Setting up AI tools for a small business in Louisiana: what to do first
If you run a small business in Louisiana and want AI set up, do 2 things first: get your customer and job information into one place, and write down how the work that repeats actually gets done. Then set up AI on top of the software you already pay for. Custom AI only makes sense when nothing you can buy does what you need, and that's rarer than people think.
Good Business Group does this for businesses in Lafayette, Youngsville, Broussard, New Iberia, and the rest of Acadiana. I'm Tyler Boudreaux, and I run it out of Youngsville.
What to do first
Get the information in one place. A distributor I work with has close to 100 clients, and his list lived in a monthly spreadsheet, with order notes in his phone and follow-up in his memory. Any AI you pointed at that would have been guessing.
Write down the work that repeats. Not a binder nobody opens. For him it was clear stages for an order, a rule for what happens when someone goes quiet, and a short video for each process so he could find the answer later.
Then set up the tools. Most of what he needed was already in software he paid for. When he started running ads, the leads had somewhere to land. The ads went live in the afternoon, and the first appointment was booked that evening.
Where AI usually comes in
The follow-up that should go out every time. The same questions customers ask every week. Notes from a call or a voice memo from the truck that need to turn into a clean record. A number you'd check if pulling it didn't take an hour.
Those are usually set up inside tools you already have, or added with a small piece of work around them.
When you need custom AI
Sometimes nothing on the market fits. A sales organization I worked with had no idea why they were losing deals. Reps were calling with no research, coaching was guesswork, and CRM notes were thin or missing. Nothing off the shelf did what they needed, so we built it: an AI platform that researches prospects before calls, records and transcribes them, flags objections, writes coaching insights, and syncs it all to the CRM.
I build software myself, AI included. But custom is the last resort, not the pitch. Most of the time the answer is already in something you own.
Why local helps
Being close enough to sit at your table matters more than it sounds like it should. Most of what I need to see doesn't come across on a call. How work comes in the door, who it waits on, where it stalls. That's easier to see in person.
What it costs
The first Vent to Me Meeting is free and takes about 30 minutes. You get a First Read, then Where to Start, the plan and the proposal in one short document, also free. AI work starts at $5,000, and custom software at $7,500. Each phase gets a fixed price before it starts. No retainer.
There's more on the AI consulting page.
Book 30 minutes and vent. You don't need to prepare anything.