A vendor review checklist is a short list of questions you ask about every outside agency or platform once a year. In short: check the results, the cost, the contract, the people, the risk, the reporting and the alternatives. Then decide to keep, fix or replace each vendor. Year end is a good time, because budgets for the next year are being set.
This guide gives you seven checks, a simple scorecard and a plan for the review meeting. It works for marketing agencies, software platforms and service firms alike.
Why review vendors every year
Vendors drift. A team that was sharp in year one may change staff. A tool you bought for one job may now overlap with another. If nobody checks, the fee keeps renewing.
Formal reviews are common. A 2009 survey by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) found that 82 percent of marketers said their companies regularly run formal agency performance evaluations. The top benefit marketers named was finding and fixing weak agency relationships (92 percent). The next was spotting and rewarding strong ones (85 percent).
Quality standards say the same thing. ISO 9001:2015, clause 8.4, asks a company to set criteria for the evaluation, selection, monitoring of performance and re-evaluation of its external providers. It also asks the company to keep records of those reviews and of any actions that follow. You do not need to be certified to copy the idea.
Sources: Association of National Advertisers, "Majority of Marketers Conduct Formal Agency Performance Evaluations According to New ANA Survey"; ISO 9001:2015, clause 8.4.1, as quoted by Pretesh Biswas
The seven checks
Run every vendor through the same seven questions. Use the same list each year so you can compare.
- Results. What did we ask this vendor to deliver, and what did they deliver? Compare the goals in the contract or brief with real numbers from the last 12 months.
- Cost. What did we pay in total? Add the fee, extra hours, tool charges and pass-through costs. Divide by what you got. Our guide to total cost of ownership shows how to count the full price.
- Contract. When does it renew? What is the notice period? Are there auto-renewal terms or price increases? Check the statement of work against the work actually done.
- Service levels. Did the vendor meet the response times, uptime or delivery dates it promised? A service level agreement turns these into numbers you can check.
- People. Is the team the same as the one you met at the start? Do they know your business? Is there one clear contact?
- Risk. What data does the vendor hold? Do they still meet your security and legal needs? See our notes on third-party risk management.
- Fit for next year. Will our needs change? Could another vendor, or our own team, do this better or cheaper?
Sources: ISO 9001:2015, clause 8.4, as quoted by Pretesh Biswas; ANA survey on agency performance evaluation
Build a simple scorecard
A scorecard turns opinions into something you can compare. Give each check a score from 1 to 5 and write one sentence on why. Weight the checks by what matters most to you.
The ANA survey found that judgment-based measures carry more weight in agency reviews than hard numbers alone. The most common ones were innovation (85 percent), strategy (82 percent), follow-through (82 percent) and fiscal stewardship (81 percent). Teamwork and meeting project goals each came in at 77 percent. So include both kinds: the numbers, and how the work felt.
| Check | Example weight | What a 5 looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Results | 30% | All main goals met or beaten |
| Cost | 20% | Price is fair for the value, no surprise charges |
| Service levels | 15% | Every promised target met |
| People and ideas | 15% | Stable team that brings new ideas |
| Contract and risk | 10% | Clear terms, no open security issues |
| Fit for next year | 10% | Plans match your own |
The weights above are only an example. Set your own before you score, so the numbers cannot be bent to fit a decision you have already made.
Sources: ANA survey on agency performance evaluation, list of common qualitative criteria. The table's weights are an example, not a standard.
Get the vendor's view too
A review that only looks one way misses half the picture. The ANA survey found that 59 percent of firms use two-way, or 360-degree, reviews in which the agency also rates the client. Slow feedback, late approvals and changing briefs from your side hurt results too.
Ask the vendor three questions: what makes your work harder, what do you need from us, and what would you change? Write the answers next to your own scores. Sometimes the fix is on your side.
Sources: ANA survey on agency performance evaluation
Decide: keep, fix or replace
Once the scores are in, sort each vendor into one of three groups.
- Keep. Scores are strong and the cost is fair. Say thanks, and renew on good terms.
- Fix. One or two checks are weak. Share the scorecard, agree on changes, and set a date to check again, such as 90 days.
- Replace. Scores stay low, or trust is gone. Plan the exit and begin a search. A request for proposal keeps the search fair, and a vendor onboarding checklist helps the next vendor start well.
Check the contract before you act. Many agreements need 30 to 90 days of notice, and missing that date can mean another year of fees.
Keep records and repeat
Save each scorecard, the notes from the meeting and the decision. ISO 9001:2015 asks for this kind of record, and it pays off later. Next year you can see whether a vendor improved, and you have a written reason for any change you make.
Put the review on the calendar now. Two months before each renewal date is a good rule, since it leaves time to fix a problem or to search for a new vendor.
Sources: ISO 9001:2015, clause 8.4.1, as quoted by Pretesh Biswas
Sources
- Association of National Advertisers, "Majority of Marketers Conduct Formal Agency Performance Evaluations According to New ANA Survey." ana.net
- ISO 9001:2015, Quality management systems, clause 8.4 Control of externally provided processes, products and services, as explained by Pretesh Biswas (September 2023). preteshbiswas.com