[Presentation] Reclaim Your Time_ Use Google Gemini to Tackle Daily Tasksjj

Hi everyone! Welcome to today’s workshop, “Reclaim Your Time: Use Google Gemini to Tackle Daily Tasks.” Do any of you feel like you’re drowning in to do lists, emails, and admin work? Who wishes they had more time for what they really love about their business? Has anyone heard that A-I can help, but you’re not sure where to start? OK, here’s some good news: it can help! And today, I’m going to show you how..

[Audio] Most of us feel like we’re constantly underwater. We’re drowning in administrative creep—those endless emails, to do lists, and data entries that eat away at the work we actually want to do. You’ve probably heard that A-I can be a life raft, but for some people, it hasn’t quite clicked yet. According to a recent Google and Ipsos study of the American workforce, there is a massive gap between people who just casually explore A-I and those who are A-I Fluent. The average person – the explorers – might save an hour here or there. But the workers who have actually integrated A-I into their weekly workflows? They are A-I Fluent and reclaiming a median of eight hours every single week. That is one full business day. Every. Single. Week. The problem? Only 5% of the workforce is currently operating at that level. The other 95% of us are leaving an entire day of productivity on the table. The goal for this presentation is to move you out of that 95% and grow the 5%. We aren't just going to talk about what A-I can do; we’re going to look at the specific business tasks you can offload today so you can get your Fridays back. Source: ipsos.

[Audio] To help us bridge that gap from “AI User” to “AI Fluent,” here are the topics we’ll cover today. First, we’ll start with a quick Introduction that sets the stage and to make sure every person knows the basics for using Google Gemini and many other A-I tools. We’re going to spend the bulk of our session on practical use cases. These aren't just theoretical “what ifs.” We are going to look at three specific areas where Gemini can help drive that 8-hour weekly time saving: Brainstorming & planning: How to use A-I to break through the “blank page” problem and build strategies in minutes, not days. Content creation: Moving beyond simple drafts to creating high quality, professional grade materials. And, Data analysis: Turning raw information into actionable insights without needing to be a spreadsheet wizard. We’ll wrap up with a recap and resources and enough information that you can get back to your desk and start reclaiming your time immediately. Let’s get started..

[Audio] Before we get into the “how to,” I want to take a moment to make sure you’re familiar with some basic concepts. When we talk about A-I today, we’re moving past the 'What is it?' phase. At this point, almost everyone has at least experimented with a Generative A-I tool—whether that’s Google Gemini, ChatGPT, or Microsoft Copilot. You’ve likely seen how these tools can answer questions or write a quick poem, but today, we’re going to look at these tools through a different lens. We’re going to assume you know how to log in and ask a basic question. Let’s also make sure that you know how to ask a “productive” question that generates useful output..

[Audio] Google’s A-I tool is called Gemini. You can get to standalone Gemini tool by visiting a web page: gemini.google.com. It’s also available as an app for Android and Apple mobile devices. Gemini is also the name of Google's most capable family of A-I . You may have noticed Gemini has been added to Google tools like Search, Gmail, and Android. Right now, we’ll focus on the Gemini App. Think of it as your A-I assistant from Google that can help you with tasks like: Creating marketing materials like brochures and blog posts. Researching industry trends. And analyzing client meetings and summarizing key points. And a lot more. Let’s cover the first basic skill for using Gemini and other A-I tools: prompting..

[Audio] To get the best results from Gemini, efficiently, you have to shift the way you use it. Don’t treat it like a search engine; instead use it like it’s a capable assistant. That often comes down to an important skill: prompting. A prompt is simply a set of specific instructions that tells Gemini exactly what you need. Start by thinking of it like a task you’d assign to an employee or co worker. If your request is vague, the work they deliver may not be what you need. It’s the same with Gemini. But if you use a simple four part prompt framework, you’ll get far more useful results right out of the gate..

