Life in the 21st century offers nearly unlimited access to the latest tools and programs. Artificial intelligence (AI) writing tools, social media platforms, scheduling tools, automated processes—the list goes on. For small businesses with lean teams, these tools are essential for efficiency. When digital marketing, blogs, and social media fall to the bottom of the to-do list, AI can be a powerful aid. Programs like ChatGPT, Grammarly, or DALL∙E 2 can reduce your team’s workload, save time, and increase content outputs. You just have to know how to use them and where to start!
Writing Tools
Tools like ChatGPT are language processing technology that can be useful in short-form writing. By inputting commands or guided prompts, these AI tools generate ideas or write copy in a matter of seconds. ChatGPT can craft human-like social media captions, interview questions, email copy, or brief customer communications in a matter of seconds. You can even input a caption you’ve written for Facebook and ask ChatGPT to reformat for other platforms. It will tailor content to each app, using the right hashtags and keywords to maximize engagement. Since it’s created in conversation format, you can ask multiple questions in a row, ask for clarification, or provide new prompts to refine answers.
While not ideal for drafting blog posts or long-form text, ChatGPT can provide creative title options, general outlines, or section titles. Instead of doing these menial tasks yourself, start with a few prompts, edit copy to your liking, and incorporate into your marketing.
There are also AI tools for writing enhancement, like Grammarly. Grammarly is a program on your computer that will analyze your writing and offer suggestions for improvement. This can be anything from spelling errors, to changes in tone, to conciseness. While you will still be writing the bulk of the content, this is a great tool to take your writing to the next level.
Design Tools
Tome, Canva, and Adobe Firefly are specifically designed to create eye-catching visuals and organize content quickly. Whether it is for social graphics or slide decks, these AI design tools are extreme time-savers. The next time you’re set to present your work or schedule a social post, don’t spend time lingering over the design details.
Scheduling Platforms
Platforms like Sprout, Hootsuite, and Buffer streamline social media scheduling. Instead of worrying about manually posting each day, lean on these digital tools to schedule batched content across every type of social media! They will also make your posting even easier by handling all the details of posting, like tagging other accounts or adding hashtags to posts.
Customer Service Bots
Communicating with your clients online is one of the best ways to establish relationships and credibility. However, it is impossible to be available at all hours of the day and night, and even during work hours, it is difficult to respond immediately. This is where AI customer service comes in. AI customer service chatbots provide easy answers for clients in a personable tone. When visiting your website, clients will see a chat-box where they can ask you any questions they have. They will then receive customized AI help, leaving you to work on other projects.
A word of warning: AI tools will never be perfect, and there are currently many limitations. Responses can be repetitive or unnecessarily wordy, information may be inaccurate, and content might include mistakes. Be sure to edit all AI-crafted content, adding in any additional information or clarity where needed.
