INDEPENDENT SOCIAL MEDIA AGENCY ASSESSMENT
Is your social media agency delivering the results your business needs?
Get an independent assessment of your agency’s performance to understand what’s working, what needs attention, and how to move forward.
THE PROBLEM
You hired a social media agency because they're the experts. Now you're expected to evaluate their performance.
That’s a difficult position for a senior marketing leader—especially without deep social media expertise in-house.
Agency scopes can be complex. Polished strategy decks don't necessarily translate into effective execution, and reports may leave important questions unanswered.
This assessment examines how your agency’s commitments, day-to-day work, and reported results align with your business objectives—giving you a sound basis for decisions about the relationship.
WHEN AN ASSESSMENT MAKES SENSE
You don’t have to believe your agency is failing to want a second opinion.
- You’re approaching an agency renewal or annual planning cycle and want an objective view before recommitting budget.
- You’re spending significantly on social but aren’t confident you’re getting enough value—or clear on what your investment is achieving.
- You’ve inherited an existing agency relationship and want to understand exactly what you’re paying for and how well it’s working.
- Your agency is in review—or you’re considering whether it should be.
- You’re under pressure to reduce or reallocate marketing spend without cutting the parts of the program that are actually working.
- You’re questioning the scope, staffing, or operating model and want to clarify which responsibilities belong with the agency and which would be better handled in-house.
WHO'S BEHIND THE ASSESSMENT?
Dan Maierle
Independent Social Media Strategist
With over 20 years of social media experience leading agency programs and managing agency partners in-house, I understand the relationship from both sides of the table.
My expertise spans strategy, creative, paid media, and measurement, combining senior-level oversight with hands-on execution. That perspective informs how I assess both the work your agency delivers and the factors that shape it—from staffing and fees to how effectively the partnership operates.
THE SEVEN PILLARS
What I assess
I look beyond published content to assess the entire social media operation—from what you’re paying for and who’s responsible to how strategy, creative, distribution, and measurement connect.
Scope & Fees
Does the scope cover the work your business needs, and do the fees reflect what’s being delivered?
I examine staffing allocations, hours, and responsibilities to identify unnecessary costs, gaps in coverage, and mismatches between what you’re paying for and what you’re receiving.
Staffing & Expertise
Who is doing the day-to-day work, and are they equipped to do it as well as possible?
I assess the experience, seniority, and social media expertise of the people assigned to your account—and whether key responsibilities have clear ownership and appropriate oversight.
Strategy
Is the strategy grounded in your business objectives, and does it guide the work?
I examine the rationale behind the recommendations and whether they translate into clear priorities, sound decisions, and effective execution.
Paid Social & Distribution
Is enough being done to ensure that your content reaches the right people?
I examine how organic and paid social work together, who owns distribution, and whether your media investment makes sense relative to your content investment.
Content & Creative
Is the content genuinely designed for social media, strategically sound, and efficiently produced?
I also examine how the creative process, agency capabilities, and client requirements support—or limit—the quality of the output.
Measurement & Reporting
Does reporting help you make better decisions—or simply document activity?
I assess the metrics, analysis, and recommendations, including whether your agency is translating performance into learning and optimization over time.
Client/Agency Operating Model
Does the way you work together support effective execution?
I examine approvals, workflows, meetings, responsibilities, and communication to identify where the partnership enables good work and where it creates unnecessary friction.
Agency performance depends on more than the agency.
That's why I assess both sides of the relationship.
WHAT YOU RECEIVE
Clear findings. Prioritized recommendations.
You’ll receive a detailed assessment deck with supporting evidence, clearly explained conclusions, and practical next steps. The findings are organized to help your team understand the issues, weigh the options, and decide where to focus.
Detailed Assessment Deck
Documented findings across all seven pillars, with supporting evidence and an explanation of what each conclusion means for your business.
Financial & Operational Opportunities
Specific opportunities to use budget, staffing, and time more effectively while preserving the parts of the program that are delivering results.
Prioritized Recommendations
Practical recommendations for your agency and internal team, organized by priority to help you focus on the changes that will have the greatest impact on your program.
Executive Readout & Action Plan
A live walkthrough with your leadership team to discuss the findings, answer questions, and review a proposed sequence of next steps.
WHY INDEPENDENCE MATTERS
I'm not trying to become your next agency.
The purpose of the assessment is to give you an objective view of the relationship—not manufacture a reason to replace it.
I don’t receive agency referral fees. I don’t benefit financially from recommending that you terminate your agency. And I’m not using the assessment as a pitch to take over its work.
Sometimes changing agencies is the right move. Other times, it makes more sense to renegotiate the scope, adjust the staffing model, bring certain responsibilities in-house, or increase investment—or simply give a good agency the support it needs to succeed.
MY ROLE:
To recommend the right path for your business.
THE NEXT STEP
Let's talk.
Get in touch to schedule a conversation about your current agency relationship, the questions you want answered, and whether an independent assessment makes sense for your organization.
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