The Bait-and-Switch Sales Tactics in Marketing Agencies (And Why I Left to Do Things Differently)

There’s a dirty little secret in the marketing agency world that no one likes to talk about — especially not the big, polished firms that boast about their “senior talent,” “strategic leadership,” and “full-funnel expertise.”

It’s the bait-and-switch.

Here’s how it works: during the sales process, prospective clients are introduced to the agency’s best and brightest. Senior strategists. Directors. VPs. People with years of experience and a deep understanding of what actually drives performance. Clients walk away feeling confident — these are the experts who will be managing my account.

But once the contract is signed? Those senior folks vanish. The client is handed off to a junior specialist, often with just a year or two of experience — or sometimes no experience at all. The seasoned expert you were sold on is suddenly “over capacity,” and you’re left with someone still learning the basics.

I know this firsthand. I used to be the one brought in for these sales pitches.

At one of my former agency roles, I was a Paid Search Senior Manager, and sales would regularly bring me in to pitch new business. Before the call, they’d say things like:"The client wants to meet their team, so just tell them you’ll be on the account and that you’re excited to work with them. We’ll figure out the actual team later — don’t worry, you won’t be on it."

This was standard. It happened all the time. Clients were being sold on a relationship that was never going to exist.

But one situation in particular has stuck with me.

We landed a major client in the underwear space — a fast-growing DTC brand with huge potential. They came in expecting high-level strategy and expert execution, based on the talent we showed them during the pitch.

But instead of assigning experienced talent, the agency handed the account to a Facebook Ads “specialist” who had just graduated college. This was his first real job, and he had no real experience managing accounts. Zero. He was a great guy and wanted to succeed, but he was thrown into an impossible situation — managing a national brand with big expectations, no mentorship, and no support.

The client was told he was a seasoned expert.

Unsurprisingly, the relationship fell apart within three months.

That failure wasn’t on him. It was on the agency. On leadership. On a business model built around closing deals, not delivering on promises. They wanted to attract big-name clients, but weren’t willing to invest in the senior talent needed to serve them well.

That’s when I knew I had to do things differently.

I launched Slaymaker Marketing to build the agency I wished I had worked for — one grounded in transparency, honesty, and actual performance.

When you work with me, you work with me. I don’t bait-and-switch. I don’t sell relationships I can’t deliver. I believe clients deserve to know exactly who they’re hiring and what they’re getting.

Growth isn’t worth sacrificing your values. And in the long run, it’s not sustainable anyway. Agencies that win by cutting corners tend to lose just as quickly.

If you’ve been burned by the bait-and-switch before, I get it. I’ve seen it. I’ve lived it.

That’s exactly why I left.