FAQ - Straight answers, before you ask
These are the questions small business owners ask ChatGPT, ask their friends, or ask us on the first call. Each page of this site carries its own specific questions too; this page covers the ones that come before all of that. No hedging, no jargon.
The basics.
What does Assist IQ actually do?
We build and manage the systems that run a small business’s operational layer: AI employees that answer enquiries, chase quotes, collect reviews and keep records clean, combined with automation and a managed CRM in the Managed Service. We build it, we run it, and you approve the things that need judgment.
What is an AI employee?
A role-specific AI system that does a defined job inside your business: it reads what comes in, decides what to do, acts in the tools you already use, and reports back, with a person approving anything that matters. The full definition, including how it differs from a chatbot and an automation, is on the AI employees page.
Chatbot, automation, AI agent: are these the same thing?
No. A chatbot answers questions when asked. An automation runs a fixed sequence when a trigger fires. An AI agent is technology that can read inputs, use tools and act, and an AI employee is that agent given a real job with scope, checks and accountability. The comparison table sets the four apart in one view.
Who is behind Assist IQ?
Ross Gordon, an operator with 19 years in oil and gas operations who built ScottishWill, a will-writing business that runs on an AI employee, plus the always-on AI fleet that builds and manages our systems. The story is on the about page, and the receipts are on the proof page.
Working with us.
What actually happens in the AI Ops Review?
45 minutes of questions about how your business really runs: where enquiries come in, what gets dropped, what eats your evenings. Then a written plan of 3 to 7 practical fixes, what each takes, and the hours it hands back weekly. If we cannot find you at least 5 hours a week, you do not pay. Book it here.
Do you only work with certain industries?
The method is industry-agnostic, but we publish specifics for the sectors we know best: trades, hospitality and professional services, plus bespoke work in oil and gas, where our founder spent 19 years. If your business takes enquiries and runs on repeatable admin, it fits.
Is my business data safe with you?
Your data stays in your own tools: your CRM, your inbox, your storage. We do not pool client data across businesses or use one client’s information to run another’s system, and engagements are governed by a written agreement before anything is connected. The detail is in our privacy policy.
Can I see it working before I commit?
Yes. The businesses we run on this method are documented honestly on the proof page, and discovery conversations include the real systems working live. We do not publish numbers we cannot stand behind, so where a figure is missing, that is deliberate.
Money, honestly.
What does it cost?
We publish one price: the AI Ops Review at £750, with a guarantee. If we cannot find you at least 5 hours a week of recoverable time, you do not pay, and the fee comes off any build within 60 days. Everything beyond the review, from the Managed Service to BusinessOS, is priced to scope after it, so you are never quoted blind.
What do you refuse to sell?
Guaranteed AI rankings, because nobody controls them. Magic technical files, because there is no evidence they work. Automation for a business whose real problem is demand, price or quality, because it would not help. The refusals are written on the AI visibility page and in our comparison of Scottish agencies, competitors included.
Where to go next
Everything on this site, one link each: AI employees · the Managed Service · AI receptionist · AI visibility · trades · hospitality · professional services · our work · how we compare · the guide · about us · Ross Gordon · contact.
Tell us about your business
Not a discovery call. Not a pitch with a calendar link. The AI Ops Review is 45 minutes of questions about how your business actually runs. Then you get a written plan of what’s worth doing, what it costs, and what isn’t worth doing at all.
It’s £750. If we can’t find you at least 5 hours a week, it’s free. If you build with us inside 60 days, the £750 comes off the bill. So the only way it ever costs you money is if you take the plan and run it yourself. Fair enough.
Worst case, you lose 45 minutes and leave with straight answers.
No prep. No data handover. No long contract. You talk, we listen.