Most small and mid-tier digital agencies in India survive by re-selling pay-per-click (PPC) and related execution services rather than offering strategy, productized marketing, or measurable business outcomes. That reseller model is inexpensive to run, quick to sell, and easy to scale but it commoditizes the service, traps clients in transactional relationships, and leaves real growth to a minority of firms that invest in strategy, data, and outcomes. When you search for “digital marketing agency” in any Indian city you get long lists of Google Ads specialists, white-label PPC vendors, and small shops promising “growth” at low hourly rates. There’s a reason: running Google Ads campaigns is a repeatable service you can outsource cheaply, productize in a month, and resell with healthy margins if you scale volume. White-label PPC and reseller models have become a major supply channel for agencies worldwide India included. That means many agencies are effectively middlemen: they source execution (often white label), package it in client-facing dashboards, and concentrate sales and account management on top of the execution team.

This pattern explains why the pleasing number “90%” rings true to so many founders and clients: the majority of visible agencies are built to sell execution (ads management) rather than to create intellectual property or sustained outcomes. That exact number is rhetorical but the structural reality is clear from industry listings, the abundance of white-label vendors, and commentary on agency commoditization.

Why the reseller model exploded in India

Several forces combined to make reselling PPC the default route for many agencies:

Low barrier to entry. You can learn Google Ads basics in weeks, set up a landing page and a billing flow, and start taking client money. Platforms and templates reduce technical friction.

Predictable short-term revenue. Ads fees, management retainers, and percentage-of-spend models bring predictable cash flow. For a small team this is survival revenue.

Outsourceable execution. White-label PPC vendors and offshore specialists run the campaigns; the agency provides client contact, billing, and reporting. That model scales fast. 

Demand from clients for immediate ROI. Many Indian SMBs prioritize fast lead generation and measurable ad spend performance over brand building or product strategies. That encourages agencies to sell what clients ask for: ad campaigns.

Commoditization pressure. As many players offer near-identical services, agencies race to the bottom on price and rely on volume or bundles to survive. Thoughtful differentiation costs time and money luxuries small shops rarely have.

Effects of commoditization 

Commoditization causes predictable harms:

• Clients get tactical, not strategic, work. Ads are run, budgets are spent, but there’s often no cross-channel strategy, funnel design, or customer lifetime value thinking.
  
  
• Opaque reporting. Many agencies publish vanity metrics (impressions, clicks) instead of business metrics (cost per acquisition, revenue per lead).
  
  
• Fragile accounts. If the agency relies on a white-label vendor, your account could be one operational issue away from poor performance or even fraud. Recent news shows that Google Ads accounts can be hijacked or misused, creating massive unauthorized spend and reputational harm.
  
  
• Agency burnout and margin squeeze. When everyone sells the same thing, margins fall; agencies either chase volume (bad for quality) or fold. Research and industry reports show agencies face pressure on margins and growth without strategic differentiation. 

The four economic mechanics that make agencies resell

Sales-first founding. Many agencies started because a founder could sell. Sales brings cash faster than product development, so they keep selling execution to feed payroll.

Client buying habits. SMB buyers often want “ads that work” now. They rarely ask about retention funnels or long-term CAC curves.
Operational leverage. Reselling execution reduces hiring needs (you don’t need in-house media buyers or strategists), so overhead stays low.
Platform incentives. Certification badges and partner programs (e.g., Google Partner) further normalize ads-as-core-offering; clients see the badge, assume competence, and buy the service. But badges don’t equal strategy.

Evidence from the market (examples and signals)

• White-label directories and lists. Multiple directories and industry lists highlight large numbers of white-label PPC providers and agencies marketing themselves as Google Ads specialists. That supply density is a proxy for how many agencies rely on PPC as a core product.
  
  
• Industry commentary. Thought leaders call commoditization the industry’s biggest threat, not AI the insight being that identical services destroy pricing power and client trust.
  
  
• Agency financial stress. Reports and councils note declining margins and the need for agencies to move from execution to productized offerings or advisory to survive.
  
  
• Real incidents. The May -June 2025 Google Ads fraud case reported in Indian press (a company incurred crores in unauthorised spend) shows the operational risk when ad accounts are not tightly controlled. That risk disproportionately affects agencies which outsource execution without transparent controls.

What the 10% do differently 

The minority of agencies that aren’t mere resellers tend to share these traits:

• Outcome focus: They sell revenue, not clicks. Pricing models link to revenue or qualified leads (e.g., CPA, revenue share, or hybrid retainers).
  
  
• Cross-channel skillset: They design owned assets, product landing pages, CRM flows, email sequence not just ads.
  
  
• Proprietary process or IP: Proprietary playbooks, diagnostic frameworks, or tooling that others can’t copy overnight.
  
  
• Evidence and transparency: Real case studies with raw metrics, client references you can call, and CONCRETE before-and-after results.
  
  
• Security & ownership standards: They insist on client billing ownership of ad accounts, 2-factor access, and clear data governance.
  
  
• Consultative sales: They qualify leads, push back on unrealistic targets, and set measurable KPIs tied to business impact.

How to spot the 10%

If you’re hiring an agency, use this checklist. If the agency fails more than one item, they’re likely a reseller or not strategic.

