Choosing who runs your ads
What should a tree company ask before hiring someone to run its ads?
By Zachary Spencer, founder of Zenith Co.
Published
Ask what exactly you pay for, who owns the ad accounts, whether they mark up ad spend, who follows up the leads and how fast, whether they work for other tree companies in your area, what counts as billable and how you dispute it, how you leave, and what live work you can check. Get the answers in writing before you sign.
Every agency pitch sounds good on the call. The differences show up in the contract and the first bad month. These eight questions get those differences out in the open before you've paid anything. Ask them of anyone who wants to run your ads or sell you leads, including us.
1. What exactly am I paying for?
A monthly retainer, a price per lead, a price per booked appointment, or a price per shown estimate. Each one pays for something different, and each puts the risk in a different place. How the models compare.
Walk if: they can't tell you in one sentence what triggers a charge.
2. Who owns the ad accounts?
They should be in your business's name, with you as an admin. Why it matters and how to check.
Walk if: the accounts are theirs, or they won't give you admin access.
3. Do you mark up ad spend?
The cleanest answer is that ad spend never passes through them: the platforms bill your card directly. If they do pay the platforms and invoice you, ask for the platform receipts every month.
Walk if: you can't see what the platforms actually charged.
4. Who follows up the leads, and how fast?
This is the question most owners forget, and it decides more than the ads do. If the answer is "we send them to you," then the follow-up is still on you, from up a tree. Ask how quickly each lead is contacted, by what (text, call, both), and in whose name. Why minutes matter.
Walk if: nobody can say how fast leads get a response.
5. Do you work with other tree companies in my area?
An agency running ads for two tree companies in the same county is bidding against itself and deciding which client gets the better leads. Ask whether your area is exclusive, and how "your area" is defined.
Walk if: they won't put exclusivity in writing.
6. What counts as billable, and how do I dispute a charge?
For pay-per-lead or per-appointment deals, the definition is everything. Out-of-area leads, wrong numbers, duplicates, no-shows, jobs you don't do: which ones bill? Who decides? How long do you have to dispute?
Walk if: the definitions are vague, or disputes are "at our discretion."
7. How do I leave, and what do I keep?
Ask how much notice you need, whether there's a minimum term, and what happens to the ad accounts, the landing pages, the phone numbers and the lead history when you go.
Walk if: leaving means a cancellation fee, losing your accounts, or months of payments for work that's stopped.
8. What live work can I check?
Websites you can open, a client you can call, a video in the owner's own words. Be wary of big percentage claims with no names attached.
Walk if: everything is a screenshot of a dashboard you can't verify.
Our answers
| Question | Zenith Co. |
|---|---|
| What you pay for | A one-time setup fee, then a flat fee per estimate where the homeowner was there, billed weekly |
| Ad accounts | In your business's name. You keep them if you stop |
| Ad spend markup | None. The platforms bill your card directly |
| Lead follow-up | We text and call every lead in your company's name, aiming for under a minute, and book them onto your calendar |
| Your competitors | One tree company per service area, written down at sign-up |
| What bills | Shown estimates only. Not billed: out-of-area leads, work you don't do, no-shows, duplicates, estimates you cancel. Dispute within 14 days of a bill |
| Leaving | No long-term contract. Email us and the ads go off within 2 business days |
| Live work | Two tree company sites you can open today |
Questions about hiring an agency
What questions should I ask a marketing agency before signing?
What you pay for, who owns the ad accounts, whether ad spend is marked up, who follows up leads and how fast, whether they work with competitors in your area, what counts as billable and how disputes work, how you leave, and what live work you can check.
What are red flags when hiring an agency for a tree company?
Ad accounts in the agency's name, no admin access for you, combined invoices that hide ad spend, no answer on how fast leads are contacted, no exclusivity in writing, vague billing definitions, and long contracts with cancellation fees.
Should a tree company sign a long marketing contract?
It's safer not to. A month-to-month or no-contract setup means the agency has to keep earning your business. If a contract has a minimum term, make sure you keep your ad accounts and data when it ends.
Should my ad agency work with other tree companies near me?
Ideally not. An agency running ads for two tree companies in the same area is competing against itself for the same homeowners. Ask for exclusivity in your service area, in writing.
Does Zenith Co. require a contract?
No long-term contract. Email us and the ads go off within 2 business days. The ad accounts are in your business's name, so you keep them.