Using AI for your business
In recent years there has been more and more discussions around the topic of Artificial Intelligence – most commonly known as ‘AI’. It is something that has plagued people’s minds over the fear of taking our jobs, but what many fail to recognise is the benefits it can also bring in terms on advancement and productivity. This blog seeks to put the panic to rest as we dive into the many benefits of using AI for your business.
First things first, what is Artificial Intelligence? Described by the International Business Machines Corporation, “AI is technology that enables computers and machines to simulate human intelligence and problem-solving capabilities. It can perform tasks that would otherwise require human intelligence or intervention.”
There are a few different terms to note with AI. The first is ‘Generative models’. These are the different models that generate text (GPT-4), create images (DALL-E), and perform translation tasks (Copilot). The next term is ‘Prompts’. Prompts are the input given to the AI model to elicit a response. Crafting effective prompts is crucial for quality and relevance of the output. Finally, there is ‘training and fine tuning’. This is the initial learning using large datasets with the fine tuning adjusting the model for improved performance in targeted applications – in other words, the clearer you are with what you are asking the AI to do, the better result. If the prompt you give doesn’t get you the outcome you wanted, you can always expand and ‘fine tune’ it to improve it until you get to your end result.
As with most industries, the world of AI also has the ‘Big 5’. These are some of the most popular and developed platforms which your business may have already delved into:
ChatGPT – a chatbot developed by OpenAI, which enables users to refine and steer a conversation towards a desired length, format, style, and level of detail
Copilot – a generative AI chatbot developed by Microsoft which lets you search for specific information, generates text for emails or summaries, and creates images based on prompts
Claude 3 – made up of three state-of-the-art models: Claude 3 Haiku, Claude 3 Sonnet, and Claude 3 Opus, the Claude 3 models can power live customer chats, auto-completions, and data extraction tasks where responses must be immediate and in real-time.
Gemini – Formerly known as Bard, Gemini is a chatbot developed by Google to simulate human conversations. It can be integrated into websites, messaging platforms or applications to provide realistic and natural responses to user’s questions
Perplexity – Perplexity is a research-based search engine which provides accurate answers to questions, alongside sourcing where information is from
How can you use AI to Market your business?
Content Creation
Whether you need to write your next blog or create a graphic for a social post, AI can aid as a starting point for your next project. It is important to remember that whilst the models mentioned previously have developed since they were first released, you should still have some input of your own. You know your audience better than anyone and especially the language/terms your business would use.
Customer Service
With integrations such as chatbots and AI-powered assistants, customer service interactions offer a new way for businesses to interact with customers, by providing instant, 24/7 assistance, answering FAQs, resolving issues, and guiding purchases. Using AI chatbots to handle routine inquiries can help your customer service team to focus on more complex cases.
Email Marketing
Does your business send out emails to customers? AI enhances email marketing by determining the best send times based on user behaviour and analysing data to maximize engagement. It also conducts A/B testing on subject lines and content to find the most effective combinations. This continuous learning process helps marketers fine-tune messages, boosting open rates, click-through rates, and conversions.
Search Engine Optimisation
AI tools can help to transform search engine optimisation (SEO) by precisely identifying high-performing keywords and trends. By analysing data from search engines, social media, and competitors, it can pinpoint relevant keywords and suggests content changes like optimising keyword density, refining meta tags, and enhancing readability. This keeps content competitive, boosting visibility and attracting more organic traffic.
Market Research
You can use AI to transform your business strategy by analysing market trends, consumer behaviours, and competitor activities. By processing extensive data, AI identifies trends and shifts with precision, allowing companies to adapt strategies, spot opportunities, and maintain a competitive edge.
Examples of how AI is changing businesses through marketing
One example of how AI has been used in marketing is with the scheduling platform MeetEdgar. When crafting captions for social content on MeetEdgar, there is the option to ‘Generate Content with Inky’. This allows you to create the content from nothing using a prompt, expand further on text and generate variations for the same post.
Another example of AI used in marketing is KitKat’s ‘AI made this ad so we could have a break’ ad. The ad itself is powerful as it’s based off of KitKat’s iconic slogan with the messaging ‘have a break’, as well as following an up-to-date industry trend. However, the image is of a hand with an additional finger – something that has become a clear tell-tale sign when looking out for artificially generated images in media.
Finally, on Instagram, businesses can set up frequently asked questions (FAQs) so that when someone goes to send a message, they have the option to select one of the questions that best suits their needs. With FAQs, you can display up to four question options. Businesses can also set up “saved replies” – when the first word is typed in a message, it acts as a shortcut and sends a pre-written full message. This helps to save time and resources for businesses by reducing the need to repeatedly answer similar questions.
What are other ways you can implement AI into your business?
Human Resources
AI can support human resources departments by automating and accelerating tasks that involve collecting, analysing, or processing information. This includes managing employee records, handling payroll, recruitment, benefits administration, and employee onboarding.
Accounting
Many accounting software tools now leverage AI to generate cash flow projections and categorize transactions, benefiting areas such as tax, payroll, and financial forecasting. AI can help minimize input errors, detect duplicate or suspicious transactions, and identify cost-saving opportunities.
Cybersecurity
AI-powered cybersecurity tools can monitor system activities and protect against cyberattacks by identifying risks and vulnerabilities. These tools also assist security teams in analysing risks and speeding up their response to threats.