Service Businesses: It's Go Time (Why You Need to Specialize NOW)
Contributed by SBOC Member:
Pat Miller
Founder of the Small Business Owners Community
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I’m not trying to scare you. I promise. But I need to tell you what I’m seeing because I want you to win.
If your job is virtual assistant, admin assistant, graphic designer, copywriter, or customer service provider—it’s go time.
Not panic time. Preparation time.
The Defense That's Dying
The defense we've had for the last two years has been: "Yeah, AI can write copy, but it sucks. I'm good at this. They suck."
It used to be that way. But it’s getting more and more not like that.
And if I were you, I would not bet my future on it.
The Solution: Specialize Service Businesses
It doesn’t mean you’re going out of business. It means you need to start rethinking what you do.
Instead of being the admin for everyone, specialize into a vertical:
- If you’re an admin, focus on financial advisors. They have special needs. If you’re good at working with financial advisors, you’re good at working with other financial advisors.
- If you’re a copywriter, specialize into healthcare or healthcare-adjacent because of their unique legal risks and obligations.
- If you’re a graphic designer, begin specializing for graphic-intensive industries where you can sell templates at scale—like realtors, car dealers, or online sellers.
Why Specialization Wins
When you go deep into an industry:
- You understand their specific problems
- You learn their regulatory requirements
- You build systems that scale
- You become the obvious choice
AI can do general work. AI struggles with specific, nuanced, industry-deep work.
That’s your moat. Build it now.
The Timeline
This isn’t a five-year warning. This is a this-year warning.
By spring or summer, you’re going to have access to AI agents that can do things you can’t even fathom right now. The businesses that are specialized and ready will deploy them immediately. Everyone else will be scrambling.
I am not trying to scare you or be provocative. I’m telling you, for your own good, you need to start thinking about this stuff today. Not tomorrow. Today.
Because it’s here and the world is shifting underneath our feet. I don’t want you to be left behind.
I want you to win.
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Contributed by
Pat Miller
Founder of the Small Business Owners Community
Pat spent two decades in broadcasting management and hosting. After leaving the radio industry, he spent time consulting small businesses and realized the support system for entrepreneurs was broken. Where could you find help for improving small businesses and building real connections with other like-minded people. In June of 2020, the Idea Collective Small Business Community was born.