Ask to see the work before you buy the pitch.
Request three things: a sample month of delivery, a sample report and a written list of the accounts you control. CRE sells marketing services; these are questions to ask us too.
| Decision | Ask | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly work | Which tasks happen during setup, and which repeat? | Dated deliverables, owner and cadence. |
| Total cost | What is billed as the agency fee, media, production or tools? | Line-item proposal, term and payment schedule. |
| Ownership | Who controls the website, tracking, ad accounts and enquiry records? | Account list, working access and transfer or export steps. |
| Lead handoff | Who responds, checks fit and records visits, proposals and outcomes? | Routing plan, stage definitions and a sample report. |
“What do I get this month?”
Separate setup from ongoing work. Connecting Analytics happens once. Reviewing results and changing a campaign is recurring work. For SEO, ask for published URLs and the reason each page was chosen. For ads, ask whether creative, landing pages and follow-up are included.
“What is the full bill?”
Put the retainer, ad spend, setup fees and separate tools on one sheet. Read cancellation and guarantee conditions in the proposal. A promise about leads is different from one about appointments, estimate pipeline or revenue.
“What do I keep if we leave?”
List the domain, website, ad accounts, tracking and enquiry records. Confirm who owns each, who can log in and how an export or transfer works. Ask which tools would stop working when the engagement ends.
“Can you walk me through this report?”
Ask the provider to trace one enquiry through contact, an attended inspection and a quote. Check which numbers come from your records and which are estimates. Backlink totals should not be presented as links the agency earned that month.
“Who calls the lead?”
Get a name or a team role, including after-hours cover. Agree who records the outcome. Otherwise the agency may report a delivered enquiry while your office expects a confirmed appointment.
“Does this case study match what you're selling me?”
Check the channel, dates and what the figures mean. Our Watershed story is a customer's account of Facebook marketing. It is not evidence of SEO performance.
Download the proposal comparison sheet (CSV) →
Review CRE's service alongside the other proposals. Bring the unanswered questions to the call.