Agency vs in-house paid media: what are you actually buying?
Agency vs in-house paid media depends on which parts of the work you need to own. The rule: keep in-house what needs daily context about your business, and buy from outside what needs a range of skills you can't hire, keep busy or keep. In our view, a mix is often the practical answer. The useful question is which parts sit where.
This page is written by an agency. So read it with that in mind. We will try to make it useful even if the answer is "build the team yourself".
What does each option buy?
In-house buys attention and context. Your people sit next to the stock plan, the promo calendar and the finance team. They know which product is about to run out before the ad account does.
An agency buys a range of skills and someone else's hiring problem. Creative, tracking, three ad platforms, measurement: one person rarely covers all of it well.
Neither is free of trade-offs. An in-house team can get narrow. An agency's attention is split across clients.
Is doing it in-house cheaper?
Sometimes. It depends on whether you can hire the skills you need, keep them busy and keep them. We are not going to put numbers on salaries or fees here. They vary too much by market and role, and our own fee model is not on this page.
Look at the question differently. Ask what happens to the work when one person leaves. Ask who covers the skills your team doesn't have. Ask how many hours a week the channels actually need.
The debate is not new. In a 2010 Hacker News thread, one commenter described bringing a large search ads programme in-house and finding it workable1. The person who started the thread wrote that there were too many moving parts to manage day to day while running the company1. One thread, one year, two views.
The criteria, side by side
The table is a set of questions, not a score. Your answers decide.
When to bring paid media in-house
Bring it in when the work needs your context every day and you can keep a team busy. Signs:
- Decisions depend on daily stock, pricing and promo changes that an outside team hears about too late.
- One or two channels carry most of the spend, so you need depth, not range.
- You can hire for the skills, and you have someone senior enough to manage them.
- Your tracking and definitions are clear enough that a new hire can trust the numbers in week one.
If the last point fails, fix measurement before you hire. A new team on a broken setup inherits the argument, not the answer.
When an agency makes more sense
Choose an agency when you need range more than depth. Or when you need someone to look at the spend from outside your own reporting line.
- You run several channels and can't hire a specialist for each.
- You need tracking, creative and measurement skills for a project, not forever.
- Your team is strong on execution, but nobody ties spend to margin and cash.
One caveat. An agency that only sees the ad accounts sees part of the picture. A 2023 Hacker News thread is about paid ads for a developer tool, not ecommerce. In it, an in-house marketer wrote that an agency may manage paid ads well but give no input on using what paid search learns for organic2. Ask any agency how they will see the rest.
What does a hybrid model look like?
A hybrid splits ownership, not just tasks. A common shape:
You own
goals, budget decisions, the definitions of success, the data and the accounts.
In-house runs
the work that needs daily context, such as promos, product priorities and the brand.
The agency brings
specialist execution, measurement, and a second view on where the next euro should go.
The risk is a gap in the middle. If nobody owns the number that decides budget, both sides report their own version. Agree one definition up front. Our view: the number that decides budget is contribution margin before marketing, meaning revenue minus product cost, delivery, payment fees, returns and discounts, before any marketing spend.
Do I need a marketing agency for my ecommerce brand?
Not necessarily. If you have the skills in-house, trust your measurement and know your margin, you may not. In a 2024 Hacker News thread, an offline healthcare provider asks whether its SEO agency is worth the money, and says it can't tell whether the traffic growth came from SEO or from its own PR3. That question is healthy. Ask it about any agency, including us.
If you do hire one, start with how to choose an ecommerce marketing agency and our list of questions to ask a paid media agency.
Our take
Decide what you need to own before you decide who does the work. Ownership of data, definitions and budget decisions should stay with you in every option. Execution can sit anywhere.
Our view: if in-house looks like the better answer for you, we will say so, and tell you what a hybrid would look like instead.
We work on the parts a hybrid often needs from outside: tying spend to margin, measurement, and channel execution. Channel services can be bought separately. Our view: the knowledge from the work should stay with you.
When we are not the right fit
FAQ
Is an in-house paid media team better than an agency?
Neither is better in general. In-house wins on context and attention, an agency on range of skills. In our view, a mix is often the practical answer.
When should an ecommerce brand bring paid media in-house?
When the work needs daily business context, one or two channels carry most of the spend, and you can hire and keep the skills. Fix measurement first.
What should stay with the brand in a hybrid model?
Goals, budget decisions, the definition of success, the data and the ad accounts. Execution can be shared.
How do I compare agency and in-house costs?
Compare what you need covered, not only salaries against fees: which skills, how many hours, and what happens when someone leaves. Then compare offers for that scope.
Can I hire an agency for one channel only?
With us, yes. Channel services can be bought separately, and audits are free.
“Their engagement is impressive.”
Next step
Not sure which parts to own? Book a call about your budget decision and we will talk it through, including when in-house is the better answer.