Jasmine Gray, Senior Manager, Customer Success at Aircall. Source: Supplied.
The future will bring both opportunities and challenges to small business owners, now is the time to invest in AI so you can grow with advancements in tech.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has changed the landscape for small to medium enterprises (SMEs) in recent years. For those who have been slow to take up the opportunities it provides, now is the time to get on board and introduce some tools that will set the business up for success.
From financial management tools, to chat bots and data analytics, AI has something to help any business get ahead. Generative AI tools such as Open AI are still free, so why not take some time to explore how they can help your business?
We look at some simple steps SMEs can take now to not only be ready for the future, but to be part of the movement to improve how we do business.
Explore and experiment
The first step is to understand what AI is, and what it can bring to your business, no matter the size. Now might not be the best time to invest, but you can at least speak to others in the industry, find out what competitors are using and keep up with the conversation.
“Try and grasp the potential by experimenting with AI tools and solutions that you think fit your business,” says Jasmine Gray, Senior Manager, Customer Success at Aircall.
“You need to research what’s going to be right for your industry, get ideas from other people about what they’re using and what’s been effective, because if you don’t have the information you need, you won’t maximise the benefits they can help you achieve,” she says.
“What are the AI tools that you can quickly connect to your existing systems to do what you need to do? Find out what is out there and when you need an expert versus accessing products that are ready to go.”
Train your team and develop a policy
No one knows the full capabilities of AI until they start using it — and who knows what the future developments will be? While you are getting ready for the next steps, take some time to work out how you want your team to access readily available AI tools, such as Chat GPT.
“Generative AI is free for now,” says Gray.
“That can be used to your advantage to let your team experiment but make sure you have some rules and policies around how they use it. There are cases where the wrong information has been provided so you need to be sure your team is checking and following clear processes for using the information they are accessing.”
Using humans to drive the machines
Training your staff on how to use AI is critical to harnessing its powers for the future. Instead of being wary that AI is going to take jobs, good business practice is to understand how it can enhance some jobs and create new ones.
For example, there is no doubt AI tools such as data analytics, chat bots and e-commerce tools have already revolutionised consumer-business interactions, providing a smooth experience and transforming how customers engage with companies. To future-proof a digital presence, SMEs must deliver the experience their customers are looking for, says Gray.
“We’ve got a digital team at Aircall and their role is not to just respond to people through AI — their role is to make sure that when the customer really needs us, we’ll be there,” says Gray.
One Aircall customer started using the AI features to see what customers were calling about.
“The result was vastly different to what they had previously thought and it resulted in them being able to divert team members to a different area of the business because the majority of calls coming in were about a particular product that they found hard to access,” she says.
Most importantly, SMEs should approach AI as another tool rather than a complete substitute for employees, recognising the unique strengths each contributes to the decision-making process and how they can both help a business grow and adapt in the future.
Aircall is an integrated & smart business phone & communication platform. The Aircall platform is designed to empower Sales & Supports teams to truly connect with customers, bring meaning to a conversation, and create long-lasting business impact. Aircall is easy to use, reliable and integrated with all CRMs and critical conversational & business tools. Through a combination of its powerful software and dedicated people, Aircall helps SMBs drive productivity and turn customer and employee satisfaction into key growth drivers.
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