How do I evaluate website redesign case studies and ROI claims from agencies?

Evaluating website redesign case studies requires checking for baseline data, a measurement window of at least six months, and revenue-linked metrics like lead volume or sales-qualified lead (SQL) conversion rate rather than traffic-only numbers. A case study that reports a traffic increase without showing what happened to conversions and pipeline is not demonstrating return on investment (ROI).

Start with the baseline. Forrester research found that 8 of 11 enterprise redesigns launched without documented baseline metrics, which makes any "before and after" claim unreliable. Look for case studies that read like a test report: a stated hypothesis, the specific changes made, the measurement methodology, and results tracked over time. Traffic metrics alone are insufficient. A 50% traffic increase paired with flat lead numbers means the redesign attracted the wrong audience or failed to convert the right one. The metrics that matter for B2B SaaS are form conversion rate (industry benchmark sits between 1% and 3%), SQL volume, pipeline velocity, and customer acquisition cost (CAC). Be skeptical of any agency claiming meaningful organic ranking improvements within 30 to 60 days, because search engine optimization (SEO) gains from a redesign typically take three to six months to materialize. Finally, compare multiple case studies from the same agency rather than relying on a single cherry-picked success story, and ask whether the results are repeatable across different industries and company sizes.