Why Even the Best Agencies Decay Over Time

The Gist

• Agencies start strong but decay as A-teams move to newer clients
• AI agents avoid this decay by maintaining consistent performance
• The agency model’s built-in decay function contrasts with AI’s reliability

• Even the best agencies decay over time due to the fundamental nature of their business model, where the A-team moves on to newer clients and the account is handed to junior staff.
• AI agents do not decay over time; they provide consistent performance and attention regardless of the duration of the engagement.
• The decay of agency relationships is not due to bad agencies but rather a failure of incentives, as agencies prioritize new clients over mature accounts.
• AI agents are particularly advantageous for workflows where consistency and reliability are more critical than creative brilliance.
• The traditional agency model of delivering premium service initially and then allowing quality to drop is becoming obsolete due to the rise of AI agents.
• The best agencies will adapt by integrating AI to handle consistency while humans focus on high-judgment work.

• Use agencies for specialized expertise and burst capacity but be aware of the inevitable decay in quality over time.
• Experiment with AI agents for workflows where consistency and reliability are more important than creative brilliance.
• Structure contracts and relationships with agencies around the reality of their decay function.
• Monitor agency performance closely and be prepared to transition to AI agents when agency quality declines.