The Real ROI of an AI Employee: A Small Business Owner's Guide

"Sounds great, but is it actually worth the money?"

Fair question. Let's skip the hype and look at real numbers.

The Investment

With Stoke, an AI employee costs:

$2,000 one-time setup fee
$500/month ongoing
$8,000 total for the first year

That's it. No hidden fees, no per-message charges, no surprise invoices.

Scenario 1: AI Customer Support Agent

The problem: You're spending 2 hours a day answering customer emails, messages, and phone inquiries.

The math:

Your time is worth at least $75/hour (conservative for a business owner)
2 hours/day × 250 work days = 500 hours/year
500 hours × $75 = $37,500/year in time cost
AI handles 90% of inquiries → you save $33,750/year
Minus AI cost of $8,000 = $25,750 net savings

ROI: 322%

And that's just the time savings. Factor in the revenue from faster response times (customers who get instant replies are far more likely to buy), and the real ROI is significantly higher.

Scenario 2: AI Content & Social Media Manager

The problem: You know you should be posting on social media and writing blog posts, but you never have time. Your last Instagram post was 3 weeks ago.

The math:

A freelance social media manager costs $2,000–$5,000/month
A part-time content writer costs $1,500–$3,000/month
Combined: $42,000–$96,000/year
AI content employee: $8,000/year

Savings: $34,000–$88,000/year

The AI posts daily across all platforms, writes 2–3 blog posts per week, drafts email newsletters, and maintains consistent brand voice — all for a fraction of what you'd pay a human.

Scenario 3: AI Sales Follow-Up Assistant

The problem: Leads come in, but follow-up is slow and inconsistent. You know you're leaving money on the table.

The math:

Average small business converts 2–5% of leads
With instant AI follow-up, conversion typically jumps to 8–15%
If you get 100 leads/month with an average deal value of $500:
- Before: 3% conversion = $15,000/month
- After: 10% conversion = $50,000/month
- $35,000/month more revenue
Minus AI cost of $500/month = $34,500/month net gain

ROI: 6,900%

This is where AI really shines. Speed-to-lead is the single biggest factor in sales conversion, and AI responds in seconds — not hours.

Scenario 4: AI Operations & Admin

The problem: You or your office manager spend hours each week on invoicing, data entry, scheduling, and report generation.

The math:

Office admin costs $35,000–$55,000/year (salary + benefits)
AI handles 60–80% of admin tasks
Effective savings: $21,000–$44,000/year
Minus AI cost: $13,000–$36,000 net savings

ROI: 163%–450%

The Compounding Effect

Here's what the spreadsheet doesn't show: AI employees get better over time, not worse.

Month 1: AI handles 80% of tasks accurately
Month 3: Accuracy is up to 92% as we fine-tune
Month 6: AI is handling tasks you didn't even plan for
Month 12: You've essentially added a full team member for $8K/year

Meanwhile, your human costs only go up — raises, benefits increases, turnover costs.

When AI Isn't Worth It

We believe in honesty. Here's when an AI employee might not be the right move:

Your volume is very low: If you get 5 customer inquiries a week, the math doesn't work yet. Wait until volume picks up.
The work is entirely creative/strategic: AI is great at execution. It's not (yet) great at high-level business strategy or deeply creative work.
You need a physical presence: AI can't show up to a job site or shake hands at a networking event.

For everything else — repetitive, scalable, time-consuming work — AI is almost certainly worth it.

Try It Risk-Free

We don't lock you into long contracts because we're confident the numbers speak for themselves. Start with one AI employee, track the results for 90 days, and decide if you want to continue.

Book a free consultation and we'll walk you through the exact ROI for your specific business.