Introduction
The Short Answer
In order to evaluate an Amazon Agency, you need to take into account these three things before anything else: verified case studies with named clients and specific numbers, daily optimization cadence (not weekly), and TACoS first reporting, not just ACoS.
While most brands evaluate agencies on the wrong signals, such as slick decks, confident salespeople and empty promises about their 'growth,' this is the ultimate path to locking a six-month contract with a team that hasn’t touched your ad campaign in weeks
.In this article, I will give you the complete 8-point framework to vet any Amazon agency and 10 questions that are must-ask on your next discovery call.
Why Most Amazon Agency Evaluations Fail
You're Evaluating the Pitch, Not the Process
The person that will be on your discovery call is almost never the person that will end up managing your account. These people are trained to build rapport, answer objections and close the deals; they are the people who know what you want to hear.
So, instead of focusing on the sales pitch and how impressive the salesperson is, make sure you understand what happens after the contract is signed, and ask for a specific call with the person that will handle your account.
The reason for this is because oftentimes, the experienced strategist from the sales process might be replaced by a junior Amazon marketer juggling tons of accounts (and you don’t want such a person to handle yours too.)
Case Studies That Can't Be Verified
Oftentimes you will notice agencies adding claims as “We helped a supplements brand grow 200% in six months" without adding any names, links to a case study or a time frame, and that’s your first red flag right there…
If an agency is legit and knows how to bring results to your account, you will see client names, social media or other links that are connected to their testimonial, which are actually clickable.
Real results will be out in the open and not hidden behind some NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements).
The Wrong Metrics Dominate the Proposal
Most agencies that you will encounter will lead with ACoS (Advertising Cost of Sales), which is ad spend divided by ad-attributed revenue. And this could look good on the dashboard, and it can even look good even while you’re losing money.
The most crucial metric to consider is TACoS (Total Advertising Cost of Sales). This metric is calculated as ad spend divided by total revenue, including the organic revenue. TACoS shows you whether your ads are truly growing your business or just inflating attributed sales.
If the agency you are negotiating with doesn't mention anything about TACoS, there could be two possible reasons: either they don’t understand it, or they hope you don’t!
The 8-Point Framework for Evaluating an Amazon Agency
1. Verified Case Studies With Named Clients and Specific Numbers
All agencies claim to have experience and results, but you need to be very careful who you trust, especially since these agencies exist to profit off of you.
Instead of just names, you need to dig deep and find out the names of clients, timeframes, dollar figures, and ideally a case study, because most agencies will easily throw out the ‘hundreds of clients’ to lure you into their hands.
This is not the case with Olifant Digital.
When Elite Jumps came to Olifant, after going back and forth with different agencies and trying in-house management with no desired results, their outcome was specific and it’s documented in a detailed case study: 124% growth in revenue in just three months, a 51% CVR (conversion rate) increase through A/B tested listings, and reduced ACoS (Advertising Cost of Sales) while scaling.
2. TACoS Reporting, Not Just ACoS
TACoS is the only way to find out whether your business is actually making any profit because it measures your ad spend against every buck that is coming into your account, whereas ACoS only tracks sales that come directly from ads, ignoring the fact whether your brand is actually making any money or spinning its wheels.
While working with Onsen Secret, we changed their reporting from ACoS to TACoS, and this step has made them additional $95,934 in monthly revenue. Besides that, we also helped them restructure their campaigns to spend money on a higher ROI strategically.
So this is why it’s crucial to ask how agencies measure the profitability of your Amazon account.
3. Daily Optimization, Not Weekly Check-Ins
Amazon’s ad auction changes constantly, so some bids that might work on Monday might be wasted by Friday.
A weekly review means your account is at risk of having five days of unoptimized spending before anyone actually looks. This scenario is why it’s important to ask your agency how frequently they review your account and what happens between reviews.
Spade to Fork experiences a 46% revenue increase with us in just 44 days simply because of our daily hands-on refinement.
4. Senior Team Doing the Work—Not Junior Staff
Most agencies have a dirty secret: their senior strategists sell all the work, but junior staff execute it.
This is why at Olifant Digital we require at least 7 years of proven experience.
So, next time you hop on a call with a potential agency, make sure you ask who will manage your account and what their experience level is, and most importantly, how many accounts they currently handle, so you can finally reach your verdict.
If the agency is serious like we are, they will provide exact answers to these questions, and if you get vague or not explanatory enough answers, or you get to meet their strategist after the deal is sealed, it’s a huge red flag, and you need to move on with your research!
5. Low Account Manager Turnover
This is also a big and serious evaluation point.
If an agency frequently changes their Account Managers, it can mean a couple of things.
Either they have too many demands and not a good work ethic, they might be getting more accounts that they can handle, or the business is growing and they are getting short-staffed.
Either way, this cannot be good for your account, as frequent changes of the manager would mean more time a new person will spend getting familiarized with your brand and overall structure, which will lead to lost months of compounded optimization, which you will actually have to pay for!
