With so many agencies out there offering varying combinations of design, development, marketing, and integration services, finding the right fit can feel overwhelming. Agencies are everywhere, in various sizes, and with wildly different levels of expertise and experience.

Not only is choosing the right ecommerce agency time-consuming, but the wrong choice can lead to serious issues such as lost sales, poor UX/UI, and an overall loss of reputation. 

In this guide, we’ll break down exactly what ecommerce agencies do, how to evaluate their quality, key questions to ask potential partners, and important factors to consider when making your choice.

What Ecommerce Agencies Do

Ecommerce agencies act as end-to-end partners for building and growing online stores. Generally speaking, when it comes to ecommerce, agencies will offer a mix of marketing, store UX/design, and development services, or all three. 

In general, you can expect an ecommerce agency to be able to offer development/platform implementation, strategy/consulting services, conversion rate optimization (CRO), systems integration, omnichannel strategy/implementation, and ongoing support and maintenance of your systems, site, and tools. 

Choosing an ecommerce agency can often be tricky, as each one can specialize in a variety of tools, integrations, and services, making it a bit challenging to find one that knows your ecommerce tech stack, industry/market, and meshes well with your team. 

Why Choosing the Right Agency Matters

When picking an ecommerce agency, you’re (hopefully) selecting a long-term partner who will be responsible for a lot of your business’s success and ROI. A great fit can accelerate your growth, while the wrong choice can severely set you back. 

The right agency will deliver a high-performing site and an effective strategy that drives sales, resulting in a strong return on investment. They help avoid costly mistakes and focus on features that genuinely boost revenue. Conversely, a poorly chosen agency might produce a subpar site that fails to convert visitors, wasting your budget.

A good agency will be deeply familiar with your tech stack or recommend one that fits your needs. For example, if you operate on Shopify Plus, partnering with a certified Shopify Plus partner agency ensures they know the platform’s ins and outs.

Finally, experienced ecommerce agencies have refined processes and knowledge that enable them to get the job done efficiently. They can anticipate challenges and handle them before they become big issues. This efficiency means faster time-to-market for your new site, features, or integrations.

How to Tell if an Ecommerce Agency is Good

Not all agencies are created equal. When you’ve begun your search for agencies that may fit your needs, here are some things to look for as you evaluate candidates:

• Client Portfolios: A good agency will proudly showcase and disclose websites and brands they’ve worked with. Ask them who they’ve worked with and what they’ve accomplished for those ecommerce businesses. If they’ve delivered results for recognizable or similar companies to yours, it’s a good sign they can handle your project, too.

• Certifications and Partnerships: Reputable agencies often have official certifications or partner status with ecommerce platforms and tools. For example, being a Shopify Plus Partner or an Adobe Solution Partner shows they have been vetted and recognized for their expertise by those platform providers. Similarly, partnerships with technology providers/SaaS services, like Klaviyo, Noibu, Akeneo, or Gorgias, indicate specialized skills.

• Technical Expertise and Capabilities: A good ecommerce agency has a technically skilled team that can handle the features you need. This means proficiency in front-end and back-end development, familiarity with your chosen platform’s coding framework, and the ability to build or integrate custom functionalities. You want to be confident that they can tackle complex integrations (such as integrating your ERP or building a custom app) and have developers who write clean, scalable code.

• Transparency and Communication: Pay attention to how the agency communicates. Good agencies are transparent about their processes, timelines, and pricing. They’ll set clear expectations and won’t over-promise just to win your business. During initial calls, they should be willing to discuss how they work, who will work on your project, and be honest about what’s achievable.

• Strategic Input and Creativity: The best agencies contribute ideas, not just work. If during discussions they offer thoughtful suggestions to improve your plan or point out things you hadn’t considered, it shows they’re invested in your success and know what they’re talking about. 

• Responsiveness and Support: How quickly do they respond to your emails or calls? A good agency values your time and is prompt and professional in communication. This responsiveness usually carries into project work and ongoing support. You want an agency to be there when something is urgent or you have questions.

Do your homework on each agency’s track record and credentials. The right agency should have proven experience, recognized expertise, and a communication style that makes you confident in their ability to deliver on the services and support you’re hiring them for.

Questions to Ask Potential Agencies

Once you feel you’ve done enough browsing and have a short list of agencies you believe might be the right fit, the next step is to contact them to learn more about them. Here are a few questions you should ask in those initial conversations to get a better idea of whether or not you should hire them. 

1 - Who will be managing our account and project, and what is their experience? 

You’ll want to know if you’ll have a dedicated project manager or senior strategist overseeing your project. This question ensures you won’t be handed off to an inexperienced coordinator after the sales process. Also, it gives insight into the team structure and whether senior leadership will be involved.

2 - What ecommerce platforms and technologies are your team most specialized in? 

A good agency will lay this out on their website, but you should still confirm that their certifications are valid and that they’re still partners of any of the platforms you need them to be associated with. If not, this also shows that if they can’t keep their site up to date, they may not be able to do the same with yours. 

3 - Can you provide examples of projects similar to ours? 

Ask them to show you some case studies or store websites they’ve worked on in your industry/niche to confirm that they understand the complexities of your business/industry. 

4 - How do you handle integrations with third-party systems (ERP, CRM, PIM, etc.)? 

