A flashy showreel is the easiest thing for an AI advertising agency to produce and the least useful thing for you to judge them on. Here’s what actually matters before you commit a campaign budget.
Portfolio range across brands, not one style
A single striking style tells you an agency can do one thing well. Range — different tones, different products, different constraints — tells you they can adapt to your brand specifically rather than fitting your brand into their one trick.
Message and strategy capability, not just visuals
Ask how they approach the message and call-to-action, not just the look. Visual quality is achievable by many; a clear strategic point of view about what the ad needs to accomplish is the rarer, more valuable capability.
Transparent pricing
An agency willing to discuss real numbers — the way we do on our pricing page — is telling you something about how they operate. Vague “let’s discuss on a call” responses to a straightforward pricing question are worth noticing.
Platform-format experience
Ask specifically whether they’ve produced multi-format campaigns — hero cut plus vertical, short-form and silent-autoplay versions — rather than just single hero videos. That’s a different, more relevant skill than a single polished piece.
Red flags
No willingness to discuss timeline or price, no described process beyond “we use AI,” and no full case studies to review are all worth treating as caution signs. If you’re evaluating options, see our AI commercial production page or reach out with questions.
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