20 Best AI Tools to Grow Your Business in 2025
xIn 2025, artificial intelligence is for the small and mid-sized businesses (SMEs) as well as the big tech companies. It’s helping small and mid-sized businesses (SMEs) across Australia work faster, smarter, and more affordably.
From automating admin to boosting online visibility, AI tools are giving local businesses a clear edge. And many of the best ones are completely free or low cost, making them perfect for business owners focused on growth without big overheads.
Whether you’re in auto, home services, retail or healthcare, this list of tools is designed for time-poor teams who want to get more done, with less effort.
What Can AI Tools Do for Your Business?
These tools are a great way to help your business:
- Automate any repetitive tasks that you don’t have time for, like replying to customer reviews, drafting messages, or updating content
- Improve customer communication with faster responses and better follow-ups
- Create engaging content, visuals, and promotions to attract more customers
- Make smarter decisions by transforming any raw data into clear insights
- Grow faster without overspending, by streamlining the work you already do
The 20 Best AI Tools for Business Growth in 2025
1. Podium AI Tools
What it does: Podium packs a full suite of AI-powered tools designed to support local Australian businesses in managing their online presence and customer communications, all without the help of a marketing team. From Response generators to an Online Reputation Grader, your AI Employee can do it all.
How it helps: For time-poor business owners, responding to every review, keeping listings accurate, and crafting customer messages can feel impossible. Podium’s AI tools are built to save time, boost your local reputation, and help you get found first on Google. All this is possible without hiring extra staff or relying on generic tools that don’t know your business.
- Respond to Google reviews in half the time
- Catch inconsistencies in your online listings before they hurt your SEO
- Send proven, high-converting texts to bring in more reviews or bookings
2. ChatGPT (OpenAI)
What it does: AI chatbot that can do it all, helping you write content, answer questions, and generate fresh new ideas.
How it helps: Great for emails, social posts, FAQs, review responses, or customer replies.
3. Canva AI Tools
What it does: AI-powered writing, image generation, and design suggestions.
How it helps: Make beautiful graphics and posts quickly; no design team needed.
4. Grammarly
What it does: AI-powered grammar and tone correction.
How it helps: Keep all your messaging, from emails to listings, professional and on-brand.
5. Photoroom
What it does: Removes backgrounds and edits product or service images.
How it helps: Perfect for small ecommerce stores or service pages needing clean photos.
6. Agent.ai
What it does: Provides automated agents to help with support and outreach.
How it helps: Cuts down customer service workload with instant responses.
7. Steve.ai
What it does: Turns your blog posts or scripts into videos.
How it helps: Great for social media or quick explainer videos.
8. Semrush (Free Tier)
What it does: Offers keyword research, SEO auditing, and backlink tracking.
How it helps: Improves your local search ranking so more customers can find you.
9. Buffer
What it does: Social post scheduling with AI recommendations.
How it helps: Plan and automate your social media without the hassle.
10. Beatoven.ai
What it does: Generates royalty-free music based on your brand or content.
How it helps: Great for marketing videos, YouTube intros, and branded audio.
11. Pictory
What it does: Turns long content (like blog posts or webinars) into social videos.
How it helps: Repurpose content fast for Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube Shorts.
12. Jasper (Free Trial)
What it does: Writes marketing copy, headlines, and ads.
How it helps: Create polished copy that converts quicker than ever before.
13. Zapier
What it does: Connects your apps and automates workflows (e.g. send a message when someone fills out a form).
How it helps: Saves hours by automating tasks between tools.
14. Google Bard
What it does: AI assistant for content creation and research.</p?
How it helps: Brainstorm marketing ideas, summarise documents, or write social posts.
15. Writesonic
What it does: AI writing for blogs, ads, and landing pages.
How it helps: Quickly generate professional content in your brand voice.
16. Lumen5
What it does: Converts text or articles into videos.
How it helps: Turn blogs into engaging content for social platforms.
17. Notion AI (via Free Notion)
What it does: AI-powered note-taking, writing, and task suggestions.
How it helps: Helps you stay organised and work more efficiently.
18. Whisper (OpenAI)
What it does: Transcribes audio to text, it’s as simple as that.
How it helps: Great for meetings, calls, or creating captions.
19. Google Looker Studio (Data Studio)
What it does: Creates real-time reports and dashboards.
How it helps: Visualise your business data and track performance over time.
20. Pictory
What it does: Converts long-form videos or articles into short, sharable video content.
How it helps: Repurpose webinars, training or testimonials into bite-sized clips.
Finding the Right AI Tools for Your Business
There’s no shortage of choice when it comes to AI tools for businesses. If you’re finding it all a little overwhelming, ask yourself:
- What problem am I solving? Is it slow customer replies, low visibility, or inconsistent branding?
- Do I need help with messaging, marketing, or reputation management? Choose tools that fit the current gaps you have.
- Does it integrate with my existing tools? Podium integrates with tools like QuickBooks, Google, Facebook, and more, but not every solution will slot in as easily.
Ready to Work Smarter, Not Harder?
Think of AI not as a trend, but a business advantage. And for Australian SMEs, it can be the difference maker between staying afloat and standing out.
Start out with AI tools that solve your biggest pain points, like Podium’s suite for managing reviews and customer messaging. Take your business to the next level and let AI work its magic, so you can focus on what matters most: growing and managing your business.
FAQs
Will I have to upgrade later for free versions?
Often this is the case, but many free versions offer real value before you need to pay.
Can AI tools replace a marketing team?
Whilst AI tools are a great addition to any business, it doesn’t replace the need for staff. They’re more like a digital assistant that helps your team do more, faster.
What’s the best AI tool for writing social posts?
ChatGPT, Writesonic, and Canva Magic Write are top choices.
Are AI tools safe for customer data?
Reputable tools use strong privacy policies, but always review before sharing sensitive info.
How can AI help with my SEO?
Semrush, Writesonic and Looker Studio can help optimise keywords, content, and traffic insights.
Can AI tools help respond to reviews?
Yes, tools like Podium’s Review Response Generator make this fast and easy.
How do I start using AI without getting overwhelmed?
Pick one tool, solve one problem, and build from there.
