Redesigning the Agency Value Model

Are we selling time? Or solving important business problems?

If the answer is the latter, then it’s time to rethink how that value is defined, delivered and captured.

That’s why the VoxComm Board commissioned Redesigning the Agency Value Model, a new guide for agencies navigating the shift from effort-based revenue to clearly defined, outcome-led, scalable solutions.

The report opens with a foreword by Tim Williams, Founder of Ignition Consulting Group, and includes practical guidance from Brian Kessman, Founder of Lodestar Agency Consulting. Together, they provide a clear-eyed view of why legacy models are under pressure and what leaders can do about it. 

Inside, the guide addresses:

• Will clients (and Procurement) accept a new pricing model?
• How do we transition long-standing retainer accounts?
• How do we prove the value of AI-enabled work when clients expect it to cost less?
• Can performance-based pricing work when clients want predictability?
• Can advisory expertise be monetised rather than given away in pitches? 

Redesigning the Agency Value Model is a roadmap for change across the agency community. The right path will look different for every agency, but standing still is not an option.

We encourage you and your leadership team to dive in and use this guidance to help future-proof your business.

Read the official press release below. 

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VoxComm issues call for agencies to transform business models in response to AI

New report argues agencies must move beyond time-based models as AI undermines legacy remuneration based on selling hours

2 March 2026 - VoxComm, the global voice of agencies, has issued new guidance designed to help agencies ensure they are properly rewarded for helping brands grow in an AI-driven market.  

Redesigning the Agency Value Model outlines why pricing changes alone are no longer sufficient and recommends that agencies adopt solution-led productised offerings as AI challenges traditional ways of working and cuts revenue by reducing hours and fees. 

Aimed at CEOs, CFOs, and leadership teams, the report seeks to encourage agencies to decouple revenue and profit from staffing numbers and is designed as a guide for change across the agency community.

The report includes insights and examples from agency brands that have already started on this path, including 72andSunny, BOND, Bond Brand Loyalty, Droga5 / Accenture Song, FIG, Monks, Time Under Tension, VCCP and We. Communications. 

Redesigning the Agency Value Model highlights the urgent need for a new business model if agencies are to remain financially viable, one that moves them from staffed services to business outcomes.

The agency of the near future will need to sell productised solutions designed around business outcomes rather than time and people, codifying expertise into repeatable solutions that have a track record of delivering proven results for clients.

The report identifies four recurring patterns agencies experience along the journey – Busy By Design, Scaling with Strain, Expertly Undervalued leading to the ultimate goal Distinctly Scalable. At the final stage agencies are built around expertise and outcomes rather than effort, pricing aligns with impact using a range of fixed, subscription or performance models and revenue has become decoupled from headcount.

Agencies that have already embarked on this journey report increased profitability, improved client retention and growth, higher client satisfaction scores and stronger campaign performance.

“AI, automation and evolving procurement dynamics are not a regional nuance, but global forces reshaping our industry. European agencies compete globally, and our clients operate across borders, so our response must therefore be equally global and coordinated. Across every market, we see that a staffing-based model cannot reward effectiveness and efficiency we bring to clients in an AI-enabled world. We are the only industry that is being paid on the time it spends and not on the value we create. If we continue to define value by hours, we risk undermining the very innovation and expertise our clients rely on. It is time to bring this conversation to our clients and rethink together how agency value is evaluated. Both sides benefit from greater clarity, accountability and outcome-led models.

By redefining how value is created, captured and rewarded, we protect creative competitiveness and secure the long-term sustainability of our industry,” said Christian de la Villehuchet, President of the European Association of Communications Agencies, member of VoxComm.

Solution-based approaches already in market include:

• Moving from staffing plans to modular solutions priced for impact
• Turning expertise into repeatable AI-enabled solutions that scale
• Replacing projects with a subscription combining talent, technology, and outcomes

The transition will also require culture change so that agency teams focus on outcomes, not tasks, providing even greater incentives to take advantage of AI’s ability to drive faster results.

Redesigning the Agency Value Model opens with a foreword by Tim Williams, Founder of Ignition Consulting Group, followed by practical guidance from Brian Kessman, Founder of Lodestar Agency Consulting. It draws on interviews with agency leaders and patterns observed across hundreds of commercial model transformation engagements, offering practical roadmaps that agencies can use to redesign their business models.

 “Pricing is the last step in making the transition. Agencies must first redefine what they sell before changing how they price and strong value definitions are critical. Vague terms such as ‘full-service’ invite commoditization, while productized solutions can be differentiated and repeatable,” says report author Kessman. “Repeatable solutions enable outcome-based pricing. They build a body of proof, reducing risk for agencies and increasing credibility for clients.”

Addressing clients’ concerns

The report also addresses the most common concerns agency leaders raise when considering a shift away from time-based models, including:

1.     How will clients react if we change the commercial model?

Client reactions depend less on the pricing mechanism and more on how clearly value and outcomes are defined. When agencies lead with clearer accountability and proven solutions to their clients’ most critical problems, taking on ownership of business outcomes, clients are often more open to change than expected. 

2.     Where does client pushback typically come from?

Pushback is rarely about price alone. It more commonly stems from uncertainty around scope, predictability and risk – particularly when agencies attempt to change pricing without first changing how value is framed and communicated. When those elements are unclear, price becomes the default focus of negotiation. 

3.     Why do senior clients often respond more positively than expected?

Senior decision-makers are typically less focused on hours and deliverables and more concerned with outcomes, progress, and being able to justify the spend internally. Many respond positively because solution-led models reduce ambiguity and shift the conversation from analysing hours to impact – making value easier to recognise because it is tied to decisions and momentum toward a result, not just activity.

4.     Why do long-standing clients often push back less than anticipated?

Existing clients are usually defending stability and managing risk rather than the hours themselves. When agencies introduce more structured, repeatable, proven solutions with clear scope boundaries and a track record of outcomes, clients often feel more in control and less exposed. That clarity and delivery accountability replace the need to monitor effort, reducing anxiety and strengthening the relationship. 

5.     How are agencies transitioning existing retainer relationships?

While some agencies can quickly replace fee-based retainers, many find that larger, more traditional clients prefer a more gradual transition. Agencies introduce solution-based engagements alongside existing agreements, allowing clients to experience the same work structured in a different way. As the value of the new approach becomes clearer, confidence grows, and hours and effort become less relevant as a point of comparison, easing pricing pressure over time.

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