It’s that time of year when not only is the temperature heating up, but also marketing planning for next year. While summer is a respite for some, it’s just the quiet before the storm for those gearing up for an agency review, especially those wanting to change things up heading into a new year. If that’s your brand, things might feel slightly different this time since our friend AI has entered the scene. With that, here’s an AI image that was generated from the prompt, “AI robot sitting at a desk doing a marketing job, office setting is hip and colorful,” courtesy of Midjourney.

According to data released by Forrester, more than 60% of decision-makers at US agencies report that their agency is already using generative AI. If most US agencies are already using generative AI, it seems that it’s a worthwhile area to consider in an RFP.  Not just generative AI, but any type of AI. We discuss the different kinds of AI in the eBook we created earlier this year, Social Media & AI. 

Honestly, depending on how the questions are asked to marketers, when they are asked, and by whom, the research on the impact of AI on different marketing areas will vary. Directionally, this data compiled from eMarketer feels realistic. Though much of the chatter is about brands using AI to create their next TV ad, when it comes down to it, not all brands can play in that area. 

The chart below shows how AI is likely integrated into marketing tactics day-to-day. You can glean from this that, for most marketing professionals, AI is working to automate, personalize, and optimize marketing experiences.

Below are questions we’ve carefully crafted to provoke thought and stimulate discussion, making the process of AI integration more engaging and thoughtful. These questions are not just a checklist, but a guide to help you shape your understanding of how AI can be incorporated into your current or future agency relationship. Although it might be intuitive to many, we did include the “why” behind each question.

1. Is AI included in your current workflows for content creation, community management, influencer, analytics, or media buying, and if so, how?

   Why: Ask this to understand better which services will incorporate AI and in what capacity.

2. To follow up on the question above, how do you communicate with clients when AI is used in the services outlined in a scope of work?

   Why? Ask this to gauge how transparent an agency will be when AI is used.

3. Do you invest in AI tools? What AI tools would be used for the social media services outlined (ChatGPT, Midjourney, etc.)? How do you stay up to date on AI tools?

   Why: Ask these questions to see the degree to which an agency invests and the focus areas of AI efforts.

4. Specific to image generation, are there cost efficiencies obtained in using AI? Are there any other areas where efficiencies may be experienced (or not)?

   Why? Ask these questions to see how AI impacts both cost and performance.

5. Please share at least 3 examples of how AI has been incorporated into deliverables, specifically content creation.

   Why? Ask this to see if an agency is just talking about AI or actually using AI.

6. Where do you see AI going in the next year?

   Why? Ask this to see if an agency has a pulse on trends within AI.

These questions will, if anything, help you start thinking about AI and how it can be integrated into an agency relationship. Since late 2022, we’ve made AI an agency priority. We consistently test, learn, and integrate AI into our workflows when appropriate. If you’d like to chat more on how you can integrate AI into your next Agency RFP, please contact us. We promise a human will respond, not a robot.