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What should you ask in the first meeting with an agency?

Atualizado em 22 de julho de 2026

Ask who will execute your account day to day, what case studies the agency has in your sector, who owns the ad accounts, what happens if you leave, how results are measured, how the work routine runs and what they'll need from you. The answers separate showcase from operation.

Who executes and what they've already done in your sector

1. Who will execute my account day to day? The answer reveals whether whoever sells is whoever operates. A senior director in the meeting and an intern in execution is the classic showcase signal. Ask to meet the actual team.
2. What case studies do you have in my sector? Reveals repertoire. An agency that has already sold a housing development, farm machinery or an industrial product like yours understands your customer's decision cycle. A generic case study from another segment helps less than it seems to.
3. What don't you do? Reveals scope honesty. Whoever says they do everything usually outsources everything, and you pay for the coordination without knowing it.

Money, accounts and exit

1. Who are the ad accounts, the website and the data registered under? Reveals who owns your assets. The correct answer is everything under your company's name, with the agency operating as an access partner.
2. If I decide to leave, what do I take with me? Reveals portability. Creatives, databases, campaign history and accounts should leave with you. This needs to be in the contract, not just in conversation (see what to require in an agency contract).
3. How do you measure results and how often do you report? Reveals the operation's standard. A serious report shows cost per lead, cost per sale and return on media investment. A vanity report shows likes and reach.

Routine and fit

1. What will you need from me and my team? Reveals whether the agency understands that marketing needs raw material from the client: sales information, access to the team, photos, availability for shoots. Whoever promises everything without asking for anything will produce generic content.
2. What's the meeting routine and contact channel like? Reveals organization. A structured operation has a meeting calendar, a named point of contact and a defined response channel. Improvising here turns into silence later.

In practice, in the countryside

In cities like Birigui, Araçatuba and the region, the first meeting is usually in person, and that's an advantage: you see the headquarters, meet whoever executes and feel whether there's a real operation. Take advantage of it. Ask to walk through the structure, see the studio, understand who handles each front. A countryside agency shouldn't be ashamed to show the kitchen; the one that avoids showing it is the one that deserves suspicion. If you're comparing a regional agency with a capital agency, apply the same eight questions to both; the criteria in local agency or capital agency help with that comparison.

These eight questions work with any agency, including us. desigual has operated for 23 years with its own team of 14 specialists at its own headquarters, and answers every one of them without dodging.

Want to ask these questions live to our strategy team? Message us on desigual's WhatsApp and book a conversation.

Veja também: Estratégia antes de qualquer peça O que exigir num contrato com agência de marketing? Agência do interior ou agência de São Paulo capital: qual contratar?