[Audio] First, give it a Persona: Tell Gemini who it is. Maybe you’d want Gemini to approach the task like a business consultant who specializes in customer acquisition. Or a talented writer who can give you feedback on your writing. Or, maybe you want Gemini to take your perspective and create something in your own voice. This sets the “tone” of the intelligence. Suggestion For Presenter: Ad Lib And Describe Recent Tasks. Examples: Professional: I am a professional business advisor located in Georgia. I help small businesses and non profits navigate the challenges of starting and growing their organizations. Nonprofit: I am the volunteer coordinator for a nonprofit based in Atlanta. Personal: Act as a master gardener with experience planting natives that support local wildlife..

[Audio] Second, define the Task: Be incredibly specific about what you need it to help you with—whether it's drafting a proposal or auditing a budget. Type “Help me with...” Then, describe the task you want Gemini to help you with. Maybe you need help drafting a newsletter or summarizing a dense report. Whatever it is, tell Gemini about it. Suggestion For Presenter: Ad Lib And Describe Recent Tasks. Examples: Professional: I am often asked to help my team create and adapt presentations. I created a draft document of frequently asked questions and then used Google Gemini to polish it up. Nonprofit: I hosted a brunch for other volunteers. Google Gemini helped me plan a menu. Personal: I love hummingbirds and wanted to create a pollinator garden in my backyard. I used Google Gemini to help me get started planning..

[Audio] Third, specify the Format. This could be an email subject line with a character limit, a bulleted list, or a table with pros and cons, a 500-word summary, et cetera Type in “The output should be…” and add your preferred format Suggestion For Presenter: Ad Lib And Describe Recent Tasks. Examples: Professional: I need a 500 word client proposal. Nonprofit: I need a grocery shopping list, and a schedule for preparing the food for a 10am brunch. Personal: Create a plan for a pollinator garden, including the plants I should buy and instructions for planting and caring for them..

[Audio] Finally, provide the Context: This is the most important part. What do you know that Gemini doesn't? Who is the audience? What are the constraints? Include as much background information as possible to help Gemini really understand the situation, your goals, the reason for the task, or even what you’ve tried before that hasn't worked. Generally speaking, the more context you give, the better your results will be. Now, your prompt is ready ! Click Enter or the arrow icon to submit your prompt to Gemini. Suggestion For Presenter: Ad Lib And Describe Recent Tasks. Examples: Professional: I need a 500 word client proposal. Nonprofit: I need a grocery shopping list, and a schedule for preparing the food for a 10am brunch. Personal: Create a plan for a pollinator garden, including the plants I should buy and instructions for planting and caring for them..

[Audio] You will now see Gemini’s output, and your next step is to evaluate. Ask yourself: Does it meet your goals? Is it accurate? Is it useful? No matter how you're using A-I , it’s critical you take a human in the loop approach. Meaning, you should verify Gen A-I outputs before using them. A-I can make mistakes, so it’s important to review the output carefully. And while your prompt may have delivered useful results, sometimes you need to iterate to get the output you want..

[Audio] Iteration is a little like sculpting: You start with something rough, but you can reshape it into something amazing. Here are some ways to iterate: First, revisit the framework, the persona, task, format, and context. You might need to be more specific. Another suggestion: break down large prompts into shorter sentences. You can also try different phrasing. For example, if you’re not getting the results you want when creating a marketing plan, try creating a marketing strategy instead. Lastly, you can add constraints, or limitations, like specifying a word count, or asking for options that won't increase costs..

[Audio] Once you’ve mastered a single prompt, you can save more time with prompt chaining. A common mistake is trying to get the A-I to do everything in one giant request. Think of it like a conversation with a consultant: you wouldn’t ask them to write a five year business plan in the first ten seconds of meeting them, right? You’d build up to it. Let’s imagine you were using Gemini to brainstorm ideas for new services a painting company could offer its clients. As you can see on the slide, we start with Prompt 1: high level brainstorming. We ask Gemini for complementary services for a painting business. Gemini gives us ideas. Instead of starting a new prompt, we follow up in the same chat with Prompt 2: asking Gemini to narrow the focus. The prompt might say, 'Which of these can we actually launch in six months?' Now ee’re using Gemini to filter and prioritize. If we see an option that we’d like to pursue, we follow up in the same chat with prompt 3. Prompt 3 turns strategy into action. The prompt might say, 'If I want to move forward, what tasks should I complete this week?: By “chaining” these prompts together, you aren't just getting information; you’re building on a conversation. This iterative process is how you ensure Gemini stays on track and delivers results that are actually useful for your business, rather than just generic advice..

