Short answer
Pitch the result the client wants, such as more ad variations, faster turnaround or a steady monthly volume, not “AI”. Offer a small paid pilot with a fixed scope. Put the number of videos, the revision rounds and the price in a one-page proposal, and answer objections with samples and process rather than claims. Copy the template below.
Pitch the result, not the tool
Two guides agree on the framing. Cloud Campaign says to anchor on what stays the same for the client (their voice, their standards, their approval step), what changes and what they gain. PonPon, writing on Sunra (April 2026), advises selling outcomes rather than “AI video”. Both are written by vendors, so treat them as opinion, not data.
In practice, “you get 12 ad versions a month instead of 3, each reviewed by you before it goes live” lands better than “we now use an AI video generator”.
Offer a pilot
Both guides recommend starting small. Cloud Campaign suggests a one-month pilot on a defined share of the work, compared with the month before. PonPon suggests two or three clients who need more video, measured over about 30 days.
Pick one client, one product and one format, for example six 15-second ads. Agree the measure in advance (cost per video, turnaround, or the client’s own ad results) and a date to review it.
A pilot is also the cheapest answer to “will this work for us?” On Fabeo’s pricing, a rendered minute is $3, or about $2.60 on the Agency plan’s included minutes. Six 15-second ads come to 1.5 rendered minutes, plus any re-renders. Your fee should cover your time too: see how to quote AI video.
The one-page proposal (copy this)
Pilot: AI-produced video ads for [Client]
Goal: [more ad variations / faster turnaround / lower cost per video], measured by [metric] on [date].
Scope: [number] videos of [length] for [product], in [formats, for example 9:16], using [Client]’s approved brand assets. Each video has a voiceover and background music.
Process: 1) A written brief from our kickoff call. 2) We produce a first cut and check it against our internal checklist. 3) You review it on a single review link. 4) Approved videos are delivered for download.
Revisions: [2] rounds per video. A round is one consolidated list of notes on the review link. Changes to the audience, script, product or format are quoted separately.
Timeline: First cuts [X] business days after the brief is approved.
Price: [amount] for the pilot, and [amount] for each additional round.
Disclosure: The videos are produced with AI tools and reviewed by our team. We will label them as AI-generated wherever a platform or the law requires it.
Next step: Sign off by [date] to start on [date]. After the pilot, we review the results together and agree whether to continue.
Fill in the brackets from your client brief and your revision terms. The template is a starting point, not legal advice.
Objections and honest answers
“Will it look cheap or fake?”
Show samples made with the client’s own brand assets, not a generic demo, as Cloud Campaign advises. Be straight about the limits: PonPon says AI video suits social content, performance ads and concept work, and isn’t there yet for broadcast or cinematic hero content. If that’s what the client wants, say it isn’t the right tool.
“Why am I paying agency rates if a tool makes it?”
The client pays for the brief, the script, the brand checks, the review and the accountability, not the render. Show the scope line by line.
“Will our audience know it’s AI?”
Some will. Agree on disclosure up front and follow each platform’s rules.
“What if we hate it?”
That’s what the pilot is for: a small scope, defined revisions and a review date.
“Can’t we just do it ourselves?”
Some clients will. What you add is the workflow: the brief, brand consistency across many videos, review and delivery. Don’t argue the point; offer the pilot.
“Who reviews it before it goes live?”
The client does, on a review link, before anything is published. Fabeo review links carry Fabeo’s branding, not yours, so tell the client what they’ll see. A client approval workflow keeps the sign-offs in one place.
Disclose AI use
Cloud Campaign argues against switching to AI quietly, because a client who finds out later may read it as concealment. PonPon says to disclose whenever the client asks, and to present AI as a tool your team directs. Say it in the proposal, as the template does.
FAQ
Should I charge less for AI video?
Not automatically. Price the value and your work. The quoting guide has per-video, batch and retainer examples.
How long should a pilot run?
About 30 days is the common suggestion.
What if the pilot results are mixed?
Say so in the review. A pilot that shows what the tool doesn’t suit is still a useful result.
Next step
See how Fabeo works for agencies, with client workspaces, brand assets and review links, and compare plans on the pricing page.