Monday, November 02, 2026
The Census Bureau says 17% to 20% of US businesses use AI. The Chamber says 58% of small businesses do. Here is why they differ and where an owner should point AI first.
Stephanie Lowe, who runs Insinc Products Ltd in New Zealand, stopped treating AI as a toy and connected it to the systems she already uses: her ERP, her email, her website and Google Analytics. The result is that customers who had gone quiet now hear from the business every day, with an offer based on what they bought before, and some are already replying. This is an early result from one business, not a promise, and this page says plainly what is not yet known.
A disclosure first: Simple-Growth publishes this case study, and Kevin D'Ambros-Smith is the business coach Stephanie worked with, so he is not neutral. The quote is word for word from Stephanie. The figures come from her own email to Kevin on 2 November 2026 and have not been audited. Checked 4 November 2026 (New Zealand time). Market: New Zealand.
Most owners have a list of customers who bought once or twice and then stopped. The information to win them back already sits inside the business: what each one bought, when, and how often. What is usually missing is the time to turn that into a personal message, every day, week after week. So the list sits there, and the business pays again to find strangers.
From the first 30 emails sent, Stephanie reports 2 positive replies. That is a sample of 30, so treat it as a sign that the approach works, not as a rate you can bank. Her own words are below. What we do not yet have is the starting point: the business did not record its lapsed-customer reply rate before, so there is no honest before-and-after percentage. The next check is a written 90-day count of replies, orders from lapsed customers, and hours saved each week, which we will add to this page when Stephanie has it.
"Kevin got me to connect our ERP, email, website and Google Analytics to AI, and it has changed how we find and keep customers. AI now writes tailored prospecting emails every day and reaches out to lapsed customers with the products they bought before, and we're already getting positive replies. Our blogs, newsletters and SEO are all stronger too. Kevin doesn't just talk about AI, he helps you put it to work in your business."
Stephanie Lowe
Insinc Products Ltd (quoted word for word)
Government support for exactly this kind of work is growing. On 22 September 2026 interest.co.nz reported that the AI Advisory Pilot, which offers small businesses advice and co-funded grants of up to $15,000, was extended by six months to mid-2027, with 150 businesses already through and 120 more joining. Owners who wait are choosing to learn this later, not never. Confirm the current terms with your Regional Business Partner provider before you plan around any funding, because funding is never guaranteed.
No. Any system that records who bought what will do, including an accounting package or an online shop. The point is that the message uses real purchase history.
It depends on the tool and how you set it up. Check where the data is stored, who can see it and whether it is used to train the tool, and give access to read only what you need. Follow the New Zealand Privacy Act and the rules on commercial email, and only email people you are allowed to contact.
Stephanie saw her first positive replies within the first 30 emails. Your timing will differ, so agree a 30 and 90 day count before you start.
Possibly. The AI Advisory Pilot has been run through the Regional Business Partner Network. Eligibility and terms change, so read our guide to how it works and check with a provider first.
No. It is one real example with a small early sample, shown with its limits. Use it to decide what to test in your own business, not to expect the same result.
Be the owner whose quiet customers hear from you again, with a message that starts from what they bought before.
Want to know which of your customer lists is worth waking up first? A 30-minute conversation will tell you, and you are welcome to take the answers away and do it yourself.
Sources (checked 4 November 2026): interest.co.nz, Govt extends $15,000 AI grants pilot for small businesses 6 months to mid-2027, 22 September 2026 (New Zealand). Business details are from Stephanie Lowe's own email to Kevin D'Ambros-Smith on 2 November 2026 and have not been independently audited. The testimonial is quoted word for word from the person named. Last updated 4 November 2026.
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