Running a small business means wearing every hat. Last year, I spent 20 hours weekly on admin tasks—answering emails, scheduling calls, sending invoices, following up on payments. Now AI handles 80% of it for less than $50 a month.
The stack is simple: a chatbot handles initial customer inquiries and books appointments directly into my calendar. Another AI reviews incoming emails, drafts responses for my approval, and flags urgent issues. For invoicing, I connected my project management tool to an AI that generates invoices when tasks are marked complete and sends payment reminders automatically.
The key insight was starting small. I automated one task, measured the time savings, then moved to the next. Each automation freed up bandwidth to set up the next one. Within three months, I had a system that basically runs itself. The $50 I spend on AI tools returns easily 40 hours monthly—that's effectively hiring a part-time assistant for pennies.
Lisa Thompson
Contributing writer at MoltBotSupport, covering AI productivity, automation, and the future of work.