Certification
How you earn the mark.
We assess each service you sell against fixed criteria, the same for everyone. You’re judged on what you’ve already done, not on what you say you can do. Here’s what we look at, and how the process runs.
Apply for certification
Download the guidelines (PDF)
Certified per service, not per agency. Free to apply.
Before you apply
The minimum requirements.
These are pass or fail, not points. Newer than 12 months? You can get temporary certification when your management or key people can document relevant experience.
Your clients own their data, accounts and creative work.
A contract with clear notice terms.
A clear scope and deliverables in every agreement.
A binding period of three months at most, unless there’s a good reason for longer.
At least 12 months of active operations, or two relevant, current references.
Open about subcontractors: you state who does the work, and you stay responsible for it.
The assessment
Scored from 0 to 100, one service at a time.
For each service: who does the work, how much experience they have, and what results you can document. You can only do what you can document.
75 or more
With every minimum requirement met: certified for 12 months.
65 to 74
An improvement plan, with exactly what to close.
Below 65
Not yet. We tell you why, and what it would take.
What we don’t look at
Certification isn’t a stamp on everything you do.
It covers the services you are certified for, from the date you are certified. That keeps it fair to you, and honest to clients.
Relationships more than two years back.
Every contract you have ever signed.
Your subcontractors’ skills. You’re responsible for them.
The process
Five steps from application to your first recommendation.
Validation usually takes 10 to 30 days, depending on whether we need more input or have to wait for references.
What to send
An up-to-date standard contract.
2 to 3 cases per service: problem, solution, result and period.
At least 2 references we may contact.
An overview of your team and their roles.
How you onboard and report to clients.
Once you’re certified
What you get, and what you sign up to.
Think you’re among the best? Apply.
Tell us what you’re best at, and for whom. We’ll tell you honestly where you stand.