8 Creative Ways Startups Can Use ChatGPT in 2024

Imagine this: you’re sipping your morning coffee, staring at a screen filled with tabs of market reports, competitor analysis, and trend forecasts. You’re on the verge of a breakthrough idea, but the sheer volume of information feels overwhelming. Then, you decide to consult ChatGPT, asking it to sift through the data and summarize the key insights. Moments later, you’re looking at a concise report that highlights exactly what you need to know, turning hours of research into a few minutes of reading. This isn’t just a scenario; it’s the reality for countless entrepreneurs and innovators who have embraced the power of ChatGPT.

Introduced as the forefront of Large Language Models (LLMs), ChatGPT 4 has consistently outperformed its predecessors and competitors, becoming a daily tool for professionals like myself. Over the past year, I’ve experimented with its capabilities, pushed its limits, and learned to navigate its vast potential. But what exactly is ChatGPT, and how does it achieve these feats?

At its core, ChatGPT is an LLMs, designed to understand, generate, and interact with human-like text based on the input it receives. Unlike traditional search engines or data analysis tools, ChatGPT can engage in a dialogue, offering responses that adapt to the nuances of the conversation. This capability makes it an invaluable asset for anyone looking to streamline their workflow and enhance their creative process.

Understanding LLMs

To fully appreciate what makes ChatGPT so revolutionary, it’s crucial to grasp the basics of LLMs. LLMs are trained on vast datasets of text from the internet, learning patterns, relationships, and the subtleties of language. This training enables them to generate responses that can range from answering simple questions to crafting entire articles on complex topics.

The development of LLMs like ChatGPT 4 represents a significant leap in artificial intelligence, allowing these models to understand context, make inferences, and even exhibit a degree of creativity. This capability stems from their training process, where they analyze and learn from the myriad ways humans express ideas, ask questions, and communicate information.

In today’s digital landscape, the role of technologies like ChatGPT cannot be overstated. They offer a bridge between the raw data available online, or shared with them, and actionable insights that businesses can use to make informed decisions. Whether it’s drafting emails, creating content, or even coding, ChatGPT’s versatility makes it an indispensable tool for professionals across industries. But they are not human and should not be used to replace human ingenuity, creativity, or decision making. 

In this post, I’ll explore a number of ways I’ve found ChatGPT to be useful, in the context of business planning (both the document and the process). It should be noted that I’m using ChatGPT-4, which is the paid version of the product from OpenAI. 

#1 Market Research Assistance

Let’s dive into a practical example demonstrating how ChatGPT-4 with Code Interpreter can be utilized to enhance market research efforts for a startup business, like a Thai restaurant planning to enter a competitive market.

Picture a scenario where you, as an entrepreneur, have compiled various reports, statistics, and articles on your target market. The goal is to understand the current landscape, project future trends, and identify a niche for your Thai restaurant. ChatGPT’s role here is not just to read but to interpret and analyze this array of data to deliver actionable insights.

In the screen grab below, ChatGPT is provided with a radial analysis report—a dataset from that outlines demographic and economic characteristics within a certain radius of a proposed restaurant location. The entrepreneur prompts ChatGPT to process this data and help refine their understanding of the ideal target customer based on population density, growth rates, and daytime footfall patterns.

The AI’s response is a detailed breakdown of the potential market within 5, 10, and 20-minute radii, indicating not only the current population but also the projected figures over the next five years. From the number of workers during the day to the subtle shifts in growth rates, ChatGPT synthesizes this data into digestible insights, suggesting the restaurant’s broad geographic reach and identifying a significant customer base among professionals seeking quick-service dining options.

Further interaction, as depicted in subsequent screen grabs, shows ChatGPT using external research from sources like the Pew Research Center to estimate the Serviceable Available Market (SAM) and the Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM) for the restaurant. By understanding that 12% of all U.S. restaurants serve Asian food, ChatGPT calculates the SAM within a 20-mile radius to be $540 million. Taking it a step further, it defines a hypothetical scenario where capturing 1% of this SAM leads to a SOM of $5.4 million—a figure that could serve as a year 5 revenue target for the restaurant.

