The Practical SME Guide to AI Implementation in New Zealand
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Forget the Fear, Find Your Path.
Stop reading articles about how you're "falling behind" on AI.
You're not behind - your journey is different to everyone else's, and that's exactly how it should be.
This isn't about jumping on the AI bandwagon. It's about understanding if, where, and how AI makes sense for your specific business challenges.
Most AI guides are written by consultants who've never had to make payroll. This one's different. We're talking real implementation, real costs, and real results.
STEP 1: Know What's Actually Out TherE.
Customer-Facing Tools:
ChatGPT/Claude ($20-200/month) - Customer support responses, email drafts, content creation. Works best for consistent query types.
Intercom's AI ($74/month+) - Automated chat responses that actually resolve issues, not just deflect them.
Calendly AI ($10-16/month) - Smart scheduling that reduces the back-and-forth email dance.
Operations & Admin:
Xero's AI features (built-in) - Expense categorisation, cash flow forecasting. Already in your accounting software.
Monday.com AI ($8-16/month/user) - Project management that predicts bottlenecks before they happen.
Zapier AI ($20-50/month) - Connects your apps without needing a developer.
Marketing & Sales:
HubSpot AI ($45/month+) - Pipeline management, lead scoring, email optimization.
Canva AI ($15/month) - Social media content that doesn't look like stock photos.
Mailchimp AI ($35/month+) - Email campaigns that actually get opened.
Back Office:
Microsoft Copilot ($30/month/user) - Document creation, data analysis, meeting summaries.
QuickBooks AI (built-in) - Financial insights beyond basic reporting.
Notion AI ($10/month/user) - Knowledge management that your team will actually use.
The point isn't to use all of these. The point is knowing they exist and what they cost.
STEP 2: Making Your Team Better Humans with AI
Here's what most AI guides get wrong: they focus on efficiency and cost-cutting. That's backwards thinking.
The Real Opportunity: AI should make your people better humans, not replace them. It should free them up to do the work that actually matters - the human stuff that drives real business value.
What We Mean by "Better Humans":
More time with customers instead of updating spreadsheets
Strategic thinking instead of data entry
Creative problem-solving instead of repetitive tasks
Building relationships instead of chasing information
Making decisions instead of generating reports
The Heavy Lifting AI Should Do:
Data analysis and pattern recognition
Repetitive content creation (first drafts, not final versions)
Routine customer queries and scheduling
Information gathering and summarization
Process monitoring and basic quality checks
What Stays Human:
Complex decision-making with context and nuance
Relationship building and trust development
Creative strategy and innovation
Handling sensitive situations with empathy
Understanding customer needs beyond the obvious
The Test Question: Before implementing any AI tool, ask: "Will this give our people more time to be human with other humans?" If the answer isn't clearly yes, reconsider.
Real Example: Instead of having your best salesperson spend 2 hours a day updating CRM records, AI handles the data entry while they spend those 2 hours actually talking to prospects and understanding their real challenges. Same person, better use of their uniquely human skills.
This isn't about making people redundant - it's about making them more valuable.
Step 3: The Internal Audit: Talk to Your People First
Here's where most businesses get it wrong - they skip this step and jump straight to tools.
The Conversation Framework:
Block out 30 minutes with each person (or team if you're bigger). Ask these questions and actually listen to the answers:
Pain Point Discovery:
"What takes up most of your time that feels like busy work?"
"Where do you get stuck waiting for information or approvals?"
"What would you do with an extra 2 hours a week?"
"What questions do customers ask that you answer the same way every time?"
Reality Check Questions:
"What systems do you avoid using because they're too complicated?"
"What information do you need that you can't easily get?"
"Where do mistakes happen most often, and why?"
Implementation Readiness:
"How comfortable are you with learning new tools?"
"What would make your job easier, not just faster?"
Key insight: Don't lead with AI. Don't even mention it. Just understand the problems first. You'll be surprised what you discover.
Need help facilitating these conversations?
Sometimes it's easier with an outside perspective.
We help businesses run these internal audits to uncover the real opportunities (not just the obvious ones).
Get in touch if you want someone to guide the process.
Step 4: Building Your AI Roadmap: Strategy Before Tools
Once you understand your pressure points, you've got four paths:
Path A: Need More Education (30% of businesses) Your team doesn't understand what AI can/can't do. They're either terrified it'll replace them or think it's magic.
Solution:
Start with lunch-and-learns showing practical examples
Give everyone a ChatGPT account for a month to experiment
Focus on "AI as assistant, not replacement"
Path B: Need Better Understanding (40% of businesses) You see potential but don't know where to start. Everything looks shiny but you can't tie it to real outcomes.
Solution:
Pick one specific workflow to test
Run a 30-day pilot with clear metrics
Document what worked and what didn't
Path C: Clear Use Case Identified (25% of businesses) You know exactly where AI could help. You've done the analysis and can see the ROI.
Solution:
Start there immediately
Measure everything
Plan your next 2-3 implementations
Path D: No Clear Benefit (5% of businesses) AI doesn't solve your actual problems right now. Your processes work fine and automation won't meaningfully improve outcomes.
Solution:
That's perfectly fine
Revisit in 6 months
Focus on fundamentals instead
A Note on Getting Help:
Reading through these steps, you might be thinking "this is more complex than I expected." You're right - it is.
A good consultant or transformative AI partner will do all of this work with you, not just hand you a report and walk away. Someone like Catalyst will facilitate the internal conversations, help you build realistic ROI models, guide you through the implementation valleys, and stick around to optimize based on real results.
The best AI partnerships aren't about selling you tools - they're about understanding your business deeply enough to recommend the right approach, even if that means telling you to wait six months.
Step 5: AI Budget Reality: What It Actually Costs
Once you understand your pressure points, you've got four paths:
Path A: Need More Education (30% of businesses) Your team doesn't understand what AI can/can't do. They're either terrified it'll replace them or think it's magic.
Solution:
Start with lunch-and-learns showing practical examples
Give everyone a ChatGPT account for a month to experiment
Focus on "AI as assistant, not replacement"
Path B: Need Better Understanding (40% of businesses) You see potential but don't know where to start. Everything looks shiny but you can't tie it to real outcomes.
Solution:
Pick one specific workflow to test
Run a 30-day pilot with clear metrics
Document what worked and what didn't
Path C: Clear Use Case Identified (25% of businesses) You know exactly where AI could help. You've done the analysis and can see the ROI.
Solution:
Start there immediately
Measure everything
Plan your next 2-3 implementations
Path D: No Clear Benefit (5% of businesses) AI doesn't solve your actual problems right now. Your processes work fine and automation won't meaningfully improve outcomes.
Solution:
That's perfectly fine
Revisit in 6 months
Focus on fundamentals instead
A Note on Getting Help:
Reading through these steps, you might be thinking "this is more complex than I expected." You're right - it is.
A good consultant or transformative AI partner will do all of this work with you, not just hand you a report and walk away. Someone like Catalyst will facilitate the internal conversations, help you build realistic ROI models, guide you through the implementation valleys, and stick around to optimize based on real results.
The best AI partnerships aren't about selling you tools - they're about understanding your business deeply enough to recommend the right approach, even if that means telling you to wait six months.