It doesn’t matter how brilliant your business idea is; it won’t generate revenue unless you work on it. One way to do this is by leveraging technology. Forrester reports that [software is expected to comprise 35% of global tech spending](https://go.forrester.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Forrester-Budget-Planning-Guide-2025-Technology-Executive.pdf) in 2027, up from 27% in 2022.

This is because of the continued affordability of today’s [cloud-based and on-premise services](https://hackmd.io/blog/2023/11/08/finding-perfect-fit-cloud-on-premises-team-management?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=recent-posts) and mobile devices. Small businesses are more confident about accessing new markets and targeting different customer groups at relatively lower costs using digital tools.

This approach enables them to create more jobs, generate a much higher revenue per employee, and achieve greater business growth overall. There has been a noticeable change in the way we do business in the past decade!

However, despite the potential gains, 78% of small businesses don’t use technology to its full capacity, [making only 22% ‘future-ready](https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/topics/leadership/global-cio-and-technology-leadership-survey-collection.html).’ If you’re one of them, now is the time to change—and the steps are pretty simple to follow.

Let’s take a look at five tech solutions that can help scale your small business:

## 1. Automate new projects and daily tasks

While your existing processes and frameworks may be robust enough to handle daily operations, starting work on a new project with a blank slate can drain your time and resources. This is where Machine Learning (ML) plays a significant role.

By learning from historical performance data and facilitating key design decisions based on set parameters, the technology can eliminate a lot of repeat work, such as:

* Extracting insights from sales data
* [Cleaning and organizing email lists](https://kickbox.com/resource-center/five-benefits-of-email-list-cleaning)
* Systematizing invoicing and billing
* Improving project planning and workflow optimization

This minimizes your employees’ workload and equips them to focus on higher-level tasks that require more creativity and critical thinking, ultimately boosting your business productivity.

## 2. Boost the accuracy of your sales forecasts

While small businesses tend to value a personal touch in sales due to its client-facing nature, automation can help make the sales team more effective and productive. AI-powered virtual sales assistants, for example, can determine optimal times to contact a customer.

They can also suggest the most persuasive words and tone of voice to use to close deals. Other AI tools can [verify lead email details](https://kickbox.com/email-verification-api/) and quickly scan your entire addressable market based on specific search parameters like company size, industry/sector, and technology stack.

It’s also possible to use AI to make more accurate sales forecasts. The technology can analyze past deals, both won and lost, and data from sales calls, meetings, and emails to pinpoint factors contributing to successful sales.

AI tools help generate more revenue and boost confidence in your sales team’s approach by providing data-backed insights. They can also assist in creating top-level [Request For Comments (RFC) documents](https://hackmd.io/blog/2024/04/05/creating-effective-request-for-comments-rfc-document?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=recent-posts) and similar policies to align your sales strategies.

## 3. Unleash employee productivity with knowledge base management

Over time, business expands leads to an increase in the volume of internal knowledge that must be accessible and well-organized.

Efficient knowledge base management can help ensure employees can access key information, documents, and resources instantly. At the end of the day, no one wants to spend time searching for answers to questions or resolutions to problems.

Thankfully, tools like[ HackMD](https://hackmd.io/home), a Markdown viewer, make this process easier. With no setup required, it allows teams to track document views, embed pseudocode, and even collect private suggestions from anonymous readers.

With proper systems in place, you can more effectively capture and manage institutional knowledge, improve knowledge sharing across the business, and increase your employees’ productivity and creativity.

## 4. Use AI chatbots to manage customer queries

When you are just starting, a small team of customer service executives can easily manage all the incoming queries. However, as you expand your business, a human team alone may struggle to keep up with the increasing demand.

That’s where AI chatbots play a crucial role. They can efficiently tackle a broad range of customer questions and complaints, maintaining a friendly, conversational tone.

They can also redirect queries to a live support agent when the customer specifically requests it or when the query is too complex.

Chatbots can also enhance customer engagement by guiding them to relevant knowledge base articles, soliciting product reviews, and offering short questionnaires for feedback.

If you plan to reach a global audience, AI chatbots can handle visitors from all over the world across various time zones—something an in-house team can’t do around the clock and even if it can, it comes with additional expenses.

## 5. Digitize and streamline your onboarding process

As your business grows, you’ll be hiring more often and managing paperwork for recruits can be tedious for your HR team and the people joining.

To ease the burden, use technology to streamline onboarding. For example, apps like BambooHR and Talmundo allow new employees to complete paperwork systematically and connect with the team (they’ll be working with) online before their first day in the office.

These platforms also give recruits an in-depth understanding of your company’s culture and vision, set an agenda for their first day, and help them define work goals for the first 90 days.

Many of these apps can also sync with other HR and communication tools, automatically adding new employees to Discord or Microsoft Teams channels, Gmail/Outlook accounts, and other messaging apps.

By embracing technology, you free up time for what truly matters in onboarding—fostering human connections.

## Summing it up

The modernization of technology has dramatically empowered small businesses and this trend will only accelerate in the years to come. In fact, 63% of business leaders [are already optimistic about the increased investment in technology.](https://www.experian.com/content/dam/noindex/emea/experian-academy/Strategies-for-Growth-Perspectives-from-the-Boardroom.pdf)

There’s no denying that AI is a fundamental part of the present—even our day-to-day lives are now influenced by Generative AI and how it reshapes creativity, optimizes communication, and drives innovation in everything from healthcare to finance.

So, despite a difficult economic climate, technology will continue to fuel business insights and broader customer experience goals while improving the operational efficiency of critical internal processes.

The question is: are you ready to scale your small business?