Prompt: 

Response: 

This example demonstrates ChatGPT’s capability to act not only as a data analyst but also as a strategic planner. An entrepreneur could use this calculated SOM as a defendable and ambitious goal for their business plan, providing a clear target to aim for and back into with further strategic and operational planning.

Entrepreneurs can prompt ChatGPT with specific questions about their market, and through intelligent querying, refine their business strategies. However, as with all AI outputs, these insights should be taken as a starting point. It’s essential to double-check the calculations and ensure they align with real-world variables and business capacities.

#2 Branding Ideas

The quest for the perfect brand identity is both thrilling and daunting. A resonant brand can speak volumes. This is where ChatGPT steps in as a creative partner, offering a springboard for your branding ideas, from the name all the way through to the visual identity.

Crafting a Name with ChatGPT

In the first screen grab of our interaction, we see an entrepreneur reaching out to ChatGPT for help in naming their Thai restaurant. The AI generates a list of ten potential names like “Urban Bites” and “Bangkok Street Bowl.” Each suggestion is a fusion of the eatery’s urban location and its Thai essence, underscoring the importance of a name that captures both the flavor and the setting of the dining experience.

Visualizing the Brand

Next, the entrepreneur presents a visual challenge: creating a logo that meshes urban modernity with Thai cultural flair. ChatGPT responds with three distinct logo concepts, as shown in the last shared screen grab. Each design incorporates elements like city skylines and traditional Thai patterns, providing a glimpse into how AI can inspire visual branding elements.

Selecting the Perfect URL

Next, we witness the strategic selection of a domain name, which is as crucial as the physical location of a restaurant. ChatGPT offers creative twists like “EatStreetWok.com” and “TheStreetWok.com,” showcasing its ability to think laterally and understand the nuances of digital branding.

Refining the Brand Message

Finally, the conversation evolves as ChatGPT assists in honing a brand message that encapsulates the restaurant’s essence. With suggestions like “Savor the Soul of the Streets,” ChatGPT crafts a narrative that promises a culinary journey, inviting diners to explore the richness of Thai street food culture. This exemplifies how AI can contribute to developing a compelling and evocative brand story.

Throughout, ChatGPT has acted as a digital muse, offering a diverse palette of ideas that reflect the essence of the brand. However, this is just the starting point. The legalities of trademark registration, the nuances of design scalability, and the creation of a full-fledged brand identity require human expertise. For example, a graphic designer would take the concepts and refine them into a versatile logo that can live across various mediums—from storefront signage to digital avatars.

#3 Marketing Strategy

Let’s unravel how ChatGPT can serve as a brainstorming ally for developing a marketing strategy and the considerations it brings to light.

Brainstorming Strategy with ChatGPT

In the first screen grab, we see an entrepreneur seeking innovative marketing and promotions advice for a restaurant’s inaugural year. ChatGPT’s response outlines a multifaceted approach, ranging from pre-launch buzz to community engagement. This conversation showcases ChatGPT’s offering of a mixture of digital and traditional methods tailored to the unique needs of a start-up.

ChatGPT suggests a pre-launch budget dedicated to brand identity development and social media teasers, recognizing the importance of building anticipation and creating a narrative around the brand. Further into operation, it underscores the significance of loyalty programs, local SEO, and direct mail campaigns, demonstrating its understanding of both customer retention and acquisition strategies.

Roles Versus Key Partners

In the subsequent screen grab, the discussion takes a turn towards implementation. The entrepreneur ponders whether to hire W2 employees, work with 1099 contractors, or partner with a marketing agency. ChatGPT delineates specific roles such as a Marketing Manager and Social Media Coordinator, and contrasts these with the flexibility and specialization offered by contractors or agencies.

ChatGPT excels in laying out the pros and cons of each hiring strategy, offering insights into the cost-benefit analysis and management overhead. This guidance is crucial for entrepreneurs who must weigh their budget constraints against their need for marketing expertise.

