How Tech & AI Are Changing Small Business

Summary

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Episode Overview

Podcast: Earn Your Leisure
Episode: How Tech & AI Are Changing Small Business
Hosts: Rashad Bilal & Troy Millings
Release Date: September 27, 2025

This episode explores how technology and artificial intelligence (AI) are reshaping the way small businesses operate, scale, and serve their communities. The conversation features entrepreneurs from various backgrounds discussing the real-world impact of AI, automation, digital tools, and team adaptation—shedding light on everything from using AI chatbots for customer recommendations to leveraging point-of-sale systems and data collection for growth.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

Adapting to Technology in Small Business

[01:30–03:38]

• Challenge of Adoption:
  • An “auntie” figure within the business humorously shares the generational struggle with new tech.
  • "[I] consider myself the oldest one around here. And as you know, older people don't like that stuff." – D ([01:44])
• Team Support:
  • Younger team members often teach senior staff how to use new point-of-sale (POS) systems (specifically Square).
• Continuous Learning:
  • Frustration with software updates and learning curves, but also recognition that this process is necessary:
    • "But then when I learn it, When I learn it, then they change something." – D ([04:01])

AI and Automation in Customer Experience

[01:58–04:11]

• AI Chatbot for Recommendations:
  • Small tea business integrated a robot on their website: customers answer prompts (vibe, flavor, needs) and get product recommendations.
  • Impact:
    • Increased sales, added upsells, streamlined staffing needs.
    • "That has helped us. One, it has increased the sales so much... and leaning into it to allow technology to be a part of it and take things off our plate." – E ([02:33])
• Email and Customer Service Automation:
  • Use of Gmail Suite's built-in assistants to automate common responses, reducing need for extra hires.
• Balancing Tech and Human Touch:
  • Despite automation, business owners remain hands-on, doing everything from customer service to back-of-house.
    • "Whether or not we use technology, some things we can't replace technology for, we can't replace our personalities." – E ([04:11])

Enhancing Operations and Data Collection

[05:11–05:46]

• Low-Tech Approach with Gradual Advancements:
  • Some businesses use Square POS systems, especially for mobile, pop-up events.
  • Focused on improving data collection for storytelling, grants, and community engagement, but still exploring best practices.
    • "We're just trying to figure out how to enhance our data collection... it's really more like in research and development right now." – F ([05:11])

Embracing AI for Strategy and Growth

[05:46–END]

• Personal Productivity and ‘Superpowers’:
  • AI described as “kryptonite” for overcoming operational weaknesses.
  • Used ChatGPT for business planning and franchise development.
    • "As a creator, I'm creative... but how do I make sure this strategy is going to lead to millions. Oh, that's a prompt. Make sure it leads to millions." – C ([05:58])
    • "I built Black box franchising using ChatGPT prompts... I followed the steps. We got there after four months and I'm not making this up." – C ([06:17])
• Encouragement for Universal Adoption:
  • Strong advice for businesses to embrace AI before falling behind.
    • "If you still don't know what we're talking about, it's already like, yeah, man, kind of too late." – C ([07:05])

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Technology Reluctance:
  • "I consider myself the oldest one around here. And as you know, older people don't like that stuff." – D ([01:44])
• On AI-Driven Sales Growth:
  • "It has increased the sales so much, we can go back and be like, wow, like, they actually bought this extra tea." – E ([02:27])
• On Automating Operations:
  • "You have a little assistant right there that comes with your Gmail. Now, if you're using Gmail Suite, and it'll do it for you..." – E ([03:13])
• On AI-Enabling Human Superpowers:
  • "It's like the kryptonite that I needed... the things I lacked now I can get from AI to attach to what I... can create." – C ([05:51])
• On AI-Powered Planning:
  • "I built Black box franchising using ChatGPT prompts and I reverse engineered. So this is how much I want to make the first year. Now how do I do this? Give me all the steps. I followed the steps. We got there after four months and I'm not making this up." – C ([06:17])
• On Being Present, Tech or No Tech:
  • "Whether or not we use technology, some things we can't replace technology for, we can't replace our personalities." – E ([04:11])
• On the Urgency of Adopting AI:
  • "If you still don't know what we're talking about, it's already like, yeah, man, kind of too late." – C ([07:05])

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Important Segment Timestamps

• [01:30] – Hosts open panel on how tech is impacting business models
• [01:44] – Generational tech struggles and team adaptation
• [02:33] – How AI recommendations directly increased sales
• [03:13] – Automation and tech easing administrative burdens
• [04:11] – Balancing tech, human touch, and showing up for customers
• [05:11] – Data collection strategies for storytelling and grants
• [05:46] – Using AI and prompts for business strategy and rapid growth
• [07:05] – Urging business owners not to wait any longer to embrace AI

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Tone and Takeaways

Throughout the conversation, the tone is candid, supportive, and sprinkled with humor, especially as guests confront the messiness and learning curves of tech adoption. There’s a clear consensus that while adopting technology and AI can be daunting, the benefits—sales growth, efficiency, data insights—are too significant to ignore. The panelists encourage small business owners to experiment, lean on team strengths, and always keep their unique personalities front and center, even as automation increases. Tech is powerful, but human experience is irreplaceable.

