6 Ways Artificial Intelligence Can Benefit Small Businesses

Last updated on March 3rd, 2023 at 02:58 am

Artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere, and there is no stopping it. The artificial intelligence market worldwide has grown to $327.5 billion and by 2024 expect its revenue to cross the half-trillion dollar threshold. Best of all, small businesses can finally reap its benefits.

But it seems that small businesses were behind the curve in embracing AI. Many small businesses struggled with trying to understand what AI is, let alone factors such as cost. Not anymore!

In the past, only big businesses with large budgets could harness the power of AI. But now, there are many cost-effective AI tools that are available for small businesses. These tools can help small businesses to boost productivity, cut costs, and catapult them to success.

AI and Small Business Statistics

According to Unbounce, 30% of small and medium-sized businesses use AI tools. Even better, 60% of businesses that don’t use AI are seriously considering investing in it.

In addition,

• 46% anticipate AI’s advancement will create new roles.
• 67% use AI landing pages to get customers.
• 83% believe that AI marketing tools will make a positive impact on their sales.
• 92% say AI tools help decrease their costs.
• 82% of AI users have seen an acceleration of their leads and revenue growth. 

Why Should Small Businesses Use AI?

1. Lower Costs

For example, think of the AI chatbots that you run into just about everywhere now. Those chatbots can help out 24/7 and they don’t need to take lunch.

In addition, AI can help businesses become more efficient and streamlined, thus reducing operational costs. Automation helps free employees’ time in order for them to work on more important tasks.

2. Improve Security

It will be imperative for companies to establish robust cybersecurity protocols as they increasingly move their operations online. Cybersecurity working in tandem with artificial intelligence can help your business predict and prevent future threats and breaches.

AI is beneficial for businesses in regard to cybersecurity because it can rapidly scan large data sets for patterns, something that would be impossible for a human to do. In addition, once a pattern is detected, AI can help businesses take the necessary steps to prevent future attacks. Also, using AI eliminates the need for some IT specialists, which saves businesses money.

3. Increase Employee Productivity

In order to be successful, it is important for businesses to have productive employees. By harnessing the power of AI, businesses can increase employee productivity in a number of ways.

First, as we mentioned before, AI can automate mundane tasks so that employees can focus on more important projects. In addition, AI can be used to provide employees with real-time feedback so that they can improve their performance.

4. Customer Service

We’ve all been there–stuck on hold for what seems like forever, only to be transferred to another department where we have to explain our issue all over again. It’s a frustrating experience that can often leave customers feeling angry and resentful.

This is where AI comes in. AI chatbots can help take some of the load off of customer service reps by handling the more basic inquiries. This frees up time for customer service reps to handle more complex issues.

In addition, AI chatbots can provide a more consistent customer experience. They can ensure that customers always receive the same level of service, regardless of who they speak to.

5.  Marketing and Sales

The world of marketing and sales is constantly changing, and it can be difficult to keep up. This is where AI can be a valuable asset. AI tools can help businesses automate their marketing tasks, such as social media posts and targeted ads. Additionally, AI can be used to generate leads and track customer behavior.

Artificial intelligence can help sales teams streamline their processes by leveraging extremely detailed data on individuals. This data can include real-time geolocation information, allowing businesses to provide highly personalized product and service offerings. AI can also assist with upsells and cross-sells later in the customer journey, helping to reduce cart abandonment rates.

6. Human Resources

Small businesses often don’t have the luxury of a dedicated HR department. This can make it difficult to stay on top of things like employee performance and compliance. AI can help take some of the burdens off of small business owners and managers by automating HR tasks.

For example, it saves time on reading resumes for potential job candidates, in addition, to interview questions and interview scheduling.

Although AI does have its advantages for HR, there are some potholes in the proverbial road. Can AI tell if a person has changed jobs several times in a short period of time? How about body language during an interview? Artificial intelligence still does not have the capability to emulate human feelings and perception, and it may never will.

Also, AI constantly gathers and studies gigantic amounts of organized and unorganized data, which has caused ethical issues about its usage and dependability. As AI-based solutions become more involved in HR processes, you must be able to validate how AI algorithms come to their decisions – ensuring the inputs to AI don’t have any bias – as well as how data is utilized so that there is no risk to reputation or image.

With this being said, it will be interesting to see how AI develops in the HR sphere over time.

How Will AI Change the Future of Small Business?

It looks as if the change is coming sooner than one thought, and using AI is turning out very beneficial. A recent study shows that 95% of AI adopters polled have turned to AI to reduce their need to hire additional staff.

AI is currently being used to do things such as social media marketing, bookkeeping, customer service, and even human resources. The options are really endless when it comes to what AI can be used for in a small business.

The future looks bright for small businesses harnessing the power of AI. As AI technology continues to develop at almost a frightening pace, expect more small businesses to jump aboard the train and use it for their own business needs.

Conclusion

Artificial intelligence is a powerful tool that can be used to boost productivity, cut costs, and improve the customer experience. While there are some concerns about its usage, AI is expected to become increasingly involved in small business operations in the years to come.

With the rise of AI, small businesses have a fantastic opportunity to improve their revenue and decrease costs. It’s evident that AI is going to be an essential tool for all businesses from this point onwards.

Dani Lehmer is the Founder and Head Honcho of Dani Digs In.

She is a Quality Assurance Analyst and blogger whose natural curiosity allows her
to dig in (pun intended) to help people build their businesses and satiate curiosity
in regards to data science, analysis, and crypto.

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