What to check before you pay for any AI tool
Nine questions to ask before your business subscribes to an AI tool, covering fit, cost, data and what happens when you stop. With a one-page test plan for the free trial.
On this page
- 1. Which task will it do?
- 2. Can a tool you already pay for do this?
- 3. Does it work on your real work?
- 4. What does it do with your data?
- 5. What is the real yearly cost?
- 6. Does it work the way your business works?
- 7. Who will own it?
- 8. Can you leave easily?
- 9. How will you know it worked?
- A one-page test plan for the free trial
- Example: a filled-in test plan
- Warning signs
- A simple rule
New AI tools appear every week, and most offer a free trial. These nine checks help you decide calmly, and the test plan at the end helps you use the trial properly.
1. Which task will it do?
Write the task in one sentence, such as "Draft first replies to customer enquiries." If you cannot name the task, do not buy the tool yet. If you are not sure which task to start with, read Where to use AI first in a small business.
2. Can a tool you already pay for do this?
Many office, accounting and messaging tools now include AI features. Check those first. A feature inside a tool your team already opens every day gets used. A separate tool often does not.
3. Does it work on your real work?
Use the free trial with your own documents, messages and data, not the provider's examples. Ask the person who will use it daily to test it, not only the owner.
4. What does it do with your data?
Read the privacy and data settings. Look for clear answers to these questions:
- Is what you type used to train the provider's models? Can you turn that off?
- Where is the data stored, and for how long?
- Who in the provider's company can see it?
- Can you delete your data when you leave?
If the answers are unclear, do not put customer data into the tool. For the rules to give your team, see Simple AI rules for your team.
5. What is the real yearly cost?
Check the price per user, how many people need it, any usage limits, and whether the price is in rupees or dollars. Add taxes and currency conversion charges on your card. Multiply it out for a year. Prices change often, so confirm on the provider's own pricing page on the day you decide.
6. Does it work the way your business works?
Check language support (including Hindi if you need it), mobile use, WhatsApp or other integrations you depend on, and whether it accepts Indian payment methods and gives a proper invoice with your GSTIN if you need one.
7. Who will own it?
Name one person responsible for setting it up, teaching the team and deciding whether to renew. A tool that belongs to everyone belongs to no one.
8. Can you leave easily?
Check that you can export your data, and how to cancel. Prefer monthly billing until the tool has proved itself. A yearly discount is only a saving if you would have stayed anyway.
9. How will you know it worked?
Decide one measure before you start, such as hours saved per week or replies sent the same day. Review it after one month. If the measure has not improved, cancel.
A one-page test plan for the free trial
Copy this and fill it in before you start the trial.
| Question | Your answer |
|---|---|
| The task, in one sentence | |
| Who will test it | |
| Five real examples to try | |
| What a good result looks like | |
| The measure, and today's number | |
| Date to decide |
Run the five examples in the first two days. If the tool fails on your real examples, more time will not help.
Example: a filled-in test plan
A made-up travel agency, used only to show how short the plan can be.
| Question | Their answer |
|---|---|
| The task, in one sentence | Draft first replies to holiday package enquiries on WhatsApp |
| Who will test it | The two people who answer enquiries every day |
| Five real examples to try | Five enquiries from last week, with names removed |
| What a good result looks like | A reply we can send after changing one or two words |
| The measure, and today's number | Enquiries answered the same day; today about half |
| Date to decide | The last working day of the month |
At the end of the month they look at one number, not at how impressive the tool felt.
Warning signs
- The provider cannot tell you what happens to your data.
- You need a sales call just to learn the price.
- The results in the demonstration cannot be repeated with your own material.
- The tool promises a result, such as more sales, instead of describing what it does.
A simple rule
One task, one tool, one owner, one month. Then decide.
