Startups & new businesses · Kent
AI for startups and new businesses
In your first year you're the marketing department, the accounts team and customer service. AI can draft a lot of that work on free or cheap tools. It can't tell you whether your figures add up or your plan is legal. Two hours of coaching gets you set up on your own business.
£195 · 2 hours
Based in Kent, working with businesses across the UK: on site in Kent, by video anywhere else.
Your first year, task by task
| Task | What to type | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Business plan | 'Here's our idea, our town and our prices. Draft a one-page plan and list the questions we haven't answered.' | Every figure, with your own research or an accountant |
| Market research | 'Which kinds of business already offer dog grooming in Whitstable?' | That the businesses it names exist; AI can invent them |
| Naming | 'Twenty names for a mobile bike repair business in Kent, short and easy to spell.' | Companies House, the trade marks register and whether the web address is free |
| Website copy | 'Write a 300-word home page from these notes in a friendly, plain tone.' | Claims, prices and anything you can't deliver yet |
| Customer replies | 'Draft answers to our five most common questions, using our terms.' | That they match your real terms and policies |
| Bookkeeping set-up | 'Explain cash basis and traditional accounting for a sole trader, simply.' | HMRC guidance or an accountant |
Building on a budget
Start on free plans and pay only when you hit a limit. ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini all have free versions; ChatGPT Go is £7 a month, Claude Pro £18 (or £15 a month paid annually, including VAT) and Google AI Plus from £4.49 a month (checked October 2026). Free plans have two catches: your chats may train the models unless you switch that off, and ChatGPT Free and Go have shown ads in the UK since June 2026.
Once you have staff or a pile of customer data, a business plan makes sense. Microsoft 365 Business Basic is £5.40 per user a month paid yearly, before VAT, with Copilot Chat included; Google Workspace Business Starter is £5.90 on an annual plan, with Gemini in Gmail. Zapier and Make both have free plans, so you can try a first automation without paying, and AI for your marketing covers posts and adverts once you're trading.
Figures and legal questions need a professional
AI will produce a cash-flow forecast, a VAT answer or a summary of employment law without hesitation. It may be wrong, out of date or wrong for your situation, and it sounds equally sure either way. Use it to understand the questions and to draft, then check figures with an accountant and legal points with a solicitor or official guidance. The free Business Academy on business.gov.uk runs live events and videos for small firms, some on AI.
Names, logos and who owns what
- Find your voice firstWrite ten sentences the way you'd talk to a customer, ask AI to sum up your style in five rules, and paste those rules in whenever you ask for copy.
- AI-made logosFine for a first version. UK law treats whoever made the arrangements as the author of a purely computer-generated work, but the government proposed in March 2026 to remove that protection, so it's worth reworking it yourself.
- LabellingNothing in UK law makes you mark content as AI-made, but an AI image mustn't give customers the wrong idea of the product.
- No starter reviewsSeeding a new business with AI-written reviews breaks the DMCC Act 2024, and the CMA can now fine directly.
What two hours of coaching covers
-
Your week, mapped
We start with what you actually do each week and pick three jobs where AI takes the most typing off you. -
Set up as we go
Tools, settings and saved prompts on your own laptop or phone, sitting together locally or over a video call. -
A written summary
You leave with prompts saved and a short summary. A follow-up a month later is there if useful; no packages.
Other ways to start
AI Kick-Start
£395
Half a day on site once you have premises or a small team, with three quick wins on your real work and a plan in writing.
About the Kick-StartThe handbook
£39.99
A 77-page PDF handbook, Getting Started with AI, Safely, with a 30-day plan, templates and 40 prompts.
About the handbookCoaching for owners
£195
More on how the two-hour sessions work and what you take away.
About coachingQuestions people ask
Can ChatGPT write our business plan?
It can draft the structure and wording and point out gaps. The numbers, research and decisions have to be yours, checked by an accountant if you're borrowing money.
What's the cheapest way to use AI in a new business?
Start on the free plans of ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini with training switched off. Paid personal plans start at £4.49 a month (checked October 2026), so upgrade only when you hit a limit.
Can we use an AI-generated logo?
Yes, but check it isn't close to an existing brand, and consider reworking it yourself. The government proposed in March 2026 to remove copyright protection for purely computer-generated works.
Is AI good for market research?
For a first scan and for working out what to ask. It can name businesses that don't exist, so check what it tells you.
Can you help before we've launched?
Yes. Coaching is two hours on your own plans, locally or by video, and it suits people who haven't started trading yet.
Who you'll work with
James Hayes Consulting is led by Ross Hayes, who builds software for his own businesses and uses AI tools in them every day. We set AI up on your real work, explain it in plain English, and tell you straight if something isn’t worth paying for.
Every project starts with a free 15-minute call, and prices are agreed in writing before you commit.
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