17 Questions to Ask an AI Consultant in Las Vegas Before You Hire
Most "AI consultant evaluation guides" online give you ten generic questions like "what is your experience with AI?" These do not filter anything. Every consultant in Vegas can answer those questions plausibly. That is why the bad ones still get hired.
This is the actual filter. Seventeen questions, organized into five categories. Ask all of them on the first call. The consultant who answers all seventeen well is hireable. The consultant who dodges three or more is not.
I am writing this as the consultant. I will tell you exactly what good answers and bad answers look like. Use this against me too.
Category 1: The Build Questions
These separate consultants who build from consultants who only advise.
1. What is the most recent custom AI system you built and installed?
Good answer: Specific. Named client (or anonymized with verifiable details). Specific tech stack. Specific business outcome. Within the last 90 days.
Bad answer: Vague references to "many recent projects." No specifics. No timeline.
My answer: I built and installed an AI sales follow-up system for a Vegas service business in March 2026. Stack: Claude API + GHL + custom webhook orchestration. Result: 60-second response time on every inbound, three weeks to install, two weeks to stabilize.
2. Show me your own AI infrastructure.
Good answer: A consultant who runs AI inside their own business. Demos. Screenshots. A real production system you can verify.
Bad answer: "I use AI tools but don't have a custom system" — they are reselling tools, not building.
My answer: a multi-agent workforce running in production (Ratatoskr on SEO, Sindri on website code, Hermod on sales operations), scheduled at routines.justinharris.ai. Live dashboard. Each agent has a SKILL.md file and a defined role. Visible from your browser before you ever pick up the phone.
3. What is your build process?
Good answer: Discovery → audit → scope → build → install → train → stabilize. Specific milestones.
Bad answer: "It depends on the project."
My answer: A 30-minute consultation, then a written scope and proposal, then the build, install, training, and a stabilization period. Timeline and pricing depend on scope and are covered on the consultation.
4. Do you write the code, or does someone else?
Good answer: "I write it" or "I lead the team that writes it and review every commit."
Bad answer: "We have offshore developers" or "we have partner agencies that handle implementation."
My answer: I write the code. I have AI agents (Sindri, Dvalin) that accelerate the build. The architecture, design decisions, and integration logic are mine.
Category 2: The Timeline Questions
5. What timeline do you commit to, and what happens if you miss it?
Good answer: Specific terms. Specific consequences. In writing.
Bad answer: "We aim to deliver on time." Aim is not a commitment.
My answer: I scope the timeline in writing before work starts. We can go through it on the consultation.
6. What does week-by-week progress look like?
Good answer: Week 1: discovery and architecture. Week 2: build core systems. Week 3: integration and testing. Week 4: training and go-live.
Bad answer: "We work iteratively, so it is hard to predict."
7. How fast can you start?
Good answer: Within one to two weeks of engagement signing.
Bad answer: "Six to eight weeks queue." If they have a six-week queue, they are oversubscribed and you will get junior delivery.
Category 3: The Proof Questions
8. Can I talk to a current client?
Good answer: Yes. Here are three names. Pick one.
Bad answer: "All our clients are under NDA." Some legitimate clients are under NDA. It is rare for all of them to be.
My answer: Yes. Multiple Vegas service-business owners are willing to take a 15-minute call from a serious prospect. I will introduce you on request.
9. What is your Google rating and review count?
Good answer: Verifiable. Visible on Google Maps. Multiple reviews. Authentic-looking reviewer profiles.
Bad answer: "We don't focus on reviews" or "our clients prefer to stay private."
My answer: 5.0 from 21 verified Google reviews as of April 2026. Read every one at justinharris.ai/reviews or directly on Google Maps.
10. Show me three blog posts you wrote that demonstrate AI knowledge.
Good answer: Three specific posts. Recent. Substantive. Original thinking, not regurgitated tutorials.
Bad answer: "We don't blog much" or "all our content is gated."
My answer: The blog has 25+ posts on AI consulting, automation, and revenue infrastructure. The most recent: The 7 Best AI Consultants in Las Vegas (2026). Honest comparison, including my own gaps.
11. What is your domain authority and search visibility?
Good answer: Specific. Verifiable in Ahrefs or SEMrush. Ranking for relevant terms.
Bad answer: "We don't focus on SEO." If they cannot rank their own site, they cannot help you rank yours.
My answer: Page-1 organic for several Vegas-specific AI keywords as of April 2026. #1 in Google Local Pack for "AI Consultant Las Vegas." Live ranking dashboard internal to my agent stack.
