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Small businesses are adopting AI more quickly than ever as competition gets fiercer by the day. According to BizBuySell, the rate of small businesses using AI has more than doubled, spiking from 26% (2023) to 60% (2025). As a result, entrepreneurs are treating AI as an integral tool for productivity, marketing, and client engagement. When small companies make the most of tech, the growth possibilities can even reach enterprise levels.
While there is a seemingly endless number of AI tools, here are some of the most creative and accessible options to help small businesses grow and streamline their day-to-day.
A Better Way to Schedule Using AI Assistants
There are plenty of tedious tasks that can hinder productivity. Managing an intense calendar is at the top of the list. Skej provides a sleek, affordable AI assistant that takes the scheduling process further than basic booking tools. Instead, Skej uses natural language to manage calendars, construct daily agendas, and coordinate across platforms like Slack, WhatsApp, and MS Teams.
Yet Skej offers more than just a tool. Users can give their assistant a name and interact as if it’s a member of the team. Skej co-founder Paul Canetti explains, “We’re trying to give everyone this superpower of having an assistant. It’s about liberating time to focus on higher-value activities.”
Justin Canetti pointed out one of the most surprising reactions from users: people often forget they’re talking to AI at all. “We’ve had users loop Skej into email threads with clients or coworkers, and no one realizes it’s not a real person,” he said. “The assistant takes over the conversation so naturally that it becomes part of the workflow without anyone needing to adjust.” That level of seamless interaction, he explained, is what makes Skej feel less like a tool and more like a team member.
The team is now exploring ways to connect Skej with CRMs and travel tools to handle even more tasks automatically. “With Skej, your assistant doesn’t just book meetings. It adapts to how you work,” said Paul.
AI Note-Taking’s CRM Dual Identity
Meetings can be the bane of some companies’ existence, but Fireflies.ai is offering a better way. The tool averages a 95% transcription accuracy, providing immediate summaries. Ultimately, it turns each call into a searchable knowledge base. The best part? Clients praise the brand for its affordability, with the claim that the service costs one-tenth as much as competing offerings.
Krish Ramineni, Fireflies CEO and co-founder, said the product quickly became more than a note-taker for many users. “People started using it as a second brain,” he said. “They’d go back to it instead of their CRM because every conversation, every client exchange, was already stored and searchable.” He noted that this shift has been especially helpful for consultants and recruiters, where words themselves are deliverables.
“It’s about building a searchable memory,” Ramineni added. “Fireflies turns every conversation into a resource.”
Many agencies like Hollywood Branded have centered their operations around Fireflies, recording hundreds of calls weekly.
Stacy Jones, CEO of Hollywood Branded, said Fireflies is fully embedded into their workflow. “Every single call gets recorded, unless it’s confidential. Then it’s pushed into HubSpot and our own proprietary system,” she said. “It helps us break down projects, create proposals, and manage follow-ups without needing another admin layer.” For a high-volume agency like theirs, she says, it’s more than a tool, and has become part of the infrastructure. “It’s the single biggest efficiency boost we’ve had in years,” said Jones.
Increasing Sales with AI
AI is helping sales teams answer the age-old question: how can you increase sales without adding new staff members and the salaries that come with them? Apollo.io has an answer with AI-driven lead research and messaging tools that can increase booked meetings by 42% and expand outreach performance by 35%.
Paula Urrutia, Apollo’s Director of Sales, says, “Focus on the low-hanging fruit to eliminate administrative burden so teams can focus on what they do best.”
Urrutia explains that Apollo’s real strength lies in its ability to remove guesswork. “We’re constantly refining our models so small teams can outperform much larger ones,” she said. “It’s not just about having the data. It’s about using it at the right time, with the right context.” She added that personalization at scale is no longer a luxury, it’s the new baseline for effective outreach. “If you give small businesses the right data and timing, they don’t need a huge sales team,” Urrutia emphasized.