[Audio] We’ve been talking about text based prompts: words go in, words come out. But Gemini isn’t limited to text, its built for multimodality. “Multimodal” is a fancy way of saying that A-I can work with different formats, not just text. For example, you can work with and create images. Give it a try! Upload a photo of a handwritten letter and ask Gemini to turn it into editable text. You can work with audio and video. Try sharing a recording of a meeting or a video of a presentation, and ask Gemini to extract the action items or to transcribe the highlights. You can use it to code: Even if you aren't a developer, you can share a snippet of code from your website to troubleshoot an error or ask for an explanation of how it works. Multimodality helps save you time by reducing manual data entry. Rather than typing out the “context” or a detailed description, you can just show it an image or video..

[Audio] Before we dive into the examples, we need to talk about some important A-I caveats. First, you are the human in the loop. A-I is a collaborator, not an autopilot. It can provide the draft; but you must provide the finished, polished product, and the final green light. Next, evaluate your output. A-I can be confidently wrong, a phenomenon called “hallucination.” Always fact check names, dates, and assertions before they leave your desk. Iterate for better results. If the first response isn't perfect, don't give up. Refine your prompt, add more context, and prompt again. The best results often emerge on the third or fourth turn of a conversation. Remember the 3 C’s. Aim for prompts and outputs that are Concise, Clear, and Consistent. This keeps Gemini focused. Finally, “ACT” responsibly. Assess what the A-I experience produces – the output – for accuracy, bias, and potential harms. Consider the effects of using A-I to solve each problem or task, and always use your best judgment and critical thinking skills. Before using A-I , ask yourself whether it’s right for whatever you’re working on. Be mindful of any privacy or security implications, like how the A-I experience might use or store personal data. And finally, Tell people about your use of A-I tools to help build trust. Think of Gemini as a very fast, very eager intern. It can do a lot of the time consuming work, but it needs you to review and approval before you send it to a client. With these guardrails in place, we’re ready to look at our first set of tasks A-I can help with: brainstorming and planning..

[Audio] The biggest projects we tackle at work often start with a rough idea. But as we all know, the path from idea to the execution of a plan is where the “time suck” happens. This includes everything from time staring at a blank cursor to managing the unexpected obstacles along the way. Gemini can help, working as a collaborator, creative partner, strategist, and project manager..

[Audio] There are many types of businesses here, but imagine for a moment that you are the owner of a brick and mortar clothing boutique. It’s mid summer and the sun is out, but you’re already thinking about autumn. You’re looking at thousands of dollars in summer inventory—from sundresses to swimwear—that absolutely has to move to make room for the Fall collection arriving in a few weeks. This is the “inventory crunch” that many retailers have to manage. Instead of simply putting a “50% Off” sign in the store window, you can use A-I as a creative partner to help you find other ways to address the challenge. You might start with a prompt like this: You are a Retail Marketing Strategist. Help me brainstorm three unique event ideas to clear out summer inventory while building excitement for our Fall launch. Notice the elements of the prompt. You’ve given it a professional Persona, a clear Task, and some Context, your seasonal transition. Gemini will offer a list ideas; for this example let’s imagine you are presented with three very different paths: First: a “Fill a Bag” Warehouse Event designed for maximum foot traffic and clearing bulk volume. Second, a “Summer to Fall” Styling Workshop, where you show customers how to layer those summer dresses with new autumn cardigans, which can drive sales for both seasons at once (after all, it’s still summer!) And third, a “Mystery Wardrobe Capsule” Flash Sale to move inventory through your social media channels. But here is where the 'strategic partner' part really kicks in. You don’t need to select one idea and run with it. If you like the “Fill a Bag” idea but it feels too discount heavy for your brand, follow up with a prompt like: I like the Fill a Bag concept, but I want it to feel like a V-I-P experience for my top customers. How can I adjust the theme to make it feel exclusive? Gemini might suggest hosting a special evening transitional styling event complete with refreshments and first dibs at the Fall clothing line. By treating Gemini as a sounding board, you aren't just getting a list of ideas—you’re refining a strategy to fit your needs. In this scenario, you've shifted the plan from an urgent inventory liquidation to a strategic launch.

