Introduction
Running an Amazon brand can feel like a high-stakes dinner party where the host changes the menu every ten minutes, and your guests can get a refund for the napkins being the "wrong shade of white."
Many Amazon brand owners start with the thought, "I can do this by myself," only to catch themselves nights and days buried in the complexities of Seller Central, wrestling hard with inventory prognosis and crossing fingers that their PPC campaign doesn't drain their pockets completely on a broad match bid for "free samples."
Eventually, you will hit the "Expertise Ceiling Momentum," as I like to call it. At this point, you'll recognize that you've transitioned from being an Amazon brand owner to an overworked technician, just one algorithm update away from a breakdown.
So at this point, the question is not whether you need help, but it's whether to choose an In-House Amazon Team vs Agency capable of taking things off your shoulders. I know I have been there...
The Short Answer
If you are an Amazon brand that generates under $20M in revenue, I recommend going with an agency as your best option, and here is why:
- Lower Cost: With agencies, you have a fixed price, rather than having to cover salaries, benefits, recruitment and other tools.
- Faster Results: Agencies are ready to give you results soon, rather than training internal hires and losing a couple of months between when they reach their high potential on the tasks.
- Broader Expertise: Amazon marketing demands a wide range of skills, including PPC, SEO, listing optimization, and account health, all of which are nearly impossible to find in a single individual.
This leads us to the final conclusion that Amazon brands that make $20M or more can benefit from a full-house team because they can justify the investment.
But, for brands that are still not there yet and make anywhere from $500K to $20M, agencies are always a better choice. At Olifant Digital, we frequently see this scenario: Amazon brand owners who try to juggle many things at once eventually realize that it's best to turn to us to see results fast and with proof!
What an In-House Amazon Team Actually Costs
If you think about building an in-house Amazon team, the real costs are often higher than you would expect initially.
Here are all the things you have to consider upfront:
Salary and hiring costs
When it comes to salary, you’re not just paying for the paychecks but also for the taxes, benefits, and recruiting.
And, as I said, one person can’t handle it all, so you need to create a team that understands PPC, SEO, listing optimization, catalog management, content, account health, etc., which brings you to multiplied costs very quickly.
Ramp-up time and opportunity cost
An average hiring process takes 4-8 weeks.
Onboarding takes another 4-8 weeks, and ensuring your employee is up to speed with your catalog, account history, and ad campaign structure can take another 4-8 weeks, which is already too much time spent training your new hire to operate at full effectiveness.
That time spent on training can seriously affect your Amazon revenue and can lead competitors way ahead of you.
If you waste time and resources on training, it could lead to a decline in your organic rankings, wasteful ad spend, or underperformance in your campaigns. Such scenarios can’t happen if you go with an agency like Olifant Digital.
Agencies are operational from week one, and they will provide rapid results as they know what works and what doesn’t. They have managed accounts before and have results to pride themselves on, and one of the most important things is that you don’t have to worry about someone leaving and having to start the process all over again.
The turnover problem
Experienced Marketers are in high demand. Data shows that an average PPC marketer stays in one company for around 12 to 24 months, which means that after this period, you will have to start the cycle again.
This will make you lose valuable knowledge about your account, such as top-performing keywords and bid strategies. Not to mention, you will have to spend funds again for recruitment and training, and again, you can face losing funds on Amazon all because of this.
Overall, the solution isn’t simply choosing an In-House Amazon Team vs Agency, (because let’s be realistic, agencies also face turnover issues), especially those with a high staff rotation.
The key is to find the right agency with genuine account continuity, where your brand lives in a system with a senior team and not with a person who might leave after some time.
Olifant, as an agency, has a 98% client retention rate, and this result is all based on the accounts being managed by experienced professionals instead of junior hires.
What an Amazon Agency Actually Costs
Retainer structure and what it covers
If you’re trying to find out which option is best for your business model, here is what I want you to focus on:
Most agencies work with monthly fees, and they can vary depending on how large your catalog is, how much money you spend on ads, and how much support you need on a regular basis.
