How to choose a Perth tradie marketing agency (without getting burned)

Most Perth tradies I talk to have been burned by a marketing agency at some point. Wrong promises, hostage accounts, junior account managers running their ad budget into a wall. This post is the eight questions I'd ask before signing anything, including questions that'd disqualify Forge West if I ever stopped doing them properly.

01. Whose name is on the ad accounts?

If the agency creates the Google Ads or Meta Business account in their own name and just gives you 'access', you don't own anything. The day you leave, all your historic data, conversion records and audience lists go with them. Always insist accounts are created in your business name with you as primary owner.

Red flag: 'I manage everything for you, you don't need to log in.' That's hostage language. Walk.

02. What's the minimum contract?

If they need 6 or 12 months locked in, ask why. Properly-built campaigns prove themselves in the first 60–90 days. The only reason you'd lock in beyond that is to give the agency time to figure out the basics on your dollar.

Month-to-month is normal in this industry now. If they push back hard, they're protecting themselves from the moment you realise the campaign isn't working.

03. Who specifically will run my account?

Most agencies sell you the senior partner on the pitch call, then run your account through a junior who started three months ago. The senior reviews it for 20 minutes a month. Ask: 'who, by name, will be in my account day-to-day?' If it's not someone in the room, that's your answer.

This is the whole reason Forge West is founder-led. Oliver runs every account personally. Smaller portfolio, more attention per client.

04. Will I see the search-terms report?

The search-terms report shows you exactly what queries your ads showed for. It's the single most revealing document about whether your campaign is well-built. Many agencies hide it, because it shows the junk traffic they're paying for.

Insist on monthly access. If they 'don't typically share that', they're scared of what's in it.

05. How is success measured?

Bad answer: clicks, impressions, CTR, 'engagement'. Those numbers all go up reliably and tell you nothing about whether you got more jobs.

Good answer: cost per qualified lead, cost per booked job, return on ad spend. See my results page for what reasonable benchmarks look like by trade.

06. What's actually included in the monthly fee?

Pin them down on inclusions. Reporting cadence? Optimisation frequency? Creative refresh? Landing page changes? Strategy calls? You want a clear list, not 'full management' as a vague headline.

And confirm the fee is separate from ad spend. Some agencies bury 'media markup' (a % cut of your ad spend on top of the management fee). It's not unethical but it should be disclosed.

07. Show me an example of work for a similar tradie

Anyone who's been doing this a while should have a case study or at least an anonymised account screenshot from a tradie in your industry. If they can only show you e-commerce or SaaS clients, they don't know your search terms, your seasonality, your buyer behaviour.

Caveat: a brand-new agency won't have case studies, and that's not automatically bad. Forge West is exactly that right now (see my results page for the honest framing). The trade-off is lower price and more attention. Make sure the trade-off is clearly on the table.

08. What happens if I cancel?

The answer should be 'campaigns stop, your accounts stay yours, your landing pages stay live.' Anything else, claw-back fees, IP retention on landing pages, rebuild fees, is hostile. Walk.

Five red flags that are non-negotiable

• Guarantees a specific lead number or Google ranking. Anyone making those promises is selling you a fairy tale.
• Refuses to give you owner-level account access.
• Reports on impressions, clicks and CTR but not conversions.
• Charges a setup fee that exceeds one month's management fee.
• Has no answer for what tracking they install on your site.

How to pick

After answers to all eight, the right agency will feel like the right tradie does to a homeowner, direct, specific, no upsell, prices clearly on the wall (see my pricing for what 'clear' looks like). The wrong one will feel like a sales pitch.

If you're talking to two or three agencies right now, book a 30-minute call with me as the third opinion. No pitch. I'll just go through your existing setup and tell you what I'd change, and whether you should switch agencies at all. I work across plumbers, electricians, builders, landscapers and more, in suburbs from Joondalup to Mandurah.