Most businesses read their agency contract once – when they sign it. They pull it out again only when the partnership is ending and suddenly they have to figure out who owns the ad account, the website or the logo. In this article, we’ll go through the points no contract should be missing, and at the end, you’ll find a table for a quick check.
Important: this isn’t legal advice, and where the article touches on the law, it refers to Slovak law. It’ll help you prepare your questions and check whether the contract covers the essentials. Have a lawyer review the exact wording, especially for a larger project. And if you’re still choosing an agency, start with the questions in our article How to choose a marketing agency.
Scope of services: what exactly you get
Most misunderstandings come from a vague brief. “Social media management” can mean two posts a month or replying to comments every day. That’s why the contract or its appendix should spell out:
- which channels and services the agency handles, such as Google ads, Facebook and Instagram ads or website maintenance,
- what’s included in the price and to what extent,
- how extra work is handled and billed – the principle is enough, such as an hourly rate or a quote in advance,
- what you provide: photos, copy, product information, approval of drafts,
- how long you have to approve drafts and what happens when materials arrive late.
Ownership of accounts and data
This is the point that tends to be the most sensitive when a partnership ends. An ad account holds your campaign history, settings and the data your campaigns learn from. If it belongs to the agency, you can lose all of that when you leave.
The contract should include a sentence stating that the following accounts are set up in your company’s name or will be transferred to it, and that the agency only has access to them for the duration of the partnership:
- Google Ads, including the payments profile with your billing details,
- your Facebook and Instagram ad account and your Meta business account (Business Manager),
- Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Google Search Console and, for an online store, Google Merchant Center,
- your Google Business Profile,
- your newsletter tool and contact database,
- your domain, hosting and website admin.
At Tronos, we keep it simple: campaigns run in the client’s ad accounts, which the client owns. If you already have accounts, you just give the agency access. You’ll find step-by-step instructions, for example, in our guides on how to share access to Meta Ads Manager or Google Analytics 4.
Access during the partnership and after it
Ownership is one thing, day-to-day access is another. It’s worth agreeing on the following in the contract or its appendix:
- At least one admin of each account is someone from your company, not from the agency.
- The agency has the level of access it actually needs for its work.
- You also keep the login details for your website, hosting and domain – not just one person at the agency.
- When the partnership ends, the agency hands over all access and materials, and then you remove its access.
- The contract sets a deadline for the handover.
Copyright for your website, graphics and copy
You paid for the logo, the website and the copy, and yet it may not be clear how you’re allowed to use them. Under Slovak law, creative work usually isn’t handled as a “transfer of copyright” but as a license – permission to use the work to an agreed extent. That’s why it’s important for the contract to state:
- which uses the license covers – website, print, advertising, social media,
- whether it’s exclusive, meaning the agency can’t provide the same work to anyone else,
- for what period and territory it applies – for a business, unlimited use in time is the practical option,
- whether you may modify the work and have another company modify it, for example when someone else redesigns your website later,
- whether you’ll get the source files: the logo in vector format, editable design files, exported drafts.
Watch out for third-party work too. Stock photos, paid fonts, templates and paid website extensions have their own licenses. Find out whose name they were bought in and whether you can keep using them after the partnership ends. For a WordPress website, this applies, for example, to the license for a paid page builder or paid plugins.
Reporting and communication
The contract doesn’t have to list every chart, but it should specify:
- how often you’ll get a report and in what form,
- which key numbers it will include, such as costs, the number of inquiries or orders and the cost of each,
- who your contact person is and how quickly they reply to routine questions,
- how often you’ll meet to go over the results.
We cover which numbers belong in a report and which are just for show in our article Marketing agency reports.
Contract term, notice period and exit
For ongoing services, such as managing ads or social media, an open-ended contract with a notice period makes sense. One-off work, such as building a website, calls for a contract for a specific deliverable, with deadlines, acceptance and handover.
What to watch out for:
- a long lock-in right at the start, when you don’t know each other yet,
- a notice period during which you keep paying even though the agency is no longer doing anything,
- unreasonable contractual penalties for early termination,
- no handover procedure: what the agency will hand over, to whom and by when.
A reasonable notice period is one that leaves enough time for a smooth handover and for you to find a replacement. If it’s much longer, ask why.
Personal data and confidentiality
If the agency works with your customers’ data (manages your newsletter, website forms or contact lists for ads), it processes personal data on your behalf. In that case, the GDPR requires a data processing agreement that sets out what the agency may do with the data and how it protects it. It can be a separate document or part of the main contract.
Don’t forget about confidentiality either. The agency will see your margins, revenue, customers and plans, so the contract should state that it won’t pass this information on.
Payments and ad budget
- The agency’s fee and the ad budget are listed separately in the contract.
- It’s clear who pays the ad platforms – ideally you, directly in your own account.
- It’s agreed when and how invoices are issued and what the payment terms are.
- The contract says how and how far in advance price changes are announced.
Quick-check table
Go through the contract point by point before you sign. If you recognize your contract in the right-hand column, keep asking questions.
| Contract point | What it should include | When to be cautious |
|---|---|---|
| Scope of services | Channels, workload, how extra work is handled | “Full-service marketing management” with no details |
| Accounts and data | All accounts in your company’s name, the agency has access | Accounts in the agency’s name with no transfer agreement |
| Access | An admin from your company, a handover procedure | Only the agency has the login details |
| Copyright | The license, its scope, the right to modify, source files | The contract says nothing about a license |
| Reporting | Frequency and key numbers | No mention of reporting |
| Termination | A reasonable notice period, handover | A long lock-in, high penalties |
| Personal data | A data processing agreement, confidentiality | The agency works with contacts without an agreement |
| Payments | The fee separate from the ad budget | One lump sum with no breakdown |
Frequently asked questions
Are an agency’s terms and conditions enough, or do I need a separate contract?
The terms and conditions may be enough if they cover the points in this article. Read them as carefully as you would a contract. If something is missing, ask for it to be added – an amendment or a short appendix is nothing unusual, and a reputable agency won’t push back.
Who owns an ad account the agency created?
It depends on how it was set up, who has admin access and whose payment details are on it. The safest option is to create the account yourself and invite the agency. If the agency has already created it, agree in writing that it’s yours and ask for admin access.
Can an agency shut down my website or campaigns after we part ways?
If the hosting, domain or ad accounts are in its name, in practice, yes. That’s why the contract should state that these things are yours or will be handed over to you – and within what time frame.
How long should the notice period be?
There’s no hard rule. For ongoing campaign management, it should be long enough for the agency to hand over access and materials and for you to find a replacement. A long lock-in right at the start of the partnership is a reason to ask questions.
If you want to ask about these points before you sign anything, get in touch. The first consultation is free, takes 30 minutes online or by phone, and you can start it with the question of who will own the accounts.
