Is AI Really Saving You Money? Let’s Talk ROI - 5 of 10
Part 5 of 10 in Our Intermediate AI Series
DSTech Solutions | Making AI Practical for Small Business
You've automated a few tasks, maybe even built a ChatGPT workflow or integrated Zapier. But here’s the real question: Is it worth it? It’s time to talk about Return on Investment (ROI)—not just feelings, but measurable outcomes.
📊 The Metrics That Matter
To know if AI is actually saving your business money, look at:
✅ Time Saved
How many hours per week have you or your staff recovered? Multiply that by hourly wages to get a dollar figure.
✅ Output Increased
Have you been able to produce more blog posts, reply to more customer inquiries, or shorten your sales cycle?
✅ Error Reduction
Fewer errors = less rework. This saves both time and money.
✅ Headcount Reallocation
Did AI allow you to delay hiring, or reassign someone from grunt work to more valuable tasks?
✅ Revenue Boost
Are you closing more deals, faster? That's direct ROI.
🔁 Before/After Example
| Task | Before AI | After AI | Gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social Media Scheduling | 6 hrs/week (manual) | 1 hr/week (w/ AI assistant) | +5 hrs saved |
| Customer Email Responses | Avg. 3 hrs/day | Avg. 30 min/day (w/ ChatGPT) | +12.5 hrs/week saved |
| Blog Drafting | 4 hrs/post | 1.5 hrs/post (w/ GPT assist) | +2.5 hrs/post saved |
💡 Pro Tip:
Use a simple formula to estimate ROI:
ROI = (Gains – Costs) / Costs
If your AI tools cost $300/month and you save 25 hours of labor valued at $50/hour, then:
ROI = ($1,250 – $300) / $300 = 316% ROI
Conclusion:
AI can deliver measurable ROI—but only if you’re tracking it. Start now. Track time, output, errors, and money. You’ll finally know: is AI working for you, or just sounding impressive?
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Please take a moment to Comment. Your questions are greatly appreciated!
- thanks, Sam
Transforming business operations with smarter technology.