Why AI Projects Fail & How You Can Fix It

Welcome to The Logical Box!

Your guide to making AI work for you.

Hey,

Andrew here from The Logical Box, where I break down AI so it’s easy to understand and even easier to use.

Ever wondered why so many businesses get excited about using AI but end up disappointed?

They expect big results, but instead, their AI projects fail, and the money they invested disappears without a trace.

The biggest reason for this might surprise you and it’s not the AI tool or the people using it. 

It’s the data.

Let's simplify this and get straight to the point.

Why Bad Data Means Bad AI

Think of AI as a chef. Even the best chef in the world cannot make a delicious meal with spoiled ingredients. In the same way, AI cannot deliver great results with messy, unclear data.

Let's break down the types of data your AI uses:

Structured Data (The Organized Stuff)

• Stored neatly in databases or spreadsheets

• Follows clear rules (names, dates, numbers)

• Easy for AI to read, understand, and use

• Examples: customer lists, sales figures, financial records

Unstructured Data (The Messy but Valuable Stuff)

• Doesn’t fit neatly into tables or spreadsheets

• Includes text, images, videos, and audio

• Needs special tools for AI to understand it

• Examples: emails, PDFs, meeting notes, social media posts

Which Data Should Your AI Use?

AI loves structured data because it’s straightforward and easy to analyze quickly. But here's the thing: unstructured data often holds the hidden insights and opportunities that can truly innovate your business.

To get the best from AI, you need both:

• Start with structured data: It gives you fast, reliable results.

• Use special AI tools for unstructured data: Tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Otter.ai, or Hugging Face can effectively uncover hidden insights from emails, documents, audio, and images.

• Clean and organize your data first: Remember, if your data is messy, your AI results will be too.

Guide to Better AI Results

Here's how to start improving your data right away:

1. Check your structured data:
   Is it neatly stored and updated? If not, clean it up by removing duplicates, fixing formatting issues, and standardizing entries.

2. Collect your unstructured data:
   Find the hidden gems like customer feedback in emails or social media posts.

3. Use AI tools to organize messy data:
   Tools like ChatGPT or Perplexity can help categorize and make sense of the chaos, turning scattered notes into actionable insights.

Quick Exercise to Try Right Now

Let’s put it into action. Think of a problem you want AI to solve for your business:

• Identify what kind of data you currently have (structured or unstructured).

• Choose one area of your data to clean and organize.

• Test this cleaned data with your AI tool and see the difference in results.

Why This Matters for Your Business

Cleaning your data might feel like extra work, but here’s the truth:

• Better data means better AI results.

• Better AI results mean smarter business decisions.

• Smarter decisions lead to growth, efficiency, and real ROI.

Give it a shot, and watch how quickly your results improve.

I'd love to hear how this works out for you or if you have questions.

Want to take the next step?

I work alongside businesses to develop AI skills and systems that stay with you. Rather than just building prompts, I help your team become confident AI users who can solve real problems and no more starting from zero each time.

If you are ready for some guidance to get you or your team truly comfortable with AI tools, reach out to Andrew on LinkedIn and let's talk about what is possible.

Thanks for reading,

Andrew Keener
Founder of Keen Alliance & Your Guide at The Logical Box