The brand’s upcoming ApolloNEXT event offers additional insight into the way AI can reshape sales strategies.
Using Niche AI Models to Simplify Complexity
Sure, plenty of AI tools look to provide general solutions, but Revscale AI functions by building industry-specific agents geared toward B2B businesses, franchises, and brands with multiple locations. With customized small language models, lead generation, customer acquisition, and operations that run 24/7, it’s not necessary to have a tech background.
Revscale offers a “service as software” model that makes using it easy. Unnat Bak, the company’s founder, pointed out that Revscale’s agents are being adopted by agencies that need extra hands without adding headcount. “We’re seeing agencies white-label our AI agents to handle both internal tasks and client work,” he said. The company is even piloting a voice-first version of the product, so business owners can simply call their agent, ask a question, and get real-time answers without ever logging in.
Businesses can engage with the platform through natural language without dealing with malfunctioning dashboards.
AI Can Simplify Legal Help
Entrepreneurs tend to be business-savvy, not law experts. However, LegalZoom offers AI-powered tools that provide services like tracking 90,000 licensing jurisdictions to unpacking the meaning of legal documents with DocAssist. These features are built to lessen risks and save time.
Whether it’s NAICS code generation or AI name suggestions, LegalZoom mashes up machine efficiency with human oversight.
Erica Gartsbeyn, Vice President of Product Management & Business Operations at LegalZoom, shared that the company is focused on removing friction in every legal interaction. “We’re using AI not just to handle documents, but to anticipate what people need next. It’s like having a legal co-pilot that works behind the scenes so entrepreneurs can focus on building their business,” she said. The team is also exploring more integrations that make it even easier for non-lawyers to stay compliant without having to research every step.
“When the legal process becomes less intimidating, entrepreneurs are more likely to move forward,” said Gartsbeyn.
In addition, the brand’s partnership with Perplexity AI provides exclusive discounts for users seeking legal advice.
A Smarter Way to Manage Marketplace Listings
Given that BizBuySell claims to be the largest online marketplace for small business sales, the company is using generative AI to assist users in creating intriguing listings. These AI tools help sellers tweak descriptions so buyers can find the best-fitting opportunities quickly. BizBuySell’s president Bob House noted that AI is expected to “drive entirely new operational models for small businesses.”
According to House, the company is seeing strong early adoption of its generative AI tools, especially for writing listings. “We’re helping sellers create clearer, more compelling descriptions in less time,” he explained. That’s a big win for busy owners who aren’t professional marketers but want their listings to stand out. House added that the real value isn’t just speed, but also the confidence sellers gain when the platform helps them communicate their business story more effectively.
“Early feedback has been incredibly positive,” House said. “Sellers feel more equipped to market their business, and that’s a big step forward.”
Bridging the AI Gap for Everyday Entrepreneurs
One of the most accessible tools for small business owners dipping their toes into AI is Verizon’s Business Assistant. Designed to help entrepreneurs automate customer interactions and capture new leads, it acts like a virtual receptionist that never sleeps. From handling incoming calls to freeing up precious hours in the day, it’s a practical entry point for business owners who want real results without a steep learning curve.
Chris Shank, Vice President of Small Business Sales at Verizon, said this kind of AI can help small businesses punch above their weight. “The more familiar they become, the more they start to see AI as something that allows them to amplify their reach without proportionally increasing their spend,” he shared. That mindset shift, he added, is one of the most important factors in long-term adoption.
“They’re starting to see AI not just as a tool, but as a competitive edge,” Shank said. “And that’s when real transformation starts.”
Start Small, Scale Smart
AI isn’t about doing everything at once. It’s about finding the first task you can offload, and doing it well. Whether it’s writing sales emails, managing a packed calendar, or following up after meetings, these tools help you reclaim time and sharpen your focus. The best part is that you don’t need to be a tech expert to get started.
Every hour saved is an opportunity to grow, create, or simply breathe a little easier. For small business owners, that’s life-changing.