If you have a smaller portfolio, you typically get a smaller team that will handle the core parts of your Amazon account, whereas for larger portfolios you will get a full team. This team would be responsible for writing your listings, making improvements on these, getting full account monitoring, optimization and more.
Even if you are managing a smaller portfolio, going with an agency would be your best move, as they will cover more than a single In-House hire can possibly manage alone.
For example, Olifant Digital’s Amazon PPC management starts at $2,000 per month, and you will get a senior-level service for your account. Your account will be monitored by Amazon specialists instead of just one employee.
What you get for the money
The moment you start working with an agency, you should know that your monthly fee will cover all the costs that are essential for your portfolio to grow.
In these costs you have included PPC (pay-per-click) optimizations, keyword research, product launch support, and SEO (search engine optimization) account monitoring, and the actual value extends beyond these tasks.
An experienced agency already knows all the tactics that work, and they will help you avoid costly trial and error, which you can do if you don’t work with one. (Many people have made the same mistake, and this has cost them tons of money, and stress, which can be avoided.)
With an agency like Olifant Digital, you get something that others don’t have, and that’s client credibility.
Along with client work, Olifant runs a seven-figure brand, and they make the same decisions that would be considered for your own brand.
The hidden cost of the wrong agency
Plenty of agencies will say they can do a lot for your portfolio, but not many can actually do it, and this is why it’s important to choose the right one that will not burn your savings and your credibility.
Frankly, choosing the wrong agency is worse than not having one, since the real cost is your lost time, wasted ad spend, and months of going nowhere and trying to recover your account.
And that’s why client retention is more important than anything.
At Olifant Digital, there is a 98% client retention rate, and to show you that we do have the expertise, we have a 60-day money-back guarantee. Your trust is what matters the most, so you know that your account is in safe hands.
The Honest Trade-Offs
Both In-House Team vs Agency have their own perks, depending on the situation you’re in, so let’s look at these more closely, so you know what you’re up against.
Where In-house Wins
An In-House team makes sense for brands that generate $20M or more on Amazon, where the channel drives the majority of revenue and a full team is justified.
In-house is also the best option for companies that have specialized or regulated products that are hard to hand off or for those who want to oversee every operation on their account.
Where an Agency Wins
The agency model is best for brands that earn anywhere from $500K to $20M, where one employee cannot cover all the aspects, including the health of the account, PPC, SEO, writing and editing, etc.
Agencies are also a better option because they help teams that understand cross-channel strategy and not just the Amazon PPC management.
They are for brands that have tried In-House management, only to watch their performance plateau—not from the lack of effort, but from the lack of expertise that a single person cannot break through.
The Decision Framework: Which Option Fits Your Stage?
This could be a very easy decision if you already know where your brand sits today and what the demands are for your products on Amazon.
- Under $500K in annual Amazon revenue: If you’re in this position right now, it’s best to go with an In-House specialist, which is a freelancer who works directly for your company rather than as an external consultant. That’s because your channel is not yet powerful and complex enough to acquire a full agency retainer, but it’s essential for building the basis for whichever path you choose next.
- 500K to 3M: At this point, you’re ready to start working with an agency. This will be both cost-effective, and you will learn the benefits of having an expert management team like Olifant Digital to help you grow your channel and get higher revenue.
- 3M to 20M: An agency is still the right choice for this stage too, as you are probably still not ready to build your internal team. An agency like Olifant, which has a senior internal lead managing strategy, can work really well.
- Over $20M: In-House becomes the better option, as you can now afford to create an internal department, which will give you control at a scale where the investment is justified.
Besides the obvious statement, there is another factor to consider.
If you decide to go with an In-House Team and your organic ranks slip, or your growth hits an unexpected turn, you will have to turn to a high-expertise agency that has the knowledge and hands-on execution that is needed to break you out from this situation and accelerate growth.
Olifant Digital already works with such brands at every stage facing similar challenges, helping them break through the growth ceilings and get their Amazon performance back on track.
Side-by-Side Comparison
In this Side-by-side comparison, take a look at how the In-House Amazon Team vs Agency options compare and contrast, based on the dimensions which matter the most for Amazon brands that are focused on profitable growth.
