Creative Agency vs Design Agency: What’s The Difference and Which One Do You Need?

If you’re looking for creative help with your brand, there’s no shortage of agencies to search for. A quick Google brings up dozens of businesses promising strategy, design, content, and branding. But the differences between these types of agencies matter.

Hiring the wrong one means work that doesn’t do the job you need it to and more headaches down the line. Often, labels are muddled by the industry and the audience; a creative agency is a broad term, and many different types of businesses can fall into this category. Our complete guide to creative agency vs design agency helps clear things up and sets you up to hire the right one for your needs.

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What is a creative agency?

Technically, a creative agency can cover really any agency in the creative industry. The House of Commons Library defines nine sub-sectors within the creative industry and reported that these industries contributed around £124 billion to the economy in 2023. When a sector this large includes everything from advertising to software, it’s no wonder people are confused by the term.

This means that two businesses can correctly call themselves a creative agency and do completely different work. A design agency is a type of creative agency, but it might not deliver what you’re actually looking for. But an agency that brands itself as a creative agency, without the sub-category, typically focuses on bigger-picture strategy and messaging, alongside visuals. 

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What a creative agency does

A creative agency works on ideas, direction, and how a brand shows up. This includes positioning, messaging, storytelling, campaign concepts, and creative direction. They tend to sit at the front of a project and help brands figure out what they want to say and how to say it.

Creative agencies often include a creative director on concepts, a strategist shaping the thinking, a copywriter on the words, a designer on visuals, and sometimes a producer pulling shoots together. Some are structured like traditional ad agencies, with an account manager or studio manager ensuring all the work runs smoothly. 

Creative agencies work on multi-channel projects where the idea has to carry across everything, from an advertising campaign to social. They don’t always specialise in craft-level execution or consistency over time.

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What a design agency does

A design agency is focused on the visual. Everything across visual identity, graphic design, logo design, web design, UI/UX design, packaging design, motion graphics, art direction, and design systems. They create tangible, consistent design across all brand aspects.

You'll often see this kind of team called a design studio or a creative studio rather than an agency. Usually that means a smaller, more hands-on group of specialists who deliver the work themselves rather than delegating it across departments. The team may include an art director and senior and junior designers. 

If you already have your ideas and direction and need the visuals built, you’re looking at a design agency. But if you need messaging or strategy from scratch, a brand communications agency is your best bet.

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What is a brand communications agency?

Brand communications agencies are similar to creative agencies, but with a stronger focus on consistent visual and verbal messaging and brand identities.

A brand communications agency can build a brand from scratch or design an entire rebrand, and everything in between. They take care of everything from brand strategy, brand narrative, and brand identity, to comms strategy, copywriting, design, and the campaign execution that comes with it. They can help create guidelines that set your business up for success long after your work collaboration has ended. 

A brand communications agency combines the offering of a creative agency and a design agency, so your tone of voice and brand experience, and aesthetic are all on the same page. Their aim is to build how your brand looks, sounds, and shows up consistently across all channels.

And that’s who we at I Am Female*. To find out more about what we do, check out our complete guide to brand communications. 

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The other agencies you'll come across, and what they’re for

The three above are the most commonly compared, but there are many other types of agencies, all specialising in slightly different offerings. Here’s a brief overview:

1. Digital agency
   Creates your online presence, building websites and platforms, SEO, GEO, and paid media buying.
   
   
2. Marketing agency
   Drives results through channels, planning, and performance to grow your revenue and build your brand.
   
   
3. Advertising agency
   Focuses on campaigns and paid placement, traditionally big above-the-line stuff designed to reach wide audiences.
   
   
4. Content agency
   Keeps you visible over time: content creation, social media content, copywriting, photography and film production, usually on an ongoing basis when you need help showing up.
   
   
5. Full-service agency
   Aims to cover most of the above under one roof, from strategy to delivery.
   
   
6. Hybrid agency
   Does something similar but usually with a specific plan rather than trying to do absolutely everything.

And if you don’t want to go the agency route, freelancers are fantastic for smaller-scale projects requiring specific skills. Or if you want this expertise always on-hand, consider expanding your in-house team. This is a bigger commitment with different pros and cons; one we wrote about in our article on marketing agency vs in-house.

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Creative agency vs design agency: the real differences

Okay, so beyond what a creative and design agency does, let’s get into the direct comparisons in how each one works and delivers.

Scope

A creative agency works broadly across the idea and how it plays out across multiple channels. A design agency focuses on the visual identity and aesthetic. 

Team

A creative agency often involves a multidisciplinary team of strategists, creatives, and account handlers. A design agency or studio may be a smaller team of designers.

Timeline

Creative agencies are often project-based and phase-driven, defined by a clear brief and a discovery stage. Design agencies can follow a similar structure or be commissioned on a retainer for continuous projects.

Deliverables

Concepts, strategy and campaigns versus identities, websites and design systems. It’s crucial you know which ones you need.

Cost

Regardless of the type of agency, costs completely depend on the project. What shapes your budget is what you need built, over what timeline, and whether it's a one-off or ongoing support. A good agency will talk that through with you properly before quoting.

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How to choose the right agency for you

To decide how to choose a creative agency, you need to figure out what problems you’re trying to solve. Are you unclear on what to say, or do you have solid messaging but need it built properly? Refreshing what exists or starting from scratch? Do you need ideas, assets, or both? Is this a one-off or something you'll need continuous support with?

When to hire a creative agency vs a design studio vs a brand comms agency comes down to these types of questions. Ask them to yourself, and then talk them through with an agency that will give you honest answers. If a client comes to us asking for a full rebrand when what they really need is a visual refresh, we’re going to tell them that. If an agency agrees to everything without questioning or knowing the why behind it, that’s often a red flag. 

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Always ask this question

Whatever type of agency you hire, always ask this question: who is in the room, and who are they building the work for?

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Your agency doesn’t have to be the same demographic as your audience, but they do have to truly understand them. If there’s a gap between who’s creating for your brand and who they’re marketing to, this shows up in the outcomes. Brands and comms built at communities rather than with them can alienate or even offend your audience. 

Co-creation is what bridges this gap; bring the audience into the room from the start of any project. Our HER campaign showed that work made by a community for that same community will land because it’s authentic. We encourage our clients to co-create with their audience on every single campaign. Show your audience you understand them; don’t just claim it.

When talking to an agency, ask who'll be doing the work and whether they understand the people you're trying to reach. And if you want to find out more about what it’s like working with a branding agency, check out our article on that here.

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We’ll help you find what you’re looking for

The differences between different types of agencies are worth understanding. Choose a creative agency for the concept, a design agency for the visuals, or a brand communications agency to build the strategy, identity, and comms together. 

Do your research, clarify what it is you actually need, and if you’re not sure, talk to an agency that’ll be honest with you. You’ll always get that from IAF*, even if what you’re looking for turns out not to be us. Let’s chat, we’d love to help.

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