Refining Strategy Discussions

While ChatGPT can offer comprehensive marketing strategies and hiring advice, it’s vital to recognize the limitations of these AI-generated suggestions. ChatGPT may not always be able to critically assess the feasibility or effectiveness of a marketing idea within the specific context of a business’s local market conditions or competitive landscape.

To refine these discussions, entrepreneurs should:

• Probe ChatGPT with detailed, context-specific questions to extract tailored advice.
• Use ChatGPT’s suggestions as a starting point, and then apply their industry knowledge to adjust the strategies accordingly.
• Combine ChatGPT’s input with professional consultations, particularly for aspects like legal considerations and local market research.

Actionable Insights from ChatGPT

The conversations with ChatGPT serve as a springboard for deeper exploration. For instance, while ChatGPT may suggest a grand opening event, entrepreneurs should further research to identify the best local partners, estimate attendance, and gauge interest through customer surveys or social media engagement.

#4 Customer Persona Creation

The creation of customer personas is a critical step in tailoring your marketing strategy to the specific needs and preferences of your target audience. By inputting detailed information into ChatGPT, businesses can develop nuanced profiles that go beyond demographics to include psychographics, behaviors, and anticipated needs. Let’s explore how ChatGPT assists in this creative process, illustrated by an entrepreneur’s interaction with the AI.

Initial Persona Drafting

In the first screen grab, the entrepreneur shares a radial analysis report, seeking to create three distinct customer personas for their restaurant. 

Refining the Persona Details

The second screen grab ChatGPT uses the data provided to outline basic demographics, interests, and behaviors for each persona, such as “The Urban Explorer,” “The Suburban Family Foodie,” and “The Commuter Connoisseur.” This initial draft serves as a skeleton framework that identifies key customer groups based on their proximity to the restaurant and lifestyle patterns.

Finalizing Persona Profiles

In the third screen grab, we see the entrepreneur engaging in iterative prompting and ChatGPT’s comprehensive personas that provide not only detailed demographic and psychographic information but also lifestyle preferences, goals, and potential marketing strategies tailored to each persona. For instance, “City Dweller Dan” is portrayed as an adventurous, tech-savvy individual who values sustainability, making him a prime candidate for influencer collaborations on social media, emphasizing the authentic and sustainable aspects of the restaurant.

Importance of Detailed Input

These interactions underscore the importance of providing detailed, specific input to generate useful personas. The more information ChatGPT receives about potential customers’ habits, preferences, and lifestyle, the more accurately it can generate personas that reflect the true character and diversity of a target audience. This, in turn, allows for more personalized and effective marketing, sales, and customer service strategies.

Applying Personas to Business Strategy

With these detailed personas, a business can tailor its marketing efforts to resonate with each unique customer segment. For example, promotions can be designed to appeal to “Suburban Mom Maya’s” interest in health and family time, or “Commuter Chris’s” need for efficiency and quality in food options.

#5 SWOT Analysis

The SWOT analysis is an essential part of any business planning process, offering a clear view of the internal and external factors that impact a company’s success. ChatGPT can play a pivotal role in guiding this analysis, providing personalized, context-specific questions that drive deeper thinking and strategic insights. Let’s delve into how ChatGPT facilitates a tailored SWOT analysis, enhancing the entrepreneur’s understanding of their business environment.

Starting with Tailored Questions

In the example provided, the entrepreneur has engaged ChatGPT to generate focused questions for a SWOT analysis. The AI, armed with rich contextual information about the business, curates a set of inquiries that probe deeply into the company’s unique selling points, competitive landscape, and potential challenges. This level of customization ensures that the analysis is directly relevant to the entrepreneur’s specific circumstances and industry context.

Analyzing Strengths and Weaknesses

For the ‘Strengths’ and ‘Weaknesses’ categories, ChatGPT asks questions about the business’s USPs, quality of food, customer service, and pricing strategy in comparison to nearby competitors. These questions are designed to help the entrepreneur critically evaluate their business’s core competencies and areas for improvement.

