ChatGPT in Business: Breaking Down the Ins and Outs of Innovation Behind Artificial Intelligence

In 2024, ChatGPT is being discussed on an unprecedented scale. If you run a business, you're probably aware of the revolutionary changes this technology brings. To name a few, ChatGPT is believed to improve customer experience, reduce costs, increase efficiency, and generate leads. The remarkable potential of ChatGPT makes it exceptionally beneficial to businesses. However, its potential risks must not be overlooked. Additionally, compared to most AI chatbots with "stateless" features (meaning each new request is addressed as an isolated incident) ChatGPT stands out by remembering and learning from the current conversation, making the experience more personalized.

In this article, we examine both the benefits and the potential harm that ChatGPT can bring to a business. We will illustrate with real-world use cases, so you can better understand the potential of this innovative technology.

What Makes ChatGPT Stand Out?

The NLP (natural language processing) abilities of ChatGPT surpass those of typical chatbots, as it can perceive both the language and the meaning behind the words used in the conversation. As a result, ChatGPT can create more ‘human-like’ replies, thus ensuring realistic discussions with customers. Compared to most AI chatbots, ChatGPT learns from previous conversations, making user experiences more personalized. The natural language processing capabilities of GPT-4 (the language model behind ChatGPT) can be used for a wide range of business tasks.

Prompt customer support

ChatGPT-powered virtual assistants are available 24/7 and can answer customer inquiries on various topics. As they continue learning, the range of questions these virtual assistants can handle grows constantly. Moreover, they provide answers almost instantly, which reduces average waiting times for customers to milliseconds. The answers given are always accurate, which human agents cannot guarantee. The result? Customers are always satisfied with the level of your support service!

So, if you plan to request chatbot development for your business, ChatGPT as a virtual assistant is the best option.

Reduced operational costs

By automating the customer support service, you no longer need fully-staffed support teams, which allows you to reduce labor costs. Automated support agents provide your business a lifeline at peak times. They can handle a large number of interactions simultaneously, minimizing the need to scale up your support team.

Increased employee productivity

ChatGPT is an ideal solution to automate repetitive tasks, answer frequently asked questions, schedule meetings and/or appointments, and perform other mundane duties. At this point, your employees can focus on more strategic tasks rather than dedicate their time to these issues.

Additionally, ChatGPT provides any needed information faster than you can obtain elsewhere. Rather than looking through multiple resources to gather information, you can get it all from a single source. Just ask!

Personalized customer experiences

Modern AI capabilities granted by ChatGPT provide customer-tailored responses, recommendations, product offers, and solutions based on their behavior and preferences. In this way, it significantly facilitates your targeted marketing efforts.

Process automation

Given all the benefits you’ve read about, imagine how powerful ChatGPT can become when it’s integrated with a multifaceted enterprise-level system like a CRM or ERP. Thanks to its automation capabilities, ChatGPT can help you perform order management, data entry, customer relations, HR, onboarding, IT support, and other business processes much faster, more accurately, and much faster and more accurately than ever before.

Confident decision-making

ChatGPT can process data from various sources, summarizing and delivering relevant information to provide you with insights to make informed business decisions. ChatGPT is updated regularly, meaning that its data resources are always accurate and up-to-date.

Ideation medium

When it comes to brainstorming, ChatGPT gives you plenty of space for creativity and even suggests ideas that you can consider. Whether you need to devise a customer engagement strategy, plan to present new service offerings, or add new features, ChatGPT can help. That is, it gives you unlimited benefits of data analytics.

Automated compliance

You can program ChatGPT to strictly follow industry regulations and internal policies.it will ensure all your written communications are always compliant. One can hardly underestimate the efficiency of this solution, as it saves you trouble of performing regular compliance audits or hiring an outside counsel for this purpose.

In the same efficient fashion, you can automate compliance with all your company’s documentation, including contracts, communication logs, reports, and others.

Let’s dive deeper into the rich capabilities of ChatGPT and see how global companies have already taken advantage of it.

9 Ways Businesses Can Use ChatGPT to Revolutionize Their Everyday Operations (with Prompts)

By unlocking the full potential of ChatGPT, businesses can revolutionize their operations and stay ahead in today's competitive landscape. Here are nine areas where ChatGPT can be used to enhance business productivity and actual prompt examples:

1. Sales

ChatGPT can boost your sales efforts by identifying leads in niche markets, crafting targeted marketing strategies, or enhancing social selling on platforms like LinkedIn by refining your branding. For direct sales, it's effective in creating persuasive cold-calling scripts and strategizing questions to qualify potential buyers. Additionally, you can utilize it to develop impactful sales pitches that highlight the unique features of your product or service.

