Define your target audience. You can use a combination of demographic targeting, interest-based targeting, and custom audiences.
7. Create your ad creative. Use high-quality images and videos that are visually appealing and relevant to your target audience.

Pro Tip: Use Google’s Creative Studio to create engaging video ads specifically for Demand Gen campaigns.

Common Mistake: Neglecting to create visually compelling ad creative. Demand Gen campaigns rely heavily on visual appeal to capture attention.

Expected Outcome: A new Demand Gen campaign launched, targeting a specific audience with visually engaging ad creative.

### Activating Audience Expansion

1. Within your Demand Gen campaign, navigate to the “Audience” tab.
2. Locate the “Audience Expansion” section.
3. Toggle the “Audience Expansion” switch to “On“.
4. Specify the percentage of your budget you want to allocate to audience expansion. Google recommends starting with 20%.
5. Review the estimated reach and potential impact of audience expansion.
6. Save your changes.

Pro Tip: Monitor the performance of your expanded audience closely. If it’s not performing well, you can reduce the budget allocation or turn off audience expansion altogether.

Common Mistake: Allocating too much of your budget to audience expansion without proper monitoring. This can lead to wasted ad spend and poor results.

Expected Outcome: Google’s AI automatically tests new audiences beyond your initial targeting, potentially discovering new customer segments and improving campaign performance.

## Step 4: Evaluating Agency Performance with HubSpot’s Agency Scorecard

Regularly evaluating the performance of your advertising agencies is critical for ensuring you’re getting the best possible return on your investment. HubSpot offers a powerful Agency Performance Scorecard template that helps you track key metrics and identify areas for improvement. To that end, you can aim for advertising agencies to double your ROI.

### Accessing the Agency Performance Scorecard

1. Log in to your HubSpot account.
2. Navigate to the “Reports” section.
3. Click “Create report”.
4. Select “Template library”.
5. Search for “Agency Performance Scorecard”.
6. Click “Create report”.

Pro Tip: Customize the scorecard to include the specific metrics that are most important to your business.

Common Mistake: Only reviewing the scorecard on an annual basis. Quarterly reviews are essential for identifying and addressing performance issues in a timely manner.

Expected Outcome: A customized Agency Performance Scorecard that tracks key metrics related to your advertising agencies‘ performance.

### Tracking Key Metrics

The Agency Performance Scorecard allows you to track a variety of key metrics, including:

• Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): Measures the revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising.
• Cost Per Acquisition (CPA): Measures the cost of acquiring a new customer through advertising.
• Lead Quality: Evaluates the quality of leads generated by the advertising agency. This is something often overlooked, but it’s critically important. Are they just generating leads, or are they generating qualified leads?
• Website Traffic: Tracks the amount of traffic driven to your website by the advertising agency.
• Engagement Metrics: Measures engagement with your ads, such as click-through rates (CTR) and social media shares.
• Communication Effectiveness: Assesses the agency’s communication skills, responsiveness, and proactiveness.

Pro Tip: Set benchmarks for each metric and track your progress over time.

Common Mistake: Failing to address performance issues identified in the scorecard. Use the scorecard as a tool for constructive feedback and collaboration with your advertising agencies.

Expected Outcome: A clear understanding of your advertising agencies‘ performance, with actionable insights for improvement.

## Case Study: Boosting Lead Generation for a Local Law Firm

We recently implemented these strategies for a personal injury law firm, Patel & Rodriguez, located near the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. They were struggling to generate qualified leads through their existing advertising agencies.

First, we set up a project in AgencyPilot to manage their paid social campaign, clearly defining their target audience (individuals injured in car accidents) and KPIs (qualified leads and case signings).

Next, we leveraged Meta Ads Manager’s AI-powered Creative Assistant to generate multiple ad variations. One variation, featuring a testimonial from a satisfied client, outperformed the original ad by 30% in terms of click-through rate.

Finally, we launched a Google Ads Demand Gen campaign with Audience Expansion enabled. Within the first month, we discovered a new audience segment (Spanish-speaking residents of metro Atlanta) that generated a significant number of qualified leads.

The results were impressive. Within three months, Patel & Rodriguez saw a 40% increase in qualified leads and a 25% increase in case signings. The Agency Performance Scorecard in HubSpot confirmed the positive impact of these changes, providing clear evidence of the advertising agencies‘ improved performance.

Managing advertising agencies effectively requires a strategic approach that combines clear communication, data-driven insights, and the latest AI-powered tools. By implementing the steps outlined above, you can ensure that your agency is delivering the results you need to achieve your business goals. Don’t just hope your advertising agencies are performing well; take control and actively manage their performance for maximum impact. If you’re in Atlanta, be sure to focus on data-driven marketing for real ROI.

Stop treating your advertising agencies like a black box. By implementing these strategies, you can transform your agency relationships into a powerful engine for growth. Start tracking agency performance today. It’s a good idea to ensure you are aiming at the right prospects.