Trust
How we evaluate agencies
A 100-point assessment, stored component by component, applied the same way to every agency including our owner's. Points are awarded only where a claim carries a source, a source type and a verification date.
How scoring works
Every score is assembled from the components below rather than assigned as a single number.
Step 1
Collect evidence
Researchers gather claims from the agency's own material, press, public records and client interviews. Each claim is stored with its source URL, source type and the date it was checked.
Step 2
Score each component
Points are entered separately for each of the seven components. A claim with no attached source earns no points, however plausible it is.
Step 3
Record confidence
Evidence confidence is recorded alongside the score, describing how well documented the assessment is.
Step 4
Review and publish
An editor reviews the components, the total is calculated, and the profile is dated. Any override carries a written reason.
The 100 points
Component weights come from the current methodology version stored in our database, so this table always reflects the version in force.
| Component | Points | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demonstrated results and case-study evidence | 25 | 25% | Documented outcomes with a verifiable source. Claims without an attached source receive no points. |
| Verified review quality, quantity and recency | 20 | 20% | Only reviews that pass identity verification and are published on this site count toward this component. |
| Depth of specialty expertise | 15 | 15% | Evidence of sustained, senior-level work in the specialty rather than a services page listing it. |
| Portfolio relevance and quality | 15 | 15% | Relevance of published work to the buyer segment the page addresses. |
| Client and industry fit | 10 | 10% | Consistency of client size, sector and engagement model with the stated best-fit buyer. |
| Team expertise and leadership | 10 | 10% | Named practitioners, tenure and the seniority actually attached to client work. |
| Transparency and information freshness | 5 | 5% | Public pricing signals, verifiable facts and how recently information was confirmed. |
| Total | 100 | 100% |
What a score means
Bands describe the strength of the documented record, not a guarantee of results on your project.
- 85–100Exceptional evidence
- Deep, independently documented results in the specialty, with verified reviews and current information.
- 70–84Strong
- Consistent documented work and credible verification, with some gaps in evidence or recency.
- 55–69Capable
- Real, relevant work is documented, but the record is thinner or leans on agency-provided material.
- Below 55Limited public record
- Too little verifiable evidence to support a stronger assessment. Not a judgement of the work itself.
What we do not score
- Advertising spend, sponsorship or any commercial relationship with this site.
- Awards with no published judging criteria, and self-issued badges.
- Social following, unverified testimonials or anonymous review-site aggregates.
- Claims an agency makes about itself that no source supports.
Evidence confidence is separate from score
A score says how strong we assess an agency to be. Evidence confidence says how much documentation supports that assessment. They are displayed separately and never merged.
- High confidence
- Multiple independent sources confirm the material claims, and they were checked recently.
- Moderate confidence
- Several claims are independently sourced; some rely on the agency's own material.
- Limited public evidence
- Few claims are independently sourced. Treat the profile as a starting point, not a conclusion.
- Primarily agency-provided
- Information comes primarily from the agency and has not been independently verified.
Verification status is not a recommendation
Verification describes what we confirmed about identity and ownership. It says nothing about quality.
- Listed
- Compiled from public information. The agency has not claimed this profile.
- Claimed
- A representative of the agency has claimed this profile.
- Identity Verified
- We confirmed the agency's identity and contact details.
- Reviews Verified
- At least one published review passed reviewer identity verification.
When a page gets published
- A profile is published only when its material claims carry sources with a verification status and date.
- A directory landing page becomes indexable only with at least five qualified agencies, unique analysis, unique buyer guidance, a meaningful comparison table, a named editor and a last-reviewed date.
- Search results, filter combinations, demo records, incomplete profiles, thin geographic pages, unapproved comparisons and draft rankings are set to noindex automatically.
- Only approved and published records appear in sitemaps.
Methodology versions
When weights or rules change we publish a new version rather than quietly editing this page. Scores record the version they were produced under.
Version 1.0
CurrentEffective September 7, 2026Initial published 100-point evaluation framework. Component scores are recorded separately and only awarded where source-backed evidence exists.
Weights: Demonstrated results and case-study evidence 25 · Verified review quality, quantity and recency 20 · Depth of specialty expertise 15 · Portfolio relevance and quality 15 · Client and industry fit 10 · Team expertise and leadership 10 · Transparency and information freshness 5
Questions about scoring
- Can an agency pay to raise its score?
- No. Scores come from editorial research only. Sponsorship is sold separately, labelled wherever it appears, and never changes a score, a ranking position or a featured selection.
- Why do some agencies have no score at all?
- A score is only published once enough source-backed evidence exists for the components it rests on. Until then the profile shows the information we can verify and no score.
- How is the owner's agency treated?
- The Branded Agency is evaluated under this same published methodology, and every page where it appears carries an ownership disclosure.
- How often are scores refreshed?
- Each profile carries a last-verified date and a scheduled review date. Scores drawn from evidence older than the review window are marked as needing an update rather than shown as current.