- Date: 7 August 2024
- Category: Small Business Guidance
In the ever-changing world of work, businesses need to adapt or die. And we don’t just mean multi-national business. Small businesses, too, need to evolve with the times. What that means for 2024 is further embracing the digital age, and in this case, artificial intelligence (AI).
Progress in AI has seemingly accelerated over the last five years, and now it’s difficult to avoid the intimidating arm of the latest digital trend. But fear not. Where once AI was the evil genius in many sci-fi movies, things have changed now, and AI can be used to help improve productivity and help bring your business into the 21st century. But how can you do this and how can you ensure that the programmes out there are improving your business? Hope we can help you with that. But first, a brief introduction to AI.
What is AI?
AI is artificial intelligence. To help understand it, it’s best to think of it as a self-learning, functioning command centre, available to help assist in a variety of tasks from scheduling to communicating to answering complex questions. It can use the internet to discover answers to your requests and uses learned processes to complete tasks. In short, it can learn and improve to help the user improve processes in turn.
Is AI Dangerous for Businesses?
In the grand sense, no, AI isn’t dangerous for businesses. But dangerous should be taken in context. Right now, AI processes are improving and being used to improve efficiencies across a multitude of organisations. But there is still a train of thought that believes that AI work needs checking. Because AI is a fairly new advancement, there is room for errors and mistakes. These mistakes could lead to problems within your business. So our advice would be that most work that AI produces should still be checked over before it’s implemented into your organisation. But used right, AI should still bring efficiencies that will improve your organisation. Which brings us nicely on to…
How AI Can Help Your Business
There are so many helpful ways that AI can improve your productivity. Here are just a few examples of how small businesses like yours are taking advantage of the advances in AI technology.
Generating Content as a Content Assistant
Content is everywhere. Even now, you’re consuming content. And even more so than ever, content is being used to attract customers, give them information and create brands that people trust. But for small businesses, this can be difficult. Especially as it takes time to research and write content. So using an AI tool such as Gemini, Google’s AI software, to help write about a certain topic. Especially with complex topics that take time to write. Which brings us on to another great use for AI, in research.
Research Assistant
Businesses use research to ensure they are getting to the crux of many details, from customer trends to news topics. And similar to content writing topics, researching subjects you’re not sure about can always be helped by an assistant that has vast sources of information just seconds away. But this vast level of data also offers a small challenge. Checking over the information gathered by an AI programme still need to be done. There’s been numerous examples of these pieces of software making up information based on search requests. Following through with source checking and further searches will help you avoid this pothole.
Customer Service Chatbot
Chatbots are becoming more and more common, with customer service teams looking for ways to streamline their approach to helping customers. Chatbots serve as a great way to gather details from a customer before they arrive with a service team member to deal with their issue. For small businesses with very few members of staff, this can be a strong way of grabbing great efficiency at a low one-off cost.
As a Meeting Assistant
Small businesses like to focus on the things that make them money. Anything else takes their focus away from that, and that means losing vital money.
On this topic, having a product that helps you arrange you diary, assists in meetings and takes minutes in said meetings could be a huge help. Well luckily for you, there are programmes such as Fireflies, which can help with this transition from Zoom meetings to transcribing conversations for your use later on. All of this could help with planning and execution of meeting agendas and more.
There are so many ways that AI can help your business, and the four we’ve picked only touch the surface. Any efficiencies that you make can have a material impact on how well your business will perform. So get with the times, and start utilising AI to improve how your business operates. And in no time you’ll notice the difference. We’re sure of it.