You're three months into another quarter. ACoS crept up again. Revenue stayed flat. Your agency promised the new campaign structure would fix it, but the reporting still shows the same auto campaigns running on autopilot. You can't get a straight answer about what changed or why.
You've started wondering if it's time to switch agencies. But switching feels risky. What if performance tanks during the handoff? What if the new agency is just more of the same? What if your current agency locks you out of your account?
This guide walks through the decision framework and the transition playbook. It's written from the perspective of an agency that regularly onboards brands coming from other partners. We've seen what goes wrong, what data you need to bring, and what the first 90 days actually look like when done right.
Not every rough patch means it's time to leave. Agencies go through learning curves. Accounts have seasonal swings. Amazon changes the rules constantly. But some patterns signal deeper problems.
If ACoS has risen more than 30% over two consecutive quarters without corresponding revenue growth, something structural is broken. Either the agency isn't adjusting bids, isn't harvesting negative keywords, or is running broad match campaigns without oversight. Revenue should move when ad spend moves. If it doesn't, the campaigns aren't working.
Ask your agency: "What's the plan for next quarter?" If the answer is vague ("we'll keep optimizing"), generic ("we'll focus on high-performing keywords"), or reactive ("let's see what the data says"), that's a red flag. Strong agencies have a hypothesis-driven roadmap. They can explain what they're testing, why, and what success looks like.
You shouldn't have to ask for reports. You shouldn't be the one flagging when ACoS spikes or when a top SKU goes out of stock. Proactive agencies send weekly updates, call out anomalies before you see them, and recommend adjustments before problems compound.
If you're chasing your agency for updates, you're managing them instead of them managing your account. That's backwards.
Amazon rolled out significant changes in 2024-2026: Rufus AI shopping assistant, updated fee structures, AMC maturity, DSP audience targeting improvements. If your agency hasn't mentioned these or adjusted strategy accordingly, they're stuck in 2022. Stagnant agencies don't suddenly get better at staying current.
Agency relationships should free up your time, not create more work. If you're writing the strategy briefs, auditing the campaigns yourself, or doing the competitor research your agency should be doing, you're paying for execution help you're not getting.
This is the most common trap. Your agency asks for one more quarter to prove results. You agree. Another quarter passes. Same story. If you've had this conversation three times, the issue isn't timing. It's capability or alignment. Another quarter won't fix it.
Not every agency problem requires switching. Some issues are communication breakdowns. Some are misaligned expectations. Some are structural capability gaps.
Before you leave, try this conversation:
"What's our strategy for the next six months, and what results should I expect?"
"What's changed in your approach over the last quarter, and why?"
"Can you walk me through our top three campaigns and explain why they're structured this way?"
"What data are you using to make bid decisions, and how often are you reviewing performance?"
If your agency can answer these clearly and confidently, the relationship might be salvageable. If they deflect, blame Amazon, or promise to "look into it," that's a capability issue.
Communication issues are fixable. If your agency is competent but not keeping you updated, escalate to their leadership. Ask for a revised reporting cadence. Set clearer expectations around responsiveness.
Capability issues are harder. If your agency doesn't know how to use AMC, hasn't run DSP campaigns, or can't explain what a search term report is, they're not going to learn those skills overnight. Agencies don't suddenly become sophisticated.
Alignment issues are terminal. If your agency's business model depends on managing 50+ brands with junior staff on rotation, and you want a senior strategist who knows your business deeply, the relationship won't work. The structure doesn't support what you need.
You've spent 18 months training your current agency on your catalog, your goals, your brand voice. Switching means starting over.
That logic keeps brands stuck for years. The cost isn't the time you've already spent. It's the revenue you'll lose by staying with an underperforming partner for another 12 months.
If the relationship isn't working now, it won't fix itself. Sunk costs are already spent. The question is what happens next.
SupplyKick regularly onboards brands transitioning from other agencies. We know what goes wrong during handoffs and how to avoid it.
Connect With Our TeamYou've been through one agency relationship. You know what didn't work. The second time, you should ask different questions.
First-time buyers ask: "How much do you charge?" and "What's your average ACoS?"
Second-time buyers ask:
The first set of questions is about price and results. The second set is about process, continuity, and competence.
Not all agencies operate the same way. Most fall into one of four categories:
Most brands who switch are moving from category 1 or 2 to category 3 or 4. Know which type you need before you start evaluating.
Switching agencies without tanking performance requires a structured handoff. Here's the step-by-step process.
Before you tell your current agency you're leaving, read your contract. Key things to check:
Termination clause: How much notice are you required to give? (30, 60, 90 days is typical.)
Data ownership: Does the contract specify that campaign data, reports, and keyword research belong to you? (It should.)
Automatic renewal: Does your contract auto-renew unless you give notice by a specific date? Miss that date and you're locked in for another term.
Account ownership: Does the contract say the brand owns the Amazon account, or does the agency own it? If the agency owns the account email, that's a major problem. You'll need to transfer ownership before leaving.
If your contract has an auto-renewal clause and you're close to the deadline, act fast. Missing the notice window can lock you into another 6-12 months.
