Part 2 in My (Hilarious) Journey into AI: Tackling Workflow Head-On

With the first AI project wrapped up, I was feeling pretty good, the operational efficiency and tool was live, helping business owners focus on the key drivers that matter most to improve before year end.

I used tools like Napkin.ai for visuals and a clever (if I do say so myself) use of custom code and colour coded calculators made it a fun and rewarding build.?

It was exciting to see something I created helping others gain clarity on their businesses.

Missed the Part 1? You can read about it HERE.

So, naturally, I thought, "Round two should be a breeze, right?" ROTFL!

This time, the mission was to tackle a larger workflow head-on. You know, the kind that has too many manual steps, too many sticky notes, and not enough actual automation.

The idea?

Use an AI-powered tool that could take context, rules, and several inputs and transform them into 2 smooth, actionable outputs. Think fewer headaches, more time saved, and scalable. The exact thing all business leaders want. And I wanted to know - could someone with no skills make it happen?

As they say, "Every plan is perfect until you hit a bump in the road."?

Spoiler alert: I hit a few.

Step 1: Building a Database (content) File

To even start tackling this project, I knew I needed something solid to work with. Enter the "content file". This wasn’t just about jotting down ideas or creating a checklist—it was about taking a year's worth of sales conversations, testimonials, and client feedback and turning them into a focused, strategic document that would allow me to speak in the language of my clients.

That’s what marketers tell us right?? We need to describe the challenges we solve using our client's language.??

Why? Because building a workflow bot that can adapt to business needs requires understanding not just in the process, the products but also the nuances of the work itself. What makes clients tick? What do they need most? What bottlenecks keep showing up? Themes. Context.

By feeding this into the AI, I could ensure the bot didn’t just process data but understood the rules, the goals, and the tone. The content file became the brain of the operation—guiding everything from decision-making to how the bot would interpret messy inputs.

The result? A foundation that didn’t just solve problems but did so intelligently. It also helped me refine messaging for the workflow itself, ensuring every step aligned with what users actually needed.

****Special note here - I did this process as with all the great things that people have said about us that we should have been using all along in as 'social proof' and haven’t been.? That resulted in a new website page called “results” … check it out HERE. I think my design skills are getting better!? There are 92 individual testimonials on that webpage selected from the 335+ that we have!? AI helped me categorize them all too!

Step 2: Choose the tool

With the content file in place, I was ready to start building. I have big plans for this bot—simplifying key workflows, streamlining data transfers, and cutting down on manual effort.?

But, as always, things didn’t go quite according to plan (more on that soon).

If you’ve ever tackled a complex workflow and thought, "There has to be a better way," stay tuned—I’m diving into all the lessons, setbacks, and small wins next.

As a teaser I took the time to look into which platform I wanted to play on. I opted for Relevanceai.com. It has a free version. Looks user friendly to my untrained eye. They have a knowledgebase in case of trouble.? I’ve chatted with people who find it easy to use.?

Step 3 - Garbage In Garbage out

You know what they say right: Garbage in means you’ll get garbage out.? So the next step really focused on thinking time.?

What data goes into the process?

What are the inputs?

What are the key metrics??

I wanted the metrics colour coded again for ease of readability so what are the levels for each of these colours. ?

Then I created a google sheet for the first of the two outputs with conditional formatting for the colours I took the time to create a knowledgebase for the LLM/Bot to use that covered all of that.? Which took a lot longer than expected.

I assumed the time spent up front though would be helpful because it should make the steps easier to create when the time came to do the actual build.

I am convinced that this was helpful.

HOWEVER, in hindsight I think there were pieces missing with my lack of experience.?

This gap is closing! Stay tuned for the silly things that tripped me up in the next post.?

?? Want to see where this journey started? Check out www.scalinggrp.com/s4s and let me know your thoughts!

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As a CEO or business owner of a $3M+ company, are you:

?? Looking to streamline operations for smoother scaling? ?? Frustrated with profit leak, bottlenecks & constant firefighting in your business? ? Interested in a fresh perspective on maximizing your business value?

DM me—I’d be happy to share one clear solution to any operational or efficiency challenge you’re facing right now. Let’s connect and discuss how to drive impactful results.

Visit our website to learn more: www.scalinggrp.com/