Before you start8 steps · about 8 minutes
Before you start
- An AI chat tool (a free plan is fine to start)
- A list of the jobs that take up your week
- Your tone of voice guide, if you've made one (our prompting guide shows how)
- Half an hour to try two or three of these
Good to know: Start with low-risk jobs where you'll check everything before it goes out. Leave anything involving customer data until you've read our "AI is a tool, not a replacement" guide.
Step 1 of 8
1Draft emails and enquiry replies
Paste the email, add a line on what you want to say, and ask for a friendly reply in your tone. You edit and send. Brilliant for quotes, follow-ups and awkward replies. Take out names and contact details before you paste.
Step 2 of 8
2Summarise notes, calls and documents
Turn meeting notes, long email threads or a supplier's terms into a short summary with actions. Ask it to list anything that needs a decision from you.
Step 3 of 8
3Plan a month of content
Get ideas for social posts, blogs and newsletters built around the questions customers actually ask you, then write them in your own words. Our 30-day marketing planner gives you a month of small jobs to slot them into.
Step 4 of 8
4Write and improve website copy
Draft service pages, FAQs and meta descriptions, or ask for honest feedback on a current page. You add the real details, examples and proof.
Step 5 of 8
5Reply to reviews
Get a calm first draft for a tricky review, then make it personal before you post it. Never use AI to write reviews or testimonials for yourself.
Step 6 of 8
6Write ad variations
Ask for ten headline options for a Google Ads or Meta campaign, then test the best. Remind it of the limits: Google's responsive search ad headlines allow 30 characters and descriptions 90.
Step 7 of 8
7Create templates and first-draft policies
Job adverts, onboarding checklists, how-to guides for staff and standard emails. Anything legal, like terms and conditions or contracts, still needs a professional check.
Step 8 of 8
8Get unstuck with spreadsheets
Describe what you need ("total sales by month from column C") and ask for the formula plus a plain-English explanation of how it works.
All 8 steps done
Guide complete. Nice work.
Eight for eight! Pick a favourite and make it a habit. Keep a copy of the whole guide, with every step, tip and source, for next time.
Stuck on anything? Tell us where and we'll pick it up from there.
How UK businesses are using AI
The ONS's June 2026 survey found 28% of businesses with fewer than 10 employees use at least one AI technology, compared with 49% of those with 250 or more. The barriers businesses mention most are working out where to use it, cost and a lack of expertise. The eight jobs above are a free or low-cost place to start on the first one.
Best-practice tips
- Start with the dull stuffThe best first uses are the repetitive jobs you put off, not the creative work you enjoy.
- Time itNote how long a job takes with and without AI. Keep the uses that genuinely save time.
- Build a prompt librarySave prompts that worked in a shared doc so the whole team can reuse them.
- One tool is enoughYou don't need five subscriptions. Learn one tool well first.
- Keep people up frontUse AI behind the scenes. Customers still want to deal with you.
- Check in every few monthsTools change quickly, so look again at what could save you time.
Questions, answered
Is it worth paying for an AI tool?
Try a free plan on real jobs for a couple of weeks first. If you're using it daily or hitting the limits, a paid plan's extra usage and features may well be worth it.
Can AI run my social media for me?
It can plan and draft, but posting without a human check is risky. Real photos, real jobs and your personality are still what make people trust you.
Should I add an AI chatbot to my website?
Only if you can check what it says and it hands over to a person easily. A chatbot quoting wrong prices or making promises is worse than no chatbot.
What shouldn't I use AI for?
Final legal, financial or HR decisions, customer personal data on a personal account, and writing reviews or testimonials. Our "AI is a tool, not a replacement" guide goes into more detail.