Wyoming Business Tips for January

An occasional look at issues facing Wyoming business owners and entrepreneurs from the Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network, a collection of business assistance programs at the University of Wyoming.

By Kayley Achi, market researcher, Wyoming SBDC Network Market Research Center

Artificial intelligence (AI) can seem like an overwhelming, complicated topic. Nearly every day, there's news about companies like Google and Microsoft investing in AI or incorporating AI tools into their daily operations. But there's little information out there for business owners wondering how AI can help them run and grow their business.

The best way to learn about AI is to try it. If you haven't started your AI journey, I recommend starting with a user-friendly generative AI tool like ChatGPT, Anthropic Claude, Gemini or Perplexity. Generative AI tools are made to learn and analyze data and patterns to create new content like text, images or code.

As the viral "strawberry problem" showed this summer, generative AI tools still have a long way to go. But they can be great for brainstorming, drafting, summarizing and comparing.

Generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, are not great for creating final drafts because, as intelligent as AI is, you should treat all AI tools like interns. You might let an intern write a social media post or two without making changes, but you wouldn't necessarily let an intern write your entire business plan or bid for a government contracting opportunity.

Artificial intelligence needs humans in the loop machine learning to ensure that outputs are accurate, fair and trustworthy. People also are going to be more imaginative and creative than AI. So, if you want something truly unique, you'll need to add elements to whatever AI comes up with.

As you're trying generative AI tools, my recommendations are to:

Be aware of the risks and ethical considerations. If you know anything about AI, it's likely that AI is not always right or accurate. People in the industry call these false answers "hallucinations," and it's something to be aware of as you try out various AI tools. Don't fully trust any answer and be precautious. Confirm the outputs. AI systems can inherit and amplify the biases that exist in the data they are trained on, which can reflect biases in our world. Data privacy and intellectual property are additional concerns. The risks and ethics of AI deserve much more consideration, so I recommend reviewing our Using AI for Business: Ethics and Cybersecurity Concerns webinar.

Build clear, specific prompts. Vague prompts tend to lead to poor results. How do you create good prompts? You practice. There isn't one right way to write prompts because you can use the same prompt on different days or platforms and get entirely different results. The main thing is to be clear about what action you'd like AI to conduct. For example, you may use action words like summarize, organize, analyze, translate, create, edit or solve. If you need the output in a specific format, such as a table, be clear about that, too. I provide example prompts throughout this article to help you get started, but feel free to edit and experiment with prompts on your own.

Check the outputs. The great thing about AI is that it's typically quick when providing answers or outputs. You may be thinking "AI is not saving me time if I have to review and edit it anyway, so I may as well do it myself." That could be very true for certain tasks, but there are tons of time-intensive tasks where AI can save you time -- even if you're confirming the results or making tweaks after. The goal is to save 80 percent of your time and use the other 20 percent to review.

Content creation. Generative AI tools can be useful for creating content for your website, blog, e-newsletters or social media pages. I often use these tools for brainstorming and editing written content, but image generators like DALL-E have significantly improved in recent months. So, I recommend trying AI image generators, too. Here are some examples:

Social media post prompt: Write an Instagram caption promoting a special Valentine's Day dinner where we will serve a set menu of dry-aged prime rib, truffle mac and cheese, and chocolate lava cake. I run a steakhouse in Cheyenne, and my audience is local couples. I want to mention they should call to reserve a table.

Blog post prompt: I need ideas on topics for a new blog post on my website link. I want it to be about sustainability trends in child care centers.

Editing an article prompt: Review the following article and provide specific feedback on clarity, coherence and whether it has a professional tone. Identify any areas that could be improved, such as sentence structure, word choice or overall organization. Provide suggestions on how I can include key words pertaining to search engine optimization throughout the article.

Drafting Business Plans and Proposals. AI won't know your business as well as you do, but it can be a handy tool for drafting documents required for your business. If you are concerned about confidentiality, I recommend reviewing the tool's privacy policy or removing the elements that are of highest concern, such as your business name or financials. Consider breaking up large documents into sections to get the most out of the AI tool and its feedback.

Document drafting prompt: I'm hoping to open Redacted Dining Co., a full-service, single-location restaurant in Lander. The restaurant will serve fine dining food with a focus on French cuisine. The restaurant also will serve premium cocktails, a curated wine list and a small collection of French desserts. I want the focus of the restaurant to be locally sourced and seasonal ingredients. The restaurant will have a romantic atmosphere with art installations on the wall, candlelit tables and occasionally live classical music. My target market will be tourists and millennial or older locals in high-income households. I've attached a market research report that will provide additional information on the industry. Using the information provided, create a draft of the "consumer segments" section of the Business Model Canvas.

Competitor and Trend Analysis. You can use generative AI tools to see what's popular, what's happening in your area, and what your competitors are doing. Please note that hallucinations can be common, and some trend information may be outdated if the AI tools don't have access to real-time data. The best way to know if the AI information is up to date is to ask. You can see Gemini's response to my question about data availability below. The free versions tend to have older data than the paid versions.

Competitor analysis prompt: What dog grooming businesses serve the Casper area? Please include their prices.

Trend analysis prompt: I need some ideas for my blog on solar energy innovations. Please give me a list of trending topics concerning solar energy innovations. Please give me a list of trending topics concerning solar energy in the United States today. Provide links to your sources.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the business landscape, so now is the perfect time to learn and explore generative AI tools. Ask questions; find ways where it can make your life easier; and compare tools to find the right one for your business. AI can create social media calendars, develop buyer personas and analyze your financials. But, as Gemini puts it, AI is not a magic wand.

Remember to use AI ethically and responsibly by verifying the information, because the outputs can be vague or just plain wrong. Understand its limitations and potential to get the most out of it.

For personalized guidance and support, reach out to your Wyoming SBDC Network adviser and unlock the full power of artificial intelligence for your business success.

The Wyoming SBDC Network offers no-cost advising and technical assistance to help Wyoming entrepreneurs think about, launch, grow, reinvent or exit their business. In 2024, the Wyoming SBDC Network helped Wyoming entrepreneurs start 46 new businesses; support 1,870 jobs; and bring a capital impact of $2.9 million to the state. The Wyoming SBDC Network is hosted by UW with state funds from the Wyoming Business Council and funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

To ask a question, call 1-800-348-5194, email [email protected], or write Dept. 3922, 1000 E. University Ave., Laramie, WY 82071-3922.

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