Earlier this year we looked into the AI tools that would change the game, and your business, (for the better!) From copy that converts to video generators that rival IMAX, we scoured high and low for the best ones. But this landscape is changing weekly and since then some new tools have popped up.
We did the research on the AI tools that are rewriting the game for small businesses the world over. If you’re running a business, here are four tools that could help you run your business better.
Best for: Creating impressive data visualisations
Cost: Free
Show me an excel spreadsheet and I’ll immediately break out into a cold sweat and look for the nearest exit. Point me toward a colourful animated graphic and I’m all yours. Why? ‘Cause humans are inherently visual creatures that understand the world around us using our strongest sense, sight. Explaining the numbers behind a pitch to an investor or a product to a customer is infinitely easier when you can show them instead. But converting hard data (shudder) into eye candy that effectively conveys your message typically involves a lot of time, expenny software, and a talent for seeing the bigger picture, so to speak. Thanks to Flourish – brought to you by the design maestros behind Canva – converting data into beautifully-designed animations is as simple as dragging and dropping data from a spreadsheet into a template.
Best for: Marketing strategies
Cost: Free
The OG of AI tools, Chat GPT still ranks as one the best AI tools to generate *anything marketing-related. With the right prompts (as with any generative AI tool, the results are only as good as the information you provide), the natural language processing (NLP) chatbot can generate everything from social media captions and Google PPC copy, to customer engagement strategies and creative concept ideation.
*other than images or videos.
Best for: Hyper-realistic imagery
Cost: $10 / month
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but finding the right picture on a tight budget leaves you with one option: trawling stock photography sites filled with generic, “I’m sure I recognise that man from somewhere” images that can best be described as “better than nothing”. Thanks to Midjourney, a text-to-image generative AI tool, you can create hyper-realistic, uniquely beautiful images in less than the time it takes a taxi to cross an intersection during peak traffic.
Show us your July business photo dump 🙏 📷 We'll go first...💙 pic.twitter.com/3CeiOopL0k
— Yoco (@Yoco_ZA) July 28, 2023
Best for: Easily adding text to video
Cost: Free, limited to 3 videos. $12/month (+- R224) for unlimited videos, plus a bunch of extra features.
Got snippets of footage that would make the perfect explainer video…if only you had the ability to add text? This AI tool is about to be your new BFF. Runway has simplified the process of adding text to video, enabling you to level-up your brand storytelling – and ultimately, boost sales – in just a few clicks. For those without a knack for design, an extensive library of presets takes the guesswork out of choosing the perfect font and style. (Hint: it’s never comic sans. Ever. Nope, not even then).
We hope you’ll find the tools we researched helpful and relevant to your business. Who knows, AI may even have written this article…Welcome to the future 🤖.
Please note: Yoco is in no way affiliated with any of the tools or companies mentioned in this article. All of the tools listed above are either free to use, or offer a free trial period.
