Print this page

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes, 57 seconds

Machine Learning is Just Right for Small Businesses Featured

Machine Learning is Just Right for Small Businesses red apple fruit on four pyle books

From small to large enterprises, everyone in the business world wants to jump on the machine learning bandwagon. This can be seen from the Gartner 2019 CIO survey, which found that 37% of organizations have implemented some form of artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML) in their operations. This represents a significant shift in the business landscape as organizations seek to make their service provision better. While many people may think only the big brands are implementing these technologies, do not be fooled that AI and ML are not good for small businesses. Small businesses are set to benefit more from AI and ML than bigger ones. Here are some ways that ML is helping small businesses.

  1. Improving hiring decisions

The success of any small business depends on the hiring decisions that it takes. In most cases, this process is not easy because the traditional methods do not make talent discovery any better. However, with the right technology in place, hiring and retaining employees are enhanced. This is even better for smaller companies that have no formal human resource department or where a solo practitioner operates everything. The human resource technology that has evolved to include AI and ML reduces repetitive tasks and automates HR functions that were manual.

AI-based applicant tracking systems help small business owners quickly manage the recruitment process by searching resumes that match the job descriptions, scheduling interviews, and contacting applicants. These systems also minimize bias in recruitment, allowing the organization to hire only qualified individuals for the job. The employer can also take advantage of ML-powered retention solutions to keep the high-performing talent and make them happy and engaged.

  1. Improving marketing

If you are running a small business, there is a high chance that you have a small marketing department or none at all. Regardless of how big or small your marketing team is, you can still use ML and AI-enabled online marketing solutions to reach consumers. These solutions allow you to personalize services or products, identify the relevant customers and deliver personalized experiences. Small businesses can also improve their email marketing and advertising through machine learning. For smaller businesses, ML allows content personalization and predictive lead scoring.

  1. Improving customer experiences

With machine learning, it will not be necessary to increase headcount to serve the increasing number of customers. It becomes easy for your website to solve customer problems and answer questions faster. With services like answer bots, your support can answer customer questions instantly without necessarily engaging human personnel. This leaves the small customer service team free to focus on other important and complex matters.

  1. Improving decision-making process

Small businesses can benefit significantly in their decision-making endeavors with the help of AI and ML. Small companies can use machine learning to improve their decision in various areas and processes. For instance, they can use this technology to analyze supply chain efficiency, enhance warehouse management, enable smarter shipping, and improve inventory management. ML can also help reduce risk by collecting data regarding processes and monitor human error to create safe procedures. With AI scheduling assistants, small businesses can also save time on booking meetings.

From the above contributions of ML to businesses, it is clear that this technology is the right one for small businesses. However, although it can help small businesses solve various problems, it also has various challenges that need to be solved. Some of the problems include data, technology, and people. Regardless of this, ML presents room for small businesses to minimize the cost of running their operations and enhances efficiency if well deployed.

Read 1878 times
Rate this item
(0 votes)
Scott Koegler

Scott Koegler is Executive Editor for PMG360. He is a technology writer and editor with 20+ years experience delivering high value content to readers and publishers. 

Find his portfolio here and his personal bio here

scottkoegler.me/