# Reference questions for UAE advertising and design agencies A useful agency reference explains the client's experience of the process behind the finished work. Portfolio images cannot show how many internal hours. Category: Advertising & Design Agency Published: September 13, 2026 Source: https://www.vendoreye.ae/blog/reference-questions-for-uae-advertising-and-design-agencies A useful agency reference explains the client's experience of the process behind the finished work. Portfolio images cannot show how many internal hours were needed to correct facts, whether the promised team stayed involved or whether the final files were easy to reuse. Ask references questions that match the creative assignment your UAE business plans to buy. ## Establish what the agency actually delivered Ask the reference to describe the project, asset types and agency responsibilities. Did the supplier develop the strategy and copy, or mainly design approved material? Was it responsible for photography, translation or printing? These distinctions affect how relevant the reference is to your own brief. Confirm whether the team proposed for your account worked on that assignment. A strong experience with a different office or a former creative lead may still be informative, but it should not be treated as direct evidence about the current delivery team. ## Explore the approval experience Ask how the agency turned the initial brief into a direction the client could assess. Did it explain the reasoning behind concepts? What happened when stakeholders disagreed or supplied contradictory feedback? Listen for specific examples of decisions becoming clearer rather than general descriptions of responsiveness. Discuss factual corrections and language versions where relevant. Ask whether changes were applied consistently across the asset family and whether the agency maintained clear version names. These details reveal operational discipline that is easy to overlook in a visual pitch. ## Ask about the difficult stage Choose a question about a late input, rejected proof or production change. Find out how the agency explained the schedule and cost consequences. A project without any difficulty is less revealing than one where the supplier helped the client resolve a real constraint transparently. Ask whether external production charges were understandable and approved before commitment. Explore whether revision boundaries matched the proposal. The objective is to understand how the commercial relationship behaved once the first concept was no longer the main focus. ## Check the work after launch Ask what happened when the client needed to update or reuse the assets. Were editable files and usage records available as agreed? Could another internal team work with the package, or did missing dependencies create unexpected obstacles? Record what the reference supports and what remains untested. One successful brochure assignment does not establish capacity for a large bilingual campaign. Combine the reference with the proposed team's explanation, a clear scope and, where proportionate, a paid pilot that tests your actual working needs. ## Related buying guides - [Creative asset handover from a UAE design agency](/blog/creative-asset-handover-from-a-uae-design-agency)- [Checking a UAE creative agency's production partners](/blog/checking-a-uae-creative-agency-s-production-partners)- [How to choose a UAE advertising and design agency](/blog/how-to-choose-a-uae-advertising-and-design-agency)[Browse all Advertising & Design Agency guides](/blog?category=Advertising%20%26%20Design%20Agency). [Find businesses listed under Advertising & Design Agency on Vendoreye](https://www.vendoreye.ae/find-vendors?q=Advertising%20%26%20Design%20Agency&term_kind=Category). Check each candidate’s actual offering, availability and relevant evidence. A directory listing is a starting point for evaluation, not an endorsement.