What is an AI agent? 5 practical ways to use them in your business
Ask ten entrepreneurs what an AI agent does And you will get ten different answers. The term is launched for everything, from simple chatbots to complex autonomous systems. Meanwhile, the occupied founders continue to cringe tasks that could be automated.
“The confusion on the market on what” agents “are even worse than the previous confusion on what” AI “is”, explains Ethan Mollick, Associate Professor at Wharton School and author of Co-intelligence. “At least with` `ai”, there were no definitions on which we generally accepted.
Understanding AI agents is crucial for your future. Access the AI agents and how to use them to save time, have more impact and focus on high -value work that really matters.
Understand AI agents: beyond confusion
AI agents are tools that can work semi-autonomous on your behalf, going beyond basic chatbots that only respond to direct requests. They can take the initiative, remember the context and manage tasks in several stages with minimal supervision.
More like an advanced version of Alexa which does not only answer questions but proactively manages tasks such as meeting meetings, summary of reports and the management of customer requests.
But the agents do not yet manage your business. “The AI should not be on the front line. It is great in the first projects. It works as an assistant alongside human support representatives. But put it back directly to customers? Not yet. Use AI to help, not replace your team (for the moment),” explains Michael Greenberg, expert in digital and digital operations.
The objective is not replacement. The objective is the increase. For the moment, an AI agent can manage the busy work that drains your time and your energy. Start with these five tasks, then decide the power you give them in the future.
5 simple things that AI agents can do in your business today
Manage administrative tasks
You can cut the administrator who sucks your productive hours. AI agents excel in meeting meetings, organization of your reception box and monitoring management.
“In my agency, the AI is making the big dupbage.” The agent of the Google Telegram calendar changes the situation. Type a message in Telegram. The times AI automatically call. “
If you do too much administrator yourself, start with a simple planning agent. The time saved is added quickly.
Automate research on competitors
Instead of spending hours manually checking what your competitors are doing, an AI agent can automatically follow this information.
Harish Malhi, founder of Goodspeed, suggests creating an agent who “scratches websites and updates of competitors in a Google concept or sheet”, while monitoring social media, summarizing customer opinions and following job assignments. The result? “You get a real -time competitor’s dashboard without lifting a finger.”
This advice goes beyond the analysis of competitors. “Enumerate the tasks you hate to do or spend hours. Decompose the exact process for these tasks. Automating with AI agents using tools like N8N or Flowiseai,” he added.
Execute research and data analysis
Let the agents of the AI collect information while you sleep. Configure a personalized agent using tools like Zapier or Make.com to monitor the sources of information relevant to your industry. Configure it to scan specific websites, RSS feeds or databases, then compile the results in a daily briefing document in your project management system.
For data analysis, use agents that connect to your commercial tools. They can execute regular reports on sales trends, customer behavior or marketing performance, highlighting anomalies that require your attention.
If you do not have a research assistant, you are the research assistant. Delegate this task at AI.
Manage customer interactions
You can create an AI agent to manage the first level of customer support by integrating it with your website site or your mail system. Program it with questions frequently asked by your business, prices details and standard procedures.
Tools like Botpress Or Lindy allows you to create agents that collect information on customers, qualify prospects according to specific criteria and besides conversations to the member of the appropriate team when human intervention is necessary. Configure automated monitoring for prospects that do not convert immediately.
Face complex negotiations
Some entrepreneurs trace clear lines on what AI agents should and should not do in their business.
Jason Fried, who started and executes 37SIGNS, explains what he wants with AI agents: “There is a domain name that I want, but it is taken. Discover who has it, contact it by e-mail, see if it could be done, negotiate (max budget 25K, do not pay everything on the first vomit.”
Fried distinguishes the tasks that are worth your time and those that are not: “It is the kind of work occupied that I want to replace. Do not design, not write, not code, not the strategy, not dream of new products, and not send an email with customers, not to guide a team. It is a pleasure work. But obtaining a domain name already taken – it is an occupied work.”
The best implementations of AI target these occupied work hassles, freeing you to focus on the creative work that you really appreciate.
How to start using AI agents with confidence
Your time is too precious to waste the tasks that machines can manage, especially those well outside Your superpowers. Start small. Choose a repetitive task that you don’t like and deploy an agent to manage it. Monitor the results, adjust if necessary and develop from there. Start with processes that you understand well enough to automate.
Remove the work that prevents you from your highest value activities. Remember to focus on the growth of your business, connection with customers and the creation of remarkable experiences that only humans can offer.