Category 4: The Pricing Questions
12. What does an audit cost and what is in it?
Good answer: A specific price for a specific deliverable, such as a 15 to 25 page report. Specific contents (revenue leak quantification, opportunity mapping, vendor recommendations, 30/60/90 roadmap).
Bad answer: "Audits are free" — they are using the audit as a sales tool, not a real deliverable. Or "audits cost $10,000+" — they are pricing the audit like the implementation, which is a way to extract revenue before commitment.
My answer: Pricing depends on scope. I cover it on a 30-minute consultation.
13. What does implementation cost?
Good answer: A specific range tied to scope. With a quote on the first call after scope discovery.
Bad answer: "It depends" with no range. Or "we charge by the hour."
My answer: Pricing depends on scope. I cover it on a 30-minute consultation.
14. What does ongoing optimization cost and what is included?
Good answer: A specific monthly figure with a specific included scope.
Bad answer: "Pricing is custom" with no anchor.
My answer: Pricing depends on scope. Typically it includes monthly performance review, prompt and workflow updates, new capability rollouts, light strategy support, and Slack-based fast-turn questions.
15. What software costs do I need to budget on top of your fee?
Good answer: A specific itemized list with monthly figures.
Bad answer: "Software costs vary" with no specifics. Or "we include everything" which usually means they are not actually building, they are reselling.
My answer: It depends on the stack. I quantify every line in the proposal so there are no surprises.
Category 5: The Accountability Questions
16. What happens if the system breaks?
Good answer: Specific support agreement. Response times. Escalation path.
Bad answer: "We charge hourly for support" or "you call the platform vendor."
My answer: During the stabilization period, I monitor and fix everything. How support works after that depends on the arrangement, and I cover it on the consultation.
17. What happens if I want to leave?
Good answer: Clear ownership of data, accounts, and IP. Documented exit process.
Bad answer: Vague or hostile. If they make leaving hard, they are not confident the work is good enough to keep you.
My answer: Your data, contacts, and reporting history are yours. Core data exports are always available. Custom system components and proprietary workflows are discussed during onboarding so you know exactly what transfers and what does not before the engagement begins. No exit penalty.
How to Score the Answers
Print this page. Take it on the call. Mark each question 1, 0, or -1.
- 1 = good answer (specific, verifiable, in-line with the patterns above)
- 0 = neutral (answered but vague)
- -1 = bad answer (dodged, contradicted, or showed a red flag)
| Score | Decision | |---|---| | +14 to +17 | Hire. They are the real thing. | | +8 to +13 | Probably hire. Get specifics on the 0 answers. | | +1 to +7 | Walk. They are average. | | 0 or below | Hard pass. They are selling consulting, not delivering it. |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most important question to ask an AI consultant?
Show me your own AI infrastructure. A consultant who does not run AI inside their own business will not build it correctly inside yours. Everything else flows from this single question.
Are AI consultant guarantees legitimate?
Yes, when they are specific and in writing. A real guarantee says exactly when payment is due, what counts as the system being live, and what happens if the deadline is missed. If the promise is "we work hard to deliver on time," it is not a guarantee.
How long should the first call with an AI consultant take?
45 to 60 minutes. Less than 30 minutes means they are not doing real discovery. More than 90 minutes means they are not respecting your time. The first call should produce a clear next step (audit, proposal, or graceful exit).
Should I get multiple AI consultant quotes?
Yes for engagements over $15,000. Get two to three quotes. Run all of them through these 17 questions. The price differential is usually 30 to 60 percent across legitimate consultants and the lowest price is rarely the best deal.
Use This on Me Too
If you are evaluating Justin Harris AI Consulting, run all 17 questions on me. The answers above are real and verifiable. I will be at the bottom of the list of AI consultants in Vegas if I cannot back any of them up.
Book a 30-minute consultation and we will run through these together.
Or read the honest comparison of every Vegas AI consultant: The 7 Best AI Consultants in Las Vegas (2026).
About Justin Harris
I am an AI consultant Las Vegas building custom AI revenue infrastructure for service businesses. Every system is custom-architected and tied to a measurable revenue line on your dashboard. No chatbot subscriptions. No vendor lock-in. Full ownership transfer at handoff.
If you are evaluating AI for your Las Vegas business, the related work I do includes AI agency Las Vegas and AI implementation Las Vegas. Or get a 30-Minute Consultation to see where AI would generate the most revenue for your specific operation.