When partnering with a digital marketing agency like Ambient Array, understanding your contracting options is crucial for making informed decisions about your advertising investment. Whether you’re in roofing, construction, or any service-based business, the structure of your agency relationship directly impacts your costs, control, and outcomes.
Let’s explore the three primary ways businesses can work with digital agencies, each offering distinct advantages depending on your goals and risk tolerance.
Scenario A: Management Fee + Client-Controlled Ad Spend
In this traditional agency model, you maintain full control over your advertising budget while leveraging professional expertise.
Who Pays Ad Network Fees: Client pays Google, Facebook, and other platforms directly
Who Handles Campaign Management: Agency manages setup, optimization, and reporting for a monthly fee
What You Receive: Complete campaign management, detailed reporting, and strategic optimization
Lead Cost Structure: Variable based on campaign performance and market conditions
Key Benefits:
- Complete ownership of all leads generated
- Full transparency into ad spend and performance
- Ability to scale budget up or down as needed
- No lead sharing with other businesses
- Direct relationship with advertising platforms
This model works exceptionally well for businesses ready to invest in long-term growth and wanting maximum control over their marketing efforts.
Scenario B: Pay-Per-Lead Model
Here, the agency assumes all financial risk and delivers qualified leads at a predetermined price.
Who Pays Ad Network Fees: Agency covers all advertising costs
Who Handles Campaign Management: Agency manages everything behind the scenes
What You Receive: Pre-qualified, warm leads delivered to your business
Lead Cost Structure: Fixed cost per lead, agreed upon in advance
Key Benefits:
- Predictable marketing expenses
- No upfront advertising investment required
- Agency assumes performance risk
- Simplified budgeting and cash flow planning
This approach appeals to businesses wanting predictable costs without managing campaign complexities themselves.
Scenario C: Hybrid Partnership Model
This balanced approach splits costs and risks between client and agency.
Who Pays Ad Network Fees: Client pays advertising platforms directly
Who Handles Campaign Management: Agency handles all management and optimization
What You Receive: Qualified leads at a predetermined price
Lead Cost Structure: Fixed cost per lead, typically lower than Scenario B due to shared expenses
Key Benefits:
- Shared investment reduces overall lead costs
- Predictable lead pricing with some cost savings
- Agency maintains quality control over lead generation
- Client retains some campaign oversight
This model works for businesses wanting predictability while sharing the investment burden.
Why Scenario A Delivers Superior Results
While each model has merit, Scenario A consistently produces the best outcomes for both clients and agencies in most situations.
For clients, the management fee model provides unmatched transparency and control. You see exactly where every dollar goes, own 100% of your leads, and can adjust spending based on business needs. There’s no lead sharing, meaning every qualified prospect belongs exclusively to your business.
The variable cost structure, while initially seeming less predictable, actually works in your favor. As campaigns optimize and performance improves, your cost per lead decreases while lead volume can increase—something impossible with fixed-rate models.
For agencies, this structure allows us to focus entirely on digital campaign performance rather than managing financial risk. We can implement aggressive optimization strategies, test new approaches, and scale successful campaigns without worrying about absorbing advertising costs.
Most importantly, Scenario A aligns incentives perfectly. When your campaigns perform better, you get more leads at better prices, and we demonstrate clear value through improved results. This creates a true partnership focused on growing your business rather than managing margins.
At Ambient Array, we’ve found that businesses choosing the management fee model typically see better long-term growth, clearer ROI, and stronger market positioning than those using alternative structures.
Ready to explore how the right agency partnership can transform your lead generation? Let’s discuss which approach best fits your business goals.