ChatGPT prompts for sales:

• "Give [number] potential leads in the [niche and industry] for [purpose of this list of leads]."
• "Identify [number] personal branding archetypes effective for social selling on [social platform’s name] and describe their key traits."
• "Create a script for cold-calling [target audience] in [your area] that is concise, persuasive, and focused on establishing a connection."
• "Identify key questions to ask potential buyers about [your product and target market] to determine if they are qualified leads."
• "Craft a sales pitch for [your product] targeting [your potential customers], focusing on the unique value proposition."

2. Marketing and advertising

In marketing and advertising, ChatGPT's capabilities can revolutionize content creation. It aids in crafting engaging slogans, ad scripts, and social media posts aligned to appeal to target audiences. ChatGPT can help businesses stand out by generating creative and tailored content ideas. At the same time, its ability to brainstorm and produce varied marketing materials quickly can significantly reduce the time and effort needed for conceptualization. This streamlines the creative process and allows for rapid response to market trends, ensuring marketing strategies remain dynamic and relevant.

ChatGPT prompts for marketing and advertising:

• "Generate a catchy slogan for [product/service]."
• "Create an engaging ad script for [specific campaign]."
• "Create a series of social media post ideas for [product/service]."
• "Brainstorm themes for our next marketing campaign for [product/service]."

3. Product development and innovation

ChatGPT can aid in product development and innovation, providing fresh perspectives on new products or enhancements to existing ones. It analyzes market trends and customer feedback to suggest innovative features, helping businesses stay ahead in a competitive market. ChatGPT can also contribute to eco-friendly initiatives by proposing sustainable design ideas. Its role in this area is crucial for companies looking to innovate rapidly and efficiently, fostering creativity while aligning with consumer demands and industry advancements.

ChatGPT prompts for product development and innovation:

• "Suggest innovative features for [product]."
• "Brainstorm new product ideas for [industry]."
• "Provide ideas for eco-friendly packaging for [product]."
• "Suggest ways to improve user experience for [existing product]."

4. Human resources and training

ChatGPT is instrumental in creating comprehensive training materials and HR documents. It generates realistic role-play scenarios for practical employee training, ensuring staff are well-equipped to handle various situations. By drafting clear and thorough policy handbooks and job descriptions, ChatGPT enhances internal communication and organizational clarity.

ChatGPT prompts for human resources and training:

• "Write a role-play script for customer service training."
• "Draft an employee handbook for [company policy]."
• "Draft a job description for [position]."
• "Develop a communication strategy for internal change management."

5. Project management

ChatGPT is a valuable tool for project management when planning and formulating a strategy. It helps outline detailed project plans, define milestones, and suggest risk management strategies. ChatGPT's ability to create timelines and identify potential project risks aids in proactive management and contingency planning. It can help ensure your projects are well-structured and executed efficiently, reducing the likelihood of unforeseen setbacks and enhancing the ability to meet project goals and deadlines.

ChatGPT prompts for project management:

• "Outline a project plan for [project description]."
• "Suggest risk management strategies for [project description]."
• "Generate a list of potential risks for [project description] and mitigation strategies."
• "Create a timeline for project [project description]."

6. Financial analysis and planning

In financial analysis and planning, ChatGPT can help summarize complex financial reports, provide insightful data analysis, and suggest budgeting strategies. By offering a quick synthesis of financial data and trends, ChatGPT enables businesses to rapidly make informed decisions. Its contribution in identifying cost-saving opportunities and budget optimization can be pivotal for financial health and sustainability, especially for businesses seeking to streamline operations and maximize profitability.

ChatGPT prompts for financial analysis and planning:

• "Summarize this financial report [attach report]."
• "Suggest cost-cutting strategies for [specific area]."
• "Generate a monthly budget template for a [type of business]."
• "Provide analysis of quarterly sales data [attach report] and trends."

7. Legal сompliance

While ChatGPT is not a replacement for professional legal advice, it offers substantial assistance in understanding legal concepts and compliance requirements. It can draft outlines for data protection policies and compliance checklists, enhancing organizational understanding of legal obligations. This capability is invaluable for businesses seeking to navigate the complexities of industry-specific regulations, ensuring they remain compliant while understanding the implications of various laws and regulations.

ChatGPT prompts for legal and сompliance:

• "Explain [specific law or regulation]."
• "Generate a checklist for compliance with [regulation]."
• "Draft a basic outline for a data protection policy."
• "Generate a summary of best practices for [industry-specific] compliance."

8. Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

ChatGPT can augment your CRM by analyzing customer feedback and interactions, generating actionable insights for strategy development. It can draft personalized communications, such as follow-up emails and monthly newsletters, fostering deeper customer relationships. This tailored approach to customer engagement improves customer satisfaction, helps to understand and respond effectively to customer needs, and helps build brand loyalty.

ChatGPT prompts for Customer Relationship Management (CRM):

• "Analyze this customer feedback [feedback] and suggest a response."
• "Create a monthly newsletter draft for [customer segment]."
• "Suggest strategies to increase customer engagement for [product/service]."
• "Draft a personalized follow-up email for [customer segment]."

9. Supply Chain Management

In supply chain management, ChatGPT can aid in developing strategies for improving efficiency and reducing costs. It analyzes logistics data to recommend inventory restocking strategies and proposes solutions for emergency stock replenishment. This analytical capability ensures a more streamlined supply chain, minimizing disruptions and optimizing operations.

ChatGPT prompts for supply chain management:

• "Suggest improvements for supply chain efficiency in [industry]."
• "Analyze inventory data [data] and recommend restocking strategies."
• "Propose strategies for reducing logistics costs in [industry]."
• "Create a plan for emergency stock replenishment for [product line]."

By developing a supply chain solution with integrated ChaGPT, businesses can enhance efficiency, drive innovation, and stay ahead in an ever-evolving technological landscape. As technology advances, the potential applications of ChatGPT are poised to expand even further, opening new avenues for businesses to explore. See the current real-world use cases below to gain insights into the transformative power of ChatGPT.

Real-life ChatGPT Use Cases for Business

In February 2023, ResumeBuilder.com surveyed 1,000 American business executives to evaluate the implementation of ChatGPT among businesses. The survey revealed that nearly half of all companies had already incorporated the technology into their operations. Another 30% intended to do so. And almost half of those already using ChatGPT said it had replaced their human workforce.

So let’s start with the use cases. 

OpenAI and Microsoft Enhance Productivity at Work 

Microsoft and OpenAI initiated their alliance in 2019, with the latter being financially backed with $1 billion. According to The New York Times, Microsoft contributed an extra $2 billion to OpenAI between 2019 and 2023. Later, the tech giant declared the third phase of its extended partnership with OpenAI by investing billions of dollars in speeding up AI breakthroughs to ensure these advantages are widely available. In January 2023, Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO of Microsoft, spoke on extending the partnership between Microsoft and Open AI, emphasizing that this agreement will promote pioneering AI exploration and facilitate its use by a broad range of developers and companies. At the moment, users of Azure have access to top-tier AI tools, models, and systems.

Developers can now insert custom AI-powered experiences into their applications, such as augmenting existing bots to answer unexpected queries, summarizing conversations from customer support to facilitate resolution, producing new promotional content with personalized deals, and automating claims processing.

Apart from the Azure OpenAI Service, ChatGPT is incorporated into other Microsoft products: 

• Microsoft Teams Premium offers AI-enabled recaps and chapters, helping teams and organizations become more productive.
• Microsoft Viva Sales' AI-infused seller experience gives sales teams the tools to implement more effective selling techniques. 
• Microsoft Bing's AI-backed chat provides an innovative approach to consumer searches.
• Microsoft Copilot uses large language models (LLMs) with business data and the Microsoft 365 apps to boost creativity, productivity, and skills.

Carrefour Generates Human Avatars for Videos with ChatGPT

Carrefour, a global grocery chain with stores across more than 30 countries, has implemented a chatbot and a human avatar generated by AI to minimize the cost of creating videos for customers. Elodie Perthuisot, Chief eCommerce, Digital Transformation and Data Officer at the retailer, posted a video on LinkedIn featuring an ultra-realistic human avatar and ChatGPT-created script in February 2023. This first example was an FAQ-style avatar that advised customers to purchase healthier and cheaper groceries through the company's website.

Ms. Perthuisot expressed that AI in the company is employed as an avenue to tailor purchases, streamline product selection, and reduce waste. Additionally, she specified that the data and innovation teams consistently assess the possibilities of leveraging ChatGPT and generative AI, with the customer being a major driving force in perfecting these methods.

ChatGPT and Ada Chatbots to Automate Customer Service 

Ada, a Toronto-based company automating 4.5 billion customer service interactions, has further partnered with OpenAI to enhance its chatbot capabilities. While Ada’s chatbots have traditionally successfully handled repeatable requests with accurate responses, they have struggled to manage more complex customer questions. By leveraging OpenAI's GPT-3.5 generative model, the company has gained an opportunity to access deeper insight into customer inquiries, provide more effective solutions and synthesize conversations between a customer and a bot before they are submitted to human personnel, which enables gathering of vital information regarding customer behaviors and preferences. 

