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Marketing agencies: problems we solve

28 problems marketing agencies bring us, each with the cause, what it costs and what we build to fix it.

Marketing agencies problems

28 articles

How Do We Stop Small Client Requests Eating Our Marketing Retainers Without Anyone Noticing?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency retainers leak through quick asks that nobody logs against scope. We build request capture that shows scope used per client before month end.

How Can We See Which Marketing Retainers Actually Make Money When Timesheets and Fees Live in Different Systems?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies bill retainers in Xero and log time in another tool, so client profit is a guess. We join fees, time and costs into one view per retainer.

How Do We Stop Account Managers Losing the First Week of Every Month to Building Client Reports?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency account managers lose days each month pasting GA4, ads and social numbers into decks. We automate the data pull so they write the insight.

How Do We Find a Freelancer With the Right Skills Who Is Actually Available, Without Messaging Ten People?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies message freelancers one by one to find who is free and who has the skills. We build a freelancer pool with skills, rates and availability.

How Do We Check Freelancer Invoices Against What Was Booked and Make Sure the Cost Reaches the Client Bill?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies pay freelancer invoices without checking them against bookings, and rechargeable costs never reach the client. We match and flag each one.

How Do We Work Out What New Business Pitches Really Cost Our Agency, and Which Ones Are Worth Entering?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies rarely know what a pitch cost in staff time and creative work. We track pitch effort and outcomes so you choose which pitches to enter.

Why Does It Take So Long to Get Access to a New Client's Ad, Analytics and Social Accounts, and How Do We Speed It Up?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies lose the start of each new client chasing access to ad accounts, GA4 and social pages. We build an access checklist that tracks each request.

When Someone Leaves Our Agency, How Do We Know Which Client Accounts, Logins and 2FA Codes They Still Control?

Marketing agencies

When staff leave a marketing agency, client logins and 2FA codes often go with them. We build an access register so leavers are removed and nothing is lost.

How Do We Get Clients to Approve Next Month's Social Content Calendar on Time, Without Chasing Every Post?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies wait on clients to approve social calendars, with feedback in emails and PDFs. We build a per-post approval flow with deadlines and a record.

How Do We Keep Track of Every Client's Monthly Ad Budget So Nobody Overspends or Underspends by Month End?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies check client ad spend against budget by hand, and overspend is found at month end. We build a pacing view across all accounts with alerts.

How Do We Make Sure Every Pound of Ad Spend We Pay on a Client's Behalf Gets Billed Back Correctly?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies that pay ad platforms and rebill clients lose track of spend, fees and card charges. We reconcile platform invoices to client bills monthly.

Why Does Our Weekly Traffic Meeting Take So Long, and How Do We Plan Who Works on What Without the Whiteboard?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency traffic meetings rebuild the week from memory and a whiteboard. We build a resourcing view from projects, retainers and leave.

How Do We Stop Creative Briefs Reaching the Studio With Half the Information Missing?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency studios start work on briefs missing sizes, deadlines and brand rules, then redo it. We build brief intake that checks it is complete first.

Our Contracts Include Two Rounds of Amends, So Why Do We End Up Doing Six, and How Do We Keep Count?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency contracts limit amend rounds, but nobody counts them and feedback arrives in pieces. We build amend tracking per job with a clear round count.

Why Do Our Invoices to Big Clients Keep Getting Rejected for Missing Purchase Order Numbers, and How Do We Stop It?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies see invoices to corporate clients rejected for missing or used-up PO numbers. We track client POs per job so every invoice goes out right.

A Client Says They Have Hours Banked From Last Quarter. How Do We Track Retainer Rollover So We Are Not Arguing About It?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies argue with clients over unused retainer hours because rollover is not tracked. We build an hours ledger per retainer both sides can trust.

Every Pitch Tender Asks About Our Insurance, Policies and Accounts. Why Is Our Agency Still Typing It Out Each Time?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies retype supplier form details on insurance, policies and accounts for every pitch tender. We keep approved wording ready for each new form.

When an Account Manager Leaves, How Do We Stop Everything They Knew About the Client Leaving With Them?

Marketing agencies

When a marketing agency account manager leaves, client history, preferences and promises go too. We build a living client record that makes handover routine.

How Can We Tell a Marketing Client Is About to Give Notice Before the Email Arrives?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency clients often give notice after months of warning signs nobody joined up. We build a client health view from signals already in your tools.

How Do We Stop Our Team Hunting Through Drives and Old Emails for the Right Client Logo, Fonts and Approved Images?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency staff lose time finding current client logos, fonts and approved images, and old versions get used. We build a brand asset library per client.

Why Does Our Month-End Billing Take Days of Chasing Account Managers, and How Do We Get Invoices Out on the First?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency billing waits on account managers to confirm retainers, extras and recharges. We build a billing run that drafts each client invoice.

How Do We Stop Account Managers Spending Friday Afternoon Writing Weekly Status Emails for Every Client?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency account managers write weekly WIP updates by hand from the project tool. We generate a status draft per client from tasks and approvals.

How Do We Keep Track of Influencer Contracts, Content Deadlines, Approvals and Payments Across a Campaign?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies run influencer campaigns from spreadsheets and DMs, losing track of contracts, posts and payments. We build one campaign tracker for it all.

How Do We Manage Print Quotes, Proofs and Deliveries for Client Jobs Without Losing Track of Every Supplier?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies juggle printer quotes, proofs and deliveries by email for client print jobs. We build a production tracker from quote to delivery and rebill.

Why Do Our Retainer Fees Stay the Same for Years, and How Do We Make Annual Rate Reviews Actually Happen?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agency retainers go years without a rate review because renewal dates slip past. We build a review calendar with each retainer's history ready.

With Dozens of Client Blog Posts in Progress Across Freelance Writers, How Do We Know Where Each One Is?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies lose track of client articles between brief, freelance writer, edit, client approval and publishing. We build one pipeline across clients.

How Do We Catch Ad Disapprovals, Policy Warnings and Account Suspensions Across All Our Clients Before They Stop Campaigns?

Marketing agencies

Ad disapprovals and policy warnings land in different client inboxes, so marketing agencies find them late. We collect them per client with alerts to owners.

How Do We Keep Track of the Software Seats, Licences and Tracking Numbers We Pay for Each Client, and Stop Paying After They Leave?

Marketing agencies

Marketing agencies pay for SEO seats, call tracking numbers and tools per client, then forget to recharge or cancel them. We build a register per client.