# 11ADS SME and Startup Sales Playbook

Proposed commercial strategy · 13 October 2026 · Internal use

We sell two services: recurring local marketing for UAE small businesses, and message testing, launch campaigns and ongoing growth for consumer startups. Choose the package by the work the customer needs and the total budget they can sustain. Do not sell the same service more cheaply by hiding work or media costs.

Prices below are proposed starting fees for the stated baseline scope. They are not validated market rates. Before issuing a binding proposal, delivery must confirm supplier quotes, capacity, permissions and the cost limit. Landing pages invite enquiries and show these starting prices; they do not accept payment or promise a booking.

## The quick routing rule

| Customer situation | Start with |
| --- | --- |
| Local business can provide useful footage and wants help running ads | Local A Essentials |
| Local business needs people to make advertising content | Local B Creator |
| Local business has a proven offer and wants influencer posts as well | Local C Influence |
| Consumer startup has a working product but needs to test its messages | Startup A Message Test |
| Consumer startup knows its audience and offer and is ready to launch | Startup B Launch Sprint |
| Consumer startup already has paid acquisition data and needs regular new ads | Startup C Growth Programme |

A creator makes content. An influencer also publishes to their audience. A creator-made advertising video does not include influencer posting unless the proposal says so.

## Ladder one 11ADS Local

Start in one compact Dubai area with non-medical beauty businesses and fitness studios. Include selected cafés only when their average sale, repeat purchasing and capacity make the total budget sensible. These are initial commercial hypotheses, not proven best-performing categories. Target existing operating businesses as well as new outlets. Do not start with medical clinics, medical aesthetics, financial services or complex regulated offers.

| Version | Exact initial target | Service fee | Media planning range per month | Separate setup | Starting ongoing budget before VAT |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| A Local Essentials | One location; owner or team supplies usable footage and answers enquiries | AED 2,900 monthly | AED 1,500–3,000 | AED 900 once | AED 4,400 monthly |
| B Local Creator | One location; business has a clear offer but cannot produce good advertising videos | AED 6,900 monthly | AED 3,000–6,000 | AED 1,500 once | AED 9,900 monthly |
| C Local Influence | Proven offer at one location or up to two nearby branches; influencer audience fit matters | From AED 11,900 monthly | AED 6,000–12,000 | AED 2,000 once | AED 17,900 monthly |

Media ranges are planning recommendations, not minimum platform requirements or promised results. Starting ongoing budget means fee plus the lower recommended media budget; setup and creator hospitality are extra. All fees exclude applicable VAT. Confirm tax treatment on the final invoice. Do not apply VAT assumptions indiscriminately to every platform invoice.

### Local A Essentials

We edit two short advertising videos using customer-supplied footage and make six additional versions. We manage one paid channel, set up basic enquiry tracking where the existing system allows it, and hold one monthly review. The customer records footage using our checklist. No creator visit, filming crew or influencer posting is included.

Use A when the customer can supply footage on time. If footage is unusable, quote production separately or move to B. Start with a paid month; continue monthly with 14 days notice before renewal. The first month costs at least AED 5,300 before VAT: fee, setup and AED 1,500 media.

### Local B Creator

We commission two creator-made advertising videos and eight additional versions. We manage one paid channel, optimise weekly and review the business outcome monthly. Up to two creators are included. The customer provides product access, a suitable location and one approver. These videos do not include publication to creators' followers.

Use B when the customer needs production support and can sustain at least AED 9,900 monthly before VAT. Agree a three-month programme, billed monthly in advance. Starting first-month expenditure is AED 11,400 before VAT, including setup and recommended media.

### Local C Influence

We commission two creator-made advertising videos and two locally relevant influencer video posts, plus twelve additional versions of agreed source videos. We manage up to two paid channels and report by branch where the customer's tracking supports it. Maximum four participants and two nearby branches in the baseline scope. Each influencer post means one video on one agreed platform; stories and cross-posting are not automatically included.

