AI has quickly grown to be one of the most powerful product classes of the digital age, and is now used heavily across industries. As a highly versatile tool, AI’s capabilities span from smart assistants, to predictive maintenance, personalized shopping recommendations, and plenty more.
Although building a large language model like ChatGPT requires major computing resources just to get started, small to mid-market companies can realistically invest in more niche applications of AI to help grow their businesses quickly. All they need is a bit of technical knowhow, and a well-designed strategy to turn data into productivity.
Enhancing the customer experience
One of the most visible implementations of AI on websites is to enhance the customer experience. Companies looking to gain traction from the get-go can make use of tools like chatbots and virtual assistants to instantly deliver the information that customers need. This AI-centered approach also enables personalized communication between the customer and the company, without having to keep large numbers of human assistants standing by.
After receiving quick and accurate answers to their online queries, audiences will be more inclined to try out a company’s product — especially if they feel they have gotten what they need without exerting much effort. Such smooth experiences signal to potential customers that the company they are talking to is professional and well-run, and that its products have a gentle learning curve.
A good example of an effective chatbot system comes from Bizbike, Belgium’s biggest e-bike provider. Bizbike realized their customers tended to ask the same questions multiple times, and rather than have their employees mundanely repeat the answers like a robot, they decided: Why not implement a real robot? The result was a conversational chatbot that saved the business over 40 hours of work each month, while simultaneously raising the company’s customer satisfaction score.
Boosting the effectiveness of marketing operations
Company growth depends in large part on successful marketing and brand awareness. AI can use cookies on webpages to collect user-specific information such as demographic data, browsing preferences, and search histories to help refine their content marketing strategies in real time. This way, companies can align their marketing efforts to the interests of each individual user, in a way that fits seamlessly with their internal goals and strategies.
Startups can also utilize AI to fine-tune their communications efforts as they interact with their audience. For example, email marketing campaigns can be optimized and personalized to fit with their customers’ likes and needs. Additionally, AI helps companies create better content to suit specific audiences, thus greatly increasing engagement.
New companies need to make the market aware of their presence, and building website traffic is a stepping stone to success. ClickUp, a software-as-a-service company, used AI to pump their blog traffic through keyword refinement and other forms of content optimization, achieving an 85% increase within just 12 months. AI helped ClickUp generate detailed content briefs for their marketing team, monitor the performance of ongoing campaigns, and make adjustments for further improvement.
Enabling data-driven decisions
Data means nothing if it is not used well. By processing reams of datasets, AI can help startups learn the right lessons from their products’ market performance, their customers’ behavior, and their competitors’ operational tactics. These insights let companies make better informed strategic decisions in order to find a promising niche and grow efficiently within it.
Yet advanced data analysis can also facilitate understanding on a micro scale. Israeli medical imaging startup Zebra Medical Vision performs coronary calcium scoring with an AI diagnostic tool that has received FDA 510(k) clearance. The tool sorts through countless numbers of high-definition scans from patients with possible cardiovascular disease, providing insight into each case. It can also spot conditions that may have been incorrectly diagnosed, or even detect other diseases including early-stage cancer.
AI has also proven useful for predictive maintenance applications in real-time. Unplanned factory downtime decreases production levels and forces companies to lose valuable time. Sensors linked to tailored software can detect potential problems with machines and their components as they experience wear and tear, signaling to operators that proactive maintenance is needed in a given area. This ability to detect hazards early on can increase work safety and boost overall productivity.
Strategic implementation
The types of use cases described above may not be as flashy as ChatGPT, but business growth often stems from such incremental improvements in quality and efficiency. And getting the hang of a new trick — in this case the integration of AI into vital business processes — is best achieved by starting small. The money saved can then be used to fund subsequent, and more ambitious, AI projects moving forward.
From virtual assistants to marketing analysts to factory equipment supervisors, AI is a technology that can fit many roles. What companies need, first and foremost, is a clear vision for how a well-calibrated AI system can help them reach their goals. Next, they’ll need the technical knowledge to make it work, and a modest investment to get started. The Age of AI is just beginning, and businesses of all sizes have a golden opportunity to harness this most promising of technologies.
