What AI Really Costs a Small Shop: 5 Questions to Ask Before You Pay

Every AI salesman shows you the demo. The demo always looks cheap. Nobody shows you month three.

I build AI systems for a living, and I've built them for my own company too. I've made the same buying mistakes I'm about to warn you about. Here's what I learned, and the five questions I'd ask before you pay for any AI tool. A phone answerer, a quoting tool, a posting tool, whatever it is.

Mistake one: the limit nobody mentioned

On one of my own systems, the plan said the tool could handle a long job in one go. Before I spent real money, I ran one small test. The real limit was a fraction of what the plan said. That one test changed the whole design.

Every AI tool has a limit like that. A cap on calls. A cap on minutes. A cap on how many quotes it writes a month. It usually isn't in the demo. You find it when you run real work through it.

Mistake two: I only priced the job

I worked out what each piece of work would cost. Then I added up the subscriptions. The bill for just being signed up was over my budget before the system did a single thing.

Think of it like a work truck. The payment comes due whether the truck leaves the lot or not. Fuel is on top. You'd never buy a truck without asking about both.

Mistake three: the alarm had zeros in it

I built a budget alarm. If the month went over my limit, it would stop. When I looked inside, two of the costs were entered as zero. Placeholders nobody filled in. The alarm would never have gone off.

Nothing broke loudly. Everything looked fine. That's what makes it dangerous. A safety feature you've never seen fire is a guess.

The five questions

1. What's my bill if I run zero jobs this month? That's your floor. Know it before anything else.
2. What does one job cost, and what makes it go up? One call, one quote, one booking. You wouldn't hand a customer a quote with only materials on it. Don't accept one like that either.
3. What's the limit? How many calls, minutes, or messages before it stops or charges more?
4. Show me the cap working. Make the spending limit or the approval step fire while you watch.
5. Who says yes? Before money moves or a customer hears a promise, which person on your team approves it?

If the person selling it can't answer all five in plain English, don't sign yet.

The cheapest fix

Sometimes the cheapest fix isn't a tool at all. It's changing how the job gets done. Before you buy software to speed up a messy process, ask whether the process should change first.

How I work

At Dreki Solutions, I start with one workflow. I map it with you. Then you get a written estimate that covers what it takes to build and what it takes to keep running. Before anything gets built. If the honest answer is that it isn't worth automating, I'll tell you that.

Dreki is veteran-owned and based in Michigan. It's just me, so you talk to the person doing the work.

Next step

Have one job that eats your week? Book a 30-minute call, call (517) 215-7573, or email brett@dreki-solutions.com. Bring the five questions. I'll answer them for anything I'd build for you.