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How to Use AI to Grow Your Business
Joanne Eriaku, Founder and Chief AI Officer at SOAR- The School of AI Readiness where she clarifies AI for and the new realities of business. With a wealth of experience consulting for Global 2000 companies from Nairobi to New York. Joanne is known for her ability to break down complexity into practical, actionable steps, Joanne moves business leaders from a state of vulnerability to preparedness. Her work spans reshaping business functions, unlocking new opportunities, and reimagining entire business models. Through SOAR, Joanne equips you to work with, not against the future so you may indeed SOAR. For more information: schoolofaireadiness.com
SmallBizLady: What’s the biggest myth about AI in business that you hope to debunk?
Joanne Eriaku: The reality is far different. AI is not merely a supplementary enhancement or a luxury that businesses can opt into at their leisure; it is actively reshaping operations, experiences, expectations, business models and decisions being made. There are two types of people in this: Those who are doing something about it and positioning themselves and those who are being positioned by those who are doing something about it.
Underestimating that shift, postponing engaging with AI is a risk those serious about staying relevant in their business cannot afford to make. Change sucks but irrelevance is worse.
And for us small businesses in particular- this is an answer to many prayers: We wear many hats, are pressed for time, are tethered to the tactical minutiae and hardly have a life. Then in comes AI – the thing that helps us accomplish more with less and we’re too busy to let it make us un-busy? For real?
SmallBizLady: How do you think AI will reshape small businesses in the next 2 – 5 years?
Joanne Eriaku: As Rishad Tobaccowalla insightfully notes, “The future doesn’t fit the containers of the past.” Let me begin by pointing out that while humans excel at linear thinking, we struggle with exponential thinking. We often assume the future will simply extend the present, leading to severely mistaken predictions, such as the one from the 1920’s when experts predicted that by the 1980’s, every woman in America would need to be a switchboard operator, if you can get past the sexism, the take way here is that. Understanding future possibilities requires a fundamental shift in our mental models. Particularly for small businesses, the cues lie in a statement Sam Altman made during an interview with Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian, : “For the first time in history, it will be possible to run a billion-dollar one-person business.” Beyond mere automations and hyper-personalized experiences, and AI-enhanced decision support, the real transformation lies in AI Agents. Just as real estate agents manage the complexities of house hunting and insurance agents handle the intricacies of finding the right coverage, so will AI agents manage complex tasks on your behalf autonomously.
A company will likely look like one person and dozens or hundreds, or thousands of bots to make it happen. The idea is small teams with massive impact. The small team is now the ultimate flex. That’s a new metric. That fits outside the framework of the typical business. One of the most important skills of the next generation of work/business is not how do you do a specific type of work. It’s how do you orchestrate the resources at your disposal to do the work for you.
The biggest thing entrepreneurs can do is to become an active protagonist in educating themselves, in figuring this thing out. Passivity has no place if you seek to keep being relevant. Become AI literate- learn the basics like how to communicate with AI through prompting and context engineering. Learn AI safety. Be extremely curious as this is an ever-evolving situation.
SmallBizLady What’s the most surprising way AI can generate revenue for small business owners?
Joanne Eriaku: A particularly innovative approach…
One particularly innovative approach is for business owners to create and monetize customized GPT models tailored to their specific expertise. This isn’t just about automating tasks; it’s about turning your already existing knowledge into an AI-driven service. For example:
- Imagine a local garden center creating a GPT that offers detailed, personalized gardening advice, or a restaurant could develop a GPT model that acts as a virtual culinary advisor – This AI could recommend dishes based on customer preferences or dietary restrictions. Charge a premium for personalized meal planning or special event catering suggestions provided through the AI.
- Or a hair salon could create a GPT that offers styling advice. Clients could input their hair type, length, and condition, and the AI would suggest hairstyles, treatments, and products- Integrate this service into a mobile app where clients can subscribe for regular style updates or purchase recommended products directly.
- Or marketing agencies could develop GPTs tailored to generate content strategies or creative copy that aligns with specific industry trends and client branding needs. – Offer this as a subscription-based service or on a per-project basis, where clients receive done-for them AI-generated marketing content and strategies.
- Coaches and consultants could train GPT models on their proprietary methodologies and insights to offer personalized coaching or consulting sessions through AI.
- Bookkeepers could develop a GPT model that provides financial advice, tax tips, or even predicts cash flow issues based on trends identified in the data.
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