Utah Companies Pioneer Practical AI: Boosting Conversions and Rebuilding Direct Connections

Two Utah companies, MyAdvice and GCommerce, are actively deploying AI solutions for clients, providing insights into practical AI implementation beyond policy discussions. These companies report tangible impacts on business operations and customer interactions, showcasing AI's immediate value in specialized industries.

MyAdvice's Custom AI for Healthcare Providers

MyAdvice, based in Park City, specializes in digital marketing for over a thousand healthcare providers. The company has developed an in-house AI system named Maya. Maya utilizes custom small language models tailored for each client, trained on specific practice information like voice, services, and branding. This bespoke approach is designed to reduce the 'hallucination' common in generic AI models, ensuring accurate and reliable responses for both clients and patients.

Deployments of Maya have yielded significant results:

• Conversion rates approximately tripled for practices using Maya for website chat.
• Review response rates improved dramatically, with nearly 100% of reviews receiving a response within 24 hours. This is a stark improvement compared to an average of over 20 days previously.

MyAdvice CEO Shawn Miele stated that this allows professionals like doctors to focus on higher-value activities such as seeing more patients, optimizing their time and expertise.

GCommerce's AI Strategy for the Hotel Industry

GCommerce, a digital marketing agency serving 2,500 hotels nationwide, is tackling a pressing challenge: travelers using AI tools like ChatGPT to plan and book trips. When travelers book via these AI tools, transactions are often routed through third-party sites (e.g., Expedia, Booking.com), causing hotels to lose direct customer relationships and incur substantial commissions.

CEO Scott Van Hartesvelt views this development as a significant shift in the industry landscape, comparing its impact to the post-9/11 period when third-party aggregators first gained prominence. GCommerce is developing an "active approach" using data protocols to directly integrate hotel inventory into AI systems. This aims to allow a hotel's own availability and pricing to appear when travelers query AI for accommodation, thereby rebuilding direct connections with guests.

Research indicates that travelers often visit numerous pages over several days before booking, and many find the planning process unenjoyable. AI is seen by GCommerce as a crucial tool to streamline this complex and often frustrating process for consumers.

Implications for Utah and AI Deployment

The experiences of MyAdvice and GCommerce clearly indicate that AI is already operational in Utah businesses, profoundly influencing customer service and booking processes. Both companies acknowledge that deploying AI comes with its own set of challenges, including managing client trust, addressing staff concerns about job security, and ensuring transparency when customers interact with AI systems.

However, both Shawn Miele and Scott Van Hartesvelt emphasized that businesses successfully deploying AI effectively and ethically will gain a compounding advantage in their respective markets.

They firmly believe that Utah is uniquely positioned to be a leader in AI adoption and development, given its strong technological engagement and innovative business environment.