Marketing agencies seem fancy, but most of the time, it’s just a bunch of people juggling emails, fixing problems, and trying to make things look good. Here’s a simple breakdown of what actually happens behind the scenes.
Shirin Niasati
Author
Shirin Niasati is a Product Owner and Website Developer at Persisca Technologies, specializing in digital solutions.
Morning: Waking Up the Chaos
Most marketing agency people start their day drowning in emails. Clients have questions. Bosses have new ideas. Something on social media probably went wrong overnight. Someone’s ad budget may have vanished into thin air.
First thing in the morning, the team tries to sort through all of this without losing their minds. Meetings start early, and no one really knows what’s going on until they drink their coffee.
A typical morning at a marketing agency looks like this:
- Emails, emails, and more emails – A client wants a last-minute change. Another one is upset about a social media comment. Someone's website isn't loading.
- Meetings that could have been emails – Everyone gathers to talk about projects, even though half the team is still waking up.
- Fixing mistakes from yesterday – Maybe an ad was running with a typo. Maybe an Instagram post offended someone. There’s always something that needs fixing.
These meetings are usually full of quick updates. Someone from the ad team might say, "The Facebook ads are underperforming," and the boss will ask, "Why?" No one really has an answer, but they promise to "look into it." Meanwhile, the social media team is frantically trying to post content that was supposed to go up an hour ago.
Some people work better in the mornings, while others are basically zombies until noon. The coffee machine becomes the most important thing in the office.
Mid-Morning: Actually Doing Some Work
- Writers are busy thinking of clever words for ads, blog posts, or social media. Some of them stare at a blank screen for an hour.
- Designers are making graphics, fixing colors, and moving things around until they look right.
- Ad managers are checking if the ads are actually bringing in customers or just burning money.
- SEO people are thinking about Google’s weird rules and trying to make websites show up higher in searches.
There’s also a lot of back-and-forth between teams. A designer might say, “Hey, this ad needs better words,” and the writer will say, “Well, the client already approved it.” Then they both roll their eyes and move on.
A lot of this time is also spent waiting for approvals. Nothing can go out to the world without someone (usually a client) giving the green light. The problem? Clients love to take their time but also want things done yesterday.
Lunch: A Short Break (If You’re Lucky)
Some people in the agency take a real lunch break. Others eat at their desk while pretending to work. The unlucky ones are on a call with a client who just had a "brilliant idea" that changes everything.
Marketing people love coffee, so most of them grab another cup around this time. The ones who don’t drink coffee? They probably work in HR.
Lunch is also when people gossip about the latest industry trends, client drama, or that one coworker who always disappears when there’s actual work to do.
Afternoon: Things Start Breaking
Afternoons are when things get interesting. The CEO suddenly wants a new campaign idea. A client calls, asking why they aren’t getting more sales even though they approved everything two weeks ago.
Some common problems that pop up:
- A website goes down right before a big promotion.
- A client hates the new ad even though they picked the design themselves.
- Someone forgot to schedule social media posts, and now the calendar is empty.
- The paid ad team realizes half the budget went to people who were never going to buy anything.
This is when the real problem-solving happens. People scramble, fix things, and try to sound professional when talking to clients.
One of the biggest afternoon struggles? Last-minute changes. Clients love them. Maybe they suddenly hate the color blue in their ad. Maybe they want a completely different slogan. Maybe they saw something another company did and now want to copy it.
Meanwhile, the team has to explain why some things take time. Clients think everything can be done in five minutes, but in reality, changing one thing can mess up an entire project.
Late Afternoon: Rushing to Meet Deadlines
As the day winds down, things get intense. Everyone rushes to finish tasks so they don’t have to deal with them tomorrow.
- The writing team finalizes blog posts, emails, or social media captions.
- Designers tweak the last details of an ad before it goes live.
- Ad managers adjust budgets and make last-minute changes.
- Someone sends an email with "URGENT" in the subject line, even though it’s not really urgent.
By this point, everyone is tired, but there’s still one last push to get things done.
For many, this is also the time when they realize they forgot to eat lunch. The vending machine becomes the hero of the day.
The Never-Ending Client Requests
One thing people don’t realize about marketing agencies? Clients always have requests—always.
- "Can you make the logo bigger?"
- "Can we change the entire design before launch?"
- "Why isn’t my business going viral yet?"
- "I saw this cool thing on TikTok, can we do that too?"
Clients expect agencies to work magic. Sometimes, the agency pulls off miracles. Other times, they just politely explain why not everything can happen overnight.
End of the Day: Wrapping Up (Or Not)
Some people leave on time. Others stay late fixing things. There’s usually one person who says, “I’ll just finish this quickly,” and ends up staying an extra hour.
Before heading out, people check their emails one last time. Some regret it immediately when they see another client request. Others just shut their laptops and hope nothing explodes overnight.
The marketing world never really sleeps. Even after work, some people are still checking ad performance, answering messages, or fixing things that broke after they left.
What People Think vs. What Really Happens
People think marketing agencies are all about fun ideas, creative work, and viral campaigns. While that’s part of it, the reality is a lot of deadlines, stress, and endless emails.
What people think marketing is like:
- Brainstorming fun ideas all day
- Working with cool brands
- Making things go viral
What marketing is actually like:
- Explaining to a client why their idea won’t work
- Fixing things that weren’t broken yesterday
- Chasing down approvals
Still, marketing agencies somehow make it work. They deal with chaos, fix problems, and help businesses grow. And at the end of the day, when a campaign actually works, it makes all the stress (kind of) worth it.