Freelancer or agency: who should run your ecommerce ads?
A good freelancer is often enough for a brand running one channel on a limited monthly budget, with site, tracking and creative handled in-house. If you need several channels, steady creative production, tracking fixes and seasonal planning, an agency is the safer choice. Decide based on how broad the work is and how much single-person risk you can carry.
Neither model is good or bad on its own. The problem is a mismatch between the work and the model. There are two patterns we see often: brands paying for agency team capacity on a simple account one person could run, and brands loading five channels onto one freelancer that really need a team. Both cost money.
What are the key differences between a freelancer and an agency?
| Criteria | Freelancer | Agency |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Usually deep skill in one or two channels | Several areas: ads, creative, tracking, CRO |
| Contact | Direct line to the person doing the work | Account manager plus a specialist team |
| Continuity | Work stops if the person is ill, away or leaves | Cover and handover processes exist |
| Creative and tracking | Usually expected from you or someone else | Often in the team |
| Scaling | Limited by one person's time | Scales by adding people |
| Pricing model | Hourly, fixed monthly or per project | Monthly retainer, spend-based or hybrid |
| Partnerships | Personal certifications | Company-level platform partnerships |
The table generalises. A well-organised network of freelancers can work like a small agency, and a disorganised agency can be slower than one person. Still, the way risk is distributed usually looks like this.
When is a freelancer the right choice?
A freelancer makes sense if most of these apply:
- You need one channel managed, for example only Google Ads or only Meta.
- Creative, product photos and site changes are done in-house.
- GA4, the Pixel and the Conversions API are already set up correctly.
- They'll work in an account opened in your name, where you are the Admin.
- Your promotion calendar is calm, and peaks like Black Friday don't need extra hands.
In that case a freelancer saves you paying for agency services you won't use.
When is an agency the better choice?
An agency comes into its own when several channels need to work together, creative needs regular testing, tracking problems need fixing and the site needs conversion work. Example: Shopping and Performance Max on Google, catalog and prospecting on Meta, test campaigns on TikTok, and 10-15 new creatives every week. One person can't carry that for long, and creative and reporting are usually the first things to slip.
If you're weighing agencies, question the scope of working with an ecommerce agency like Performetic in detail before you decide: who does which job, which platform partnerships are in place and how reporting works.
How do you manage the risk of depending on one person?
The biggest risk with a freelancer is dependence. If they leave suddenly and nobody else knows the account structure, campaign logic or past test results, the next person starts from zero. To reduce that risk:
- Own the accounts. You should hold Admin access in Google Ads; under Google's access levels, only Admin users can add or remove users and manage product links.
- Keep Analytics admin rights too. In GA4, adding and deleting users sits with the Administrator role.
- Ask for written documentation. Campaign structure, naming rules, targets and test history should live in a document.
- Set the monthly report format upfront. The report should belong to you, not to the person.
- Review the access list regularly. Remove access the same day someone leaves.
The same rules apply to agencies. Account and data ownership should stay with the brand whatever the working model.
How should you compare costs?
We won't give numbers here, because freelancer and agency pricing varies a lot by scope, budget and number of channels. What matters is comparing the same scope. If the freelancer quote doesn't include creative production, tracking setup, landing page changes and reporting, buying those separately can bring the total close to, or above, the agency quote. If the agency quote includes services you won't use, ask to remove them. We cover pricing models in detail in digital marketing agency fees.
Can you use a freelancer and an agency together?
Yes, and for some brands it's the most sensible setup. Example: strategy, tracking and the main ad accounts with an agency; part of creative production or marketplace ads with a freelancer. For this to work, name one owner and define shared targets. Setups where two parties run the same account with different goals rarely end well.
What should you ask a freelancer and an agency in the first call?
Ask both the same questions; how clearly they answer tells you more than the model does.
- Who will run the account? At an agency, a named person with a clear role; with a freelancer, ask whether any of the work is passed on to someone else.
- How many hours a week? Ask how many clients the freelancer has, and what team capacity the agency allocates to you.
- What happens during holidays or illness? Is there cover and a handover process?
- Where does creative come from? Who meets your weekly creative needs, and is it extra?
- Which report, how often? Ask for a sample.
- What is handed over if you part ways? Accounts, documents, creative files and access transfer should be in the contract.
A freelancer who answers these honestly and clearly can be a better choice than an agency. An agency that stays vague isn't made safer by its size.
Is an in-house team a third option?
Yes. If ad management is core to your business and the budget allows, hiring a specialist in-house can make sense. In that case, factor in salary and benefits, tools and licences, hiring time and the gap when that person is on leave or moves on.
How do you know which model fits you?
Before deciding, write your needs down: how many channels, how many creatives, the state of tracking, your season calendar and who does what in-house. That list often answers the question by itself. In Performetic's growth strategy work, we map these needs together with the brand. If you'd like an independent view on which model fits, request a free growth audit.
Key takeaways
- With one channel, solid tracking and creative handled in-house, a freelancer is usually enough.
- With several channels, regular creative testing and tracking needs, an agency is safer.
- The biggest freelancer risk is dependence on one person; keep account and data ownership yourself.
- Compare prices on the same scope, and cost out anything missing separately.
- Combining both models works, but needs one owner and shared targets.