How to Choose the Right CPG Marketing Agency in 2026

How to Choose the Right CPG Marketing Agency in 2026

Finding the right CPG marketing agency has never been more consequential — or more confusing. The landscape has fractured. Retail media networks are multiplying. Shopper behavior shifts quarterly. And the gap between agencies that understand consumer packaged goods and those that simply list it on their capabilities page has widened into a canyon.

If you're a brand leader evaluating agencies right now, you're likely sorting through a mix of holding-company generalists, niche digital shops, and legacy promotion houses — all claiming CPG fluency. This guide cuts through the noise. We'll walk through the seven criteria that actually matter in CPG agency selection, the red flags that should send you running, and a practical evaluation framework you can use in your next review.

No fluff. No "top 10 agencies" listicle. Just a clear-eyed look at how to choose a CPG marketing agency that can move your business forward.

Why Your Agency Choice Matters More in 2026

A decade ago, picking an agency was largely about creative firepower and media buying leverage. Today, the stakes are different.

Retail media is now a core marketing channel. Walmart Connect, Roundel, Kroger Precision Marketing, and Amazon Ads aren't experimental line items anymore — they're where purchase decisions happen. Your agency needs to operate fluently inside these ecosystems, not treat them as an afterthought bolted onto a digital media plan.

Challenger brands are competing differently. If you're a mid-market food and beverage brand going up against billion-dollar incumbents, you can't afford an agency that defaults to big-brand playbooks. You need partners who know how to punch above weight class — stretching budgets, moving fast, and finding leverage in places the big guys overlook.

Integration isn't optional. The days of hiring one agency for social, another for shopper, and a third for promotions are over. Fragmented agency rosters create fragmented brand experiences. The best CPG marketing agency for your brand is one that connects the dots — from brand strategy through digital execution to in-store activation — without dropping context at every handoff.

The wrong agency costs you more than fees. It costs you time, momentum, and shelf space you may not get back.

7 Criteria for CPG Agency Selection

1. Deep Industry Expertise (Not Just a CPG Client or Two)

This is the single most important filter, and it's where most agency searches go wrong.

Many agencies have worked with CPG brands. Far fewer have built their entire operation around the category. The difference shows up in a hundred small ways: how they brief creative, how they structure media plans around purchase cycles, whether they instinctively think in terms of household penetration and velocities or just impressions and clicks.

What to ask:

• What percentage of your client base is CPG?
• Can you walk me through a recent campaign for a brand in my specific subcategory?
• How do you stay current on retailer requirements and compliance?

A true food and beverage marketing agency — one that lives in the category daily — will answer these questions with specifics, not generalities.

2. A Defined Methodology (Not Just "We're Strategic")

Every agency says they're strategic. Press harder. What you're looking for is a repeatable, documented process for how they approach brand challenges — not a deck of buzzwords.

A strong methodology answers questions like:

• How do you identify the consumer insight that drives the campaign?
• What's your process for prioritizing channels?
• How do you connect upper-funnel brand work to lower-funnel retail activation?

Agencies with a real methodology can show you the framework. They can explain how it was developed, where it's been tested, and what it produces. If the answer is vague — "we customize everything" without any structural backbone — that's not flexibility, it's a lack of rigor.

At Hangar12, we built our ConsumerFirst® methodology for exactly this reason: to ensure every engagement starts with the consumer, not the tactic. It gives our clients a shared language and a repeatable path from insight to activation. Not every agency needs our methodology, but every agency you hire should have a methodology you can see, touch, and evaluate.

3. Team Structure and Access

Here's a question that will save you months of frustration: Who will actually do the work?

In large agencies, senior talent pitches the business, then hands it to junior staff. In some boutiques, you get the founder's attention for three weeks, then you're deprioritized when a shinier client arrives.

What you want is a clear, stable team with direct access to senior thinkers. Ask:

• Who is on my day-to-day team, and what's their experience level?
• What's your average client tenure? (High turnover = institutional knowledge walking out the door)
• How do you handle capacity — do you staff up with freelancers, or is it a dedicated team?

Agencies that have operated as distributed teams for years — not just since 2020 — tend to have better systems for accountability and communication. They've had to build those muscles deliberately rather than relying on office proximity.

4. Retail Media Capabilities

This is the criterion that separates modern CPG agencies from legacy ones.

Retail media now commands a significant and growing share of CPG marketing budgets. If your agency can't plan, execute, and optimize across Walmart Connect, Roundel (Target), Kroger Precision Marketing, Instacart Ads, and Amazon, you're leaving performance on the table.

What to evaluate:

• Do they have certified practitioners or direct platform relationships?
• Can they show you retail media case studies with measurable ROAS?
• How do they integrate retail media with your broader digital and social strategy?
• Do they understand retailer-specific co-op and trade fund mechanics?

This is particularly critical for food and beverage brands, where the path to purchase runs directly through retailer ecosystems. A CPG marketing agency that treats retail media as a separate silo — or outsources it entirely — isn't equipped for where the industry is heading.

