Best Advertising Agency Software of 2026

What is Advertising Agency Software?

Advertising agency software is a tool to help an ad agency run their business with a mix of marketing, project managing, consulting, data analysis, and more. Ad agency software typically includes features like account reporting, task management, time tracking, client management, and templates and forms.

Advertising agency software might seem like a confusing jumble of features. But running an ad agency requires a broad mix of marketing, project managing, consulting, data analysis and much more. That's why advertising agency software houses such a wide array of capabilities in one cohesive system.

But not all ad agency software is created equal. That's why we've put together this buyer's guide to help you determine what you should look for when choosing your new advertising agency software.

Here's what we'll cover:

Common Features of Advertising Agency Software

Benefits of Adopting Ad Agency Software

Advertising Agency Software Tips for New Buyers

Common Features of Advertising Agency Software

Ad agency software pulls in capabilities from a wide range of existing software options. Its features include those from project management and CRM, as well as a load of specialized reporting and analytics:

Core Features of Advertising Agency Software

The goal of ad agency software is to optimize workflows and processes to make the company more efficient. This helps team members keep focused on big picture goals. Such efficiency also encourages positive client and partner interactions.

The project dashboard and account reporting are key to creating this efficiency. These two features enable a top-down and bottom-up view of what stage all projects are in, who owns them and who they're going to next. This type of insight encourages greater organization, especially when paired with task management and time tracking capabilities that quantify the time spent on each task of each project.

Benefits of Adopting Ad Agency Software

There are a number of specific benefits that come with adopting ad agency software. With ad agency software, you can:

• Capture a complete snapshot of the status of your current projects. Drill down to see where each project is at in its task life cycle and easily identify who owns the tasks at that stage.

• Track project timelines, workflows, and life cycles to pinpoint any bottlenecks. Analyze the status of a project during a bottleneck to determine and overcome the cause.

• Easily manage key documents such as price estimates, media buys, client invoices, and creative media.

• Record time spent working on projects for accurate billing to clients.

• Effectively communicate and share valuable information internally and with clients. Establish notifications and timelines for check-ins to keep all parties informed and projects on task.

Advertising Agency Software Tips for New Buyers

As you can see from the features and benefits listed above, ad agency software can positively transform your business. But not all advertising agency systems will be a fit for your specific needs. You need to be very diligent with the research and work you put into choosing your advertising agency management system. After all, it is the backbone of your business.

The following recommendations will help you better analyze and sift through the vendor landscape. Don't be afraid to ask vendors the tough questions.

We've established some formalized recommendations and best practices for optimizing the selection process. These come from surveying software buyers across industries to find out how they choose the best business software. Some of the most popular tactics small and midsize businesses employ include:

• Do your due diligence. Regardless of whether you've used ad agency software before, you need to refamiliarize yourself with the market. There's definitely a software choice out there that's right for you, but you need to put in the research to determine which systems stand out in the market. Ask other agencies for help when validating systems.

• Inquire with your entire team to determine operational needs and pain points. It's important to have an idea of what you need before you begin talking to software vendors. You need to make sure you know when, where, how and why pain points are affecting your operation. Once identified, you can move forward by prioritizing the capabilities that will increase efficiency.

• Read advertising agency software reviews from actual users. These reviews from managers, operators, and business owners in similar situations will provide a snapshot of information you need to make the most informed decisions. Analyzing thoughts and feelings from your peers in the space will help you see past the marketing jargon and get a well-rounded idea of the systems in question.