Straight answers about AI for small business

These are the questions owners ask me most, answered without the hype.

1. How can a small business actually use AI?

Mostly on the repetitive work around your real work: answering the same questions, getting information out of emails and into a spreadsheet, summarizing long documents, drafting quotes, reports and follow-ups. The best first use is usually one specific task someone on your team does by hand every week. Start there, not with an "AI strategy."

2. What's a good first AI project for a small business?

Find the task where someone copies information from one place and pastes it into another, or writes nearly the same email over and over. Have your team jot those down for a week. The longest list is your first project.

3. Is it safe to put my business information into ChatGPT or Copilot?

It depends on the account. Business and enterprise plans from the major AI companies offer settings that keep your data out of AI training. Free consumer accounts are a different story. As a rule, never paste customer financial details, health information or passwords into a free chatbot, and check the data settings on any account your team uses.

4. Do I need to buy new software?

Usually not to start. Many businesses already pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, which include AI features nobody has set up. I start with what you have, and if something new would genuinely help, I'll tell you what it costs and why.

5. Will AI replace my staff?

Not in the businesses I work with. What it does is take the busywork off people who are already stretched, so they spend more time on customers and the work only they can do. A person should still check anything that goes out.

6. What does an AI consultant actually do?

Finds the repetitive work in your business, then either builds a small tool to handle it or trains your team to handle it with AI, and makes sure it actually gets used. A good one tells you when AI isn't the answer.

7. How much does it cost?

Nationally, AI consulting for small businesses typically runs $100–$300 an hour or a fixed project price. I quote every piece of work at a fixed price before it starts, so there are no surprises. How AI consulting is priced →

8. Can't I just learn this myself?

Yes, and plenty of owners do. What you're paying for is time: someone setting it up around your exact work and training your team so it sticks, instead of you figuring it out at 10 PM.

9. How do I know if AI got something wrong?

Treat AI like a fast new employee. Use it for first drafts, never the final word. Ask it where each number came from, and spot-check its work. I teach every team a simple checking habit as part of training.

10. How do we get started?

Tell me the task that's eating your week. If AI can help, the usual first step is a Kickstart: half a day at your place, the quickest win started right away, and a fixed-price plan for the rest. If it can't, I'll say so.

11. Which AI do you use?

I prefer Claude at the moment. The field changes every few weeks, though, and a team that's comfortable in one tool gets more done than one that switches every time something new launches. So I set you up on whatever fits the software you already use, whether that's Claude, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot or Google Gemini.