Insights · Choosing a consultant
AI consultant vs AI agency vs doing it yourself
Three ways to bring AI into a small business. Each suits a different starting point, and picking the wrong one is the most common reason AI projects stall.
The short answer. Do it yourself if you have one clear, simple task and someone on the team who likes setting up software. Hire an AI agency if you already know exactly what you want built. Hire an AI consultant if you don't yet know where AI would help most, or if the work spans several systems or sensitive data. The best option for many SMEs is a consultant who can also build, so the diagnosis and the delivery stay with the same people.
The three options at a glance
| Do it yourself | AI agency | AI consultant | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best when | One simple task, a keen person in-house | You know exactly what you want built | You're not sure where AI fits yet |
| Starts with | A tool | Your brief | Your workflows |
| Main cost | Your team's time | Build fee | Advice fee, plus build if included |
| Main risk | Stalls when that person gets busy | Builds the wrong thing well | A plan that never gets built |
Doing it yourself
Off-the-shelf AI tools are good enough now that a capable person can automate a lot without outside help. Writing first drafts, summarising meetings, sorting a shared inbox: these can often be set up in an afternoon.
It works when: the task lives inside one or two tools, the data isn't sensitive, and someone has time set aside to look after it.
It goes wrong when: the person who set it up leaves or gets busy, nobody else knows how it works, and staff quietly start pasting client data into personal AI accounts. If you go this way, put a simple AI policy in place first. Our guide to AI governance covers the basics.
Hiring an AI agency
An AI agency builds things: chatbots, automations, integrations, custom tools. Many are very good at it.
It works when: you've already worked out the problem and can write a clear brief. "Build an agent that reads incoming booking emails and creates the job in our system" is a brief an agency can deliver.
It goes wrong when: the brief is "we want to use AI". An agency is paid to build, so the natural answer to every problem is something to build. You can end up with a well-made chatbot that answers questions nobody was asking, while the admin that really eats your week stays untouched.
Hiring an AI consultant
An AI consultant starts with your business, not a product. They look at how work moves through your team, measure where the time goes, and tell you which tasks AI can take on reliably and which it can't.
It works when: you know time is being lost but not exactly where, you've tried AI tools that didn't stick, or the work touches several systems or sensitive data.
It goes wrong when: the consultant only advises. You get a good report, then have to find, brief and manage a separate builder. Detail is lost in the handover, and the plan often sits in a drawer. Ask any consultant who will build what they recommend before you sign.
The hybrid: a consultant who builds
Some firms do both: diagnose first, then build what the diagnosis finds. For a small business this is often the simplest route. There's one relationship, one team that understands your work, and nobody to blame but the people who made the recommendation.
The trade-off is that a consultant who builds may be less neutral about whether you need a build at all. The fix is the same as with any adviser: ask for the before-and-after numbers, and ask what they'd tell you not to do.
How to decide
Answer three questions:
- Do you know which task you want AI to do? If not, start with a consultant or a readiness assessment. If yes, carry on.
- Does it involve more than two systems, or sensitive data? If yes, use an agency or a consultant who builds. If no, carry on.
- Has someone on the team got the time and interest to own it? If yes, try it yourself first. If no, bring in help.
If you're still not sure, our free AI scorecard takes about 4 minutes and tells you which stage you're at and what to do first.
Where Arx Certa fits
We're the hybrid. Arx Certa is an AI consultancy for UK SMEs, based in Manchester, made up of engineers. We start with an assessment of your workflows, then build what it finds. If something isn't worth automating, or you could do it yourself with a tool you already pay for, we'll say so. For more on picking between firms, see how to choose an AI consultant.
Frequently asked
Is an AI consultant more expensive than an agency?
Not necessarily. Consultants charge for diagnosis, which agencies often skip. But skipping it can cost more if you build the wrong thing. Compare the total cost of getting a working result, not the first invoice. Our guide to what AI consultants cost explains how.
Can we start ourselves and bring in help later?
Yes. Many businesses do. Keep a note of what you set up, which accounts it uses and what data it touches. That makes it far quicker for anyone you bring in later to pick up.
Should we hire someone in-house for AI?
For most SMEs, not yet. A full-time AI hire makes sense once you have several automations running and a pipeline of more. Before that, outside help for the first projects is usually cheaper and quicker.