Performance marketing agencies specialising in user acquisition often charge several thousand dollars per month for ongoing campaign management, with higher retainers for multi-channel strategies and additional services.
At Rock Paper Marketing, monthly paid acquisition management starts at €1,500 for one advertising channel. Our lean, senior-led team structure allows us to offer experienced strategic and hands-on support at a more accessible price than many traditional agencies, without the additional management layers and overhead.
This guide explains what different agency fees actually buy, how to compare proposals, and when a smaller specialist team may be a better fit.
A set fee for an agreed scope of ongoing management. This can be practical for companies that want predictable costs and clear responsibilities. Ask which channels, markets, deliverables, check-ins, and setup tasks are included, and what would trigger a scope change.
A management fee calculated as a share of media spend. Most percentage-based arrangements include a minimum monthly fee — for example, a 15% fee on €5,000 of spend would equal €750, but many agencies apply a minimum of €1,500–€2,000 regardless of spend. Clients should also consider whether the arrangement creates the right incentives: an agency paid on spend volume is rewarded for increasing spend, not necessarily for improving efficiency. Compare total cost, incentives, and transparency at your expected budget level.
A base management fee combined with either a spend-based adjustment or a performance incentive tied to measurable business outcomes — such as installs, trials, or qualified leads. These are structurally different arrangements: a spend-based hybrid rewards media volume; an outcome-based incentive rewards results. Both require reliable tracking, agreed definitions of success, and clear terms on what the agency can and cannot control.
The scope of a management retainer varies significantly between agencies. A few important distinctions apply across the board:
Creative strategy is not the same as creative production. An agency may develop hooks, messaging angles, and testing priorities while quoting design, motion, and UGC sourcing separately. Tracking review is not tracking implementation. Checking that conversion events fire correctly is standard management practice; building a new tracking setup or integrating an MMP is typically a separate scoped project. Advertising spend is separate from agency fees and should normally be paid directly to the advertising platforms through client-owned accounts.
| Common management scope | Often separate or scope-dependent |
|---|---|
| Campaign planning, setup and management | Major tracking implementation or development |
| Budget allocation and optimisation | Creative asset production |
| Performance monitoring and reporting | UGC creator fees |
| Agreed strategy reviews and check-ins | Landing page design and development |
| Creative testing recommendations | MMP subscriptions and third-party tools |
We built Rock Paper Marketing around a small, experienced team rather than a traditional agency hierarchy. Our model combines senior-level acquisition strategy with hands-on campaign management, supported by creative specialists when needed.
This allows us to offer specialist user acquisition expertise at a more accessible starting price, without the additional management layers and overhead of larger agencies.
Our monthly paid acquisition management starts at €1,500 for one advertising channel. This includes acquisition strategy, campaign setup and ongoing optimisation, performance monitoring, and agreed reporting and check-ins. The final fee depends on campaign complexity, target markets, and any additional services required.
We also offer focused audits and pre-launch assessments for businesses that aren't ready for ongoing management.
Our work is particularly relevant to mobile apps, subscription products and lead-generation businesses.
| Service | What it includes | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Strategy consultation | One-hour working session to discuss acquisition challenges, opportunities, and next steps | $250 |
| Paid acquisition audit | Focused review of an agreed acquisition scope, with written findings and recommendations | From €600 |
| Launch readiness assessment | Channel recommendations, acquisition strategy, tracking assessment, and initial testing plan. Advisory only — implementation not included | From €1,200 |
| Monthly management retainer | Strategy, campaign setup, management and optimisation for one advertising channel, with agreed reporting and check-ins | From €1,500/month |
| Creative production | Creative direction, design, motion assets, and UGC sourcing and briefing, quoted per agreed deliverables | Quoted per scope |
Advertising spend is always separate and paid directly by you to the platforms. UGC creator fees are additional where applicable.
This is an illustrative example, not a fixed package. Advertising spend, management fees, and creative production are separate costs that depend on your scope and goals.
| Expense | Monthly cost |
|---|---|
| Advertising spend | €5,000 |
| RPM management retainer (one channel) | €1,500 |
| Creative production | Quoted separately |
| Total before creative production | €6,500 |
€5,000 is not a universal minimum advertising budget — the right testing budget depends on your product, channel, and acquisition economics.
There is no universal advertising-spend threshold. A more useful question is whether the conditions for productive paid acquisition are in place:
For subscription products, the meaningful metrics are trial starts, trial-to-paid conversion rate, paying-subscriber acquisition cost, retention, and payback period — not installs or clicks alone. For lead generation, focus on qualified leads and downstream commercial outcomes rather than form submissions.
If budget or readiness is limited, a strategy consultation, focused audit, or launch assessment is usually a more efficient starting point than a monthly retainer.
The operating model and the actual people assigned matter more than the agency label. Before engaging any provider, ask who will manage your account, how many other accounts they run concurrently, and how decisions are made.
Yes. A single-platform engagement can be a sensible way to establish measurement and a repeatable testing process before expanding.
Creative strategy — developing hooks, angles, and testing priorities — is commonly included. Creative production (design, video, motion, UGC) is usually quoted separately. Confirm what is covered before signing.
Some do; others include a defined onboarding scope in the first month or quote setup as a separate project. Confirm what is covered before signing.
Neither model is automatically better. Compare total cost, incentives, transparency, and deliverables at your expected media budget.
It depends on the agency's specialisation, the complexity of the engagement, and what's included. Specialist user acquisition agencies typically charge several thousand dollars per month for ongoing single-channel management. Entry-level generalist PPC packages exist at lower price points but typically cover simpler campaign structures and less experienced teams.
No. Advertising spend is separate from management fees and should normally be paid directly to the advertising platforms through client-owned accounts. Your agency should not hold your ad budget.
Looking for experienced paid acquisition support without a large agency retainer?
Whether you're growing a mobile app, subscription product, or lead-generation business, we can help you evaluate the right acquisition approach.
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