[Audio] Let’s imagine you like all the options suggested but you don't have the resources to do them all. How do you know which one to choose? Instead of guessing, you can return to Gemini in the same chat and ask for help. The prompt may say something like this: Perform a cost benefit analysis on these three ideas. Format the response as a table with columns for the Idea, the Estimated Setup Cost, and the Potential Business Benefit. Now, Gemini can generate a comparison to help you evaluate the ideas. It might show that the “Styling Workshop” has a high benefit for brand loyalty… but also a high setup cost. A “Fill a Bag” event shows a low setup cost but a high benefit for clearing inventory quickly. You’ve transformed a creative brainstorming session into a decision making tool. Now, it’s your turn to be the human in the loop and consider these ideas, put into practice, in real life. Are there other factors to consider? Does Gemini need more context, more details, to adjust the plan? With your direction, you can continue the conversation by prompting until you have a plan that helps you to move forward with confidence..

[Audio] Once the options have been carefully evaluated, you may decide to move forward. Let’s say that you choose the “Fill a Bag” event. Based on your research, it seems like the most feasible way for your business to move inventory quickly. So, you move into the planning phase. You might use Gemini to help create a timeline to get the store ready – everything from the extra staff you need to the refreshments you will serve. Once you have a workable plan, you might be feeling good about the upcoming event ... .but, it’s the things you don't see coming that can cause the most stress. You can upload your event plan into Gemini and prompt something like this: You are a Project Manager. Here is my plan for a "Fill a Bag" sale. What dependencies or risks am I missing? Gemini can evaluate the plan and help you identify potential issues. For example, it might point out that you haven’t accounted for enough lead time to acquire special permits, promote the event, or purchase the bags. If Gemini highlights a dependency like, “you may need a sidewalk permit,” don't stop there. Use that as a prompt for a new task. Ask it: Write a professional email to the city permit office asking for a sidewalk sale permit. Now you are moving from identifying a problem to solving it. Gemini can be really handy helping you spot considerations before they become actual problems..

[Audio] The final step is shifting the project from an idea to an actionable plan. Now that the missing dependencies—such as the permits and bag procurement—have been identified, you can use Gemini to finalize logistics. You provide a final instruction to Gemini: Update the project timeline to include these milestones. Then, generate a specific daily checklist for the staff for the event weekend. This process transforms a rough schedule into a comprehensive project plan. You are no longer managing a list of isolated tasks; you are executing a coordinated plan that accounts for every requirement. By using Gemini to expedite your planning, you gained time, the time to focus on high value business operations, such as preparing the store for the incoming Fall collection..

