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CNBC recently reported on conflicting numbers about AI adoption and productivity among small businesses. Productivity among the S&P 500 rose 5.5% since the introduction of ChatGPT in 2022, according to a Wells Fargo analysis.
Conversely, the same report says productivity has declined a whopping 12.3% for the Russell 2000, Wells Fargo's name for the bottom 2,000 stocks in its tracking data.
But then, the same article says a QuickBooks survey of 5,000 small businesses shows 68% "integrated AI into their daily operations," but has no details about whether that improved productivity or not.
Also: The best free AI courses and certificates for upskilling in 2025 - and I've tried them all
Your business isn't a statistic, and neither is mine. As I wrote in the companion piece to this article on the 21 ways my business has benefited from AI, it is absolutely possible to benefit from AI use. However, to do so, you must completely disregard the hype, focus on the bottom-line results, and take it slow.
In this article, I'm going to share with you ten key tips that will help you use AI effectively to boost your productivity and your bottom line.
And that, dear reader, brings me to my first tip.
1. Don't spend on AI just because it's the new hotness
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