When exploring ‘Opportunities’ and ‘Threats,’ ChatGPT’s questions encourage the entrepreneur to look beyond immediate concerns and consider larger market trends, potential regulatory changes, and the strategic moves of competitors. This foresight is critical for identifying both the potential for growth and the risks that could affect the business’s future trajectory.

The real power of ChatGPT in this process lies in its ability to translate vast amounts of data and industry knowledge into a structured format that prompts thoughtful analysis. However, it’s the entrepreneur’s responses to these questions that will complete the SWOT analysis, applying their unique insights and experience to define actionable strategies.

This collaborative approach showcases the best of what AI and human intelligence can achieve together. ChatGPT sets the stage by asking the right questions, but it’s the human touch— the entrepreneur’s nuanced understanding of their business and industry—that brings depth and practicality to the analysis.

#6 Business Plan Writing

The process of drafting a business plan is like constructing a blueprint for the future of a company. It demands not only a clear vision and solid data but also strategic structuring and storytelling. ChatGPT can be instrumental in this process, providing a dynamic and interactive platform to help flesh out each section of the plan. Let’s explore how entrepreneurs can collaborate with ChatGPT to draft their business plans and the value of human oversight in this critical task.

Interactive Question and Answer for Plan Sections

In the examples provided, we see an entrepreneur using ChatGPT to ask pointed questions that are vital to the company description section of their business plan. ChatGPT responds with guiding questions that cover foundational information, operational overview, market positioning, and goals and vision. This interactive Q&A process is crucial as it prompts the entrepreneur to articulate the essence of their business in a structured and comprehensive way.

Answering with Insight and Expertise

The entrepreneur answers these questions, providing a detailed narrative that encompasses the origin story of the restaurant, its mission, location benefits, operational structure, target audience, industry trends, and competitive differentiation. This demonstrates how ChatGPT can elicit detailed and meaningful content from the user, which is essential for creating a robust and persuasive business plan.

The Role of Human Oversight

While ChatGPT’s ability to guide the writing process is invaluable, it’s the entrepreneur’s insights, industry knowledge, and strategic decisions that infuse the plan with authenticity and viability. Human oversight ensures that the information is not only accurate but also aligned with the company’s strategic goals and the expectations of its intended audience, whether investors, lenders, or partners.

Model-Based Planning® Worksheet

For a more detailed and holistic approach, incorporating a Model-Based Planning® Worksheet can ensure that all aspects of the business model are addressed. This tool complements ChatGPT’s guidance by providing a structured framework that captures the interrelated elements of the business—from value proposition to customer relationships and revenue streams.

Tailoring Sections to the Audience

Moreover, entrepreneurs should be mindful that different audiences may require unique sections in the business plan. While ChatGPT can help draft standard sections, the entrepreneur must customize the plan to meet the specific needs of their audience, which may include additional continuation plans, community impact plans, compliance plans, and more.

#7 Pitch Deck Creation

Creating a pitch deck is a nuanced art, especially when investors in certain industries have their own unique requirements. The process is not just about painting a picture of what your business is but also crafting a story of what it can become. Let’s walk through a series of conversations with ChatGPT that demonstrate the development of an investor pitch deck for a hypothetical restaurant, Street Wok, and how it underscores the significance of having a comprehensive business plan as a precursor to the pitch.

Initial Outline with ChatGPT

The first screen grab shows the entrepreneur asking ChatGPT to outline a pitch deck specific to restaurant investors. The AI provides a structured list of slides including cover slide, problem and opportunity, solution, and so forth. This initial outline is crucial—it’s the skeleton upon which the flesh of your business’s narrative will be added.

The Visual and Content Dance

The entrepreneur shares their business plan with ChatGPT, asking for specific content for each slide. 

Iterative Prompting for Refinement

ChatGPT’s responses, as seen in the subsequent screen grab, now include content recommendations tailored to the information in the business plan, as well as visual aids that could complement the spoken narrative. This showcases how ChatGPT can align the visual storytelling with the entrepreneur’s strategic business insights.