Before you revoke access, document what your agency controls. Log into Seller Central (or Vendor Central) and check:
User permissions (Settings > User Permissions): Who has access to your account? What permissions do they have?
Linked third-party tools: Apps > Manage Your Apps. What tools are connected via API? Some agencies link their own SaaS tools to your account. You'll need to disconnect these.
Amazon DSP access: If your agency runs DSP campaigns, do you have self-serve access or is it managed through their seat? If it's their seat, your audience segments may not be transferable.
Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC): If your agency set up an AMC instance, who owns it? Can you export custom queries and audience definitions?
Brand Registry: Who registered your brand? If your agency did it, you'll need to transfer ownership.
Even if your contract guarantees data ownership, get it before you notify the agency you're leaving. Assume nothing will be shared after you give notice.
From Seller Central / Vendor Central:
From your agency:
Your new agency needs context, not just account access. A strong onboarding brief includes:
Brand overview: Product catalog, hero SKUs, margins, supply chain constraints, seasonality
Business goals: Revenue targets, profitability requirements, new product launches, geographic expansion plans
What didn't work: Why you left your previous agency, what campaigns failed, what strategies you tried that didn't deliver
What you know about your customers: Who buys your products, why they buy, what keywords convert, what content resonates
3-month priorities: What needs to happen in the first 90 days?
12-month vision: Where do you want the business to be a year from now?
The more context you provide upfront, the faster your new agency can ramp. Onboarding should feel like a strategy session, not just an access handoff.
The gold standard for agency transitions is a parallel period where the new agency gets read-only access before they take over live campaigns.
Weeks 1-2: New agency audits the account. Reviews campaign structure, keyword performance, listing quality, inventory health. Builds a transition plan.
Weeks 3-4: New agency shadows live campaigns, asks questions, documents current strategy. Old agency is still making changes but knows the handoff date is coming.
Week 5 (cutover): Old agency access is revoked. New agency takes over campaign management.
Parallel onboarding reduces the performance dip because the new agency isn't learning your account in real time while managing live campaigns. They've already studied it for a month.
Not all brands can afford a month of overlap (it means paying two agencies simultaneously). The alternative is a cold handoff: new agency gets access the day the old agency leaves. Expect a bigger performance dip with this approach.
When the new agency takes over, campaign performance will shift. This is normal.
Set a checkpoint at 90 days. If the relationship isn't working by then, the problem is likely structural (wrong fit, wrong strategy, wrong expectations).
Switching agencies is disruptive. Even when the transition goes smoothly, performance takes time to recover.
When a new agency takes over, they inherit campaign structures they didn't build. Some campaigns are running efficiently. Some are wasteful. Some haven't been touched in months.
The new agency's first job is to understand what's working and what's not. That means pausing low-performers, restructuring keyword groups, adjusting match types, and reallocating budget. All of that creates short-term volatility.
Ad platforms (Amazon included) also have a learning period when campaign settings change. Bids reset. Algorithms recalibrate. It takes 2-4 weeks for performance to stabilize after major restructuring.
The dip isn't a sign you made the wrong choice. It's a sign the new agency is doing the work your old agency should have been doing all along.
At 90 days, ask yourself:
If the answer to most of these is "no," you may have switched to another version of the same problem. If the answer is "yes," you're in the right place.
4-8 weeks for a clean transition with overlap. That includes contract review (week 1), data export (week 1-2), new agency onboarding (week 2-4), parallel period (optional, week 3-4), and cutover (week 5). If you skip the parallel period, the handoff can happen in 2-3 weeks, but expect a bigger performance dip.
No. Campaign data lives in your Seller Central or Vendor Central account, not with your agency. As long as you own the Amazon account (not the agency), you retain all historical data. However, some reporting tools and custom dashboards your agency built won't transfer. Export key reports before you revoke access.
Yes, if budget allows. A 2-4 week parallel period where the new agency has read-only access before taking over reduces the performance dip and shortens ramp time. The new agency can audit your account, ask questions, and build a transition plan before managing live campaigns. If overlapping isn't possible, expect a cold handoff and a longer recovery period.
Only if they own the account. If the primary email address for your Seller Central or Vendor Central account is the agency's email (not yours), they control access. This is a major red flag. Standard practice is the brand owns the account and grants secondary user access to the agency. If your agency owns the account, transfer ownership immediately (contact Amazon Seller Support for help). Never let an agency create your Amazon account under their email.
Request campaign performance reports (last 12 months), search term reports (last 6 months), keyword research, negative keyword lists, campaign structure documentation, and any custom audience segments or SOV benchmarks they track. Even if your contract guarantees data ownership, get it before you notify them you're leaving. Some agencies stop sharing data after receiving notice.
Switching Amazon agencies is a risk. But staying with an underperforming partner is a bigger one. If your current relationship isn't delivering, and you've confirmed the problem isn't fixable, the next step is finding a partner who treats your account like their own business.
SupplyKick has been managing Amazon accounts for 13+ years. We're sellers, not just consultants. We started as a retailer and built an agency around the strategies that worked for us. That operator mindset is what keeps our partner retention rate at 96%.
We'll walk through your account, explain what we'd do differently, and give you an honest assessment of whether a transition makes sense.
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