Comparison

AI SDR vs a lead generation agency: who does the work, who owns the accounts and what you control

A lead generation agency runs outbound for you and delivers meetings. An AI SDR is software you run yourself, or have an agency run on your behalf. Choose an agency when you want the work done and have budget for a service. Choose Sellinger when you want to keep the accounts, the data and the conversations in your own workspace.

Published by Sellinger AI. Numbers and settings checked on 19 October 2026 against the fact register. Report an error.

The difference, row by row

Agency compared with running an AI SDR yourself
Question	Lead generation agency	AI SDR on Sellinger
Who does the work	The agency's people and tools	The agent, with your rules, and you review in approval mode
Whose accounts send	Often the agency's or a shared pool, ask	Your own LinkedIn and mailboxes, connected to your workspace
Who sees the conversations	Ask for access	You, in one inbox, with full history
How you pay	A service fee set by the agency; ask what is included	Live Chat from $19, Email from $39, WhatsApp and Instagram from $29, LinkedIn $198 per agent, bundles $249 to $1,199
Setup time	Agency onboarding	usually live within a day
What happens if you stop	Depends on the contract	Cancel at any time; no lock in contracts

Agency terms vary and we do not quote a market price. Ask any agency the same questions.

An agency that ran its own outbound on Sellinger

Sales Automation Systems, a done for you cold email agency, ran its own LinkedIn conversations on Sellinger's white label platform from 1 May 2026. 2,858 people were messaged, 1,074 replied (37.6%) and 7 conversions were recorded in its CRM. The account has since left. It shows both sides: the software gets replies, and an agency still has to turn them into customers. See the case study.

Agencies can also resell Sellinger under their own brand through the partner program.

Choose by who you want doing the work

Choose an agency if

you have no one to set up, review and tune outbound,
you want a team to own the list building and copy,
you would rather pay for outcomes than learn a tool,
you accept less visibility into the accounts.

Choose Sellinger if

you want your own accounts and data to stay yours,
you want to see every conversation and approve messages,
you can take the calls the agent books,
you prefer a monthly software price to a service contract.

Common questions

Can an agency run Sellinger for me?

Yes. Agencies use the white label program to run outreach for clients under their own brand.

What should I ask an agency?

Whose accounts send, who owns the lead list, what is the contract term, what counts as a meeting, and whether you see every conversation.

Will an AI SDR book meetings without an agency?

It can book on a connected calendar, and a person has to host the call.

Is an agency cheaper?

It depends on scope and on your own time. Compare list prices with a written agency quote.

Sources and method

Sellinger rows from the fact register (checked 19 October 2026). Agency figures from the Sales Automation Systems case study, SAS workspace only.