1. Can you see raw results? Ask for anonymized exports not a PDF slide showing spend, conversions, CPA, and revenue. Real agencies give data.
   
   
2. Who owns the ad account and billing? If the agency bills through its own account and you don’t have admin access, red flag. Real partners insist on client ownership.
   
   
3. What’s the strategy beyond ads? Ask: “How will you improve landing page conversion and LTV?” If they only describe keywords and bid strategies, they’re tactical.
   
   
4. References and a call with a live client. Don’t accept curated testimonials only. Ask to speak with a recent client and verify claims.
   
   
5. Do they do audits on your whole funnel? A quality agency audits website UX, analytics, CRM hygiene, and post-click experience not just the ad account. 
6. Are report metrics tied to business outcomes? If they report clicks and impressions without linking to revenue or LTV, insist on a change.
   
   
7. Do they use white-label vendors? Ask, “Which parts of work are executed by your team vs external partners?” Transparency here matters.
   
   
8. Do they commit to security practices? Two-factor authentication, audit logs, and account ownership clauses should be standard.

Signs that denote reselling

• Cookie-cutter proposals: Same plan for every client, worded with buzzwords and no diagnostics.
  
  
• No industry-specific case studies: They claim “we do everything” but can’t show examples in your vertical.
  
  
• Opaque pricing: Percent of spend models with hidden fees or bundled excuses.
  
  
• No testing roadmap: Real media work is iterative; if there’s no A/B plan, results will be one-off.
  
  
• Mostly presentation slides, no data exports: Slides look shiny; data is absent.

What clients should demand

1. Account ownership clause. Client owns ad accounts and data.
   
   
2. Monthly KPI scorecard tied to business metrics. CPA, cost per lead-to-sale, revenue per campaign.
   
   
3. Access to raw data. CSV or Sheets exports monthly.
   
   
4. Security clause. 2FA, change logs, and immediate notification of suspicious activity.
   
   
5. Clear escalation path. A named senior contact and remediation SLA if KPIs miss targets.
   
   
6. Test budget & roadmap. An explicit plan for experiments with estimated timeline and success criteria.

These clauses flip the relationship to partnership instead of a service-and-billing mechanic.

How agencies can avoid reselling

If you run an agency and want to move up the value chain, here are practical steps:

• Productize a repeatable capability that goes beyond tactical execution (e.g., a sales enablement funnel, onboarding playbook, or LTV optimisation service).
  
  
• Charge for strategy and outcomes, not just hours. Hybrid retainers + performance kicker works well.
  
  
• Invest in a small, cross-functional team (designer, CRO specialist, analyst) and own the post-click funnel.
  
  
• Build documented case studies with raw numbers and permission to show them. That becomes a moat.
  
  
• Adopt enterprise-grade controls (account ownership, security policies) to win bigger clients.
  
  
• Stop pretending scale = quality. Scale comes from repeatable, measurable playbooks not from reselling cheap execution. Industry thought pieces and reports show commoditization hurts margins and long-term growth; differentiation pays. 

Is being a reseller wrong?

No. White-labeling is a valid business model; it helps smaller agencies offer more services and helps the white-label provider specialise. Problems appear when an agency markets itself as a strategic partner but only delivers resold execution. The ethical line is drawn where transparency ends. Be honest with your clients about what you do and what you don’t. That honesty is rare and valuable.

Making use of this knowledge

• If you are an SMB buyer: don’t confuse activity with impact. Ask for numbers, ownership, and a roadmap.
  
  
• If you are an agency: decide whether you want to be a high-volume reseller or a boutique partner that charges a premium for outcomes; both are valid, but pick one and align your operations to it.
  
  
• If you are an investor or enterprise buyer: expect to pay for partnership. Commoditised services are cheap now and expensive later.

Commoditization is a market signal: it tells you there’s money in the middle, not in craft. The smart move is to either buy at the middle (if you only need execution) or invest in the minority that will build a real growth engine for your business. 

FAQs

1. Is every small agency a reseller?
   No, many small agencies do deep strategic work for niche clients. But many smaller shops rely on reselling PPC because it’s fast revenue. Use the checklist above to tell them apart.
   
   
2. If an agency uses a white-label provider, is that automatically bad?
   No. White-labeling can be efficient. It’s a red flag when the agency hides it or refuses to give you direct access to data and accounts. Transparency is the test.
   
   
3. Should I always own the ad account?
   Yes. Client ownership of ad accounts, billing, and data is best practice. It protects you from vendor churn, fraud, and data lock-in. Request clear clauses in the contract.
   
   
4. What pricing model is best: percent-of-spend, retainer, or performance?
   There’s no universal best. Percent-of-spend is simple but can misalign incentives. Retainers are stable. Performance/CPA models align incentives but are harder to structure. Good hybrid contracts combine a base retainer with performance bonuses tied to clear KPIs
   
   
5. How long before I can tell an agency is delivering real value?
   Run a 3-month pilot with clear KPIs (lead quality, CPA, revenue per lead). If after 3 months you see no roadmap, no raw data, and no funnel improvements, they’re likely resellers. Demand a post-pilot plan tied to outcomes
   
   
   Source: https://www.tumblr.com/parker-123/794477937935204352/why-90-of-indian-digital-marketing-agencies-are?source=share