[Audio] To wrap up brainstorming and planning, let’s look at how these same principles could apply to businesses in other industries. For Professional Services: Imagine you’re an (I-T ) consultant or an accountant. You might ask Gemini to draft a project plan for a new client onboarding process. You can also ask the tool to identify 'bottlenecks, in order to avoid them. You might prompt: 'Where do clients usually get stuck in this process, and how can I automate steps to save five hours a week?' Now you’re planning for efficiency, not just activity. Let’s say your business is in the food & beverage industry, maybe a local farm offering produce box subscriptions. You can use Gemini to help create a communication plan for customers, so they understand how their product selection will change with the seasons. You might ask it to consider potential weather risks, to stay ahead of the what ifs. For wellness & fitness: If you’re launching a new 60-Day heart health challenge, you might ask Gemini to help you build a workout plan. But you can dig deeper—asking for help creating a retention plan. Your prompt might say: What are the three most common reasons people quit exercise programs, and give me ideas to keep them committed and motivated. Now you are planning for customer success, not just a calendar of aerobic activity and strength training. If your business is in home services, like contractors or landscapers, managing the schedule is one of your top priorities. You can ask Gemini for help whether that’s building a project timeline for a kitchen remodel or a route for a weekly lawncare schedule. You can ask for help to identify the dependencies. For example, it can remind you that you can't schedule the plumber until the cabinets are set, or shift schedules if it’s raining too hard to mow. Gemini can act as a project manager to keep you on track and catch logistical errors before they cost you a day on the job site. If you offer consulting services, you can use Gemini to improve your own proposals and presentations. Your prompt might be, What are the five most likely objections a client might have to a new logo? How should I structure my presentation to address these concerns? Now you're using A-I to plan for the win, by anticipating the room. In every one of these cases, Gemini isn't replacing your work or simply spitting out a to do list. It’s helping you think ahead, identifying risks and the dependencies that you may experience. Before we move to our next topic, content creation, I want you to take 30 seconds and think about one project sitting on your desk right now that feels “too big” to start. Could a structured (A I ) generated plan make that impossible task less daunting? (Pause for 10 seconds) OK let’s keep going!.

[Audio] Back to your clothing boutique, plans are in the works for the “Fill a Bag” event. Now we’re shifting to another task that can eat up a lot of time: content creation. Whether you’re creating social media posts, client emails, proposals, flyers, or internal reports, Gemini can accelerate the work. Because Gemini is multimodal, you can feed it a voice memo, a photo, a PDF—and many other file types—and Gemini can “understand it” and can turn it into almost any format you need. One important caveat: Gemini does not, cannot know your customers like you do. It doesn't understand the history of your relationships or the nuances of your brand voice. While Gemini provides the speed, it’s your job to provide the expertise, to ensure the final output follows your guidelines and, more importantly, that it actually sounds like you..

[Audio] You have the “Fill a Bag” event plan. Now, you simply feed that plan into Gemini and prompt: “Based on this plan, draft a three part social media series to build hype, an email to our V-I-P customers, and a 2-sentence blurb promoting the event for an email newsletter.” Gemini can create a first draft for every channel you specify. Can you think of other ways you can use A-I to help create content needed for this event? How about: Create event promotion flyers to hang in local community spaces Text marketing alerts In store signage, like printed cards for clothing racks or the front window An influencer & partner pitch, summarizing the event details into a clear "What's in it for you" proposal, making it easy for others to promote the event to their followers. And, a post event thank you email to everyone who attended, asking for a quick online review while the event is still fresh in their minds..

[Audio] Reminder again…Gemini’s output might sound really good….but let’s be real, it won’t necessarily sound like you wrote it. For example Gemini may not know that your boutique is known for being edgy or playful, or sophisticated. This is where the human in the loop comes in, evaluating and revising the output. A follow up prompt might say something like: “This is a great start, but make it sound more high energy. Mention that our location is on “The East Side” so locals where to find us. Use short, punchy sentences and mention that we only do this once a year.” By layering your perspective over Gemini's speed, you can efficiently create content that actually sounds like you..

[Audio] We’ve talked about text, but another practical way to use Gemini to accelerate your work is through its multimodal capabilities. This basically means the tool can “see” what you’re working on. Think about those moments when you have a great idea, but it’s just a rough sketch on a napkin. Building on our example, let’s say you have all the “Fill a Bag” event details sketched out on a whiteboard in your office, but you need to create a flyer to share it. Instead of spending time trying to convert that into the format you need, you can just take a photo, upload it to Gemini, and ask for help. You can tell Gemini: I’ve attached a rough sketch for my "Fill a Bag" flyer. Extract the key details, like the dates and the rules, and turn this into a professional flyer that can be printed. Think about why this is such a game changer. Usually, you take a photo of a whiteboard, it sits in your camera roll, and you never look at it again because the thought of typing it all out is exhausting. When you upload that photo, tell Gemini what it will be used for. If it's for social media, tell it to use emojis and line breaks. If it's a flyer for a local community center, tell it to use a large, readable font. You can direct the look and feel based on the project you’re trying to create. Another bonus: Gemini doesn’t just transcribe notes; it can understand context. For example, Gemini might suggest a more effective layout, remind you to include your website and social handles, or even write a catchy headline you were struggling to come up with. Multimodal prompting can bridge the gap between handwritten notes and professional marketing assets, skipping the manual data entry. Needless to say, this can save you a lot of time..

