Why would an agent pay a monthly marketing retainer when listings come in lumps

An agent's income shows up when a deal closes, which can mean three closings in a month or none for two months. That timing mismatch makes a fixed monthly marketing bill look strange next to paying per listing, where cost lands at the same time as the work and roughly tracks revenue. The provider's reason for wanting monthly is straightforward, predictable revenue. The agent's reason is less obvious until the between-listings work gets counted: brand consistency, content that keeps an audience engaged when nothing is currently for sale, and a marketing relationship that's already running when a new listing lands instead of starting cold. That between-listings work is often what generates the next listing rather than simply supporting the current one, which is the case for monthly over per-listing pricing even though the income timing argues against it.