A startup marketing agency is a digital marketing agency with a specialized focus on startups. They understand startup culture, have startup work experience, and have worked mainly with startups and small- and medium-sized businesses.
Considering that 90% of startups fail due to wrong marketing strategies, among other reasons, we believe it is essential to work with a marketing agency that understands the startup terrain.
Startups face unique challenges. From the lack of traction of its brand to inadequate funds to stiff competition from more established brands. So, we curated a list of 40 reputable marketing agencies that can help you deliver growth.
Kaya, Sociallyin, SeeResponse, NoGood, Inbound Labs, Kexino, and Keplar Agency are notable startup marketing agencies to consider, depending on your needs and location. Keep reading to learn more.
1. Kaya: Kaya offers paid ads services like Google, Meta and LinkedIn Ads. The team includes skilled marketers working with advanced AI and analytics tools. Kaya's leadership comes with startup experience from Revolut, Uber, MoneyLion and Goldman Sachs. Launched in 2022 and backed by Y Combinator, Kaya has so far;
Its Competitor's Ad Intelligence Tool also automates competitor ads research and delivers insights to drive strategy. Kaya's clientele list includes fast-growing startups like Rippling, Encord, and FlowClub.
2. Sociallyin: Founded in 2011 and based out of Atlanta, US, Sociallyin is a specialist social media agency for startups. Their focus areas are design, videography, writing, and strategy. They combine technology with research to deliver the benefits of social media marketing.
3. GrowthGirls: They are female-led and mostly work with brands run by women. They position themselves as a data-driven agency with a motto that matches that— “The truth is in the numbers.” They offer services like social selling, outreach strategy, online advertising, and inbound marketing. Although primarily a US company, GrowthGirls serves clients in Africa, Europe, the UK, and Singapore. Their client list includes Realiste, Mindvalley, Telus, and Volta.
4. LaunchSquad: LaunchSquad is one of Inc.’s 5,000 fastest-growing companies, and it has projects for companies like Carbob180, Coursera, and iHeart Radio. Based in California, LaunchSquad is a team of creative storytellers helping startups tell their brand stories.
5. Tuff Growth: Tuff Growth offers paid media and video marketing services. They are a growth marketing agency that works with all kinds of businesses, small and large. Their client list includes high-growth start-ups such as Soona and THNKS.
6. SeeResponse: Since it started operations in 2018, SeeResponse has served startups and established companies in IT, SaaS, healthcare, SaaS, and education. They offer services like video production, demand generation, marketing automation, and Software development.
7. Odysseus Arms: Odysseus Arms has worked with notable organizations like Kodak, Microsoft, Facebook, Barefoot Wine & Bubbly. They also managed the OUYA Kickstarter campaign, raising around $8.5 million. Their team is digitally driven and aims to create strong partnerships.
8. Abz Creative Partners: Abz Creative Partners is another women-owned and women-run marketing agency. They are based in North Carolina, US. They help businesses with marketing strategy, communications, branding, and digital marketing.
9. InterTeam: InterTeam marketing is a full-service PPC agency for companies in the SaaS and professional services sector. They also offer lead magnet management, landing page design, and CRM platform integrations. Based in Canada, this startup marketing agency has worked with companies like InTouchLink, Neon Rain, and FrontLobby.
10. Single Grain: Single Grain helps brands grow their online presence. They offer PPC, SEO, and content marketing services. They also offer consulting services for startups and have a podcast where they share marketing insights. Notable clients include Intuit QuickBooks, Winedeals, and Bittrex.
11. Wallaroo Media: Wallaroo Media is an ads specialists marketing agency based in Utah, US. They collaborate with clients to deliver marketing services for high growth, such as SEO, design, and content writing. They have delivered projects for Acorns and Called to Turf.
12. Brolik: The Philadelphia-based agency has worked with companies like Ringstar, Houwzer, World Travel, and Summit Steel. Brolik specializes in branding and video production. They have a small team of 11 that work to deliver full-service marketing for startups.
13. Shift Paradigm: With projects for notable clients like Avnet, Sunnova, Zoetis, and Atlassian, Shift Paradigm is one of the fastest-growing marketing agencies for startups in the US. The Texas-based agency has 200 consultants. They offer growth marketing, inbound marketing, marketing automation, and design services.
14. Kexino: Kexino is a specialized marketing agency based in France. The team consists of marketing and business development specialists helping startups and small businesses. They offer digital services like design, lead generation, branding, etc.