Some integrations are easier than others. It’s important to double-check that they can handle these connections with your specific platform and the tool(s) you need. The ideal agency will have a clear process for integrations and be able to discuss similar integrations they’ve completed. If they have partnerships with tool providers (for example, they’re an Akeneo or Klaviyo partner), that’s even more reassuring.

5 - What is your approach to strategy and conversion optimization during a project? 

This is how you learn whether the agency will simply build what you ask or also contribute strategic guidance. A good agency might explain how it conducts user research or UX audits at the start and how it plans for SEO, site speed, and CRO during development. 

6 - What will the project timeline and process look like? 

Ask them to outline typical project phases (design, development, testing, etc.), how long each phase might take, and when you can expect launch. Also, ask how they handle project management: Do they use agile methodologies with sprints? How often will you have check-in meetings or updates? This will help set expectations and show if they are organized and realistic with schedules.

7 - How will we communicate during the project? 

Find out whether you’ll have regular status calls or a dedicated Slack channel, who your primary point of contact will be, and how issues or feedback will be handled. An agency that has a structured communication plan (weekly calls, project management tools for tracking tasks, etc.) is likely to keep you in the loop and handle feedback efficiently.

8 - Do you outsource any of the work, or is your team entirely in-house? 

While there isn’t necessarily anything wrong with an agency that outsources some of its work, adding more people, processes, and dependencies can introduce additional management layers and increase project time. An agency with a strong in-house team might offer more direct control over quality and timelines, so it's important to know what you’re getting into in terms of outsourcing.

9 - What happens after the site is launched? 

Depending on your needs/project, you might want to keep your agency in your back pocket for support and maintenance. Will they train your team on using the new site/tools? Can they help with ongoing updates, new features, or digital marketing strategies after launch? An agency that offers ongoing support demonstrates that it is interested in a long-term partnership.

10 - How do you handle changes in project scope or unforeseen challenges? 

Projects can evolve. You may decide mid-way that you need an additional feature, or something takes longer than expected. Ask how the agency manages scope changes. Do they require a formal change order, and how do they communicate the impact on timeline/cost? Also, inquire about their problem-solving approach if something isn’t going as planned. A reliable agency will emphasize flexibility and honesty when communicating impacts. 

You don’t necessarily need to ask every single question above, but covering these areas in your conversations will give you a much clearer picture of each agency’s fit. It can help you guide the conversation so that you can get the information you need to find the right agency partners to meet your business goals. 

Factors to Consider When Making Your Choice

So, you’ve researched and met with a few agencies, and now it’s time to choose. First, you’ll want to consider your budget. Be upfront about it and see which agency can deliver the best value within it. Remember that the lowest quote isn’t always the best choice – a higher fee agency might deliver a better product and save you money long-term by doing it right the first time. 

Consider how the agency prices projects (e.g., fixed fee vs. hourly) and whether changes are flexible, and ensure you’re comfortable with the investment. It’s about getting the best ROI, rather than just the lowest overall cost. 

Next, you don’t want to discount the culture fit. If your company values a collaborative, flexible approach, a very rigid or formal agency might frustrate you (and vice versa). Think about the vibe you got from your meetings: Are they enthusiastic about your project? Do they communicate clearly? 

You’ll be working closely together, so a personality and values match will make the process more enjoyable and productive. The work is important, of course, but enjoying the time spent with the team should also be pleasant. 

Check if the agency has experience in your specific industry or niche. An agency that has built sites for fashion stores will understand lookbooks and size charts, whereas one experienced with B2B wholesale knows about complex pricing and account-based purchasing, for example. Industry experience means they’ll already be familiar with your challenges and customer expectations.

Finally, think beyond the immediate project. If you know you’ll need ongoing help for new features, marketing campaigns, holiday support, etc., prioritize an agency that offers long-term support plans or retainers. Some agencies excel in one-off builds but aren’t interested in ongoing maintenance, which could leave you searching for help later.

Why Blue Badger

If you’re here, you’re likely considering hiring an ecommerce agency for your own project, so it’s only fair that we use this space to pitch ourselves as your final choice. Blue Badger is an ecommerce design and development agency specializing in Shopify Plus and Adobe Commerce/Magento. 

As Klayvio, Noibu, Gorgias, and Akeneo partners, we have extensive experience with these tools, as well as a variety of other ERPs, CRMs, PIMs, CMSs, etc., such as Ogasys, Chaindrive, Yotpo, GA4, and more. 

Our experience spans multiple industries, and we offer true end-to-end services for the brands we work with through implementation, custom design, development, and replatforming to ongoing support and maintenance for as long as you need.  

Whether you need custom Shopify functionality or are simply looking to start with automated customer service or email marketing, our team of web developers and designers would love to discuss your project!

Conclusion

Choosing an ecommerce agency is a big decision. It’s not just about hiring someone to build a website or connect a few apps, but about entering a partnership that can profoundly influence your business’s trajectory and ultimately, your bottom line. 

With the right agency partner, you can confidently tackle whatever ecommerce projects you need completed and look forward to sustainable, long-term growth for your online store. At Blue Badger, we understand how important it is to find the right fit, and we would love to discuss your project to see if we might be the right agency for you. Contact us today to get started!