[Audio] Now, once you have a draft of that flyer—whether you created it yourself or a designer sent it over—you can use Gemini as another set of eyes. You might start by asking: What are the key design guidelines for a retail event flyer meant to drive foot traffic? Once the A-I gives you those best practices, you ask it to review your flyer against those guidelines. Your prompt might say something like: Review this flyer for my "Fill a Bag" event. Our goal is to get people into the store to buy our remaining summer inventory. Based on the design guidelines, identify weaknesses and list ways I can improve the flyer. Because Gemini can “see” the layout, it might catch details you’ve overlooked—like a font that’s difficult to read, a call to action that isn't clear, a factual error, or an omission of important information. Gemini can provide an objective second opinion, helping you catch mistakes and make your final product more polished. All this being said, it’s really important to edit the output so it reflects your brand’s voice. Sometimes A-I sounds too perfect, which can actually feel fake to your customers. If the A-I output feels a bit “corporate,” tell it: Write this like I’m talking to a regular customer who has been coming here for five years. This “Human in the Loop” step is what prevents your marketing from feeling like someone else—or something else—wrote it. Remember: the goal isn't just to churn out more “stuff.” The goal is to use A-I to handle the volume so you have the mental space to create content that actually connects..

[Audio] To wrap up content creation, let's talk about ways it can help different types of businesses. For professional services: If your business fits into this category, you’re probably familiar with long, client discovery calls. Instead of spending hours typing up your notes, you can feed a transcript or your own voice memo into an A-I tool and ask it to “translate” it into documents you need, like an internal recap, a “thank you” email, or a project proposal. For our food & beverage businesses: you may need to change your offerings depending what’s in season, what’s in store, and what’s on tap. Snap a photo handwritten menu and ask Gemini to turn that photo into a formatted P-D-F for your website and a series of social media posts highlighting featured items. The tool helps you skip manual data entry and move straight to marketing. For wellness & fitness businesses: Maybe try recording a 60-second voice memo of your top five tips for a morning routine. Have Gemini transform raw audio into a weekly newsletter, LinkedIn tips, or a video script. If you can provide the expertise, Gemini can help you package it for different marketing channels. For home services: If you’re a contractor, the best marketing assets may be your finished work. Take a photo of a completed kitchen remodel or a newly landscaped yard and ask Gemini to write a “Project Spotlight” post. Tell it to highlight the specific materials used and include a call to action for a free quote. A-I can help turn a single photo into a lead generation tool. Finally, for businesses like creative agencies: You often deal with information overload. You can ask Gemini to: review a complex project brief from a corporate client and summarize for a small business partner. You might ask it to strip away corporate lingo and highlight the most important deliverables. In this way, Gemini can serve as a communication bridge, ensuring everyone is on the same page before the work begins. In every one of these scenarios, you are the director. You provide the starting point—the photo, the voice memo, or the technical notes, etc—and Gemini helps transform it into assets your business needs. How many of you have a photo on your phone right now of a handwritten note or a product you want to sell? That photo could be your next marketing campaign waiting to happen..

[Audio] So far, we’ve used Gemini to help create a plan for a “Fill a Bag” event and marketing content content. Now let’s switch to our final topic: data analysis. In other words, “figuring out if it worked.” Some of you may relate to this—staring at spreadsheets, from surveys to sales reports, trying to make sense of it all. It’s easy for your eyes to glaze over, but data is one of the most valuable tools you have to understand what is happening with your business (or what is not happening) and make informed decisions. With a little help from Gemini, you don't need to be a data scientist to figure this out because it can process large sets of disconnected information and help you understand what it actually means..

