Key takeaways
- Look for transparency in reporting, clear KPIs and hands-on experience in your category.
- Avoid guaranteed results and long lock-in contracts.
- Ensure you own all ad accounts, data and creative.
Mumbai has hundreds of digital marketing agencies, from large networks to solo specialists. The right choice depends on your stage, budget and goals. This checklist helps you separate real performance partners from vendors who only send reports.
What a performance marketing agency should do
A performance marketing agency manages paid media (Google, Meta, Amazon, YouTube), tracking, landing pages and conversion optimisation, and ties its work to measurable outcomes such as leads, bookings, orders and revenue.
12 questions to ask
- Who will actually run my account? Ask to meet the person, not just a sales lead.
- What experience do you have in my industry? Real estate, D2C, retail and Amazon all work differently.
- How will you measure success? Expect answers about cost per lead, cost per site visit, CAC, ROAS and MER.
- Who owns the ad accounts and data? The answer must be: you.
- How do you set up tracking? Pixel, Conversions API, GA4 and CRM integration should be standard.
- What does your testing process look like? Ask about creative and landing page testing cadence.
- How often will we get reports and calls? Weekly updates and monthly deep reviews are common.
- What will you need from us? Product access, creatives, approvals, CRM feedback.
- How do you handle creative? In-house, freelancers, UGC creators.
- What is the pricing and contract structure? See agency pricing in India.
- Can you share relevant examples and references? Speak to existing clients.
- What will you do in the first 30 and 90 days? A clear plan shows maturity.
Red flags
- Guaranteed leads, ROAS or rankings.
- Refusal to give you admin access.
- Vague reports with only impressions and clicks.
- Long lock-in contracts with no exit.
- No questions about your margins, funnel or sales process.
- Pressure to spend more without data.
Green flags
- Asks about unit economics before proposing budgets.
- Presents a 30/60/90 day plan.
- Shares failures and learnings openly.
- Suggests fixing your landing page or follow-up before scaling spend.
Evaluation scorecard
| Criteria | Weight |
|---|---|
| Relevant experience | 25% |
| Strategy and process | 20% |
| Tracking and reporting | 15% |
| Creative capability | 15% |
| Communication and team | 15% |
| Pricing and terms | 10% |
Score each agency from 1 to 5 and compare.
Local vs large agency
| Option | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Boutique or local specialist (e.g. Borivali based) | Senior attention, flexible, fair pricing | Smaller team capacity |
| Large network agency | Full services, scale | Higher fees, junior execution |
| Freelancer | Lowest cost | Limited capacity, single point of failure |
First 90 days to expect
- Week 1 to 2: audit, tracking, strategy.
- Week 3 to 6: launch campaigns, creative and landing page tests.
- Week 7 to 12: optimise and scale winners.
Learn more about our approach on the Scaleverse Digital homepage or reach out through the contact form.
Numbers in this article are indicative working ranges drawn from public industry reports and typical campaign patterns in India. Your results will vary by offer, price point, location, and creative quality. Always validate against your own data.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I choose a digital marketing agency in Mumbai?
Check relevant experience, tracking setup, reporting transparency and account ownership. Ask for a 30/60/90 day plan and speak to existing clients.
What is the difference between performance marketing and digital marketing?
Digital marketing covers all online channels, while performance marketing focuses on paid and measurable outcomes such as leads and sales, paid per result or optimised against clear KPIs.
Should I hire a local agency?
A local agency in Mumbai understands micro-markets, languages and buyer behaviour, which matters for real estate and store-based businesses.
Want this done for your brand?
Scaleverse Digital is a performance marketing agency in Borivali, Mumbai. Tell us about your business and we will share a practical growth plan.
Get In Touch →