Choosing a marketing agency can be daunting. There's a lot of options, many of them are very similar in their offerings, but differ in results. Differentiating them solely on their website or pitch presentation is a challenge for many small - medium sized business owners. Having a negative experience in the past can also make it stressful to go through the process again.
Knowing what to look out for and what to look for will be your best weapon against common scams.
Here are some things that may be a red flag:
- Look out for agencies promising results, or promising a money back guarantee if you don't see results. This sounds like an attractive option for businesses on a budget, but when something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Although consumer behavior and psychology is deeply studied, there are many elements of a marketing campaign that can impact results, making guarantees seldom hold true. An agency can guarantee deliverables such as 10x short reels posted or a blog a week, but results such as hitting a certain number of conversions cannot be guaranteed in good faith.
- No case studies on their website
- A website with just one page (landing page) is not a good sign, it doesn't rule them out as credible immediately but agencies that have very few past clients or that just started, often will try to provide as little information about themselves as possible. Basically they're lying by omission.
- No team page, of course there are many incredible one man agencies, we started as one ourselves, but they should at least have an about me page explaining who the founder & principal of the agency is and their backstory. Mullen Lowe which is on our list of best agencies was started as a one man agency by Jim Mullen.
Some good signs to look for:
- They have case studies with metrics from recent projects
- They have an about us page with specifics, names and or details about leadership team
- Reviews on google my business from past clients
- O'Dwyer's listing such as this: (view listings)
Here's our list of the best marketing agencies in Boston, some are positioned as communications, advertising or public relations agencies, but all include a marketing offer in their services.
If curious, check out our blog on the difference between marketing, public relations, and advertising. (read here)
Top marketing agencies with a Boston office (2025)
- Belfort Group
- Hoffman Agency
- Matter Communications (precision marketing)
- Mullen Lowe
- Digitas
- Regan Communications (Regan Digital Studio)
- Inkhouse
- 983 Group
- and of course, OK Media Boston (that's us)
