What does the portfolio actually tell you about the agency?
An agency's portfolio shows what it wants you to see, not the whole truth. Scrutinize it: ask what the agency actually built versus what others did, distinguish design, development, and full ownership, and verify the apps are still live. Ask directly how much of the case involved subcontractors. A good case withstands follow-up questions – an inflated one doesn't.
An agency’s portfolio is built to impress, not to inform. The case studies are carefully chosen, nicely photographed, and written by the agency itself. That makes them marketing, not evidence. Your job as a client is to read between the lines and ask the questions that turn a glossy presentation into useful knowledge about what the agency can actually deliver. Here’s how to do it.
Separate design, development, and full ownership
The first thing you need to know about any case study is what role the agency actually played. A case study can show an app where the agency did everything, or just one part of it:
- Design ownership – the agency drew the interface but someone else built it.
- Development ownership – the agency coded a design that another party had created.
- Full ownership – the agency owned both design and development from idea to launch.
The distinction matters if you’re looking for someone who can take full ownership. An agency that has only built other people’s designs isn’t necessarily strong at shaping a product on its own, no matter how good the finished app looks. Ask directly: “What of this did you do, and what did others do?” and have them point out their contribution concretely.
Verify the apps are still live
A case study can be several years old, and the app behind it can be gone. That an agency built something impressive in 2021 says less if the app has since gone dark. So check that the apps in the portfolio are still running.
It’s simple: look up the app in the App Store or Google Play and check three things.
| Signal | What it suggests |
|---|---|
| Latest update | An app that hasn't been touched in a long time may be abandoned |
| Ratings and reviews | How the app is actually received by users |
| Still in the store | An app pulled from the store says something about the project |
A live, well-maintained app in the portfolio is far stronger evidence than a nice picture of an app no one can download anymore.
Uncover how much was subcontracted
An agency bringing in subcontractors is no problem in itself – it’s common and often sensible. The problem is when a case study is presented as the agency’s own work even though most of it was done by hired-in consultants. Then you risk buying a capability the agency doesn’t actually have in-house, and one that’s gone the day you need it.
So ask directly: “How much of this did your own team do, and how much was subcontracted? Are the same people still with you today?” The answer tells you what you’re actually getting when you hire the agency – their own capacity, or a network they assemble case by case. This ties closely into proper reference checking, where you verify the picture with the client themselves.
A concrete scenario
Say you’re considering an agency whose portfolio shows a lavish banking app. You ask what they did and learn they handled the development, while the design came from an external design agency. You ask who on the team worked on it – and it turns out the two key developers have since left. You look up the app and see it hasn’t been updated in over a year.
None of these discoveries needs to disqualify the agency. But together they change the picture: the case study isn’t the proof of full-service capability you first thought it was. Without the follow-up questions, you’d have bought the impression at face value. With them, you make an informed decision.
A good case study withstands questions
The summary is simple. Ask the concrete questions: What did you build yourselves? Who worked on it, and are they still there? Is the app running, and what was the result? Can I talk to the client?
An agency with real substance answers openly and willingly – it has nothing to hide. If the answers start getting vague, dodgy, or land on “that’s confidential” for reasonable questions, that’s an answer in itself. At Weapp, we’d rather show fewer case studies we owned end to end than many we only touched briefly. Want to go through our portfolio with these questions in hand? Get in touch.
Frequently asked questions
Why isn't it enough to look at polished case studies?
Because case studies are the agency's marketing, not a neutral account. A beautiful case study says nothing about who did what, whether the result held up over time, or whether the app even still exists. Nice images are easy to produce. What you need to know – the agency's actual contribution and what it led to – rarely appears in the case study and has to be drawn out through questions.
How do I tell design responsibility from development responsibility in a case study?
Ask directly: did you do the design, the code, or both? Many case studies show a polished design that the agency only built, or code behind a design someone else made. If you want to judge whether the agency can deliver a full package, you need to know which part of this particular case was theirs. Ask them to point out their contribution concretely, screen by screen if needed.
How do I verify that an app in the portfolio is still in use?
Look it up in the App Store or Google Play and check the latest update, rating, and reviews. An app that hasn't been updated in a long time, or has disappeared from the store, tells you something – either about the project or about the collaboration. You can also ask the agency whether the app is still running and who maintains it today.
Is it wrong for an agency to have used subcontractors?
Not in itself – it's common and often reasonable. The problem arises when a case is presented as the agency's own work even though most of it was done by hired-in help. Then you're buying a capability the agency doesn't actually have in-house. Ask how much was subcontracted and whether the same people are still there, so you know what you're actually getting when you hire them.
Which questions reveal the most about a case study?
The ones that demand concrete answers: What did you build yourselves? Who on your team worked on it, and are they still there? Is the app running, and what was the result for the client? Can I talk to that client? An honest case study withstands all of these questions. If the answers start getting vague or evasive, that's itself an answer worth listening to.