15. Growth Division: Growth Division is a growth marketing agency for startups. They outsource marketing tasks to vetted freelancers, and they are transparent about it. They are focused on scaling seed-stage startups and have worked with a few like Breezy, Oddbox, Addland, and Weavr.
16. GrowthRocks: GrowthRocks is headquartered in London but has a presence in Finland, the US, Greece, and India. They work with early-stage startups and some large enterprises. They specialize in growth hacking, along with other services like AI consulting, SEO strategy, link building, and inbound marketing.
17. CB web designs: CB Web is not just a web design agency, as its name may suggest. They offer marketing, including PPC and branding. They also offer free SEO insights on their website. Their projects include those of notable companies like Doddle, Kobas, and Surrey Estates.
18. Inbound Labs GmbH: Inbound Labs are brand specialists that have partnered with incubators, startups, and nonprofits. This startup marketing agency offers website integrations, PPC, and SEO services. Founded in Germany, the team of about 50 consists of creatives, engineers, and marketing strategists.
19. Kraftblick: Kraftblick was founded in 2014 and is based in Belarus. With a team of around 50 specialists, they offer content marketing, search engine consulting, and paid advertising services.
20. SOHO Creative Group: Based in Germany, SOHO Creative Group is a reputable digital marketing agency with a presence in Switzerland, the UK and the US. They work on branding, UX/UI, and web design projects. Their client list includes Agnitio Capital, Factory Berlin, MGI and the EIT community.
21. Markestic: Markestic is a results and cost-focused marketing agency that claims at least a 30% reduction in advertising costs on average. They are a team of online marketing professionals who focus on the e-commerce niche. They have worked with European startups like Nordics, Trekhunt, and Patika24.
22. Tribe Digital: Based in Exeter, the UK, Tribe Digital is a reputable marketing agency that works with startups and established firms. They combine media, data and technology to help DTC businesses generate more revenue and scale their returns. They have delivered projects for Skio, hotjar, Klaviyo, and ReCharge.
23. Keplar Agency: Based in the Netherlands, Keplar is an award-winning design, strategy, and marketing company. They combine technology and content to create sustained digital success for startups and small businesses. They have served clients in retail, finance, sports, and education with high-impact projects for Betcity, Femmefab, AQTIS, and Bimas.
24. Etymon (Singapore): Launched in 2018 and based in Singapore, Etymon is an SEO and copywriting agency focused on the financial, tech, and B2B industries. They offer website copywriting and technical writing services and have served prominent clients like Huawei, Standard Chartered, DELL, and Panasonic.
25. Winter Egency (Thailand): Winter Egency (W/E) is a Thailand-based digital marketing agency offering marketing services, including PR, AR/VR/360 content, media buying, and social media management. With over 100 staff, they are more suited to larger projects and have worked for Honda, YSL, and FamilyMart. Hakuhodo, Japan’s advertising giant, recently acquired the company in 2019.
26. Creatip: Creatip is a full-service digital agency for startups in South Korea. They have worked with large companies like Budweiser, YouTube, and Banana Republic. They are more suited to bigger projects but can also take on startup marketing projects. Creatip also delivers specialized solutions for organizations in the blockchain industry.
27. DigiSalad: DigiSalad specializes in UX/UI interface design and digital strategy. They also deliver other services, such as mobile app development, SEO, and digital location marketing. They are a full-service digital marketing agency founded in Hong Kong with a focus on the local market.
28. IMS: IMS is a team of growth marketers, CRM architects, and data strategists spread across Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, and China. Founded in 2016 with a team of over 500, they are technology-focused and helping to grow startups.
29. Heydaysss: This startup digital marketing agency focuses on the China and Hong Kong markets. Heydaysss helps businesses with social media strategy and management. They also offer digital advertising, UI/UX design, and video content creation.
30. BDSA: The Business Development Strategic Advisory (BDSA) is a Singaporean creative agency that offers a wide range of digital marketing services. Built mainly for Singapore businesses, they offer brand consultancy, social media marketing, and search engine marketing.
31. Salween Group: They are mainly a B2B content marketing agency helping brands to tell their unique stories. Salween Group offers full services with a focus on the Southeast Asian market. They have worked with notable clients like Kenwood, Lippo, Geotab, Grab, and SG Innovate.
32. Digital Nomads: Digital Nomads is a full-stack startup marketing agency in Hong Kong. They promise a 28% increase in revenue for businesses that use their service. They offer end-to-end online leads generation, online reputation management, PPC, and SEO services.
