How to Hire a Facebook Ads Expert (Meta or Google): Questions, Fees and Red Flags

How to Hire a Facebook Ads Expert (Meta or Google): Questions, Fees and Red Flags

If you are here to hire one

Meta and Google Ads for Shopify brands

Tracking fixed first, then account structure, a creative system and reporting on contribution margin. US, Canada and Europe. Scope and pricing on the service page.

See what I do and what it costs

If you are vetting someone else

Second opinion on a call

Bring the proposal or the account. Thirty minutes, and you leave knowing whether to sign.

Book a call

There is no shortage of people who will run your Meta and Google ads. The difference between the ones worth paying and the ones who are expensive shows up in the first conversation, before any money moves.

The questions that actually separate them

Questions that separate a good paid media hire: can they walk you through a live account including what failed, what would they check before touching creative, who owns the ad account, and how is the retainer scoped

Can you walk me through a live account, including something that did not work? Case studies are written after the fact by the person being judged. A live walkthrough is not. The failures are the useful part, because how someone talks about a campaign that lost money tells you what they will do when yours does.

What would you check before touching the creative? The honest answer involves tracking, feed quality, and margin. Creative matters enormously, but it is the second question. Anyone who opens with hooks and angles is selling the fun part.

Who owns the ad account? You should. Set up the Business Manager under your own assets and grant access. If an agency runs your spend from their own account, your campaign history and your audiences stay with them when you leave, which is usually the moment you most need them.

What does the retainer actually buy? The same monthly number can mean a weekly optimisation pass or someone in the account daily. Ask for it in hours and deliverables.

How are you paid? Percentage of ad spend is common, and it quietly rewards spending more rather than earning more. A flat retainer, or one tied to contribution margin rather than platform-reported ROAS, points everyone the same direction.

On platform-reported numbers

Both Meta and Google report generously, and neither will agree with what your store recorded. Anyone presenting platform ROAS as the headline, without reconciling it against actual orders, is either new or hoping you will not check. The KPIs worth tracking are the ones your store can confirm.

Freelancer or agency

Early on, with one or two channels, a freelancer is usually better value and you get the person you hired. An agency is worth the premium when you need several disciplines at once or cover when someone is away. The longer version is in freelancer vs agency for Shopify ads.

Who I recommend

Utsav S

New Jersey, USA. Around six years across Facebook Ads, Shopify store builds and support. I refer work to him when the job leans toward store build and ongoing support alongside the media buying.

Works with: clients worldwide Strongest at: Facebook Ads, Google Ads, Klaviyo

Email Utsav

Working with me

I am the author here rather than an entry on the list, so weigh this accordingly. What I actually do on an account, who it suits and what it costs is on the Meta ads expert page. If you already have an agency and are not sure it is earning its fee, how to assess an agency is the checklist I use.

I have managed a combined budget of around $5M a month across Google and Meta, and I take a small amount of outside consulting alongside running data and operations for a DTC brand. The work I am most useful on is the unglamorous half: tracking, feeds, attribution, and the reporting that tells you whether any of it worked.

Most of what I know is on this site, including the beauty brand case study and what to do when Facebook ads stop performing. If you want a second pair of eyes on an account, book a call.

Frequently asked questions

What is a retainer in Facebook and Google Ads?
A retainer is a recurring fee, usually monthly, in exchange for an agreed scope of work. It is not the same as a percentage of ad spend. Ask what the retainer covers in hours and deliverables, because the same figure can mean a weekly optimisation pass or a daily one.
Should I pay a percentage of ad spend?
Percentage of spend is common but it rewards spending more rather than earning more. A flat retainer, or a retainer with a performance component tied to contribution margin rather than platform ROAS, aligns better with what you actually want.
How do I know if a Meta ads freelancer is any good?
Ask them to walk you through a live account, including a campaign that did not work. Ask what they would check in your account before touching creative. Anyone who talks about hooks before they have asked about your margin and your tracking is selling, not diagnosing.
Who should own the ad account, me or the agency?
You should, always. Create the Business Manager and the ad account under your own assets and grant access. If an agency insists on running your ads from their account, you lose the history and the audiences the day you leave.
How long before I can judge a new ads hire?
Long enough for campaigns to exit learning and for you to see downstream revenue, which usually means a full purchase cycle rather than a calendar month. Judging on week one numbers mostly measures luck.