How to Choose a Social Media Agency

Choosing a social media agency can be surprisingly difficult.

Most agency websites tell you roughly the same things.

They're creative. They're strategic. They're data-driven. They've got an impressive collection of client logos.

There may even be a picture of somebody playing table tennis somewhere.

So how do you actually work out who's right for your brand?

We've been on one side of plenty of pitches, and the best agency on paper isn't automatically the best agency for you.

Start with the problem

Before looking at agencies, get clear on what you're actually trying to solve.

Maybe social has become too much for the internal team to manage. Maybe the content isn't good enough. Perhaps you need stronger paid performance, a clearer strategy or specialist production capability.

You don't need to know the solution – that's partly what you're hiring an agency for.

But understanding the problem makes it considerably easier to identify the right partner.

Does the agency actually understand social?

This sounds obvious.

It isn't.

Social-first work isn't simply advertising resized to 9:16.

Look at the agency's work and ask whether it genuinely feels like something you'd encounter on the platform.

Can they explain why something performed beyond saying “the algorithm liked it”?

Do they understand why somebody behaves differently on TikTok from LinkedIn?

Do they understand community as well as content?

Social changes incredibly quickly. You want people who actually spend time understanding it.

Look at the thinking behind the work

A beautiful portfolio is useful.

But ask why the work exists.

What was the problem? Who was the audience? What was the thinking? What happened afterwards?

One of the easiest ways to evaluate an agency is asking them to talk through a piece of work they're particularly proud of.

You'll quickly find out whether the thinking goes deeper than the finished creative.

Find out who's actually working with you

This is a big one.

The people pitching an account aren't always the people running it.

Find out who your day-to-day contact will be. Who develops the strategy? Who creates the work? Where does paid sit? How senior is the team you'll actually interact with?

You're entering a working relationship rather than buying a finished product.

The people matter.

Look for relevant experience, not necessarily identical experience

An agency doesn't need to have worked with a company exactly like yours.

Sometimes experience outside your immediate category is useful.

What matters more is whether they've solved similar problems.

Have they built audiences? Changed brand perception? Created social-first content at scale? Driven measurable performance?

Look at the challenge, not just the logo.

What we'd want a prospective client to ask us

Ask us what we'd change.

Ask us how we'll measure success.

Ask who will actually work on the account.

Ask us to explain a piece of work that didn't perform as expected and what we learned from it.

The relationship should be open enough to handle difficult questions before you've even started working together.

Take our work with Skyscanner, a global travel brand that didn’t need “more content” but came to Shaka for direction and creative strategy. 

Close collaboration and trust was key - and difficult questions and examination of what Skyscanner really needed to get out of their social agency was a big part of this.

With trust in the relationship, Skyscanner was open to new ideas and direction to achieve their goals for building a community through socials. 

What came of this were some stunning highlights - multiple videos reaching 150k+ views, rises in saves, shares and comments,  and increased cross-platform performance - we could go on.

Chemistry matters too

You'll probably speak to your agency several times a week.

You'll give each other feedback. Priorities will change. Things will occasionally go wrong. You'll sometimes need to move extremely quickly together.

You want a team capable of challenging you without making every conversation feel like a battle.

Ultimately, you're looking for capability, chemistry and trust.

And if an agency guarantees they'll make every post go viral?

Maybe keep looking.