5. Track Record and Proof of Impact

Testimonials and logos are easy. Results are harder.

Push beyond the case study highlight reel and ask for specifics:

• What was the business challenge, what did you do, and what happened?
• Can you share results that tie to business outcomes — sales lift, market share gain, household penetration — not just media metrics?
• Are any of your clients willing to serve as references?

Pay special attention to brands similar to yours in size and category. An agency that's brilliant for a $2B snack brand may not have the scrappiness or budget discipline a $50M challenger needs. The best CPG marketing agency for you is one that's proven it can operate at your scale and in your competitive context.

6. Cultural Fit and Working Style

This one gets overlooked in formal agency reviews, but it matters enormously in practice.

You're going to be in the trenches with this team — on calls, in shared documents, debating creative, troubleshooting retailer issues. If the working styles don't mesh, even a technically excellent agency becomes a drain.

Signals to watch for:

• How responsive are they during the pitch process? (That's them on their best behavior.)
• Do they challenge your thinking, or just agree with everything?
• Is there a clear escalation path when things go wrong?
• How do they handle feedback — defensively or constructively?

Also consider values alignment. Some brands care about sustainability commitments, DEI practices, or community involvement. If those matter to your company, ask. A strong cultural fit compounds over time — every interaction is a little smoother, a little faster, a little more productive.

7. Pricing Transparency

Agencies price in many ways: retainers, project fees, performance-based, hybrid models. None of these is inherently better or worse. What matters is transparency.

You should be able to understand:

• What am I paying for, specifically?
• What's included in the retainer vs. billed as out-of-scope?
• How are media commissions handled?
• What happens if scope changes mid-engagement?

Beware of agencies that are vague about fees or bury margins in media costs. The CPG world runs on tight margins — your agency should respect that reality and be straightforward about how they make money.

Red Flags to Watch For

Over 50 years of working with CPG brands, we've seen patterns. Here are the warning signs that should make you pause:

🚩 They can't name your retailers' media platforms. If an agency stumbles when you mention Roundel or Kroger Precision Marketing, they're not living in the CPG world daily. Move on.

🚩 Their case studies are all awareness metrics. Impressions, reach, and engagement have their place, but a CPG agency should be able to connect the dots to sales, velocities, and share. If they can't, they're likely not thinking commercially.

🚩 The pitch team disappears after signing. Ask directly: will the people in this room be the people on my account? Get names. Get commitments.

🚩 They don't ask about your retail strategy. An agency that jumps straight to digital creative without understanding your distribution, your key accounts, and your trade strategy doesn't understand how CPG works.

🚩 No process documentation. If they can't show you a written methodology, onboarding plan, or reporting framework, they're winging it. That's fine for a freelancer. It's not fine for your brand partner.

🚩 One-size-fits-all proposals. If the proposal you receive feels templated — if it could have been written for any brand in any category — the agency isn't doing the work to understand your specific challenges.

Your CPG Agency Evaluation Checklist

Use this during your review process. Rate each agency on a 1-5 scale for every criterion, then compare totals. It won't make the decision for you, but it will make the decision clearer.

Scoring guide:

• 30-35: Strong contender. Move to chemistry meetings and reference checks.
• 22-29: Potential, but dig deeper on weak areas before proceeding.
• Below 22: Likely not the right fit. Keep looking.

Bonus questions worth asking every finalist:

1. What would you do differently than our current agency in the first 90 days?
2. What's a CPG campaign you ran that didn't work, and what did you learn?
3. How do you handle it when a client disagrees with your recommendation?

The answers to these tell you more about an agency than any capability deck ever will.

Making the Right Choice

Choosing a CPG marketing agency is one of the highest-leverage decisions a brand leader makes. The right partner accelerates growth, simplifies execution, and brings clarity to an increasingly complex landscape. The wrong one burns budget and — worse — burns time.

The criteria above aren't theoretical. They're the product of what we've observed over five decades of working exclusively with CPG brands — particularly food and beverage challengers who need every dollar to work harder.

If you're in the middle of an agency review, use the checklist. Pressure-test the claims. Talk to references. And prioritize agencies that have built their entire operation around CPG — not ones that dabble in it between automotive campaigns and fintech projects.

We built Hangar12 around a single conviction: that the best marketing starts with the consumer, not the channel. Our ConsumerFirst® approach, our services — from brand strategy and digital media to retail media and consumer promotions — and our team are all oriented around CPG brands that want to grow faster and smarter.

If that sounds like the kind of partner you're looking for, let's have a conversation.

No pitch. No pressure. Just a straightforward discussion about what you're trying to accomplish and whether we're the right fit.

Hangar12 is a 3rd-generation, family-owned CPG marketing agency specializing in food and beverage brands. A Google Partner and Top 100 Promotion Agency, we've been helping challenger brands compete — and win — for over 50 years. Explore our work →