How agencies are scored
Seven public-evidence pillars, weighted to 100. We score from the same sources we would ask of any agency in a pitch: case studies with named clients, press and podcast coverage, certifications, and what their own operators publish. Payment does not move the number.
Proof of Measurable Outcomes
Public, verifiable evidence that the agency has driven measurable business outcomes for clients.
Looks for: Named client case studies with disclosed metrics · Third-party verified results (press, awards, podcasts) · Incrementality or MMM-backed reporting
Category Fit & Specialization
Depth of focus and demonstrated specialization in the relevant channel, vertical, or motion.
Looks for: Channel-specific operator team · Public POV / thought leadership in category · Roster concentration in the category
Creative-Media Integration
Evidence the agency operates creative and media as a single feedback loop rather than siloed services.
Looks for: In-house creative testing process · Documented creative velocity and refresh cadence · Joint media-creative reporting
Reputation & Third-Party Validation
Independent signals of credibility. Press, awards, partnerships, certifications, peer reviews.
Looks for: Platform partner / certification tier · Independent press coverage · Award history and peer endorsements
Operating Maturity
Indicators of a stable, repeatable operation. Tenure, leadership clarity, team retention.
Looks for: Years in operation and team size · Disclosed leadership and named operators · Defined service catalog and pricing model
Buyer Fit & Use-Case Clarity
How clearly the agency communicates who they are for. Stage, budget, vertical, and motion.
Looks for: Published budget thresholds · Explicit ICP and stage fit · Clear scope and engagement model
Freshness & Evidence Quality
Recency and quality of the evidence used to score the agency.
Looks for: Sources published within the last 18 months · Primary sources over secondary · Multiple corroborating sources per claim
The exact formula (v1.1)
Published score = proof (max 25) + category fit (20) + creative-media integration (15) + reputation signals (15) + operating maturity (10) + buyer-fit clarity (10) + evidence freshness (5), rounded once to one decimal. Ties are broken by name, A to Z.
| Pillar | Maximum points |
|---|---|
| Proof of Measurable Outcomes | 25 |
| Category Fit & Specialization | 20 |
| Creative-Media Integration | 15 |
| Reputation & Third-Party Validation | 15 |
| Operating Maturity | 10 |
| Buyer Fit & Use-Case Clarity | 10 |
| Freshness & Evidence Quality | 5 |
| Total | 100 |
- Any pillar value above its maximum is clamped to the maximum; a missing or negative value counts as zero. The total is the sum of the seven clamped values, rounded once to one decimal.
- Ties: equal scores are ordered by name, A to Z. Nothing else breaks a tie.
- Affiliation: ownership, sponsorship, a featured flag and any commercial relationship are excluded from the score and from tie-breaking. Affiliated listings are labelled and listed on the Fieldtrip network page.
Proof labels
The proof label is a direct function of recorded outcome-evidence points and nothing else. It is separate from the overall score, and it describes how much dated public evidence is on file — not a promise about results and not an independent audit.
- Strong
- proof ≥ 20
- Moderate
- proof 10–19.9
- Light
- proof < 10
Score tiers
- Top-tier
- 85–100
- Strong
- 70–84
- Solid
- 55–69
- Emerging
- Below 55
What the score is not
- Pillar points are curated assessments made from public evidence. The arithmetic above is implemented in code; the underlying point assignments are judgement calls, not an algorithm.
- Case-study figures are the agency’s own reported numbers. We have not audited them and we do not claim the agency caused the outcome.
- Third-party coverage is an additional citation, not independent confirmation of a result — particularly where the publisher shares a commercial ecosystem with the agency.
- Not every record has been reviewed by a person. Listings compiled automatically are labelled “Public-source profile”; the label does not imply a human review.
Updates and corrections
Listings are re-scored when new public evidence is available or when an agency submits a correction. Our policy is to recheck priority commercial pages at least every 90 days and immediately on a material change; that is a forward-looking policy, not a guarantee about past coverage. The full version is on the editorial & disclosure policy page. Suggest corrections via the correction form on any profile page.
Contract v1.1, published 2026-09-08. Change in v1.1: the published total is now derived from the seven pillars in code rather than stored separately, and six records whose stored pillars did not add up to their published total were corrected. Published totals were preserved; this was an arithmetic fix, not a fresh human audit of the assessments behind them.