Level Marketing / Articles / Running a business
The first 30 days with a marketing agency: what happens week by week
Many business owners sign with a marketing agency and expect leads to start pouring in. A week passes, leads are few, and worry sets in: "money's going out, no results". In reality the first month is a period of preparation, testing and learning — and if it goes right, the following months' results depend on it. This article explains how the first 30 days with a marketing agency should go, week by week, what you'll be asked for and which signals to watch.
Why the first month is different
In month one, the agency doesn't know three things: who your real customer is, which message works and what a lead costs. Only testing can reveal them. So the first month's goal isn't maximum sales, but to:
- measure point A precisely — where you are now;
- set up tracking — to see where every lead comes from;
- test several hypotheses — audiences, creatives, offers;
- build a concrete plan for month two.
Level Marketing works in this order: brief and point A → strategy → content → launch → optimisation → report and point B.
Week 1. Brief, point A and access
What happens:
- Brief — an in-depth conversation about the business, product, prices, customers, competitors and goals. How to fill it in — marketing brief.
- Point A — current numbers: monthly sales, leads, cost per lead (if you've advertised), profile condition.
- Access — ad account, Business Manager, Instagram, website, pixel, CRM.
- Audit — a review of current ads, profile, website and sales process. What an audit checks — marketing audit checklist.
What you need to provide:
- 1–2 hours for the brief, with the main decision-maker present;
- sales figures for the last 3–6 months (even rough ones);
- access granted as a partner — not a password. The ad account and page should stay in your name — this matters.
Week 2. Strategy and plan
What happens:
- Strategy — which platforms, what offer, which audience segments, what budget;
- Monthly plan (plan/actual) — expected leads, cost per lead, spend;
- Creative plan — which videos and images are needed, who will be on camera;
- Tracking — pixel, UTM tags, a source field in the CRM.
What a one-page strategy looks like — one-page marketing strategy; UTMs — UTM tags.
What you need to do: read the strategy, ask questions and approve it. "Why this platform?", "Where do these numbers come from?" — a good agency answers specifically.
Week 3. Content and launch
What happens:
- Shoot day — the videographer and designer produce Reels, creatives and posts. At Level Marketing a finished Reel takes 48 hours;
- Profile clean-up — bio, highlights, prices, first posts;
- Campaign launch — testing several audiences and creatives;
- Daily monitoring — cost per lead and early signals.
How creatives are produced — how ad creatives are produced.
What you need to provide:
- time, a location and product for the shoot;
- fast replies to leads — that's your side. Even the best ads fail with slow replies. Why — lead response time.
Week 4. Optimisation and the first report
What happens:
- based on test results, budget moves to the audiences and creatives that work;
- what doesn't work is paused and replaced with new variants;
- the first report — spend, leads, cost per lead, what worked, what didn't, next month's plan.
At Level Marketing, the report is presented in person at the client's office every month on the project's date. What a report should include — what an ad report should include.
What you need to provide: data from your sales team on lead quality: how many leads became real customers, how many sales. Without it, the agency optimises for lead count rather than sales.
What to realistically expect in month one
| Metric | Realistic expectation in month one |
|---|---|
| Leads | Arrive from the first days |
| Cost per lead | Unstable, jumps during tests |
| Sales | First sales if the sales cycle is short |
| Stable results | Usually from month 2–3 |
| The most important result | Knowing what works, and a concrete plan |
What to expect over 90 days — what to expect from marketing in 90 days.
Warning signs
Be careful if, in the first month:
- you're refused access to the ad account, or it's opened in the agency's name;
- there's no strategy or plan — "let's launch and see";
- results are guaranteed: "500 leads a month, for sure";
- the report shows only reach and likes, no leads or costs;
- your questions don't get specific answers.
Questions to ask when choosing an agency or specialist — how to choose a paid ads specialist; metrics for the contract — KPIs in an agency contract.
Common mistakes (on the client's side)
- Demanding results in week one and stopping the test.
- Changing strategy daily — "this audience today, another tomorrow".
- Replying to leads late and concluding "the ads are bad".
- Not sharing sales data.
- Not making time for content — ads keep running on old creatives.
Questions and answers
When will the first leads arrive?
Usually in the first days after launch. A stable cost per lead comes after testing and optimisation.
What budget is needed in month one?
It depends on the industry, city and goal. After the brief, the agency calculates a specific figure and the expected cost per lead. How to plan a budget — planning a marketing budget.
If month one shows no results, should I end the partnership?
First understand why: is the problem in the ads, the offer or lead handling? If the report is transparent and the plan concrete, month two usually brings much more data.
What should I monitor?
Weekly, short numbers: spend, leads, cost per lead and lead quality from sales. Monthly, a detailed report and next month's plan.
Conclusion
The first 30 days with a marketing agency aren't a magic result but a foundation: point A, tracking, strategy, content and tests. If this month goes right, months two and three rely on data rather than luck. Level Marketing starts every project with a brief and a free audit, reports in your office every month, and our specialists' bonuses depend on you choosing to continue working with us.