What to Look for in an Amazon Agency (If You Go That Route)
If you decide that an agency is the right way to go, you might want to check more than the sales pitch. Use questions that will separate experts from salespeople, and this is when you will see which agencies clearly meet the bar.
Real agencies have results which are transparent. Strong partners should be able to easily present clear case studies with actual revenue growth, and they should be able to explain metrics like TACoS that reflect business performance, not just ad efficiency.
The best way to determine if the agency is right for you is by scheduling a business call with the person that will be in charge of your account and getting the full picture. Agencies like Olifant Digital provide exactly that, and that’s why we stand out from the rest.
With Olifant, you have hands-on execution, experienced account management and full-funnel marketing support all in one place.
What an agency typically should offer:
- Documented studies with real numbers and timelines
- Frequent campaign optimizations (not just check-ins from time to time)
- Business reports which include TACos and profitability metrics
- Support that is beyond Amazon, including paid traffic and retention channels
Olifant Digital Case Studies
Many businesses attempt In-House management at first, or they work with multiple agencies, only to end up working with us later.
Lots of Amazon marketers that come to work with us have accounts that are poorly structured, inefficient, or simply stuck in one place, only to see visible improvements and rebuilt fundamentals from the first 60 days.
Here are some of our clients that have found traction once they partnered with us:
Elite Jumps - 124% Revenue Growth in 3 Months After Multiple Agencies Failed
Before partnering with us, Elite Jumps had already tried several agencies and in-house managers that failed to provide the right structure that was needed on their account.
They lacked structure, their ad spend was inefficient, and PPC efforts were not supporting organic growth. After we stepped in, we rebuilt the complete campaign structure, and after careful testing, we improved their listing and focused ad spend on high-intent keywords only.
Within 3 months, this brand achieved 124% revenue growth, a 51% increase in conversion rate, and lower ACoS while scaling the sales, making the account go from stagnant to profitable.
MatchaBar - $114K Monthly Revenue Added
MatchaBar had also a similar case scenario. After working with many different agencies over the years, their performance was inconsistent, and their campaigns lacked direction.
When MatchaBar started working with us, we introduced a structured PPC framework, which improved visibility and control and allowed the team to scale profitable keywords while, at the same time, reducing the wasted spend.
The final result was an additional $114,305 in monthly revenue, improved ACoS and TACoS, and higher average order value.
Beauty by Earth - 27% Revenue Growth in 30 Days
While Beauty by Earth was already an established brand with eight figures, their Amazon management was still managed internally. As their catalog expanded, the workload shifted and complexity increased, which made it hard to maintain the overall performance.
After they started working with Olifant Digital, they were able to experience a 27% revenue increase in only 30 days, along with many other perks such as more efficient ad spend and successful launches on new products.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to hire an in-house Amazon manager?
Hiring an In-House Amazon manager, as I stated before, is a costly investment because not only will you be paying for salary, but also for benefits, taxes, and software tools, which can eventually lead up to anywhere between $120K and $200K per year for a more experienced hire.
How do I know if an Amazon agency is doing a good job?
There are a couple of things that matter the most when it comes to an agency doing a good job, like Olifant Digital does.
Such trends include:
- TACoS trending down while your revenue grows (this means your business is not so much dependent on paid advertising over time).
- Another thing is target keyword improvement in a window of 60 to 90 days.
- Your conversion rate should also be moving in the right direction at the listing level and not just at the campaign level.
- Last but not least, you should receive weekly reports about the metrics, and the best agencies will also send daily optimizations visible with ACoS, ad revenue, and organic context.
Does Olifant Digital offer a guarantee?
Yes! To show you that we care for our clients, we offer a 60-day money-back guarantee. The reason behind this is if you see that our partnership is not delivering value in these 60 days, you don’t have to make a long-term commitment.
The following guarantee exists to reassure brand owners who have had disappointing experiences with other agencies in the past.
So, if you are still doubting which option from In-House Amazon Team vs Agency is best to go with, and you want to take a peek at how senior management on Amazon looks on a day-to-day basis, book a free call with Olifant Digital.
We will review your account and get back to you with a detailed analysis on where the gap is, without any obligation.
