OpenAI’s newest AI-powered tool, Sora, is expected to catalyze changes in the business models and pricing structures of creative agencies. The tool can generate original videos up to one minute long, providing agencies with the means to test ideas and visualize concepts during the ideation phase.
Jason Snyder, CTO of IPG agency Momentum Worldwide, indicated that this could lead to agencies adjusting their pricing structures and service offerings. Instead of only charging clients for the final product, fees for ideation and “prompt engineering” would be integrated into agency rate cards.
While other text-to-video tools already exist in the market, such as Gen2 by Runway and LTX Studio by Lightricks, Sora’s potential impact is causing waves. Some speculate that these tools could lead to agencies controlling a larger portion of production budgets. However, concerns about the impacts of AI on employment are also emerging.
Sources said that tools like Sora are not necessarily “job killers,” but they do necessitate a shift in job skills. Paul Roetzer, founder and CEO of the Marketing AI Institute, suggested brands may begin to bring more creative tasks in-house due to the democratization of AI tools. This could also prompt agencies to move towards more in-house operations rather than outsourcing to vendors or contractors.
Furthermore, as new tools become available, agencies may face a rise in expectations from their brand partners and concerns over pricing. Mike Barrett, chief strategy officer at Supernatural, suggested agencies seize this chance to build their AI capabilities.
However, with an oversaturated market of creative services and brands moving tasks in-house, Barrett warns of downward pressure on the industry’s pricing abilities. Roetzer suggested agencies mitigate this by conducting an AI impact assessment and becoming proactive in presenting creative ideas to clients.
Despite these challenges, the rise of AI offers opportunities for agencies to anticipate client needs and expand their roles. For example, Momentum is introducing the role of “synthetic media producer” responsible for ethically and responsibly handling synthetic content.
Source: Sora’s Expected Impact on Marketing Creative, Pricing, Staff .
