What questions should I ask before hiring any marketing agency?

Ask the questions that separate accountable partners from lead-renters. A short list:

• Do I own my website, domain, GA4, ad accounts, and data if we part ways?
• Will you sign category exclusivity so you won't take my direct competitor in my area?
• How do you report — booked jobs and cost per booked job, or vanity metrics like impressions?
• Is ad spend separate and unmarked-up, paid to my own accounts?
• Am I locked into a long contract, or is it month-to-month?
• Who actually does the work, and who's my point of contact?

Be wary of page-one guarantees, suspiciously cheap overseas retainers, and anyone vague about ownership or attribution. A good agency answers all of it plainly and puts it in writing. If they dodge ownership or exclusivity, that tells you who the relationship really serves.