Artificial intelligence (AI) has become such a hot topic that it can be difficult to separate the hype—both for its use and against—from the reality. Since the field has grown so rapidly in such a short time, it’s worth investigating how AI can help your store become more productive and profitable, while retaining your personal approach and original mission.
Retiring a Couple of Your Hats
Everyone managing a small business wears many hats. And most likely, the people on your team play a variety of roles in your store. But even when that’s routine, it can be tiring. However, hiring another assistant might not be an option. If that sounds familiar, you may consider bringing AI on board.
Even though AI is understandably controversial because it brings up questions of accuracy, efficiency and human employment, chances are you’ve used AI without even realizing it. Search engines feature it, as do accounting and statistics programs. If you’ve sent any emails lately with suggested words popping up to finish your sentences, you’ve encountered AI. So, what does that mean for your business?
Taking Care of the Background, While You Focus on Your Strengths
First, it’s vital to remember that AI is a tool like anything else and works according to the parameters you set for it. Consider that AI can help with some of the tasks that, while important, seem to take up an inordinate amount of time for you and your staff. It can assist with store accounting in QuickBooks, keep tabs on inventory levels, alert you when it’s time to restock and flag products that aren’t selling well.
AI also has the potential to free up your team’s schedule while boosting productivity. With this extra time, your team members can concentrate on your customers, rather than being pulled aside by tasks that can be taken care of in the background.
An article on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce website reports that 84 percent of small businesses in Colorado that have used AI have expanded their workforce. In a sense, AI, like your store’s website, extends your business hours. It can take care of some of the tasks that you may be pressed to finish, especially if you’re running short-staffed that week, or are going through an exceptionally busy sales period.
While it can be a challenge for small businesses to compete against bigger retailers, there are some things that give the leaner operations the edge. First, there is a shorter chain of command when it comes to strategy, marketing and inventory. Secondly, there is the ability to form lasting relationships with your customers built on years of trust and expertise. Third, because your store’s staffing structure requires flexibility, there are numerous areas where a few people can shine and apply themselves in other ways. The potential for AI in a store’s overall plan can free up some of your team to help them focus on their strengths and better match their interests and abilities.
Assist in Your Online Marketing Efforts
I know I’ve mentioned the need for social media as part of any retailer’s business plan in the past, and I certainly think it’s no longer a luxury, but a requirement. But I also understand that staffing and time can be in short supply to make that happen. Here again, AI could help. With your direction, AI can develop online campaigns that perfectly reflect your store’s mission—professionally and quickly.
According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, almost one in four small businesses have adopted AI, primarily for marketing and communications. Now, if you already have a great social media and web team in place, this aspect of AI might not be necessary. But if you’ve struggled to get an online presence, AI could be what you need to jump-start or reinvigorate your e-commerce and social media efforts.
For example, if writing catalog-style descriptions of your store’s products for your website feels challenging, AI can help. It can scour your data and choose the language that best generates interest in your store and your product offerings to your targeted audience and customer base. I would, of course, exercise caution when it comes to the security of your data and the data of your customers. Nobody wants to send out an email disclosing that their server was breached.
Help You Respond 24/7 to Customer Inquiries
If you’ve visited any car dealership websites lately, you’ve seen this feature in action. They all employ chatbots that pop up as soon as you start searching for a vehicle. And while chatbots can be readily dismissed, they at least provide a way of securing contact information and questions from your customers that help your store stay “open” all the time. These contacts and questions, like those sent via email to your store, can be followed up on by your staff if needed. Otherwise, they may provide exactly the amount of attention your website visitor needed at that time.
Incorporating a chat feature into your website allows your store to interact with customers, regardless of your operating hours. It’s a good way to keep a constant connection—even in the middle of the night.