Use C only when the business has a proven offer and a clear reason to buy audience access. Check audience location and fit, not merely follower count. Confirm talent and rights before final pricing. Creator hospitality is paid by the customer. Agree three months, billed monthly in advance. Starting first-month expenditure is AED 19,900 before VAT, including setup and recommended media.

## Ladder two 11ADS Launch

Target consumer apps, D2C products and consumer services in the UAE. Seek funded or revenue-generating businesses with a live or launch-ready product, a working customer journey, a named decision maker and a ring-fenced campaign budget. Funding stage alone is not qualification. B2B, financial products, second-country launches and heavily regulated campaigns require separate assessment.

| Version | Exact initial target | Service fee | Media planning range | Term | Starting total before VAT |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | --- | ---: |
| A Message Test | Working product; unsure which messages or hooks work | AED 14,500 | AED 5,000–10,000 across the sprint | Six weeks | AED 19,500 across six weeks |
| B Launch Sprint | Agreed audience and offer; ready for a coordinated UAE launch | From AED 34,500 | AED 15,000–30,000 across the sprint | Eight weeks | AED 49,500 across eight weeks |
| C Growth Programme | Already acquiring customers; usable data and ongoing creative demand | AED 19,500 monthly | AED 20,000–50,000 monthly | Three months | AED 39,500 monthly plus setup |

### Startup A Message Test

One workshop sets the audience, offer and three message hypotheses. Deliver two creator-made advertising videos and two founder or product videos edited from customer footage. Produce twelve additional versions. Manage one paid channel. Weeks one and two cover preparation and production; weeks three to six cover controlled testing and learning. Deliver a report showing what was tested, what the evidence supports and what to do next.

This tests messages; it does not prove product-market fit or establish a complete go-to-market strategy. Tracking must already work. Minor verification and agreed adjustments are included; an app measurement integration, new website or complex tracking build is separately scoped. Setup is included in the sprint price.

### Startup B Launch Sprint

One workshop and a launch plan. Deliver four creator-made advertising videos, two local influencer video posts and eighteen additional versions. Up to six participants. Manage one paid channel, optimise weekly and deliver a handover playbook. Weeks one to three cover preparation, production and approvals; weeks four to eight cover launch and testing. Confirm exact dates in the proposal; delayed customer inputs move the schedule.

Scope is UAE, one agreed product offer, one paid channel and one language strategy. A second channel or country is extra. Influencer posts are one video on one agreed platform each. Talent selection, posting and permissions are confirmed before booking. Setup is included.

### Startup C Growth Programme

Deliver six creator-made or product advertising videos and eighteen additional versions monthly, with up to four creators. Product videos use customer-supplied footage. Manage up to two paid channels with weekly optimisation and a monthly review. Influencer posting is not included by default. Select the content mix from actual learning; six files do not have to involve six different people.

Use C when the customer has conversion data, an agreed acquisition objective and a monthly budget of at least AED 39,500 before VAT. Setup is AED 2,000, waived only when the same tracking setup transfers from our sprint. Starting first-month expenditure is AED 41,500 before VAT when setup applies. Review contribution and acquisition cost before recommending renewal. Do not upsell a weak launch merely to secure a retainer.

## What every package includes and excludes

Source videos are up to 30 seconds, vertical 9:16. One concept decision and one consolidated edit round per source video are included. Reshoots caused by our failure to meet the approved brief are our responsibility; a changed customer brief is new scope. Founder videos and footage-led packages rely on customer-supplied footage.

Additional versions are derivatives of an approved source: a different opening, caption, offer, cutdown, language caption or format. They are not new concepts or new shoots. English and Arabic caption adaptations can be selected within the version allowance. Arabic performance, dubbing, other languages, complex compositing and synthetic scenes require a specific quote. Qualified Arabic review must be costed when Arabic is selected. Testing prioritises a manageable subset; making eighteen versions does not mean running eighteen simultaneous experiments.

