How to choose a
branding agency.

Relevant experience can help. There are lessons you’d rather your agency had already learned.

But what comes with repetition comes complacency. At least, it can. If an agency only works in your industry, look closely: are you seeing something new, or a factory of slightly different versions of the same thing?

I like an agency that’s dipped its toes in the space, but has a life outside it. You want the benefit of experience without the feeling that your project has already been designed.

Do you like them? I can’t say this enough. You’re going to spend quite a bit of time with these people. That should sound like a good thing.

And here’s the part I think really separates good agencies: does their passion rival yours? Are they excited about what you’re building, or does this feel like a task list to finish and a check to cash? Notice what they get curious about. Whether they start seeing possibilities. You can usually feel the difference.

If you connect over something outside work, great. Shared hobbies, a similar sense of humor, whatever it is. You’re still people. That counts.

The person you meet in the pitch may not be the person doing the work.

If you meet the creative director, ask how much you’ll actually work with them. At Anchovies, you work directly with me. With another team, that might look different. Just find out before you sign, rather than discovering that the person you were excited to hire has mostly introduced you to someone else.

Get the everyday details, too. Can you text them? Email them? How often can you meet? What response time should you expect? It’s helpful to know what working together actually means.

This is a creative project, but it’s also your business. The agency should be interested in what the work is supposed to do for it: attract the right customers, support a higher price, help the business grow. A nice addition to their portfolio isn’t quite the same goal.

Ask how their creative decisions would support that goal, and what you could look for afterward to judge progress. Some results are easier to measure than others. They should still be interested in the result.

A wait before starting can be a good sign. They’re sought after. Fair enough. But a long wait to get started and a project that drags on are two different things.

Ask how much of the schedule is focused work and how much is waiting. How many clients are they balancing? Some projects genuinely need more time. Others spend quite a lot of it waiting for someone to come back to them.

Ideally, they’re a little faster to respond than you are. You want someone moving things along, not another person to chase.

If the work is right, you like the people, and you can comfortably afford them, I’d make the investment. Even if they’re the most expensive of the bunch. You don’t need to remortgage the house. But this also isn’t where I’d get too excited about a deal.

We’ve had clients come to us because the first attempt didn’t work out. Now they’re paying for it twice. Measure twice, cut once. Annoyingly good advice.

Compare what the fee includes and who is doing the work. A higher price doesn’t settle the decision on its own. But neither does a bargain.

Then trust your gut. You’ve looked at the work, met the people, and asked the awkward questions. You’re allowed to have a preference.