How to use AI in a small business: a 30-day adoption plan
A week-by-week plan for introducing AI into a small team without disrupting the work that already pays the bills.
Week 1 — Observe before you automate
Spend the first week writing down every repeated question a customer asks and every document your team rewrites from scratch. This list is your roadmap; nothing else is needed to start.
Week 2 — Standardise the answers
Turn the top ten repeated questions into written answers with a consistent tone. AI amplifies whatever standard you give it, so the standard comes first.
Automation applied to a messy process produces mess at speed.
Week 3 — Add the assistant
Now introduce an assistant with your written answers as reference material. Ask it to adapt tone, shorten, translate or personalise — never to invent facts.
Week 4 — Measure and cut
- Response time to first reply
- Percentage of enquiries that get a follow-up within 48 hours
- Hours returned to the team each week
If a tool has not moved one of those three numbers in 30 days, cancel it. Adoption discipline is what separates a system from a subscription.
We research, test and document AI workflows with small businesses across Kenya and the wider continent. Everything we publish is written to be used the same day you read it — scripts, checklists and systems, not theory.
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