How to Start Using AI in Your Business

We are in the age of AI. It’s daily headline news. Not a week goes by without small to medium-sized business leaders wanting to discuss its uses and limitations.

The most common question I hear is, “How do we integrate AI into our workflow?”

The second question is, “Where do I start?”

I sense trepidation among these business owners, and research backs this up. A 2025 survey by the National Federation of Independent Business found that only 24% of U.S. small businesses currently use AI, compared to 78% of large companies. Those that do use it sparingly, often for simple tasks like drafting emails or social media posts.

Why the Hesitation?

I dug a little deeper to find out why many SMBs remain cautious despite the buzz. Here are some key reasons:

• Limited resources and time: Owners often juggle multiple roles. Learning new technology can feel overwhelming when you’re already stretched thin, according to “Small Businesses Are Slower to Adopt AI. Here’s Why,” in Inc in June.

  
  

• Lack of expertise: Few SMBs have dedicated IT teams, making it hard to choose, integrate, and effectively use AI tools.

  
  

• Cost concerns: This Fast Company piece found that while AI tools are becoming more affordable, there’s still a perception that they’re expensive or built for enterprise budgets. With uncertainty about ROI, adoption stalls.

  
  

This tells me that the hesitation isn’t about whether AI could help, but whether small businesses can realistically implement and benefit from it.

Our Journey with AI

I am no techie, but I am the owner of a small business navigating this new technology. I wanted to share how our team has waded into AI and some of the best advice I’ve found on how SMBs can start.

How WhiteWater is Using AI

One of the most common pieces of advice is to start small and work with what you’ve already got. Most major business software, such as Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, and Shopify, comes with built-in AI.

At WhiteWater, we’re on Teams, which includes Copilot, Microsoft’s AI-powered assistant. We use it for various tasks:

• High-Level Thinking: We’ve been using Copilot to help with high-level thinking and structure. For example, we are currently assisting a client in developing a health and safety program. We asked Copilot to outline key topics, and it provided six or seven points that helped us get started. From there, we layered the program's structure with our consultant’s expertise, gained over decades in health and safety, and the client-specific needs she’s discovered through multiple site visits.

  
  

Picture a Venn diagram with three overlapping rings: our expertise, our client-specific knowledge, and AI’s big-picture work.

• Template Creation: AI complements our team by providing templates and handling some formatting or outlining tasks. In this way, it acts like a very efficient administrative assistant. I always think of AI as a helper, not the final decider. It can guide you in the right direction, but you still need to apply your intellect to reach the final version.

  
  

• Time Management: The core message of our Top-Down Bottom-Up Time Management Course emphasizes focusing on the things only you can do while delegating or outsourcing the rest. We see great value in assigning AI mundane yet time-consuming tasks, allowing our team to concentrate on higher-order work.

  
  

• Research Assistant: As consultants, we specialize in leadership development and supporting organizations in their strategy-to-execution work. Our clients span a wide range of industries and sectors. We’ve been using Copilot as a digital research assistant to gather information on new markets, sectors, trends, and more.

  
  

AI’s tendency to generate incorrect information has been widely discussed. We are always careful to take everything with a grain of salt, verify sources, and conduct our own research to ensure we’re using well-sourced material. After all, it pulls from everything that's out there, and some of it is just plain wrong!

We also conduct extensive research when developing new programs or newsletters. Again, it’s about using technology to complement our human talent. Tracey, who leads our instructional design efforts, has such a profound grasp of leadership literature that she’s like her own large language model!

AI can’t replace that discernment and critical thinking.

Marketing and Creative Applications

We have a great in-house designer, a contract writer, and a videographer we’ve worked with for years, along with a marketing agency that helps with our strategy. However, sometimes opportunities arise that are outside our usual scope.

A recent example? A long-time client wanted to create a series of internal videos to promote their safety culture. In the past, we probably wouldn’t have pitched being involved at all. We created a rough script, including voice samples for narration and interview subjects. We used AI to draft the storyboard, which our team then refined to generate the real-world emotional impact we wanted. In Canva design software, we used AI to create a rough concept that received immediate approval from our client.

Let me be clear: We are not trying to become a marketing firm or filmmakers. Our plan was to collaborate with professional creatives on the final concept and story. But this just shows how AI complements our key skill set with tools that extend our reach.

The biggest lesson we’ve learned? What you get back is largely a function of the questions you ask. Prompting is an art in itself.

How to Start Small Using AI in Your Business

If you’re curious but tentative, here are five easy ways to begin, according to Fast Company and Inc.:

1. Start Small

Don’t attempt to “AI-ify” your entire business overnight. Pick a single pain point, like handling repetitive customer questions, drafting marketing emails, or tracking invoices, and test a tool that addresses it.

2. Use What You’ve Got

Many tools you already pay for (like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, QuickBooks, or Shopify) have AI features built-in. Activating these is an easy way to gain value without additional cost.

3. Experiment with Collaboration

Platforms like ChatGPT can help brainstorm product names, write social posts, or draft proposals. Treat it like a collaborator: provide context about your business and clear instructions, then refine the output.

4. Reclaim Your Time

Think of AI as your “time machine.” Automating routine tasks, like scheduling, research, or fundamental data analysis, frees you up to focus on higher-value work (or take a break!).

5. Stay Human

AI isn’t set-and-forget. Review what it produces for accuracy, tone, and fit. Especially for customer-facing content, a quick human check ensures the tech amplifies, not undermines, your brand.

The Bottom Line

As our team has learned, AI isn’t a silver bullet. But when used wisely, it can be a powerful tool for SMBs, saving time on mundane tasks, sparking ideas, and helping you compete in new ways.

Think of it less as a tech revolution and more as a toolkit. Start with one tool in one area, and build from there. As Harvard Business Review put it, AI is a “force multiplier” that’s “leveling the playing field” for smaller businesses.

The question is no longer whether AI will shape your industry, but if you’re ready to take advantage of it. The businesses that experiment today will be the ones ready to thrive tomorrow.

Small Company, Big Potential

As we mark Small Business Week, it’s a reminder that real progress starts small. It begins with focus, courage, and the commitment to keep moving forward. Here’s to the small teams doing big things every day.