[Audio] A quick rule of thumb on privacy: never put confidential or sensitive business data into any public A-I tool. Always check your company’s policies and use enterprise grade versions when handling private information. Google offers a business version of Gemini in Google Workspace. Gemini’s capabilities are included Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Drive, Meet, and more. Just look for the Gemini Spark in any of the Workspace apps you’re working in Even with the addition of Gemini, the foundational privacy protections apply to your data: Your interactions with Gemini stay within your organization. Gemini does not share your content outside your organization without your permission. Your existing Google Workspace protections are automatically applied. Gemini brings the same enterprise grade security as the rest of Google Workspace. Your content is not used for any other customers. Your content is not human reviewed or used for Generative A-I model training outside your domain without permission. Learn more by visiting: workspace.google.com/solutions/ai/.

[Audio] Coming back to our clothing boutique example, let’s say we successfully hosted our “Fill a Bag” event. Hurrah! Now, you’re preparing a review to see how it impacted your bottom line. Before you dive into the numbers, you can use A-I to help you figure that out. Sometimes people focus on “Vanity Metrics,” like how many likes a social media post got. But as a business owner, you care about data that impacts your bottom line. You might prompt Gemini: I own a clothing boutique and I’m reviewing our Summer to Fall transition event. Our goal was to clear inventory and increase Q3 revenue. What are the top five metrics I should focus on for this presentation? Now Gemini helps you identify what data matters, for this question, maybe “Inventory Turnover Rate” and “Customer Acquisition Cost.” You can also challenge AI’s recommendations. When you ask Gemini for the “Top 5 Metrics,” challenge it. Ask: Why is Inventory Turnover more important for my bottom line than total sales volume this month? Let Gemini explain the financial logic to you. It’s like having a C-F-O sitting next to you, explaining the “why” behind the numbers so you can explain it to your bank or your partners. This can help you prepare for the tough questions a partner or a bank might ask. You can follow up the first prompt with: What questions might leadership ask about our profit margins for this event? This allows you to walk into any meeting feeling prepared, not just with data, but with a clear narrative..

[Audio] Sometimes the raw numbers need to be cleaned up before they can be used; Gemini can help with that. For example, if your spreadsheet has dates in different formats or missing names, tell Gemini: Clean this data so all dates are MM/DD/YYYY and highlight any rows where the sale amount is zero. You’ve just saved hours of manual work! Once you’ve identified what data matters and cleaned it up, the next step is actually making sense of the story behind numbers. This is where many people get stuck: staring at hundreds of rows of sales data or customer feedback. Gemini can help by identifying patterns and trends that aren't obvious to the naked eye. For example, you can upload your “Fill a Bag” sales report and ask simple, conversational questions, like: Analyze this dataset from my weekend sale. What were the three biggest trends in customer behavior? Instead of spending hours sorting columns, Gemini might instantly tell you that 70% of your sales happened before noon, or that customers who bought a “Fill a Bag” tote were also 40% more likely to pre order a full price item for Fall. It turns a static list of transactions into a clear story about how your customers actually shop..

[Audio] The real power here isn't just seeing what happened in the past; it’s using that data to predict what you should do next. You can push the analysis further by asking: Based on these summer clearance trends, which three categories of Fall inventory should I feature in my front window to maximize my margins? By using everyday language to probe the data, you’re uncovering insights in a fraction of the time it used to take. It’s helping you move past “clearing racks” to understanding how to launch your next season. Again, a reminder that Gemini can help you with the math, but you are still the human in the loop. It’s up to you to evaluate, understand implications, and make the final call on which direction to take your business..

