How to Spot Fake Amazon Agency Case Studies (And Find Real Ones)

Most agency case studies are not fake, but many are misleading. These five red flags reveal cherry-picked metrics, missing revenue context, and weak proof.

Article summary

Most agency case studies are not fake, but many are misleading. These five red flags reveal cherry-picked metrics, missing revenue context, and weak proof.

The 5 red flags in agency case studies

I've reviewed a lot of agency case studies. As a competitor, obviously — but also because brands send them to me asking "is this real?"

What a credible case study actually looks like

Most aren't fake. But most are misleading in ways that are hard to catch if you don't know what to look for.

How to evaluate case studies during the agency selection process

A case study that shows "ACOS reduced from 45% to 18% in 90 days" sounds impressive. It might also mean the agency cut 60% of the ad spend, killed all discovery campaigns, and the brand's total Amazon revenue dropped 25% over the same period. The ACOS stat is true. The full picture is very different.

Frequently Asked Questions

This post is how to read agency case studies critically — whether you're evaluating me, my competitors, or any agency claiming results.

About the author

- Most case studies cherry-pick one metric (usually ACOS) while hiding what happened to total revenue, organic ranking, or overall profitability - 5 red flags that suggest misleading results: no time period, no revenue context, no before/after campaign details, percentage improvements without base numbers, and no client reference - Good case studies show total Amazon revenue alongside ACOS — if ACOS improved but revenue dropped, that's not a win - The best signal of credibility: an agency willing to show you TACOS trend AND let you speak to the client