A bonus to get you on top of it all! (excerpt from 2018 book draft).
Thanks to artificial intelligence, businesses are now capable of operating on all cylinders, all the time. But, people are still learning what AI really is and how it can work for them. That’s where Einstein and their brand of AI for small business, Salesforce.com, come into play. The technology is now embedded in every CRM product, in a very natural way. It’s not another thing small businesses need to try and figure out; it’s right where they are and right where they work.
What AI Means for Small Businesses.
Excerpted from Infusionsoft, “How AI Is Helping Small Business Beat the Competition”.
What makes Artificial Intelligence (AI) so robust and informed now is the innumerable data points that exist, gathered through massive databases, online footprints, web cookies, years of search results, and internet-connected devices. Supported by powerful algorithms that help machines sift through this sea of data, businesses now have access to all kinds of datasets such as customer demographics, buying patterns, locale, and frequently-searched keywords. This information helps improve and simplify their workflow for customer service, marketing and sales, and human resources. It’s even being used to improve fraud detection and beef up cybersecurity efforts.
“That’s all fine and good,” you may be saying, “but how would my small business benefit from AI in terms of ROI? Don’t I need a huge budget to afford this kind of technology?”
You might think so, given that technology giants like Facebook and Google are leading the charge in AI use, but thanks to a number of innovators jumping on the AI bandwagon, the technology has become quite commonplace and affordable, giving big and small businesses more capabilities than ever before.
The number of small businesses turning to AI to improve their workflow is growing . Here are just a few areas where AI can help your small business gain an edge over your competitors:
Using Chatbots for Customer Service
Processing Payments
Delivering Personalized Content
You can upgrade your business processes without breaking the bank. According to the Harvard Business Review, there are less expensive, knowledge-based approaches to business that can organize data and languages into “highly malleable and helpful blocks of information”, aptly labeled “AI Lite”. These systems might not learn new tricks unless code is added to their programs to help teach them, but they can still become quick and smart when it comes to organizing and distributing information.
Whatever route you choose, know that artificial intelligence is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Although many technologies available to small businesses today provide a variety of extensive services with purchase, your first deployments won’t be perfect. You’ll still need to roll up your sleeves and learn the technology, especially if you decide to go the route of AI Lite, but the payoff down the line will be worth the effort.
For more information about small business access to AI, see the Forbes article “How AI Tech Is Changing Small Business Marketing and Customer Service”.
This content was originally created in May 2018, nearly five years before Chat GPT became available to individuals and businesses. It’s in the appendix of Crazy Smart!
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