How to use the Trades Marketing Agencies UK directory

What the directory is for

Tradespeople do not have time to read 30 agency websites. Each one is written to sell. Claims are hard to compare because every agency describes itself differently.

The directory fixes the comparison problem. For every agency we record location, services, trades served, how it positions itself, its pricing model, whether it publishes case studies, and who it is best suited to. Same fields, every time. The facts come from the agency's own website unless stated otherwise.

It is a reference, not a recommendation engine. We do not take fees for placement. We do not tell you which agency to hire. We put the facts side by side so you can decide.

The three types of page

A good starting point is the full comparison of UK trades marketing agencies, which covers the whole list in one table.

Page type	What it does	When to read it
Rankings	Lists agencies for a trade or a buying criterion, with a short note on each	First. Pick the list for your trade or your constraint (budget, exclusivity, payment model)
Profiles	A single agency in detail: origins, services, pricing, proof, how to assess them	Second. Read for each agency on your shortlist
Guides and opinion	How pricing, contracts, exclusivity and briefs work; our views on the market	Before you talk to anyone, so you know what to ask

What each listing records

The pricing model field is the one we are most often asked about. We record it even when the agency hides the number, because the model tells you how the agency makes money and therefore how its incentives line up with yours. Our opinion piece on why pricing models are recorded for every agency sets out the reasoning.

• Location: the town or city stated on the agency's site. 'Not stated' means we could not find one.
• Services: taken from the agency's own service pages, in their own terms.
• Trades: the trades the agency names. If it says 'all trades', we record that as a claim.
• Positioning: how the agency describes itself, summarised without our opinion.
• Pricing model: fixed fee, retainer, pay-per-lead, percentage of ad spend, or not published. Where a figure is public, we quote it.
• Case studies: whether the agency publishes results, and for which trades.
• Founded and founder: only where stated.
• Best for: our one-line summary of the type of business the agency is set up to serve.

What we leave out, and why

We do not record review scores from third-party sites. They change daily and are easy to game. Check them yourself at the point of decision.

We do not record client lists beyond what appears in published case studies. Logo walls are unverifiable.

We do not record anything an agency told us in private. If it is not on their site, it is not in the directory. This keeps every listing checkable by you.

Reading a ranking properly

Rankings order agencies by fit for a specific trade or criterion. Position one is the agency we judge the closest fit for the typical business in that trade, not the biggest or the cheapest.

Read the 'best for' line on each entry before the position number. An agency at position five that matches your size and budget beats an agency at position one that targets firms ten times your turnover.

If your trade has no dedicated ranking, use the nearest one. A plasterer can read the bricklayer marketing agency rankings and the general lists and get most of the way there. The agencies serving one trade in the building sector usually serve the others.

Each ranking also opens with a line describing the typical reader we had in mind. If that description is not you, the order below it was not built for you either, and the general comparison table is the better starting point.

From 30 agencies to three in an afternoon

A sequence that works.

• Step 1. Write down three constraints: your monthly budget including any ad spend, whether you need a website or already have one, and whether you want leads this month or a presence that builds over a year.
• Step 2. Open the ranking for your trade. Strike out any agency whose 'best for' line describes a business larger or smaller than yours.
• Step 3. Open the ranking for your main constraint, such as agencies offering area exclusivity or the fixed-fee list. Keep only agencies that appear on both.
• Step 4. Read the profile for each remaining agency. Note the pricing model and whether proof is published.
• Step 5. Check each agency's website yourself for anything that has changed since we recorded it.
• Step 6. Phone the three best fits. Use the questions at the end of each profile.

Checking our facts

Every listing shows the page we verified it against. Agencies change their offers, prices and names. If a listing is out of date, the agency's own site is right and we are wrong. We update listings when we find changes, and we would rather be told than not.

Prices in particular move. Treat any figure here as 'at the time we checked' and confirm it before relying on it.

Where Riley Marketing fits

Riley Marketing appears in some rankings and has its own review on this site. It is one listing among many and is held to the same fields and the same sourcing rules as every other agency. Where we have an opinion about it, we say so in an opinion piece, not in a listing.

Frequently asked questions