10 Questions Solopreneurs Should Ask Any Agency

January is when a lot of solopreneurs get the itch to “finally get marketing handled.” Budgets refresh, goals feel concrete again, and a new agency (or freelancer) can look like the fastest route to more leads.

Most companies get this wrong: they hire help before they’ve defined what “help” actually means. Then they pay for activity—posts, ads, “optimizations”—and end the quarter with a folder full of screenshots and the same sales pipeline.

This post is part of the SMB Content Marketing United States series, where we focus on marketing systems that work on a real-world budget. Below is a practical set of questions (inspired by John Jantsch’s agency truth-test) that you can use two ways:

1. to vet a marketing partner, and 2) to audit your own solo marketing so you don’t accidentally become your own “smoke-and-mirrors agency.”

Start with the non-negotiables: ownership and exit

If you don’t own your marketing assets, you’re renting your own growth. That’s not a partnership—it’s dependency.

1) “Who owns my marketing assets and accounts?”

Answer you want: You do. Always.

That means:

• Your domain registrar is in your name (not “agency-owned”).
• Your website hosting is accessible to you.
• Your Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Google Business Profile, Meta/LinkedIn ad accounts, email platform, and CRM are owned by you.
• The agency gets access, not ownership.

Solo audit: Make a list of every login that touches customer acquisition. If you can’t reset the password without asking someone else, fix that this week.

2) “What happens if I want to end the contract?”

Answer you want: a clean offboarding plan.

Watch for:

• “We need 6–12 months minimum” (sometimes justified, often a confidence crutch).
• Fees to transfer accounts, files, or data.
• Clauses that restrict your future marketing choices.

A reasonable standard for small businesses: 30 days’ notice, clear deliverables, and a documented handoff of assets.

Solo audit: If you’re using contractors, do you have everything in a shared drive you control (brand files, copy, creative, reports, ad creative history)? If not, you’re creating future chaos.

Make success measurable (and tied to revenue)

If success isn’t defined, reporting becomes storytelling. You want decision-making tools, not a highlight reel.

3) “How do you define success—and how often will we review it?”

Answer you want: success defined in leads, conversion rate, customer acquisition cost (CAC), and revenue.

Be blunt about vanity metrics:

• Impressions don’t pay rent.
• Followers don’t equal pipeline.
• Website traffic is only useful if it converts.

Ask for a review cadence (monthly is typical). The real tell is whether they can say:

• what happened,
• why it happened,
• what changes they recommend,
• and what they’ll stop doing.

Solo audit: Pick one primary goal for the next 90 days (for lead gen, it’s usually qualified leads per month). Then pick 2–3 supporting metrics (conversion rate, cost per lead, sales call close rate).

4) “How do you report on results, and can I see a sample?”

Answer you want: a report that includes interpretation and next steps, not tool exports.

A strong report usually has:

• A one-paragraph narrative summary
• 5–10 core KPIs (not 50)
• Insights tied to specific actions
• A plan for the next cycle

Red flag: “We’ll send the dashboard link.” Dashboards are great, but they don’t explain tradeoffs or priorities.

Solo audit: If you’re “checking analytics” but not changing what you do, you’re consuming data, not using it. Add a monthly 45-minute review where you choose one thing to double down on and one thing to cut.

Demand strategy, not a pile of tactics

Tactics without a strategy is how small businesses burn money slowly. The reality? It’s simpler than you think: define who you’re for, what you’re promising, and how people move from stranger to customer.

5) “How do you connect tactics to strategy?”

Answer you want: a clear chain from business goals → audience → positioning → channel plan → content/campaign execution.

If a partner can’t explain why they’re choosing a channel (SEO vs. ads vs. LinkedIn vs. partnerships), you’ll end up with random acts of marketing.

Example:

• Strategy: “Generate 20 qualified leads/month for a $3k–$10k B2B service.”
• Implication: You need intent-driven channels (search content + retargeting) and a strong conversion offer (assessment, demo, consult).
• Tactics: 6 bottom-funnel articles, 2 lead magnets, landing page testing, and retargeting ads.

Solo audit: Write a one-sentence strategy: “We help [ideal client] get [result] through [approach].” If you can’t write it, don’t buy tactics yet.

6) “What is your process for creating strategy before you execute?”

