• by Scott Savitt , Op-Ed Contributor, Yesterday

Let's be honest: The agency value proposition is in crisis.

AI tools are now generating polished copy, creative variations, and optimized workflows in seconds. In an environment of tightening budgets and rising ROI scrutiny, the flawless delivery that once defined a great agency, the ability to get work done faster, cheaper, and without error, is rapidly becoming an automated commodity.

This shift is the industry’s wake-up call. Agencies focused only on AI for speed and perfect outputs are missing the only thing that truly matters to clients: measurable business outcomes.

Flawless execution is no longer a differentiator; it’s table stakes.

The real differentiator is performance: whether campaigns drive leads, increase sales, or deepen engagement. Agencies that treat AI as a tool to simply crank out reports and deliver work will be commoditized. The winners will be those who own the entire customer journey and link perfect delivery directly to tangible business outcomes.

It’s time to shift from outputs to outcomes. 

Make The Full Journey Visible 

Don't let delivery end with the campaign launch. Agencies must track every interaction, from first impression to final conversion, to see where audiences are leaning in, dropping off, and engaging across channels. It requires access to the brand data and systems that shape the customer journey. This visibility, and the tighter collaboration it requires with clients, is how "on time and on budget" evolves into true business performance. 

For the V Foundation for Cancer Research (v.org), optimizing the digital journey helped ensure more people not only found their site, but also engaged with and supported the mission long term. By partnering on the systems behind that journey, website, donations, CRM, DAM, media/analytics, it made it possible to link platforms directly to performance. By measuring the full funnel and refining key touchpoints, we turned visibility into meaningful donor action. It wasn’t about flawless execution alone; it was about continuously aligning delivery with business outcomes.

Use AI To Accelerate Testing, Not Just Delivery

The worst misuse of generative AI is using it only for speed. Instead of simply generating infinite variations, agencies should be using AI to fuel smarter experimentation. This means rapid A/B testing and micro-optimizations that allow us to quickly and continuously refine the journey, a crucial strategic function that AI makes scalable.

Close The Loop With Continuous Optimization

Clients don’t need more recap calls; they need partners who optimize in real time. Data without action is just reporting, and boring reporting at that. Agencies must go beyond collecting insights to acting on them in real time: shifting spend, refining creative, or tweaking user experiences as they happen. AI can uncover trends at scale, but it still takes human teams to interpret, prioritize, and apply changes that align with client goals. Continuous optimization should be the expectation, not the exception.

Accessibility As A Core Business Driver

Accessibility isn’t just a compliance checkbox, it's a driver of performance. A digital experience that excludes segments of your audience can’t maximize outcomes. Inclusive design broadens reach and improves usability for all, which directly impacts traffic, engagement, and conversion. Accessibility and performance aren’t separate conversations; they’re two sides of the same responsibility.

AI has made efficiency a baseline. It will continue to perfect delivery, but delivery can’t be the finish line. The real measure of success is owning client business performance. If agencies can’t prove they move the business, they’ll be replaced by the very tools they brag about using.