6. A Structured Launch Playbook (Not Just Account Management)
Account management is just that—maintenance; it keeps things running, but it doesn't spark growth. For launches, you will need much more than just maintenance but rather a launch plan.
So, don't be afraid to grill them on the specifics: What exactly happens once the "honeymoon phase" of the first 30 days ends? How do they audit a listing for SEO/CRO, and what does their Day 1 PPC architecture actually look like?
If an agency gives you a "we'll figure it out as we go" vibe instead of a documented process, run.
This typically indicates that they will be improvising and learning at your expense once the contract is signed.
7. Operator Credibility — Do They Run Their Own Brand?
An agency that only does client accounts understands how Amazon works from the outside. But an agency running its own 7-figure brand deals with the real hardships, such as inventory risk, tight margins and spending its money on campaigns.
At Olifant Digital, we run our e-commerce brand, so all our strategies have already been tested with real budgets, not just on someone else’s listings.
8. A Guarantee That Backs the Pitch
An agency that has pride in their work will offer a guarantee or reassurance of some kind.
While such agencies can be a bit rare to find, here at Olifant Digital we offer a 60-day money-back guarantee, which is discussed before signing the contract.
This proves how confident we are in scaling desired results, unlike agencies that say they are confident in their process but don’t back this up with any financial guarantee.
The Evaluation Scorecard (Quick-Reference Table)
When evaluating any Amazon agency, use the following scorecard, which lets you score each dimension from 1 to 3 (3 means excellent).
Any agency that scores below 20 is a risk. Olifant Digital scores a full 24!
The 10 Questions to Ask on Every Agency Discovery Call
There are 10 questions you need to ask every agency during your first discovery call with them.
If you study their answers enough, you'll find out which one is worth working with and which lack the knowledge and skills needed to take your catalog to the next level.
How Olifant Digital Measures Up
The reason why we stand out from the rest of the agencies is our 18+ published studies with clients and live Amazon store links that are available for everyone on our website.
Everything is true, identifiable, and complete! You can thoroughly study all the results from our tactics in our case studies.
And here are the three examples that mirror what most brands who read this have already been through:
- Elite Jumps had worked with multiple agencies and in-house management before they turned to us. When we started working on their account, they experienced 124% revenue growth within 3 months, a 51% CVR (conversion rate) increase through A/B-tested listings, and reduced ACoS (Advertising Cost of Sales) while scaling revenue.
- MatchaBar also shared a similar experience of working with multiple agencies without any significant results. After they started working with Olifant Digital, they got $114, 305 in monthly revenue, doubled AOV through strategic bundling, and improved ACoS and TACos.
- Ekster had a strong direct-to-consumer (DTC) presence, but they had never built their Amazon channel until they signed with us. After building it from zero, they had $688,406 in annual Amazon profitability and became category leaders for flagship wallets.
If those numbers sound like something you’ve been looking for, the next step is a free Amazon audit, where we explain how our model (daily PPC optimization, TACos first reporting, and 98% client retention rate) works.
Our PPC management starts at $2,000/month and you get a 60-day money-back guarantee.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I look for when hiring an Amazon agency?
Before hiring an Amazon agency, there are three things that are non-negotiable: case studies with real names of clients and specific revenue numbers, daily optimization cadence that is backed by change logs, and TACoS (Total Advertising Cost of Sales) reporting rather than ACoS (Advertising Cost of Sales).
Additionally, you should ask more about team seniority, how many managers they have had in the past 12 months, and whether they provide any type of guarantee of their work.
What are the red flags of a bad Amazon PPC agency?
There are several red flags that can point out a bad Amazon PPC agency. One of these is inability to provide details about specific clients and case studies on accounts they have worked on.
Other issues are ACoS-only reporting, vague answers about account management, and no meeting with the account manager before signing.
How do I verify an Amazon agency's results before signing?
To verify an Amazon agency’s results, it is best to ask for the URL of a specific case study done with a named client and see their actual Amazon store, category rank (the position of a product within its category), review velocity (the rate at which new reviews are received), and BSR (Best Seller Rank) history.
The final thing to do before signing is asking the agency to provide you with two current clients so you can speak with them directly. If they hesitate or decline your request, do not sign up with them.
How long should I give an Amazon agency before judging results?
Most agencies ask for a period of 90 days before you start judging the results. The first 30 days are for making audits and onboarding, while the actual campaign restructuring and listing optimization happen from the 30th to the 60th day.
After that, you can start seeing the results that daily optimization has. If nothing happens after the 45th day, then you can start asking the hard questions.
Does Olifant Digital offer a guarantee?
Yes, Olifant Digital offers a 60 day money-back guarantee (you need to confirm the terms with the team before signing).
This particular guarantee exists because a 98% client retention rate makes the financial risk manageable. If you don’t see the results that are discussed in your first audit call, you’re not locked in.
Ready to Stop Vetting and Start Growing?
If you've read this far, you know what to look for, and you have the questions to ask.
The next step is seeing whether Olifant Digital scores a 24 on your scorecard. You can book your Free Amazon Audit here, and get that full-account analysis before making the final commitment.