Answer you want: a discovery process that includes:

• Ideal customer definition (and who you’re not for)
• Differentiators (why you vs. alternatives)
• Core message (simple, consistent language)
• Customer journey (awareness → consideration → decision)
• Offer stack (what you sell, entry points, next steps)

Strong stance: If an agency starts pitching ads or content topics before they’ve interviewed you and looked at your sales process, they’re guessing.

Solo audit: Map your funnel on one page:

1. Where do people first find you?
2. What makes them raise their hand?
3. What happens on the sales call?
4. What’s your follow-up?

If you can’t answer #2 or #4, that’s where your leads are leaking.

Know who’s doing the work (and how they’ll work with you)

A great proposal means nothing if execution is junior and unmanaged. As a solopreneur, you also need a partner who can operate without constant babysitting.

7) “Who will I actually work with day to day?”

Answer you want: names, roles, and how communication works.

Ask:

• Who’s accountable for results?
• Who writes/edits content?
• Who builds campaigns?
• Who handles tracking and attribution?

Red flag: You meet the senior strategist in sales, then get handed to an inbox.

Solo audit: If you’re hiring contractors, create a simple “who owns what” doc. Confusion is expensive.

8) “How will you collaborate with my team (and other partners)?”

Answer you want: a plan to integrate with what you already have—your web developer, CRM, sales process, or existing vendors.

Good partners don’t act like a black box. They:

• document decisions,
• share assets,
• and coordinate timelines.

Solo audit: Even if “your team” is just you, you still need a workflow: a monthly planning call, a weekly async update, and one shared project board.

AI should speed you up—not water you down

AI is part of modern marketing operations, but it shouldn’t be your brand voice or your strategy brain. You’re buying judgment.

9) “How are you using AI, and what is still human-led?”

Answer you want: clear boundaries.

Healthy uses of AI in agency work:

• faster research and first drafts
• creative variations for ad testing
• data cleaning and reporting support
• SEO briefs and content outlines

Human-led work that should not be fully outsourced to AI:

• positioning and differentiation
• brand voice and editorial standards
• offer design
• performance analysis and prioritization

Solopreneur reality: if you’re paying premium rates, you should not be getting generic, AI-flattened content. Your audience can feel it.

Solo audit: Create a one-page brand voice sheet (words you use, words you don’t, examples of “on-brand” and “off-brand”). It dramatically improves both human and AI outputs.

The final question most solopreneurs forget to ask

If a marketing partner makes you more dependent, they’re not a partner.

10) “What will you teach me along the way?”

Answer you want: education baked into the engagement.

You don’t need to become a full-time marketer. But you do need:

• enough knowledge to approve strategy,
• enough visibility to spot waste,
• and enough control to switch directions when the market changes.

A solid partner will:

• explain tradeoffs (SEO vs. paid, short-term vs. compounding)
• share what they’re learning about your customers
• help you build internal assets (messaging, content library, landing pages)

Solo audit: If you can’t explain where your last 10 leads came from, you’re flying blind. Fix tracking and lead source capture before scaling spend.

A simple “agency scorecard” you can use this week

If you want a quick diagnostic, score each item 0–2:

• Ownership: You own domain, site, analytics, ad accounts, and data
• Success metrics: Leads/CAC/revenue defined (not vanity)
• Review cadence: Monthly review with insights + recommendations
• Strategy: Clear messaging and funnel before tactics
• Execution clarity: Named team + responsibilities
• Reporting quality: Narrative + actions, not screenshots
• AI transparency: Where it’s used, where humans lead
• Collaboration: Process and tools are defined
• Exit plan: Clean offboarding, no hostage assets
• Transfer of knowledge: You’re getting smarter over time

16–20 points: You’ve likely got a real partner.

10–15 points: You’re paying for work, but not leadership. Tighten scope, metrics, and reporting.

0–9 points: Expect disappointment. Either renegotiate fast or walk away.

What to do next (especially if you’re a one-person business)

If you’re serious about lead generation in 2026, don’t start by “doing more content.” Start by making your marketing measurable, portable, and strategy-led.

Pick one action from this list:

1. Transfer ownership of any account you don’t control.
2. Define one 90-day lead goal and the KPIs that support it.
3. Ask for a sample report before you sign anything.
4. Require a strategy sprint before execution.

The question to sit with: If you had to replace your current marketing setup in 30 days, could you do it without losing your website, data, and momentum?