33. Brew interactive: Brew Interactive has been featured on HubSpot, and its client list includes ActiveSG, SingHealth, Teva, and Toto. Founded in 2009, this Singapore-based digital marketing agency works with fast-growing startups. They specialize in end-to-end lead generation, content marketing, Martech solutions, and conversion optimization.
34. Big Field Digital: Big Field Digital is an award-winning digital agency offering several media buying and digital marketing consulting services in Nigeria. They also offer web design and application development services for startups and small businesses.
35. Digitlab South Africa: Digitlab is a South African startup marketing agency that specializes in e-commerce, email marketing, and media planning services. Their clients include Mondi, TEDx, and RIBCCS.
36. Zedi Africa: Zedi Africa is a top growth company for small and medium businesses and startups in Nigeria. They offer PPC management, content marketing, email marketing, SEO, public relations, and product design. Located in Lagos, they pride themselves on being a "disrupter" that turns startups into growth machines. Notable clients include Fairmall, flance, Spark, and Trakka.
37. Geeklab South Africa: Geeklab is another South Africa-based marketing agency on this list. The agency was founded in 2012 in Cape Town. They are digital growth partners helping businesses to build and establish a strong presence online. They offer SEO and SEM, social media marketing, web development, and graphic design services.
38. Anakle: Anakle is a data-driven, agile, strategic and innovative agency delivering digital marketing services in Nigeria. Although more suited to larger enterprises, Anakle also works with startups. They offer social media management, online reputation management, and manage media campaign management. Their client list includes the British Council, MTN Nigeria, Spotify, and DIAGEO.
39. Indigo Media: Based in Egypt and with offices in the Middle East, Indigo Media is a digital marketing and creative agency for startups. They offer social media management, creative content, and community management and have worked with companies like Range Rover, Asfour Crystal, and Nesquik.
40. 1stContent Digital: 1stContent Digital is a full-stack digital marketing studio founded in South Africa. They focus on entrepreneurs and startups in South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. The agency offers weekly blog writing services, quarterly campaigns, and 24/7 social media management. They rely on automation, targeting, and analytics to deliver successful content marketing, paid media, and SEO marketing services.
Here are key reasons to consider marketing agencies that prioritize startups.
Most founders are caught between choosing marketing agencies that serve startups or traditional marketing agencies.
Traditional agencies are large and usually work with large enterprises. They have the skills and expertise but may not be a good fit for many reasons. For instance, they tend to offer more expensive solutions and prefer long-term commitments. They are not as flexible as startup marketing agencies.
Below is our review of the major differences between traditional marketing agencies and marketing agencies for startups.
Working with an agency can be a bit of a challenge, especially if you’re new to the game. Some of the ways to enjoy a seamless experience are:
1. Clarify your marketing goals: Do you want to improve ad performance, generate leads or increase sales? Communicate these goals to your partner agency to enable them to develop a winning strategy for you.
2. Communicate your budget: Finance may be a sticking point for most startups. Hence, let the agency know what figures you are working with to enable them to plan or quote accordingly.
3. Establish communication channels: Define what channels to communicate, the contact persons, and the timelines for updates and feedback.
4. Provide feedback: When your partner agency delivers work or sends over an update, ensure you respond and provide timely feedback.
These are just the starting points. Read our more detailed guide on what to look for when hiring a marketing agency and how to choose the best startup marketing agency for your business.
Bristle struggled with its paid ads channels for a long time before turning to Kaya for a solution.
The Kaya team delivered by managing their paid ads channels and helping them save time. That way, they avoided time-consuming report pulling.
Here is what Co-founder Brian Maurer has to say about Kaya.
"I’ve been so impressed with the founding team and their velocity in shipping new features and reporting. Getting set-up was a breeze as well. Would highly recommend checking it out!"
Fella sought Kaya's help for better insight into its social ad performance through dashboard presentations. As usual, Kaya delivered far beyond expectations, creating a strong partnership with Fella and delivering fully automated reports and dashboards that covered their entire business.
Dave Lane, Head of Growth, spoke about the feat.
"No matter how challenging the request, the Kaya team always finds a solution."
Running a startup is challenging on its own, and marketing requires expertise that may be too costly or time-consuming for you to handle. A startup marketing agency offers the right solutions. They are faster, more cost-effective and more flexible than traditional marketing agencies.
Working with a specialized startup marketing agency allows you to outsource difficult marketing tasks. That way, you can focus on other critical business operations. As you think of your next steps, consider your business goals, budget, and time to deliver.
© Kaya Technologies Ltd.
