How do agencies structure their pricing?

"How do agencies structure their pricing?" A timeless question, usually asked right after, "Can you give me a ballpark?"

Pricing in agency land can feel mysterious from the outside. Different agencies approach it differently, often with different models, different jargon and wildly different price points. So let's demystify it.

Agencies price for clarity, not confusion

Good pricing isn't smoke and mirrors. It's a reflection of process, people and outcomes. Behind every quote is a set of decisions about how long something will take, who needs to be involved and what the tangible deliverables will be.

Discovery is where pricing becomes real

Discovery helps us understand how many meetings will be required, how many stakeholders need to be involved, the complexity of the problem you're trying to solve, and the range of outputs. Only once we know this can we move from shaping the work to pricing the work.

From process to line items

Each stage of Troopwork® comes with clear outcomes and deliverables. These become the line items in your proposal: a brand audit report, creative territories, brand identity routes, website wireframes, UI design, copywriting, campaign asset packs, defined rounds of amends and the complete delivery of all agreed files.

The payment structure

Our standard project structure is 50% on engagement, 25% halfway through or at an agreed milestone, and 25% on completion. It's clean, predictable and ensures both sides stay aligned as the work progresses.

What about retainers?

Retainers allow for predictable monthly costs, priority access, flexed workloads and long-term consistency across brand and communications. We offer packages, but we're also flexible — every retainer is shaped around the scale of your ambitions, your internal capacity and your budget.

Yes, we talk openly about budgets

Budget discussions aren't awkward for us. They're practical, transparent and often the quickest route to the right solution. Sometimes the best question isn't, "How do you price?" — it's actually, "What's your budget?"