How we rank trades marketing agencies: the criteria explained
Any list of 'best' agencies is only as useful as the method behind it. This guide sets out the seven criteria we apply to every agency we review, how heavily each counts, what we accept as evidence and what we ignore. If you disagree with a ranking, this is the page that lets you see why we reached it.
What we are trying to measure
A tradesperson choosing an agency is not asking which firm is cleverest. They are asking a narrower question: will this company bring me jobs I would not otherwise have had, at a cost that leaves me better off, without trapping me if it does not work?
Our criteria follow from that question. They reward agencies that make it easy for a small business to say yes, easy to measure whether it worked, and easy to leave. They penalise opacity, lock-in and claims that cannot be checked.
The seven criteria and their weights
Each agency is scored out of 100 across seven areas. The weights reflect how much each factor tends to affect the outcome for a typical one-to-five-van trade business.
| Criterion | Weight | What we look for |
|---|---|---|
| Trade specialism | 20 | Does the agency work mainly or only with trades, and does its material show it understands how trade customers buy? |
| Published proof | 20 | Case studies with numbers, named or anonymised clients, live sites we can inspect, reviews we can read. |
| Pricing transparency | 15 | Are prices published? Is the model fixed fee, percentage of spend or per lead? Are there setup fees? |
| Contract terms and ownership | 15 | Notice period, minimum term, who owns the website, domain, ad account and reviews. |
| Breadth and coherence of service | 10 | Does the offer cover what a trade actually needs, and do the parts fit together? |
| Measurement | 10 | Is success reported in enquiries and booked jobs, or in traffic and impressions? |
| Accessibility for small firms | 10 | Entry price, minimum spend, whether a sole trader is a realistic client. |
Trade specialism: why it carries the most weight
A generalist agency can run a Google Ads account for a plumber. What it usually cannot do is know, without being told, that emergency callouts and boiler replacements need different campaigns, that Checkatrade and Google reviews pull in different directions, or that a landscaper's enquiries dry up in November whatever the ads say.
We score highest the firms that work only with trades and whose websites show that knowledge in specifics. We score lower the firms with a trades page bolted onto a general offer, and lower still those whose trades list reads like a keyword exercise. An agency that also serves dentists and estate agents is not disqualified, but it loses points here.
Published proof: what counts and what does not
We accept as evidence: case studies with figures and a timeframe, live client websites we can visit, named testimonials, reviews on Google or Trustpilot, and clear statements of client numbers that are consistent across the site.
We do not accept: unattributed percentage claims, stock imagery presented as client work, 'trusted by' logo walls with no links, or results quoted without a period. A headline such as 'average 3x revenue growth' with a small 'results vary' beneath it earns nothing on its own.
First-month results get particular scrutiny. Paid ads nearly always look good in month one, before the account settles and competitors respond. We give more credit to an agency showing twelve months of booked jobs than one showing a spectacular first fortnight.
We also read how an agency describes its own clients. Firms that talk about one-van electricians and three-van heating companies by name, with the problems each brings, tend to understand the sector. Firms that talk about 'home service brands' and 'scaling to seven figures' are usually describing a client they would like to have rather than the ones they do. That difference in language shows up in the scoring.
Pricing transparency and contract terms
These two criteria together make up 30 points, which some readers will think is high. We think it is justified. The most common complaint we hear from tradespeople about agencies is not poor results but being unable to leave, losing a website or an ad account on the way out, or discovering fees that were never mentioned.
Full marks for pricing go to agencies that publish actual figures. Partial credit goes to those that publish the model (fixed fee, no percentage of spend, no setup fee) even if the number needs a call. No credit goes to 'book a call' with nothing else.
On terms, we look for rolling monthly agreements, short notice, and explicit statements that the client owns the website, domain, Google Business Profile and advertising accounts. Our guide to switching agencies without losing rankings or ad accounts explains why ownership matters so much. Fixed-fee pricing also tends to score well here, for reasons we unpack in the fixed fee versus percentage of spend guide.
Service coherence, measurement and accessibility
Breadth matters less than fit. A single-service specialist, such as a Meta video agency for glazing firms, can score well here if the service is complete in itself and the agency is honest about what it does not do. A full-service firm whose parts do not talk to each other scores lower.
On measurement, we favour agencies that report enquiries, quotes and booked jobs over those that report rankings, clicks and impressions. If the website talks about traffic and never about jobs, that is a mark against.
Accessibility asks a simple question: could a sole trader with a modest budget realistically become a client? Agencies with published retainers in the thousands can still rank well overall, but they lose points here and we say plainly who they are for.
How we gather the facts
Every agency profile is built from the agency's own published material, checked on the day of writing. Where a fact is not published, we say so rather than guess. We do not accept briefings from agencies, and we do not adjust a score because an agency asks.
Where an agency's position on a list places it above another, it is because its weighted score is higher. Ties are broken on published proof, then on contract terms.
The one agency we have a connection to, Riley Marketing, is assessed on the same criteria and the same facts sheet as everyone else. Where it appears in a list, we say what it is not suited to alongside what it does well.
Readers can help. If you have worked with an agency we list and your experience contradicts what we have written, tell us. We will check the facts and amend the profile if we have something wrong. Rankings are only useful if they stay honest, and the people best placed to keep them honest are the tradespeople who have paid the invoices.
What the rankings cannot tell you
No scorecard captures whether you will get on with the person running your account, how fast they answer the phone, or whether they understand your particular town. Those things decide a lot of outcomes.
Use the rankings to build a shortlist of two or three, then do the human work. Our 17 questions to ask a trades marketing agency are designed for that conversation, and the list of agency red flags covers what to listen for. The overall UK ranking is the natural place to start.
Frequently asked questions
Do agencies pay to appear in your rankings?
No. Agencies cannot pay for a place or a position, and we do not accept briefings from them. Scores come from published facts checked against the criteria on this page.
Why does pricing transparency score so highly?
Because the most common problems tradespeople report with agencies concern fees and exit terms rather than results. Published prices and clear terms let a small business decide before a sales call.
How often are rankings updated?
Each profile records the date it was last checked. We revisit agencies when their published offer changes materially or when a reader points out something we have missed.
What if an agency does not publish case studies?
It loses points under published proof but is not excluded. We say in the profile that evidence is thin and what a buyer should ask for instead.