Drafting Speaker’s Notes

Following the content suggestions, the entrepreneur requests speaker’s notes for each slide, as depicted in another screen grab. ChatGPT responds with a first-person narrative, giving life to the slides. These notes are a draft, serving as a base for the entrepreneur, Jordan, to personalize and expand upon. It illustrates how ChatGPT can assist in creating a compelling narrative that the entrepreneur will later make their own.

The Power of a Business Plan First Approach

Through this conversation, we witness the importance of having a business plan before the pitch deck. A business plan contains the granular details that inform the high-level overview presented in a pitch deck. ChatGPT helps to translate the complexity of a business plan into an investor-friendly format, but the substance behind each slide is rooted deeply in the prior planning work done by the entrepreneur.

Embracing Iterative Development

This dialogue with ChatGPT also highlights the iterative nature of creating a pitch deck. It’s not about getting it perfect on the first try; it’s about continuous improvement. Each iteration brings clarity, sharpens the message, and ensures that the final product resonates with its intended audience.

#8 Financial Projections

We now turn to a critical aspect of business planning: Financial Projections. While AI has not yet mastered the intricate art of financial forecasting, it can play a significant role in the preparatory phase. Let’s look at a practical example of how ChatGPT aids an entrepreneur in organizing the financial components of their business plan.

ChatGPT’s Organizational Capabilities

In crafting financial projections, one of the first steps is to organize cost structures—particularly for startups in the food industry, where menu pricing directly impacts profitability. In the example provided, an entrepreneur leverages ChatGPT to organize their restaurant’s Cost of Goods Sold (COGS). The entrepreneur shares an outline of their menu and asks ChatGPT to generate a table that will help organize vendors and direct costs.

The first screen grab showcases the entrepreneur’s prompt to ChatGPT—a crucial step in ensuring that the AI’s assistance is contextually relevant. The second screen grab reveals the result: a detailed table that assigns each menu item to potential vendors and direct costs, leaving space for the entrepreneur to fill in specific data. This AI-generated table is a foundational tool that streamlines the COGS calculation process, preparing for a more detailed financial review.

The Synergy of AI and Professional Expertise

While ChatGPT organizes data effectively, the intricate process of financial modeling is best handled by professionals. Our website,  Businessplan.com, will soon provide resources such as business plan templates and base MS Excel financial models to aid entrepreneurs. However, if you are a complete newbie, the expertise of an accountant or a seasoned business plan writer can be invaluable—they bring precision and foresight to financial forecasting, transforming organized data into strategic financial projections.

Preparing Information for Expert Analysis

Even if you enlist the help of a financial expert, they will require accurate and well-organized financial information as a starting point. Here, the entrepreneur’s foresight in using ChatGPT to pre-organize financial data exemplifies a proactive approach. It ensures that when a financial professional steps in, they have a clear and organized financial picture from which to work.

AI Limitations

For new businesses and startups, where agility and speed are as valuable as capital, understanding the tools at your disposal can be the difference between leading the pack and playing catch-up. Artificial Intelligence (AI), and more specifically, tools like ChatGPT, will prove invaluable in this race. Yet, like any tool, they come with their own set of limitations and strengths. Recognizing these can not only enhance your strategic planning but also save you from potential pitfalls.

For a deep dive into the strengths and limitations of AI tools like ChatGPT, direct your navigation to the AI Limitations & Considerations page on Businessplan.com. Here, you’ll find comprehensive insights that prepare you to better harness these tools for your startup’s success.

Throughout this exploration, we’ve uncovered the myriad ways in which ChatGPT can propel your startup into new realms of efficiency, creativity, and innovation. However, the true magic happens when this technology is paired with human insight, creativity, and expertise.

I encourage you to view ChatGPT not as a replacement for human talent but as a tool to augment it. Experiment with its capabilities, push its boundaries, and discover how it can add value to your startup journey. 

Now, over to you. How have you utilized ChatGPT in your startup’s strategy? Have you discovered creative ways to overcome its limitations or leverage its strengths for unique solutions? Share your experiences, challenges, and successes with us on X or LinkedIn. Your story could inspire fellow entrepreneurs and provide practical insights into integrating AI tools into business strategies effectively. Let’s learn from each other and build a community of forward-thinking innovators.