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AI for Small Business Efficiency

Jun 17, 2025

Summary

  • This session focused on practical ways small business owners and professionals can leverage AI, particularly Google Gemini and Gemini Live, to streamline time-consuming tasks, improve creativity, and enhance everyday work.
  • The presentation emphasized the importance of effective task delegation, prompt construction, iteration, and prompt chaining to maximize AI outputs.
  • Attendees learned actionable prompting frameworks and were encouraged to practice and build a personal prompt library to accelerate productivity.
  • Demonstrations covered how to use AI for ideation, content creation, live conversation practice, and real-time, multimodal problem-solving in business contexts.

Action Items

  • N/A: No specific action items with owners or deadlines were mentioned in the transcript.

Identifying & Delegating Tasks with AI

  • Attendees were guided to reflect on current time-consuming, tedious, or confusing tasks that could be better managed with AI assistance.
  • They were encouraged to note these tasks and be ready to apply AI tools to delegate or accelerate their completion during the course.

AI Basics & Practical Uses

  • The course introduced core concepts: AI models, generative AI (GenAI), and large language models (LLMs) using accessible analogies (e.g., the "chef" comparison).
  • Examples highlighted how AI already assists users daily (traffic updates, email suggestions, recommendations).
  • Google Gemini was introduced as an AI assistant integrated with Google Workspace and available as an app for desktop and mobile.

Effective Prompting Techniques

  • The "prompting" conversation with AI was covered in depth:
    • Key steps: Describe the task, add a relevant persona, specify format, provide context, and (if possible) attach references.
    • Each step improves AI's output relevance and quality.
  • Attendees were encouraged to practice writing prompts alongside the facilitator.
  • Saving and reusing successful prompts in a prompt library was recommended to improve workflow efficiency.

Prompt Iteration and Multimodal Prompts

  • Prompt iteration was introduced: refining prompts by adding missing elements, breaking larger tasks into smaller steps, changing task type, or setting constraints.
  • Multimodal prompting with Gemini was demonstrated, allowing users to include images, documents, or audio for richer interactions.
  • Examples included using a flyer image to personalize outreach emails, or turning a photo into an inventory list.

Prompt Chaining & Gemini as a Thought Partner

  • Prompt chaining was presented as a method to expand on initial AI outputs by building a series of interconnected prompts (e.g., brainstorming business expansions, then identifying quick-to-launch options and next steps).
  • This technique helps shift from abstract goals to actionable plans.
  • Attendees learned the difference between iteration (refining one question) and chaining (building on answers for new, related questions).

Using Gemini Live for Real-Time Problem Solving

  • Gemini Live, the conversational (voice-based) assistant, was demonstrated for scenarios like brainstorming, role-play, and live feedback.
  • It supports multimodal inputs (voice, camera, screen sharing) to solve problems, analyze content, and offer suggestions on the fly.
  • Practical use cases: practicing sales pitches, getting instant delivery feedback, troubleshooting equipment, or evaluating creative assets in real time.

Decisions

  • No formal decisions or approvals were noted — the session focused on training and practical demonstration rather than decision-making.

Open Questions / Follow-Ups

  • None explicitly noted. Attendees were encouraged to explore linked resources and further videos for additional practice and support.