Have you heard about ChatGPT yet? Suddenly it seems to be
everywhere in the news, discussing how innovative it is, educators are
concerned that students could use it to plagiarize papers, it will disrupt
industries and lead to job loss. With all the information out there, I decided
to research the topic and see if I could summarize how it worked, and understand
why small business owners may want to incorporate its use.
Disclaimer: I am not a “technical” person, so the
information below is a regurgitation of my research and provided in very simple
language. For those of you who are“techies,” at the end of my article will be a
list of sources with hyperlinks to the individual articles where you can take a
deeper dive.
Basically, from what I have read, ChatGPT is an open source
program that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to gather online information
that is then ranked in order of prevalence of use to answer questions and, in
some cases, write papers, articles, etc. An easy way to think about this is while
I am writing this article, MS Word is making suggestions on what word I would
like to come next. This “prefilling” of words is also seen in search page
results and even when you text a friend. These types of programs are called large
language models (LLM) and have been around for a while. The startling thing
about ChatGPT is the way it can take an idea and turn it into a complete sentence,
paragraph, or paper, by predicting what should come next based on the previous text
and using the lower ranked words to make the writing more interesting and as if
a human had written it. (1)
What is the big to do about? Educators are concerned that
students will be using ChatGPT to write their papers, graphic artists are
concerned that it will be used to produce logos, pictures and art, and
employees are concerned that it could be used to eliminate jobs. (2) Besides
the ethical considerations of ChatGPT, all of the above is possibly true. When
innovation occurs inevitably market disruption occurs. Think about the iPhone
eliminating the need to carry a separate camera or camcorder to take photos and
video. A game changer.
We know market disruption will occur, and basically understand
how this technology can harm us; yet, do we really comprehend how it could help
us? What kind of a positive impact could this have on small business owners if
they embrace the technology, instead of shunning it? A Forbes article on
this topic interviewed teen entrepreneurs to get their thoughts on the new technology.
These digital natives embraced the ChatGPT and are already implementing it in
ways to be more efficient. One teen stated “ChatGPT puts all the information
on the internet at your fingertips and, essentially, takes a project that would
have many hours of work into an hour of your time.” Another said “[it is
a] tool to develop more skills and knowledge so I can thrive in the sector I choose
to go into.” (3) The teens immediately recognized that ChatGPT increases
their productivity, knowledge and provides a leg up in a competitive
environment.
The big question is how can you, as a small business owner,
use this new technology to increase your productivity, knowledge, and gain
leverage in your competitive environment? The most impactful benefit that I
found for small business owners is increased productivity by using ChatGPT to
automate tasks. For example, using it to write blog posts, product descriptions
and website content. Improve communication with your customers via newsletters,
emails, or website chat-bots. ChatGPT can also help you brainstorm ideas for new
products, ad campaigns and branding strategies. It can even be used to
personalize emails and content for your specific customer target. (4) The
potential is limitless on how it can increase efficiency, reduce labor costs,
and help with profitability.
Of course, there are drawbacks of implementing its use in
your business. ChatGPT can only draw
upon the information that is available on the internet and is currently
restricted to pre-2021. It cannot discern if information is “fake or real”
making it susceptible to misinformation. (4) Presently there is a free version of ChatGPT, however
a paid version is in the works. Finally, do not incorporate the ChatGPT name or
logo in your product promotions as this could lead to legal risks and trademark
infringement. (2) Reach out to me if you have questions or would like to
schedule a consultation on how to best incorporate ChatGPT in your small
business.
Laura D. Katz, MBA, CDMP, is the Area Director of the University
of Georgia Small Business Development Center, in Athens Ga. Ms. Katz expertise
is in marketing and business development, she is a certified digital marketing professional
(CDMP), a certified in program facilitator, and a certified GrowthWheel ™
business advisor. Katz is a nationally
recognized speaker on marketing, business development and agri-business. Her
program, FarmSMART, has been presented at the Universities of Georgia, Alabama,
Mississippi and Missouri and earned an “Innovation of the Year” award in 2017.
Sources:
(1) https://writings.stephenwolfram.com/2023/02/what-is-chatgpt-doing-and-why-does-it-work/
(2) https://www.forbes.com/sites/qai/2023/02/01/what-is-chatgpt-how-ai-is-transforming-multiple-industries/?sh=4e935fde728e
(3) Forbes.com/sites/sarahhernholm/2023/01/31/teen-entrepreneurshow-chatgpt-is-changing-their-education-and-how-they-do-business/?sh=57cce7ef4f9c
(4) https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/chatgpt-bard-bing
(5) https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt/