Commissioned creator videos and influencer assets include proposed UAE paid use for 90 days from first paid activation, which must start within 30 days of approval. The final contract records permitted channels, modifications and publication. Source-footage rights must be confirmed. Platform advertising authorisations are obtained separately and campaigns stop at contractual expiry. No real-person voice or likeness is synthetically altered without a separate specific agreement. Music and third-party materials must be cleared for the intended use.

Major shoots, raw footage, unlimited revisions, community management, full social account management, SEO, websites, app development, sales follow-up, CRM migration, events and celebrities are excluded. Clients handle enquiries and fulfilment. If those gaps prevent success, solve or price them before selling a campaign.

## The first conversation

Ask these seven questions before discussing the ladder:

1. What exactly are you selling, and to whom?
2. Which location or market matters first?
3. What result matters: qualified enquiry, booking, purchase, install or activated user?
4. What is your profit per sale, or the realistic value of a customer over time?
5. What can you spend on our service and media separately?
6. Can you handle additional customers, provide assets and approve work on time?
7. What is working today, and how will we measure a change?

For local services, confirm the phone, WhatsApp, booking or checkout destination and who follows up. For apps, distinguish an install from an activated or paying customer. Inspect tracking before promising CAC reporting. All-in acquisition cost includes attributable service, production and media costs. Platform-attributed sales and promo codes are useful signals, not automatic proof of incremental sales.

Example: a local business spending AED 4,400 monthly and earning AED 80 contribution per additional sale would need 55 additional sales to recover that monthly expenditure through immediate purchases. Setup, tax and repeat buying change the calculation. Use the customer's figures; do not turn this example into a promise.

## How to explain the offer

SME opening: “We help local businesses turn a clear offer into useful advertising content and targeted paid campaigns. If you have footage, we can start with editing and management. If you need people to make it, we organise creators. Influencer posting is a separate choice. We agree the service fee, media budget and result to track before starting.”

Startup opening: “We help consumer startups test their messages, organise a launch and keep paid campaigns supplied with new creative. We start with your product readiness and data. You pay a clear production and management fee, with advertising expenditure separate.”

If asked for a cheaper price: reduce source videos, participants, channels or campaign complexity and have delivery approve a new scope. Do not discount the same work automatically. If asked for guaranteed sales: explain the agreed measurement and responsibilities; do not guarantee demand or returns. If asked why use us instead of an AI tool: emphasise accountable production, relevant people, approved permissions, managed delivery and learning from the customer's campaign.

## Commercial rules

Local and Growth programmes are paid monthly in advance, with setup paid before work. Sprint payments are 50% at signing, 30% before production commitments and 20% before paid launch. Do not commit suppliers beyond cleared funds. Any customer-specific variation needs finance and delivery approval.

Use client-owned ad accounts and client-direct platform payments during the pilot. Media is outside our fee; it is not booked as our service revenue. Management includes spend up to the package cap: Local A AED 5,000 monthly; B AED 10,000; C AED 15,000; Startup A AED 10,000 over the sprint; B AED 30,000 over the sprint; C AED 50,000 monthly. Above the cap, charge 10% of the excess only. Example: Local B managing AED 12,000 incurs an extra AED 200 fee. Additional channels require separate scope even if spend is below the cap.

Do not promise partner status, rebates, platform credits, automatic matching or automated payment. Verify any credit against current official terms and pass client credits through in full. Agency rebates need a disclosed treatment. Do not describe ordinary media as near-free wholesale inventory. Platform support and incentives improve the offer but are not assumed in its profitability.

No automatic six-month free-month offer or sprint-to-retainer discount. Hospitality, product delivery and travel outside the agreed location are customer costs or separately quoted. Existing customer creative, brand accounts and performance data remain theirs. Obtain separate, voluntary case-study permission; it must not imply a customer endorsement before results exist.

