Last updated on 06/03/2024
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the way businesses operate. The first thing most people think of when they think of AI is automation. Automation is one of the most significant ways AI is being used in business. Specifically, the automation of tedious work.
Tedious tasks are repetitive, time-consuming, and that need little human thought. They can be a drain on productivity and morale. If a person does tedious tasks all day, their accuracy trails off. This leads to errors.
Unfortunately, tedious tasks are often critical to the business. No one wants to fill out a time card, but we need to run payroll. Data entry is grueling, but data isn’t useful until it’s machinable. Mercifully, AI can automate these tasks. This frees up employees to focus on more creative and strategic work. The ‘value adding’ work. This increases productivity, accuracy, and morale. It also reduces costs.
Common, AI Ready Tasks
Here are 23 examples of tedious, but critical, business tasks you should automate with AI:
- Data Entry and Data Migration
- Inventory Management and Stock Reordering
- Invoice and Billing Processing
- Routine Email Sorting and Response Drafting
- Generating Performance Reports and Analytics
- Social Media Scheduling and Posting
- Order and Shipping Tracking
- Time Tracking and Attendance Management
- Expense Tracking and Reimbursement
- Customer Support Ticket Triage and Categorization
- Gathering and Summarizing Market Research Data
- Conducting Sentiment Analysis on Customer Feedback
- Website Content Management and Updates
- Screening and Shortlisting Job Applicants
- Automating Software and System Updates
- Conducting Basic Quality Control Checks
- Conducting Automated Software Testing
- Conducting Routine Security Scans and Checks
- Transcription of Audio and Video Files
- Removing duplicate records from a customer database
- Handling Employee Onboarding and Offboarding Documentation
- Conducting Routine Employee Performance Evaluations
- Monitoring and Analyzing IT System Performance
These are just a few examples of tasks that AI can automate. It’s not exhaustive. Further, as AI continues to develop, we can expect to see even more uses.
Off the shelf software can automate most of the above tasks . AI can help with these following more general business needs. However, these cases are more complex. That means they often need more bespoke approaches:
Use AI to Improve Decision-making
Machine learning is a prominent subfield of AI. It’s known for its ability to analyze data. AI doesn’t have preconceptions (outside of its programming), and it doesn’t get tired. It can therefore identify trends and patterns humans might miss. Humans, armed with these summaries, can make better business decisions. Better decisions about things like product development, marketing, and pricing improve outcomes.
Personalize Customer Experiences at Scale with AI
AI can use data to understand customer preferences and deliver personalized experiences. A common example is recommending products or services that are likely to be of interest. It can be more involved than that:
- Using important dates gleaned from social media
- Recommending gifts a user might buy for others
- Identifying intent to purchase and prompting accordingly
Generate New Ideas
AI can be used to generate new ideas for products, services, and marketing campaigns. While those ideas should be vetted with actual research, AI can be helpful in the ideation phase, especially techniques like large language models. Humans often get stuck with a blank piece of paper. By priming them with a few ideas, you can get the creativity flowing.
Getting Started
AI is a powerful tool for the toolbox. It can automate tedious tasks, improve decision-making, and personalize customer experiences. Businesses that can leverage AI will be well-positioned to succeed in the future.
Here are some tips for businesses that are considering using AI to automate tasks:
- Start with small, simple tasks
- Don’t try to automate everything all at once
- Pick tasks where automation’s correctness is easy to measure
- Get the right data. AI models need good data to work effectively. Make sure you have the right data in place before you start automating tasks.
- Monitor and adjust. As you automate tasks, monitor the results and make adjustments as needed. You need to ensure that the AI models are working as expected and providing the desired results.
Businesses stand to benefit significantly from AI. The best way to get the most out of AI is to start now and start small. By growing your understanding and experience with AI, you can ensure less waste and a good return on investment.