4 ways to empower small and medium businesses with generative AI

In a tightening economy, small and medium businesses (SMBs) are challenged to grow while protecting thinning margins. Compared to large businesses, SMBs have fewer resources to help them weather an economic downturn or diversify into new value streams. As such, enterprises that serve SMBs must provide solutions that lessen administrative burdens and deliver tangible value. And with SMBs representing 44% of the US GDP (the link resides outside ibm.com), they cannot be ignored.

By adopting these 4 best practices to invest in the right technology and leverage the most recent advances in generative AI, enterprises can unlock unique services for SMB customers.

1. Enterprises should create personalized experiences for SMBs based on qualitative and quantitative data

As SMBs become more cautious about their spending, the enterprises that serve them must drive value through increased personalization. Service providers need technology systems with a centralized customer journey log that can track interactions, sentiment and next steps across every touchpoint to deliver a seamless customer experience. However, this isolated qualitative customer information is not enough to serve a client’s needs. Generative AI tools like IBM watsonx.ai can analyze high-level customer trends and market forces — as well as specific customer data and historical transactions — to recommend products that meet each SMB’s particular needs. Data-driven personalization is essential in today’s business environment. With 89% of digital businesses investing in personalization (the link resides outside ibm.com) to enhance the customer digital experience, those that fail to do so risk falling behind.

2. Enterprises must provide tailored support for SMBs as they adopt new products

Most SMBs do not have massive tech teams to support the adoption of new products and services. To ensure uptake of products, service providers must have the appropriate tech tools to help SMBs understand the value of these products and to help with testing and implementation. Generative AI can turn SMB needs into product use cases, and the appropriate tech systems can allow SMBs to test products in a sandbox. Furthermore, generative AI solutions such as watsonx™ Code Assistant can meet the core technical needs of enterprises. Watsonx Code Assistant can help enterprises achieve a 30% reduction in development effort or 30% productivity gain, which allows them to more effectively and efficiently serve SMBs.

3. Enterprises should strategically align pricing models to the needs of SMBs

Usage-based pricing models or fixed time-based pricing models — such as monthly subscriptions or one-time payments — allow enterprises to meet the distinct needs of each SMB. With usage-based pricing of products, SMBs pay for only what they use. This method requires the enterprise to have clean data flows from central sources of truth to accurately track and reflect usage. Watsonx.data allows enterprises to centrally gather, categorize and filter data from multiple sources. Through workload optimization, watsonx.data can reduce the cost of an enterprise’s data warehouse by up to 50%. Paired with IBM’s data consulting services, enterprises can leverage watsonx.data to track usage, generate dashboards and ultimately enable strategic decision making. Alternatively, fixed time-based pricing means SMBs pay a predetermined cost based on what they can afford, and they are able to make full use of the product or service within their purchase period.

4. Enterprises should offer a digital experience with increased self-service options

SMBs are lean operations with small workforces that optimize for efficiency. Less than 15% of SMBs (the link resides outside ibm.com) want to interact with providers through phone and automated voice systems. To serve this demographic, enterprises must create end-to-end digital experiences from the point of research to post-purchase support. Self-service platforms make small tasks easy: for example, SMBs should be able to update their billing information and contact information without having to contact a provider representative. Conversational AI solutions can reduce call wait time by 30% and produce up to a 370% three-year ROI. IBM watsonx Assistant can help address complex tasks by providing intelligent customer care across all touchpoints with an SMB, and it learns and improves automatically over time with every conversation.

If implemented correctly, these technologies can drive value for both SMBs and the enterprises that serve them. As the SMB grows and matures, the enterprise can meet the needs of the growing business via cross-selling of solutions. The SMB can stay with the same trusted enterprise for their operational solutions, and the enterprise can maximize the customer lifetime value from the SMB by providing solutions across the various stages of the SMB’s growth.

If an SMB is not looking to grow, the enterprise that serves it can still provide strategic solutions that help the SMB increase operational efficiency (such as generative AI for CRM, quicker close to sale, generated smart replies and self-service options). By providing powerful, capable generative AI solutions, enterprises can meet the specific needs of their SMB clients to help them succeed.