[Audio] Let’s wrap up data analysis by looking at how these concepts—identifying the right metrics and uncovering hidden patterns—might apply to other types of businesses. If you own a professional services company: Imagine you have to review a year’s worth of billing data. You might use Gemini to upload a spreadsheet and group projects by profitability. Your prompt might say something like: Which types of services are profitable, and which have the lowest return? This information allows you to stop guessing where to grow and start knowing what types of engagements to prioritize. For food & beverage businesses, you might feed Gemini your daily sales reports from the last six months. By layering context—such as asking it to cross reference sales with local weather data or community events—you can learn a lot! For example, your prompt might say: Is there a direct link between rainy Tuesdays and our pastry waste? If Gemini can find a pattern, you can adjust your baking schedule for the next rainy day. Wellness & fitness businesses might use attendance data from group classes and ask Gemini to find the “Churn Point.” If it spots that 40% of new members stop coming after their fifth class, you’ve just identified a problem. You can then ask Gemini for help creating a re engagement campaign specifically for people at that four class danger zone from dropping off. Home services businesses might use A-I to analyze the last 50 quotes and a Win/Loss record. The prompt might say: What is the number one reason we lose a bid? There might find a pattern in your pricing for specific zip codes or a correlation with response time. It turns a feeling that you’re losing bids into a fact you can address. And finally, for consulting businesses: you might upload social media engagement metrics and ask Gemini to “theme” top performing posts. You can learn what content your audience engages with, and stop the guesswork. In every case, the data is already there! It’s in your point of sale system, your calendar, your bank statements, et cetera et cetera Gemini simply act as the bridge that can transform numbers into an actionable story for your business.

[Audio] Now, let’s close the class by trying out Gemini!.

[Audio] Now, you’re going to try prompt chaining for yourself. First, think of a task you've been putting off because you just don't know where to begin.” You’ll write a prompt for Gemini describing the task and asking for 3 ideas to help you get started. Remember to include a task, persona, format, context, and any helpful references. This will be the first prompt in your chain. Next, you’ll choose a recommendation from Gemini’s output and ask for 3 different approaches. And finally, for the third prompt, you’ll ask Gemini for a detailed implementation plan to achieve this task, on a timeline. Your goal is to get from feeling stuck to having a clear path forward. If this sounds like a lot to remember, check out the detailed instructions on page 5 of your workbook. One quick thing: When you go into Gemini, choose the “ plus New chat” button on the left side before you start prompt chaining. Any time you’re working on a new task in Gemini you should open a new chat. Otherwise, Gemini might get confused and think the tasks are related..

[Audio] We’ve covered a lot of ground today, I hope I was able to show you how Gemini can accomplish a lot of work, very quickly. But, the real power lies in how you choose to direct it..

[Audio] To recap, we looked at how Gemini can transform the three important areas of your daily operations: First, we saw how A-I acts as a strategic partner in planning. Whether you are brainstorming a “Fill a Bag” sale or building a 30-day product roadmap, it helps you move from an idea to a plan in a fraction of the time. Second, we looked at content creation. We showed you how Gemini can create a first draft, quickly, and your role as the human in the loop. We also showed you how Gemini can transform an idea sketched on a napkin or whiteboard into a business asset thanks to multimodality. And finally, we addressed data analysis. We saw how even a non technical business owner can use A-I to identify what metrics actually matter to uncover the hidden patterns that lead to better business decisions. The goal isn't to let A-I run your business; it's to let A-I handle the high volume, repetitive tasks so you can focus on the high value work that only you can do. You provide the direction, the expertise, and the human connection—AI simply provides the speed to tackle business tasks..

[Audio] To keep developing your A-I skills, you can explore Grow with Google’s A-I training programs at grow.google/ai. Our new professional development course, called “Google A-I Professional Certificate”, includes more than 20 hands on activities to help you master the skills in your daily work. You’ll learn how to use A-I to sharpen your strategy, boost your creativity, and tackle the repetitive parts of your day. For a limited time, this is available at no cost to all small business owners in the United States. Learn more at grow.google/AIcert And, if you want to keep learning from other Small Business Owners, and all the different ways they are using A-I , check out our “Make A-I Work for You” video series on YouTube..

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