How I Use AI to Run My Online Business (Real Workflow)

I used to spend 30+ hours a week on my online business. Writing content, handling emails, researching product ideas, updating product descriptions, managing customer questions. It felt like a full-time job on top of my full-time job.

Now I spend maybe 10 hours a week and the business earns more. The difference is AI — used properly, not as a gimmick.

Here's my actual workflow. Not theoretical. What I actually do, week over week.

My AI Stack

I'll mention specific tools, but the important thing isn't the exact tools — it's the workflow. Tools change. The principles don't.

ChatGPT (or Claude) — My primary thinking partner. I use it for brainstorming, outlining, drafting, and editing.

MadeThis — My business platform. MadeThis has AI built into the core — it helps with product positioning, pricing, and marketing guidance. It's not just a storefront; it's the AI layer that runs on top of everything.

Midjourney — For product cover images and thumbnail graphics.

Grammarly / Hemingway — Quick editing passes before anything goes live.

Monday: Content Planning (45 Minutes)

Every Monday morning I open ChatGPT and run this process:

1. List last week's top-performing posts (by traffic from Google Search Console)
2. Ask ChatGPT: "Here are my top posts by search traffic: [list]. What related topics am I missing? What search intent do these posts leave unsatisfied?"
3. Pick 2 new blog post topics from the suggestions
4. Generate an outline for each: "Give me a 7-section outline for a 900-word blog post targeting [topic] for [audience]"

This Monday session produces my writing queue for the week. Total time: 45 minutes.

Tuesday and Wednesday: Content Writing (2 Hours Each)

I don't write from scratch. My process:

1. Open the outline from Monday
2. Paste it into ChatGPT: "Draft this section in a first-person, conversational tone. I'm a digital entrepreneur sharing what I've personally learned. Make it practical and specific."
3. Edit the draft in my voice — cut what's generic, add personal examples, make it sound like me
4. Run through Hemingway to catch passive voice and over-long sentences
5. Add internal links and the affiliate CTA at the end

Each post takes me about 90 minutes with this process. I write two posts per week. Before AI, each post took 4+ hours.

Thursday: Product Updates and New Product Research (1 Hour)

Once a week I review my current products and check for improvement opportunities:

• Read any new buyer reviews or support emails
• Use ChatGPT to generate improvement suggestions: "Here's my current product description: [paste]. Here's feedback I've received: [paste]. How would you improve the description and positioning?"
• If I'm considering a new product: "Here are the top-performing posts on my blog by traffic: [list]. What digital product would a visitor to these posts most likely want to buy?"

MadeThis also surfaces suggestions through its AI layer — it'll flag if my pricing looks off relative to what's converting or suggest product angles I haven't tried.

Friday: SEO and Analytics Review (30 Minutes)

Brief weekly review:

• Google Search Console: which posts are gaining or losing impressions?
• Top conversion sources: which posts drove sales this week?
• Any keyword opportunities I'm missing?

I log 3 things: what worked, what to double down on, and one thing to change next week. Five sentences total. This keeps me focused without spending hours in spreadsheets.

Ad Hoc: Customer Support (30 Minutes/Day)

I get maybe 5–10 support emails per week. My process:

1. Read the email
2. Paste into ChatGPT: "Draft a helpful, friendly response to this customer question: [paste]. I want to solve their problem completely and leave them feeling well taken care of. Keep it under 100 words."
3. Edit and send — I always personalize the draft before it goes out

Most support is resolved in the first reply. This takes about 5 minutes per email, down from 15.

The Bigger Picture

The AI workflow isn't about replacing my judgment. It's about removing the parts of the work that were pure friction — the blank page, the formatting, the "how do I phrase this" — so I can focus on the decisions only I can make: what to build, who to build it for, and how to position it.

The result is a business that runs on 10 hours a week and earns more than it did when I was grinding 30+ hours.

If you want to build a business that works this way — digital products, AI-assisted operations, SEO-driven traffic — MadeThis is the platform I'd start with. The AI is baked in, not bolted on.