Regardless of company size, handing your marketing over to an agency is still one of the biggest decisions you’ll make. The channels have shifted since we first tackled this topic in 2018, but the core question hasn’t: will this agency actually make your budget work harder? Here’s what the latest research says about how SMBs are making that call in 2026.
Referrals Still Open the Door
Search and social media get a business on the radar, but trust is what gets the deal signed. According to Setup’s Marketing Relationship Survey, word-of-mouth and referrals remain the most common way clients discover new agencies, and for good reason: 75% of clients say the agency selection process is time-consuming, and 77% say it’s far from simple.¹ When the stakes and the confusion are both high, a trusted recommendation cuts through faster than any ad ever could.
Reviews Matter, But Trust Is More Complicated Than It Used to Be
Online reviews are still part of nearly every vetting process. BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey found that 98% of people at least occasionally read online reviews for local businesses.² But the way people trust those reviews has shifted: only 49% of consumers now say they trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation, down sharply from 79% in 2020.² The takeaway for agencies isn’t that reviews stopped mattering. It’s that a thin, unmanaged review profile reads as a red flag faster than it used to, and a strong one carries more weight when trust in the format overall is harder to earn.
SMBs Are Spending, and Watching Their Agencies Closely
Appetite for advertising is strong. Intuit’s Small Business Advertising Trends Report found that 92% of small businesses plan to maintain or increase ad spend into early 2026, with only 8% predicting cuts.³ That confidence, though, comes with less patience for underperformance. Industry surveys suggest roughly 40% of businesses are actively considering switching agencies within six months, most often citing a poor fit or results that didn’t match what was promised.⁴ Spend is up. Tolerance for a bad match is down.
Longevity and Track Record Still Carry Weight
How long an agency has been in business and how long they retain clients remain strong signals of reliability, echoing what our original 2018 survey of over 1,000 SMB owners found: businesses want proof an agency can keep clients happy over time, not just win them in the first place.⁵ Case studies, client tenure, and consistent reporting on performance still do more to build confidence than flashy pitches.
The Human Factor Hasn’t Gone Anywhere
Every year, more of the agency evaluation process moves online: research, reviews, portfolios, referrals. But the traits that seal the deal are still fundamentally human. Honesty, professionalism, and reliability from the people a business will actually work with continue to outweigh flash or even raw experience. Technology has changed how SMBs find an agency. It hasn’t changed why they choose to stay.
Bottom Line
SMBs are spending more on marketing than ever, but they’re also faster to walk away from a partner that doesn’t deliver. Agencies that combine a strong referral network, a well-managed review presence, and a genuine track record of client retention are the ones winning, and keeping, the business.
Sources:
- Setup, 2024 Marketing Relationship Survey
- BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2025
- Intuit SMB MediaLabs, 2025 Small Business Advertising Trends Report
- Setup.us, industry survey data on agency switching, cited in Walker Media Agency, “The Ultimate Guide to Choosing a Digital Marketing Agency,” 2025
- Valpak Direct Marketing Systems® / Thrive Analytics®, 2017 SMB Survey, 3rd Quarter