## Internal cost controls

Target at least 40% contribution after direct delivery costs on the service fee. This is a planning gate, not a demonstrated margin. Include loaded delivery labour, editing, Arabic review, tools, creator payments and operations, permissions administration, payment fees, approved travel, rework and delivery subcontractors. Sales, overhead and unused staffing capacity still need funding. Do not count supplier labour twice if it is already included in a loaded staff cost.

| Package | Service fee | Maximum direct delivery cost at a 40% margin |
| --- | ---: | ---: |
| Local A | AED 2,900 monthly | AED 1,740 |
| Local B | AED 6,900 monthly | AED 4,140 |
| Local C baseline | AED 11,900 monthly | AED 7,140 |
| Startup A | AED 14,500 per sprint | AED 8,700 |
| Startup B baseline | AED 34,500 per sprint | AED 20,700 |
| Startup C | AED 19,500 monthly | AED 11,700 |

Apply the same 40% target separately to setup work. Obtain at least ten exact-scope supplier quotes across filming, posting, usage and Arabic review before accepting the baseline budgets. If quotes exceed the cost ceiling, adjust scope or increase the price. Do not offer subsidised creators an undisclosed expectation of future work.

Sales acquisition cost includes referral commissions, sales time and promotions. Aim to recover it within two months of realistic recurring contribution; compare with the contracted term and likely retention. Track monthly capacity in hours and creator assignments. Accept work only when a named campaign owner and backup can deliver it.

## Customer acquisition and rollout

First, founder-led and BD-led outreach to a small geographic cluster. Build a list of 40 qualified SME prospects and 15 qualified consumer startup prospects; these are activity targets, not sales forecasts. Get normal-price decisions and log why prospects decline.

Second, test a small number of referral relationships: business service providers and merchant/POS providers for SMEs; consumer-focused accelerator programmes and investor portfolio teams for startups. Verify audience fit and agree referral terms. A company licence does not automatically mean a new local outlet. Treat banks and major institutional partnerships as longer-term channels. Do not let partnership discussions delay customer learning.

Pilot five SME accounts across A and B and two startup sprints across A and B, subject to delivery capacity. C is quoted selectively after supplier and delivery checks; do not actively scale it before evidence. Sequence starts to avoid production bottlenecks. Evaluate each customer after the actual first month and after their renewal decision, allowing 16–20 weeks overall rather than enforcing one premature deadline.

Track paid normal-price sales, actual direct contribution, time spent, approval delays, outcome quality, enquiry handling, acquisition payback, retention and supplier reliability. Expand only after consecutive delivery cycles fit the cost limit and customers choose to continue at the normal price. Five customers are a learning cohort, not proof of market-wide retention. Startup A to B to C is optional: progression depends on readiness and economics, not an automatic upsell.

## Sources for operating policy

Package prices, media ranges and cost ceilings are our proposed planning inputs. They are not taken from external market benchmarks. Verify current policy when issuing contracts.

- [Google advertising transparency requirements](https://support.google.com/adspolicy/answer/16489093?hl=en)
- [Google Partner requirements](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/9702452?hl=en-GB)
- [TikTok Spark Ads authorisation workflow](https://ads.tiktok.com/resources/help/article/spark-ads?lang=en-GB)
- [TikTok commercial music guidance](https://ads.tiktok.com/resources/help/article/commercial-music-library?lang=en)
- [UAE Media Council](https://uaemc.gov.ae/en/)

## Landing page handoff

The SME and startup pages are separate public enquiry pages. Each shows starting fees, media planning ranges, setup charges and package fit. A visitor can compare packages, calculate their first-period budget and prepare an enquiry to connect@elevenads.ai. The page does not store or submit a lead automatically: the visitor sends the prepared enquiry through their email app or WhatsApp. This deliberately uses the existing contact route; a CRM-backed form can be added after the receiving team and system are agreed.