It's worth noting that Ada's chatbots themselves can facilitate the refund process, eliminating the need for tedious approval processes. So, with the combined strength of Ada and OpenAI, the company gains the unprecedented potential to revolutionize the customer service industry by enabling chatbots to comprehend and fulfill customer needs.

Getting Started with ChatGPT: Installation Tips

To start your journey with ChatGPT, you can interact with it in the browser or install it on your device to use it locally.

Accessing ChatGPT online

ChatGPT is accessible online across various devices using a web browser. To start, visit the OpenAI’s homepage, click the "Try ChatGPT" button, create a new account, or sign in with your phone number or email address. After registering or logging in, you can immediately start interacting with ChatGPT online.

Other Access Options

Installing the official ChatGPT mobile app

ChatGPT has an official iOS and Android app for a seamless mobile experience for those who prefer working from their phone or tablet.

API Connectivity

If you have specific integration needs or want to incorporate ChatGPT into your applications, consider exploring API connectivity options. The ChatGPT API offers a convenient and efficient way to integrate ChatGPT's capabilities into your projects, providing endless possibilities for automation and interaction.

Misuses of ChatGPT: How It Can Put Your Business at Risk

Open AI's version of ChatGPT is undoubtedly very promising and exciting, but its implementation into businesses has certain risks to consider.

It can make your business sound frivolous

Business owners have already discovered that their clients want a conversational AI capable of answering their inquiries without sounding robotic. So, on the one hand, having a natural-sounding customer service chatbot is desirable, but on the other, ChatGPT's generative nature of forming sentences may conflict with a company's desired output. Ajay Agarwal, a professor from the University of Toronto focusing on AI, told Forbes that while ChatGPT excels at coming up with non-scripted replies and encourages creative exploration, you cannot always count on its answers.

It can provide wrong information with a high level of confidence

ChatGPT's capacity for producing conversational text has raised ethical worries about its possibility of spreading deceptive content, wrong information, or other misleading information. This could lead to destructive results, such as ruining reputations, circulating incorrect facts, or even inciting violence.

Misinformation appears to be the biggest worry in this scenario. Nonetheless, ChatGPT's consistent and coherent responses, which sound legitimate and trustworthy, make the issue even more alarming, especially in healthcare.

It can respond to inappropriate requests putting sensitive information at risk

Despite having established guidelines that it refuses to breach, namely denying "inappropriate requests," people have still discovered a means of circumventing them, like rewriting a command for restricted information as a hypothetical problem or requesting the bot to write a scene from a play or even urging it to switch off its security measures. Businesses using this technology must be conscious of this since ChatGPT could pass on confidential data from its instructional databases. 

It can be biased

According to the recent Lancet study, GPT-4 has shown limitations in accurately reflecting the diversity of demographics related to medical conditions, frequently generating clinical vignettes that perpetuate stereotypes tied to specific races, ethnicities, and genders. The model's approach to differential diagnoses for standardized clinical scenarios tended to reinforce these stereotypes. Additionally, the assessments and plans formulated by GPT-4 revealed a notable link between demographic characteristics and the recommendation of pricier medical interventions, along with variations in how patients were perceived.

There is a chance of plagiarism and the use of untrusted sources

Beyond moral considerations, AI-generated responses can be seen as plagiarized. Though these responses might seem distinct in some instances, they are often generated based on the data provided by a third party that might use the wrong citation, information, or reference.

The Bottom Line

OpenAI has released the ChatGPT bot to the public for testing to identify blind spots that could lead to misuse of the technology. To this end, future releases will likely patch up these vulnerabilities and other yet-to-be-discovered workarounds. But if you are considering integrating this cutting-edge technology into your business right now, remember to address the potential risks:

• Proper training and monitoring of chatbots are critical to reducing the risks connected with ChatGPT. For example, periodic updates and refinements can help ensure a chatbot provides accurate and relevant responses.
• Human oversight is imperative to diminish the hazards of the chatbot's restricted personalization and potential misinterpretations. This can include intervening as necessary to monitor the quality of responses.
• Even though OpenAI assures that ChatGPT won’t expose your sensitive data, it’s still better to think about the additional layers to data security. First and foremost, it is imperative to guarantee that chatbots are designed and implemented correctly and ensure that sensitive customer information is encrypted and stored securely.

Emerline's Research and Development team is devoted to keeping up with current technologies, exploring every new trend, and working out how it can be effectively implemented in business scenarios. Our team is excited to take advantage of ChatGPT’s potential, having already begun several projects involving this technology. We are eager to share the results. So don't miss the forthcoming updates!