Beginner · 4 lessons · about 30 min · free certificate
AI for small business owners
A practical course for people who run a small business and do many jobs at once. You learn to use a free AI assistant for customer messages, quotes, posts, hiring and planning, and to keep your customers' trust while you do it.
For: Owners and self-employed people who run a shop, service, farm stall, studio or small team and do most of the work themselves.
Start lesson 1When you finish
- You can sort your weekly owner tasks into what AI can draft, what AI can help with, and what only you should do.
- You can write clear prompts that produce customer replies, quotes, social posts and job ads in your own voice.
- You can check AI output for wrong prices, wrong promises and made-up facts before anything goes out.
- You can protect customer, employee and supplier information when you use an AI tool.
- You can follow a 30-day plan that builds your AI habits and lets you describe them honestly to customers and partners.
Lessons
0 of 4 lessons done in this browser
- How AI is changing the work of a small business ownerabout 6 minWhen you finish, you can sort your own weekly tasks into three groups: AI drafts it, AI helps and you decide, and only you.
- Your first AI wins: 5 everyday tasksabout 6 minWhen you finish, you can use a weak and a strong prompt for five owner tasks and know what to check in each answer.
- Guardrails for small business ownersabout 6 minWhen you finish, you can say what never to paste into an AI tool, how to check output, and how to be honest with customers about AI.
- Grow with AI: your 30-day planabout 6 minWhen you finish, you can follow a four-week plan, show your AI skills honestly, and talk about them with customers, staff and partners.
Final exam and certificate
8 questions. Score 7 or more for a free certificate of completion you can share and add to LinkedIn. Unlimited tries.
Take the final examPrompts you can use today
Copy one, replace the [brackets] with your details, and paste it into the AI tool you use. Leave out anything private.
Reply to an upset customer
I run [type of business] in [town or country]. A customer wrote this: "[paste the message with the name removed]". What really happened: [facts]. What I am willing to do: [refund, redo, discount, nothing]. Write a short, calm reply in plain words. Say sorry only for what was really our fault. Do not promise anything I did not list. Keep it under 120 words.
Turn a rough list into a quote
Here is the job in my own words: [describe the work, quantities, materials]. Here are my prices, which you must use exactly: [list]. Write a clear quote with a short description of each line, the total, what is not included, how long the quote is valid, and how to accept. Mark any number you had to guess with the word CHECK.
A week of posts from one idea
My business is [description] and my customers are [who they are]. This week I want to promote [product, service or event]. Write five short social posts for [platform]. Use friendly, plain words like I am talking to a neighbor. No hype. Include one question people can answer. Do not invent prices, dates or reviews.
Write a job ad that fits
I need to hire a [role] for a small team of [number] people in [location]. Hours: [hours]. Pay: [range I will fill in myself]. Daily tasks: [list]. Write an honest job ad under 200 words. Say what the day looks like, what we need, and what we offer. Leave out words like rockstar or ninja.
Make my week's plan
I am the owner of [business]. Here is everything on my mind this week: [dump your list]. Sort it into: must do today, must do this week, can wait, and can be handed to someone else. Ask me up to three questions if something is unclear. Then give me a simple order for Monday to Friday.
Check my numbers for questions
I will paste a simple summary of last month: sales [number], costs [number], biggest costs [list]. I am not asking for financial advice. Ask me ten questions an accountant might ask about these numbers, and tell me which two I should bring to my accountant. Do not tell me what to do.
Explain a supplier contract
I will paste a clause from a supplier agreement with names removed. Explain it in plain words and list three questions I should ask the supplier or a lawyer before I sign. You are not giving legal advice. Tell me anything that sounds unusual compared to common small business agreements.
Train a new helper
Turn these notes into a one-page checklist for a new helper on their first day at [business]: [paste notes on opening, closing, cash, customers]. Use short steps and simple words. Add a final section called Ask the owner if... with five situations where they should not decide alone.
Ask the AI tutor
Ask anything about this course, in any language. The tutor is an AI: it can be wrong, and it never needs your personal details.
AI-drafted. Checked by an automated validator and a separate AI reviewer; a person has not read every lesson. Translations and tutor answers are AI-made. Found a mistake? Tell us. Tool facts last checked November 2026; features change, so check the product's own help pages. AI can be wrong. General information, not professional advice. Product names identify the tools taught; no affiliation or endorsement. Current University is not accredited; certificates of completion are not degrees, credit or licenses.