ScaleyScaley vs an Agency: Daily Hunt Off the Invoice
Chris sells both. When Scaley fits, when a good agency still wins, and what each one asks you to give up.
You want the account off your evenings. You also want to keep control of the money. An agency can take the evenings. If the only update is a monthly PDF, you don't really know what changed. DIY keeps control, but the account never leaves your nights. Scaley finds wasted search terms and dying SKUs, then waits. You approve each change. A good agency is still the right call when you need strategy, creative, or a human on the messy calls.
| Feature | Agency retainer | Scaley AI |
|---|---|---|
| Setup time | Depends on the agency and the handover | Under 5 minutes |
| Monthly cost | €3-8K retainer at this spend | $2,000/mo at €50K spend |
| Scales with spend | Bounded by the size of the team on your account | The price follows the spend it manages. 4%, with a $199 monthly floor |
| Can you see the work | Varies by agency | Every change logged with the reason behind it, and nothing runs without your sign-off |
| Lock-in | Some ask for a 3-6 month term. Many do not | No contract and no minimum term |
| When the account moves | Depends on the team and the scope | Search terms, SKUs and scaling chances checked around the clock, not on the evening someone has spare |
| Who owns the account | Usually yours. Worth confirming in the contract | Yours, always |
When an Agency Is Underperforming
A good agency is worth every euro. An underperforming one costs you twice: once in the retainer, once in the account. These are the habits to watch for. It's the habits, not the category.
- A monthly PDF instead of a weekly decision. If you can't tell what changed in the account, usually nothing did.
- Negative keywords added once a quarter. Bad search terms spend money every single day in between.
- One Target ROAS across the whole catalog. Your 60% bestseller and your 12% filler get bid the same.
- No breakout by margin. ROAS looks healthy on the slide. The account can still lose money.
- Junior buyers doing the work. Senior names on the pitch deck. You pay senior prices while a junior handles the daily work.
If none of that sounds like your agency, keep them. Scaley can still find wasted terms and dying SKUs underneath. That gives you a clear reason to ask what the retainer still covers.
Pick Scaley If
- €20K/month or more on Google Ads, and the account needs a daily decision, not a monthly PDF
- Search-term exclusions and budget lifts, each logged with a reason, queued until you approve that change
- The retainer is currently paying for negatives, budget nudges, and a PDF. You want that work off the invoice
- No 3-6 month contract. No migration clause. Cancel in one click
- 4% of spend instead of a €3-8K retainer. Keep a good agency for strategy if you have one
Pick an Agency If
- You want a strategic partner who sets catalog-wide direction and sits in the messy calls
- Creative, brand positioning, or media planning beyond Google Ads. Scaley doesn't do that job
- A weekly call with a human is how you like to work. A digest and an approval queue will annoy you
- Nobody in-house can approve a change. A good agency brings that person
You may not need to choose one and drop the other. Keep a good agency for strategy and creative. Let Scaley find wasted search terms, dying SKUs, and capped winners, then wait for your approval. If your agency already does that daily work well, keep them and close this tab.
They Stopped Babysitting Google Ads. They Kept Final Say
Scaley found €4K/month of wasted spend in our first audit. The auto-scaling rules have been better than our old agency. Honestly wild.
We stopped hiring junior buyers. Scaley handles the account and our lead just reviews the suggestions. Saves us like 15 hours a week.
Finally Scale Smoothly Without the 11pm Check
Connect in under five minutes and what comes back is a list of what to fix. Not ready to plug the account in yet? The two-minute quiz gives you a score without a signup or a Google Ads login.
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