Risks of Using AI in Your Business
Having mentioned the benefits of AI, I think it’s only appropriate to mention a few of the risks as well. Recently, a writer working for King Features Syndicate, which supplies content for The Chicago Sun-Times, submitted a special section for the paper, a Summer Reading List for 2025. He relied far too heavily on AI to help him generate the piece, to put it mildly. As it turned out, nine of the 15 book titles listed in the article, along with their summaries, were completely made up. One book was incorrectly attributed. Only five truly and accurately existed in real life. Apparently, the AI program generated convincing book titles and matched them with authors based on what they had written in the past. It initially seemed completely legit, until anyone inquired about the books, that is. The mention of these titles in a major newspaper was certainly a surprise to any of the living authors listed in the piece, and as you can imagine, it didn’t do much for the credibility of the paper.
Likewise, your store could have a loss of credibility if the sources from AI-driven materials aren’t vetted. If you frequently cover health topics in your store’s newsletter or social media channels, I will caution you not to rely solely on AI’s responses or summaries. Good sources still matter. There’s no replacement for actual responsible journalism and science reporting, especially regarding health breakthroughs, headlines about clinical results from suddenly trending nutrients, or case reports of remarkable but—unprovable recoveries from illness. While I do believe in miracles and that there are things that occur in life that aren’t easily explained by our earthly methods, I am also a firm believer and supporter of vigorous research. I am, and will always be, a great believer in researching your own materials and making sure that you have double-checked study results to be certain of their accuracy. You’ve already invested a long time in developing trust with your customers—don’t allow oversights or haste to undermine that.
When relying too heavily on AI, there is also the risk of portraying a lack of originality with promotions or social media posts. On the one hand, increasing your marketing outreach with AI can be a real boost to smaller businesses that are pressed for time or short-staffed. But it’s just as important to maintain the unique voice your store has built—one that your customers know and trust. There is a lot of AI-generated content out there, and as a result, it becomes easy to spot after a while. Like some seasonings on food, a little AI can go a long way. Too much, too often, renders what were once individual efforts with a personalized touch into a bland menu that might be easily dismissed.
Legal or copyright issues are also a potential pitfall in adapting AI. Because AI’s content is pulled from a variety of sources published online, there can be questions about citation and credit, in addition to accuracy as I’ve described above. Just like with any research or nonfiction work, it’s always best to give credit where credit is due, especially if you’re referencing clinical trial results to support the efficacy of a supplement you’re promoting for your store.
Tools Are Useful, But They Can’t Replace the Personal Touch
When Aldous Huxley’s novel Brave New World was first published in 1932, neither he nor his readers could foresee our exact technology, but he did know that given too much control, it could radically limit our lives, rather than enrich them.
That’s always a risk with advances of any kind, but especially those that appear to be labor-saving. Given the opportunity, many people will choose comfort over freedom—it’s simply part of our makeup. And there’s a place for convenience, but overreliance on it can be disastrous.
While I think that AI can be a valuable tool for small businesses, I also think that an excess of caution outweighs an approach that jumps in with both feet. If there are routine tasks that are taking you away from your customers, it may be time to assign them to an appropriate AI program. But it’s also crucial to remain vigilant so that our businesses retain everything about them that makes them uniquely human.VR
A highly regarded leader in the natural products industry, Terry Lemerond is founder and president of EuroPharma, Inc. He also founded Enzymatic Therapy, Inc. and PhytoPharmica, Inc. and is currently co-owner of the Terry Naturally Health Food Stores in Green Bay & Suamico, WI, which recently won its eighth consecutive consumer choice award as “Best of the Bay.” With more than 50 years in the natural products industry, Lemerond has researched and developed more than 400 nutritional and botanical formulations that continue to be top-selling products in the market. Lemerond shares his wealth of experience and knowledge in health and nutrition through his educational programs, including a weekly radio show and newsletter, podcasts, webinars and personal speaking engagements. He is author of 13 books, including Seven Keys to Vibrant Health, Seven Keys to Unlimited Personal Achievement and 50+ Natural Health Secrets.