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Transcript

[A]

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[B]

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[C]

From a standpoint of technology, right, I'm interested to know, like, how you guys are adapting to technology and how it's changing, you know, your business models.

[D]

That's you, Mariah.

[E]

That's me.

[D]

Okay, So I consider myself the oldest one around here. And as you know, older people don't like that stuff.

[E]

She calls me for everything she had.

[D]

To help me with.

[E]

How did I check in to the airport? Check in, auntie, here go your ticket. But we have really, we do lean into technology and AI and all of that. So one thing that we recently did was we talked about earlier, y' all asked us, like, how do we bring our brick and mortar or our company to like our ver, our online. So people, when they walk in a tea shop, we can say, what do you want your tea to do for you? What's the vibe? What's the flavor? All of these things. Where do you want to meet you? And we can talk about that. So now we have on our site just as simple as a little robot that says, okay, click these little buttons and it'll tell you the first five blends that you need to go purchase. And that has helped us. One, it has increased the sales so much, we can go back and be like, wow, like, they actually bought this extra tea. And it offer another discount and leaning into it to allow technology to be a part of it and take things off our plate. Because if we think about it, we've talked about staffing, we talked about operation and AI offers where you can take some of this off your plate. So we don't have to build every landing page. We don't have to write every little description or do all the little minute things and online orders. Click the buttons and use it. We don't need to email every person back. You have a little assistant right there that comes with your Gmail. Now, if you're using Gmail Suite, and it'll do it for you, like leaning into it, learning it, and. And just taking time to allow those things. And that takes up having to hire an extra person for it. That has really helped us. And then I just have to train her to know how to use those systems so that they're effective for us. So that's one way that we have used it.

[D]

But yeah, and our whole team has. They're all young, and we have square. And they teach me how to use the square. My team teaches the owner how to. How to use the square. And so that's square.

[E]

The square, the system.

[C]

Yeah, sounds like auntie.

[D]

But then when I learn it, When I learn it, then they change something.

[C]

Y. Y.

[D]

And so we are. They move the button. This one right here, they. So I'm getting it.

[C]

Mariah said that's an update.

[E]

No, seriously, y'.

[C]

All.

[E]

The line would be out the door on Friday. It was me and her working. It's us too, because we let our team have summer breaks. We told them, like, y' all get. Y' all mental health. You want to take two weeks here? You want take two weeks? We'll be at the shop. So I made a. It was an update. And she's like, I'm gonna be on a register today. Okay, then auntie, you. You be on a register. I'm gonna be in the back of house. I'm making drinks. You taking care of the people up front. She's like well, can you come help me with the register? And I'm like, okay, I got you with the updates. But knowing how, but it makes it fun and it really does grow the company because when customers walk in, one thing that surprised us was like they walked in, they saw both of us and they were like, oh my God, I'm starstruck. And we're like, no, we're we out here hustling like we got it in us. We're you're gon doing every position at this shop. Somebody want to call out, we are there to show up. So whether or not we use technology, some things we can't replace technology for, we can't replace our personalities. You're going to get that, but we can't replace it. But you're going to get us when you come to the shop. Love it. You're gonna get us on online and all of that.

[F]

We, we're low tech over here. Well, I mean we have you know, like kind of the same like square point of sale system set up. We use the mobile ones for, you know, the pop up shops. At this point in business in terms of technology, we're just trying to figure out how to enhance our data collection because we do so much service to community and we now have so many like funders and things with grants and we want to be able to tell the complete story of our business. So it's really more like kind of in like research and development right now trying to figure out what tech, what things can we use to be able to collect as much data as we can to be able to tell a better story of who we are.

[C]

I was going to say I've become an AI bot. Some of my team members call me Kika bot. I love AI. I remember when ChatGPT first came out. You guys know TJ? Me and TJ were on Zoom every single day like playing with prompts like when it first came out. And so now he's like, hey, look what I did. I'm like how the did you do this? So for me it's helped. It's like the kryptonite that I needed. I think as human this sounds so bad. I'm sorry. Shout out to AI. Shout out to square. But it's actually made me like a super woman because the things I lacked now I can get from AI to attach to what I so like as a creator, I'm creative. I can create a business from scratch. Strategy. I can create from scratch. But how do I make sure this strategy is going to lead to millions. Oh, that's a prompt. Make sure it leads to millions. And actually that's what I did. I built Black box franchising using ChatGPT prompts and I reverse engineered. So this is how much I want to make the first year. Now how do I do this? Give me all the steps. I followed the steps. We got there after four months and I'm not making this up. So it's like it's really helped me a lot. I don't want to say I feel like I'm on a commercial. My best friend, somebody tapped her. Is this really her? Guys, I saw your shout out to your last episode. I'm like, oh, that's not her. This is not me. But no, and I, I encourage everyone to embrace it because if you still don't know what we're talking about, it's already like, yeah, man, kind of too late.