Updated June 14, 2026
That’s kind of like asking, “Is that Chanel bag worth the money?
For those who have the money to spend and care about the status that comes with it — yes, absolutely worth it. But most small business owners have to be more careful about how they spend their marketing budget. That doesn’t mean settling for less. It means being smart about where the value actually is.
And here’s a secret the big agencies would rather you didn’t know: the value isn’t always where you think it is.
Don’t look behind the curtain, Dorothy
Big agencies have genuine advantages. Large staffs, impressive client lists, a really cool office where someone with good manners answers the phones. Amazing talent. Cutting-edge work. A huge support network to handle the day to day.
The day you visit, the creative director — funky glasses, sharp suit, long list of awards — will usher you into a state-of-the-art conference room with a view of the city and offer you an array of beverages before sitting you down to sign the contract for the fabulous work they’re about to do for you.
That may be the last time you see the creative director.
The person who actually works on your project is likely someone they hired a few months ago. Lots of energy, great sneakers, possibly an ironic t-shirt. Got an A on their graduation project. The creative director will present this person’s work at the next meeting, talk you into loving it, and charge you top-tier agency rates for it while paying the person in the sneakers an entry-level salary. And the lovely person who answered the phones? That’s all they do. They say hello and transfer you to voicemail.
I’m not saying they don’t do great work — they very often do. But you’re paying an awful lot of money to work through layers of people, speak to answering machines, and occasionally wonder whether the senior talent you hired is actually touching your project at all.
The independent studio advantage
Working with an independent designer or small studio is a fundamentally different experience — and for many clients, a better one. Here’s why:
- You work directly with the person doing the work. There’s no account manager translating your brief to a creative director who passes it to a junior designer. What you say to me is what informs the work. No telephone tag, no lost nuance.
- You get senior-level experience on every project. I’ve been doing this long enough to have seen most situations before. That experience shows up in every project I take on — not just the big ones.
- You’re not a small fish in a big pond. Independent studios have fewer clients, which means each one matters more. I care about your project because your success reflects directly on mine. That’s a different kind of investment than you get from an agency where your account is one of dozens.
- You get actual responsiveness. I don’t have a receptionist — but I do have a phone, and I return calls. Usually the same day.
- You get a trusted network, not a random bench. When a project calls for a specialist — a copywriter, a photographer, a developer — I bring in people I’ve worked with and trust, not whoever happens to be available on the agency floor that week.
So — are big agencies worth the money?
If you have an unlimited budget and get a thrill from saying your designer also worked on a major national campaign, then maybe. But if you want experienced, accountable, personally invested creative work at a price that makes sense for a small business or nonprofit — that’s exactly what an independent studio is built to deliver.
