Every agency pitch sounds the same. “We’ll grow your bookings.” “We understand the beauty and wellness space.” “We’re data-driven.” None of that tells you whether the person managing your Instagram ads has ever run a campaign for a salon in Dubai, or whether the “SEO specialist” on your account has read a single line of Dubai Health Authority (DHA) advertising guidance. If you run a salon or aesthetic clinic in the UAE and you’re comparing agencies right now, the pitch deck is the least useful part of the conversation.
Start with proof, not promises
Before anything else, ask for evidence specific to your category. A generic “we’ve worked with 200+ clients across industries” tells you nothing about whether they can navigate salon booking software integrations, clinic advertising compliance, or the seasonal patterns of UAE beauty demand. Ask for the names of current clients in your exact category — salons if you run a salon, licensed clinics if you run a clinic — and ask what results those accounts are seeing right now, not a case study from three years ago.
Six questions worth asking every agency
1. What does reporting actually look like?
Ask to see an actual monthly report, not a mockup. You want to know if it shows bookings and revenue-linked metrics, or just vanity numbers like impressions and follower counts. If you’ve already worked out roughly what campaigns should cost, our 2026 pricing guide is a useful benchmark to bring into this conversation, so you can tell whether a quoted retainer matches the scope of work on offer.
2. What happens if I want to leave?
Contract length and exit terms matter more than most owners realize until they’re stuck in one. Ask about notice periods, ownership of ad accounts and creative assets, and whether you keep access to historical performance data if you switch providers.
3. Who specifically will work on my account?
The person in the sales call is rarely the person doing the work. Ask who will actually manage your ads, write your content, and answer your questions week to week — and how many other accounts that person handles at the same time.
4. Do you understand Dubai Health Authority (DHA) advertising rules?
If you run a clinic, this isn’t optional. Claims about results, before-and-after imagery, pricing promotions, and even certain wording around treatments fall under DHA advertising regulation. An agency that can’t speak to this in specifics — not just “yes we know about that” — is a compliance risk you’re taking on, not just a marketing one. Our clinic marketing guide covers what compliant campaigns actually look like.
5. What’s your realistic timeline?
Be wary of anyone promising fast, dramatic results in the first month. Ask instead what the first 30, 60, and 90 days typically look like, and what early signals (not final results) you should expect to see at each stage.
6. What happens when something isn’t working?
Every campaign hits a flat patch. Ask how the agency identifies underperformance and what their process is for adjusting — this question tells you more about how they’ll actually work with you than anything in the pitch.
- Guarantees a specific number of bookings or leads
- Can’t name a current client in your category
- Long-term contract with no clear exit terms
- Vague or evasive answers about DHA compliance for clinic accounts
- Reporting built entirely around impressions and reach, not bookings
- Pressure to sign before you’ve seen a sample report or spoken to a reference
The fit matters as much as the credentials
Two agencies can have similar case studies and completely different working styles. Some move fast and expect you to move fast with them; others are slower and more structured. Neither is wrong, but a mismatch here is often what actually breaks a relationship, long after the credentials checked out. Ask how they prefer to communicate, how often you’ll actually speak to a person versus receiving an automated report, and how they handle disagreement when you don’t like a recommendation.