By automating routine tasks and streamlining processes, artificial intelligence allows small businesses to focus on strategic growth and innovation. Kenny Trusnik — president of Forest City Digital, an e-commerce strategy and digital marketing agency that also advises companies on AI strategies — offered tips for getting started with AI, including when to use it and when not to.

Start by Documenting Your Day

The first step is to document daily operations in a detailed way, Trusnik said. A clear understanding of a business’ existing processes allows it to identify where AI can make the most significant impact. He explained: “It’s similar to when you want to lose weight.” When one writes down what they eat, patterns like nighttime snacking appear and one can see strategic adjustments to make. Documentation of business processes could reveal that tracking and sending out invoices is a repetitive task that eats up time or that manual inventory management could be streamlined. It also could help right the ship on time allocation; maybe five hours a day on a marketing blog is too much, for example. “What you’re trying to do is create operational excellence in a cost-efficient way,” Trusnik said.

Think About Your Pain Points

“Most people have something in mind that they hate doing or realize that they’re not very good at,” he said. Identifying these pain points can help a business determine which AI tools could make life easier. For instance, Trusnik shared, “I suck at taking notes. I’m not good at multitasking, yet I want to reuse a lot of information [I hear].” So he captures details using Fireflies.ai, which records, transcribes and analyzes conversations. See more on Fireflies.ai and other AI tools below.

Give AI Tools Your Time

AI works only as well as its user, Trusnik said. The most widely used AI tool, ChatGPT, has more than 200 million weekly users, but every business needs to communicate with it to customize it. “ChatGPT works best when it understands the full context of who you are and what you’re asking it to do,” he said. Implementing ChatGPT is “like onboarding a real employee. You need to help it understand what your business is about, what you’re trying to accomplish and what you’d like it to do. Specificity is key.” One likewise needs to invest time in learning how other AI tools work best. “You could buy the best tool in the world, but if you’re not using it the right way, it doesn’t matter,” Trusnik said.

He also pointed out that people can converse with many AI tools out loud: “If you’re more of a verbal explainer like me, many tools have settings where you can actually speak directly to them and they speak back to you.”

Recognize What AI Does Well – and What It Doesn’t

Trusnik emphasized that AI has its limitations. “AI is great for streamlining repetitive tasks, enhancing marketing efforts and improving operational efficiency,” he explained. For example, it can automate content creation, analyze customer data and optimize inventory management. This allows businesses to scale quickly and make data-driven decisions with greater ease. But he does not recommend automation for customer- and client-facing activities. “Everybody wants to introduce AI chatbots and incorporate AI into their customer care because they feel like it’s overly expensive to hire customer service reps,” he said, “but the reality of it is that customer care is one of the most valuable things a human can do to amplify a brand.”

For small businesses, especially, Trusnik said, “customer service is your bread-and-butter — and your key differentiator.” Think about how annoyed people get when talking to a live chatbot that doesn’t have the answer to the actual question they’re asking,” he said. “I’d invest more human capital into the customer-facing side and then use the [AI] tools to streamline your operations.”

AI also cannot replacee nuanced human judgment for strategic planning, employee development and complex decisionmaking. “AI is not a tool to replace people or things with,” said Trusnik. “It’s a tool to augment and enhance people’s abilities. AI is a way to create things very quickly, but you still have to edit it. You still have to make adjustments.” He said generative AI works best as a starting point. Use it in brainstorming mode to get 50% to 70% there, he said, “and then let your strategic leaders take it the rest of the way.”

6 AI Tools for Small Businesses

Trusnik recommended some favorite AI tools:

ChatGPT

A generative AI that tool generates humanlike text based on input prompts

Uses and Benefits

• Content creation: Generate blog posts, social media content, email drafts and more.
• Customer support: Automate responses to common customer queries and enhance chatbots.
• Business planning: Draft business plans, marketing strategies and standard operating procedures.
• Customization: The paid version offers more features and ensures data privacy.

Zapier

An automation tool that connects different apps and automates workflows

Uses and Benefits

• Task automation: Connect software tools like Google Sheets, Slack and Mailchimp to automate repetitive tasks.
• Efficiency: Create automated workflows to save time and reduce manual errors.
• Integrations: It integrates with more 2,000 apps, making it versatile.

Fireflies.ai

A meeting assistant that records, transcribes and analyzes conversations

Uses and Benefits

• Note-taking: Automate meeting transcription.
• Action items: Generate summaries and identify action items.
• Integrations: It works with conferencing tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams and project management software like Asana and Trello.

Motion

A productivity and scheduling tool to manage tasks, calendars and projects

Uses and Benefits

• Task management: Automate scheduling, prioritize tasks and manage deadlines.
• Efficiency: Block time for tasks and reduce time spent on planning.
• Integrations: It integrates with calendars and other productivity tools.

Canva

A tool to create professional-looking graphic designs

Uses and Benefits

• Design: Create marketing materials, social media graphics, presentations and more.
• Templates: Access a range of templates for different purposes.
• Ease of Use: A user-friendly interface suits those without design backgrounds.
• Integrations: ChatGPT can push visuals created on its platforms into Canva.

Superhuman

An email client to manage and prioritize emails

Uses and Benefits

• Email management: Organize and prioritize emails.
• Productivity: Reduce time managing your inbox.
• Features: Snooze emails, get follow-up reminders and add shortcuts.
• Integrations: It Integrates with multiple email services.