Should You Hire a Septic Marketing Agency or DIY?

At some point, every septic company owner faces this question: Should I handle marketing myself, hire someone in-house, or work with an agency?

There's no universal right answer. The best choice depends on your budget, time, skills, and growth goals. This guide walks through the honest pros and cons of each approach to help you decide.

Option 1: DIY Marketing

Many septic company owners start by handling marketing themselves. This can work, but requires realistic expectations.

Pros of DIY Marketing

Cost savings: You only pay for ad spend and tools, not management fees. This can save $1,500-5,000+ per month.

Direct control: You make all decisions without waiting on an agency or explaining your vision.

Industry knowledge: Nobody understands your customers and market better than you.

Flexibility: You can adjust campaigns instantly without approval processes.

Cons of DIY Marketing

Time investment: Effective marketing requires 5-15+ hours per week. That's time not spent on operations, sales, or family.

Learning curve: Google Ads, SEO, and website optimization are complex. Mistakes while learning cost money.

Lack of expertise: You're competing against businesses working with specialists who do this full-time.

Opportunity cost: Time spent on marketing could generate more value spent elsewhere in your business.

DIY Works Best When...

• You have genuine interest in learning marketing
• Your budget is under $2,000/month including ad spend
• You have 5-10 hours per week to dedicate
• You're in a less competitive market
• You're starting small and want to understand the basics before scaling

Option 2: In-House Marketing Hire

Hiring a dedicated marketing person gives you internal expertise. This is more common for larger septic companies.

Pros of In-House Marketing

Dedicated focus: Someone whose entire job is your marketing.

Company knowledge: They learn your business deeply over time.

Availability: Direct communication without scheduling calls or waiting on responses.

Cultural fit: They're part of your team and invested in your success.

Cons of In-House Marketing

High cost: Salary, benefits, payroll taxes, and equipment for a skilled marketing person runs $50,000-80,000+ annually.

Limited expertise: One person can't be an expert in everything—SEO, paid ads, web development, content, and analytics all require different skills.

Recruitment challenge: Finding good marketing talent in non-urban areas is difficult. Top marketers often want to work for bigger companies or agencies.

Management overhead: You need to manage their performance, provide direction, and evaluate results.

Single point of failure: If they leave, you lose institutional knowledge and capability.

In-House Works Best When...

• Your marketing budget exceeds $8,000-10,000/month
• You have the management capacity to oversee marketing
• You need frequent marketing tasks beyond campaigns (events, local partnerships, etc.)
• You're large enough that marketing is a full-time job

Option 3: Marketing Agency

Agencies bring specialized expertise and team resources without the overhead of employees.

Pros of Agency Marketing

Specialized expertise: Agencies have team members who specialize in different areas—Google Ads experts, SEO specialists, web developers, content writers.

Industry experience: A good agency has worked with similar businesses and knows what works.

Scalability: You can increase or decrease services without hiring/firing.

Tools and technology: Agencies have access to expensive software and tools included in their service.

Fresh perspective: External viewpoint can identify opportunities you're too close to see.

Time savings: Marketing is handled without your daily involvement.

Cons of Agency Marketing

Cost: Management fees typically run $1,500-5,000+ per month on top of ad spend.

Less control: You're working on their timeline and processes.

Communication overhead: Explaining your business and providing feedback takes time.

Quality varies widely: Many agencies overpromise and underdeliver. Vetting is essential.

Potential misalignment: Their incentives (retain client, bill hours) don't always align with yours (results).

Agency Works Best When...

• You have $3,000-15,000+/month for marketing (including ad spend)
• You don't have time to manage marketing yourself
• You want access to specialized expertise across multiple disciplines
• You're in a competitive market where expert execution matters
• You're growth-focused and want to scale faster

The Hybrid Approach

Many successful septic companies use a hybrid model:

Owner handles:

• Review solicitation (personal touch matters)
• Google Business Profile posts (quick updates)
• Customer relationship marketing
• Local networking and partnerships

Agency handles:

• Google Ads management
• SEO and technical optimization
• Website updates and maintenance
• Performance reporting

This captures the benefits of expert help for technical work while keeping the human-touch elements in-house.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Consider these questions when deciding:

1. What's your marketing budget?

Under $2,000/month: DIY likely makes sense
$2,000-5,000/month: Agency or hybrid
$5,000-10,000+/month: Agency, hybrid, or in-house

2. How much time can you dedicate?

If you have less than 5 hours per week for marketing, DIY will produce poor results. You need either time or money—ideally both.

3. What's your learning appetite?

Enjoy learning digital marketing? DIY can be rewarding. Find it tedious? Hire help.

4. How competitive is your market?

In small markets with few competitors, basic DIY marketing can win. In competitive metro areas, expert execution makes a bigger difference.

5. What's your growth goal?

Maintaining current business requires less sophistication than aggressive growth targets.

Evaluating Marketing Agencies

If you're considering an agency, vet them carefully:

Green Flags

• Experience with home services or specifically septic companies
• Clear explanation of their strategy and process
• Transparent reporting on what they'll track and share
• References from similar businesses you can actually call
• Realistic expectations about timeline and results
• Flexible contracts (month-to-month or 90-day minimum)

Red Flags

• Guarantees of specific rankings or lead volumes
• Long contracts (12+ months) with no exit clause
• Vague about what they actually do
• No experience in your industry or local services
• Won't provide references
• Pressure tactics or urgency to sign
• You don't own your accounts (Google Ads, analytics, etc.)

Questions to Ask Agencies

• "What experience do you have with septic companies specifically?"
• "Can I speak with 2-3 current clients in similar industries?"
• "What does your reporting look like? How often will we review results?"
• "Who specifically will be working on my account?"
• "What happens if I want to cancel?"
• "Will I own all accounts, content, and data you create?"

Transitioning Between Approaches

Your approach can evolve as your business grows:

Early stage: DIY to learn the basics and prove what works

Growing stage: Agency to scale faster and free up your time

Mature stage: Possibly bring marketing in-house or keep working with an agency—depends on volume and complexity

There's no permanent decision. Many companies start DIY, move to an agency during growth, and eventually build internal capability.

The Cost of Doing Nothing

One more option to consider: doing minimal marketing and relying on word-of-mouth alone.

This works for some small operators content with their current size. But for most businesses, competitors who invest in marketing will gradually capture market share while you stand still.

The question isn't just "what does marketing cost?" but "what does it cost to not market while competitors do?"

Making Your Decision

There's no universally right answer. The best choice is the one that matches your:

• Budget reality
• Time availability
• Personal interest and skills
• Growth ambitions
• Market competitiveness

If you're unsure, consider starting conservatively—try DIY or a smaller agency engagement. Learn what works and what doesn't. You can always scale up investment once you see returns.

Whatever you choose, commit to consistency. Sporadic marketing, regardless of who does it, produces sporadic results. Make sure you're tracking your marketing ROI to know what's working. And remember that seasonal adjustments matter regardless of who's executing your strategy.

Frequently Asked Questions