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How to choose an AI consultancy: a buyer’s guide.
There are more AI consulting firms and companies than ever, from household names to one-person outfits. This guide is for owner-founders who want to tell the good ones from the rest: what to ask, what to watch for, and what you should own at the end.
- Plain English
- Fair to every firm, us included
- Use it with anyone
Start here
Why choosing an AI consultancy is hard
AI consultancy is a young trade. Anyone can call themselves an AI consultant, and the label covers very different businesses: management consultancies with AI teams, software agencies, automation freelancers, tool resellers, and firms like ours that build a system into one business at a time. None of these is wrong. The trouble is that they all sound alike on a website.
So judge them on how they work, not how they talk. The questions below work with any AI consulting company in the UK, whatever its size, and they're the same ones we'd want you to ask us.
Before you talk to anyone
Decide what stays with a person
Pricing, complaints, the customers you know by name. A good consultant will ask. It helps to know your answer.
List the accounts you already use
Email, diary, accounts, website, social. What gets built should work with these, not replace them for the sake of it.
The questions
Eight questions to ask any AI consultancy.
Ask them early, before anyone talks about tools. Then listen for the kind of answer underneath each one.
What will you need to learn about my business first?
A good answerSpecifics about your enquiries, quotes, team and customers, before any tool is named.
Who will own the accounts, the data and what you build?
A good answerYou will, in your business’s name, and they’ll put it in writing.
What exactly will be different on a normal Monday?
A good answerNamed jobs that change, not “efficiency” or “transformation”.
What stays with me and my team?
A good answerA clear line between what AI prepares and what a person decides.
How will my team learn to use it?
A good answerPlain-English training, and notes your team can keep.
What happens if we stop working together?
A good answerIt’s on your accounts, so it stays with you, and you can take it anywhere.
What can’t AI do well for a business like mine?
A good answerHonest limits. Be wary of anyone who says “nothing”.
What will it take, and what affects that?
A good answerA plain explanation of the cost and the time for your business, before you commit.
Red flags
Signs to walk away.
Tools before questions
They demo a product before they understand your business.
Promised results
Fixed figures for time or money, before they've seen how you work.
Their platform, their data
Everything lives in their account, and leaving means starting again.
Jargon as a shield
If they can't explain it in plain English, ask why not.
Nobody checking
Replies to your customers going out by default with no person looking first.
No clear handover
It's never clear what you'll have at the end, or how you'd carry on without them.
The proposal
What a good proposal looks like.
Short, specific and written about your business, not a brochure with your name on the front. Look for:
- What they learned, in your words, so you can see they listened.
- The jobs that will change, one by one, and how each will look afterwards.
- What stays with you and your team.
- Who owns the accounts, the data and the system, stated plainly.
- How handover and training will work.
- What it will take and what affects that, explained before you sign.
Ownership
Data, accounts and the system: get it in writing.
This matters more than any feature. If the consultancy holds the keys, you don't really own what you paid for.
| What | Where it should sit | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| The accounts | Email, AI services, website and social, in your business's name | Nobody can switch them off or hold them back |
| Your data | Customers, enquiries and quotes, kept in your own accounts | You can see it, move it and keep it private |
| What gets built | The instructions, workflows and notes, handed over to you | Your team, or another firm, can carry it on |
| The logins | Held by you, with access given to the consultant | Access can be taken back the day you choose |
Our answers
How Rockholm answers these questions
Briefly, because you should ask us the same things. More on what we do and how we work as your AI consultant.
Learning firstWe start by finding where your time goes, with you and your team.
OwnershipYours outright: set up on your own computers and accounts.
What changesReplies, quotes, bookings, follow-ups and marketing, drafted for your yes.
What stays with youEvery decision that matters. It prepares; you say yes.
TrainingPlain-English training for you and your team, with notes to keep.
If we stopIt’s on your accounts, so it stays with you.
LimitsWe’ll say what AI can’t do for you, including phone calls today.
What it takesEvery business is different. After a free chat, we’ll tell you plainly.
Questions
Straight answers about AI consulting firms
What’s the difference between AI consulting firms and AI consulting companies?
In practice, nothing: people use both phrases for the same thing. What matters is the kind of work they do, from strategy advice to building systems, and whether that fits your business.
Should I choose a big firm or a small AI consultancy?
Big firms suit big organisations with boards and procurement. An owner-led business is usually better served by a small consultancy that works directly with the owner and the team.
Does an AI consultancy need to be near me?
Not usually. Most of the work happens on your own computers and accounts, over calls and screen-sharing. Choose on how they work. Rockholm is based in Cambridge and works across the UK.
What should an AI consultancy cost?
It depends on the business and the work, so be wary of anyone who names a figure before they understand yours. A good consultancy explains what affects the cost, plainly, before you commit.
How can I tell if an AI consultant knows what they’re doing?
Ask them to explain their approach in plain English, ask what AI can’t do, and ask what they run it on themselves. Real experience shows in specific answers.
Who should own the data and the accounts?
You should. The accounts should be in your business’s name, your data should stay in them, and what gets built should be handed over to you.
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