Big Agency Results for Small Business Budgets, Powered by AI
How small businesses can compete with the big shops by using AI as the multiplier — without rebuilding their stack or doubling their team.
Audience
- Small business owners ($500K – $10M revenue)
- BNI chapters and networking groups
- Service business associations
- Chamber of Commerce and Rotary
Formats
- keynote
- workshop
- breakout
Duration options
- 30 minute keynote
- 60 minute keynote with Q&A
- 90 minute interactive workshop
Audience takeaways
- How to identify the 5 highest-ROI AI use cases for any service business
- The 'AI as the how, not the what' framework — why most small businesses are positioning AI wrong
- Three specific automations you can implement this week with tools you probably already pay for
- Why hiring a marketing agency in 2026 is different than it was in 2022 — and what to ask before you sign
This is my signature talk and the one I deliver most often.
Most “AI for business” talks are either too high-level to be useful (here’s why AI matters!) or too technical for the audience (here’s how to fine-tune a model). This one is built for the room I’m usually in: 30 to 200 service business owners who run real companies, who are tired of being told to “just use AI,” and who need to walk out with three things they can actually do on Monday.
What audiences leave with
A clear framework for evaluating AI tools (the “AI as the how” test). Three specific automations they can build with their existing CRM. A list of red flags to watch for when an agency or vendor is pitching AI. Real examples — mine and others — of small businesses that have meaningfully grown using AI without rebuilding their entire operation.
What audiences DON’T get
A live demo that falls apart in front of everyone. A theoretical talk about the future of AI. A pitch for my agency. The talk stays educational the whole way through, and any sales conversation happens after, in private, only if the audience member starts it.
Why audiences book this talk
Because AI is the question every association keynote committee is being asked about, and most of the speakers in the AI category are either consultants who’ve never run a real business or technologists who’ve never spoken to a non-technical room. I run an agency, I’m in BNI, I’ve been doing this work since 2010, and I can read a room.
Audiences laugh, take notes, and ask follow-up questions in the parking lot. That’s the bar.