50 states, 50 stories: Highlighting small businesses at the big game
When the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles next Sunday, people from all over the country will come together to root for their favorite team, share snacks and drinks and watch a few ads. And during this year’s big game, we’re doing something a little different to bring people together across all 50 states.
We’re running 50 commercials profiling 50 small businesses using AI to get more done — one from every state. If you live in Texas, you’ll see Bison Coolers, while residents of Oregon will be introduced to the team at Jacobsen’s Salt Co. Each of these small businesses is driving the American economy — and for this first-of-its-kind project, we’re spotlighting their innovation, grit and hard work, as they find new and incredible ways to use AI to transform how they work and do more of what they love.
These local spots highlight small businesses and nonprofits that use Google Workspace with Gemini. “We wanted to show what’s possible with AI in Workspace today, and how real businesses are using it,” says Harris Beber, who leads Global Marketing for Workspace. “What better way to show the unexpected ways AI helps real businesses in America than to let them share their stories?”
Spotlighting small businesses using AI
These ads focus on AI for small businesses because these companies are crucial for the U.S. economy. There are nearly 34 million small businesses in the U.S., accounting for 99.9% of all businesses in the country. They employ over 59 million people, which is nearly 46% of the U.S. workforce1. Clearly small businesses are important, but they also face challenges. “Small business owners have to wear many hats and solve problems on their own,” Harris says. “Gemini is now a core functionality included with Workspace business and enterprise plans, meaning customers can access tools that can help them with everything from writing grant proposals to developing marketing copy to mocking up designs in Slides, tasks they might not have had the time, capability or resources for before.”
Keri Buchanan, who leads Growth Marketing for Google Workspace, is well aware of the challenges small businesses face: She actually briefly left Google to start her own business about 10 years ago. She also knows how AI can help bridge the gap. “When I look at all the interesting ways small businesses are using AI, I think back to the tedious parts of starting a business that I could have used AI for, like designing a logo, building a website and figuring out how to file a patent,” she recalls. “Most small businesses are started by someone who’s following their passion, and it’s inspiring to see these owners use AI to handle daily tasks so they have more time to focus on that passion.”
Founded in 2019 by sisters Annie, Mollie and Grace, 3 Farm Daughters (based in Grand Forks, North Dakota) aims to bring fresh, nutrient-rich produce directly from their family farm to consumers’ pantries. The sisters’ childhood in Grand Forks — an area known for its strong agricultural community and hearty, nutrient-rich black soils — formed their passion for the farm at a young age. 3 Farm Daughters uses Gemini in Docs to help draft and refine content for their social media channels, which is key for this growing business.
Ultimately, the idea was to tell stories about real people using Google Workspace with Gemini for the benefit of their businesses and communities. Those stories run the gamut. “If a cattle rancher in Nebraska and a boat maker from Maine are able to leverage AI for success, we think any business of any size certainly can,” Harris says. “They’re just brilliant,” Keri says of the companies profiled. “Some of what they’re using AI for is so simple but so smart — ‘help me write the grant proposal since that isn’t my favorite part of my job or help me catch up on last week’s emails.’”
Jeff Curry, Director of Creative Studio for Google Cloud, says what makes this project so special is the sheer range of people, places and types of businesses from all over the U.S. using Gemini: “We really wanted each story to feel appropriate to its community and place.”
Finding — and filming — 50 small businesses across the country
When Harris first had the idea for this project, he took a very apropos first step: "I went to Gemini and basically said, ‘I have a really big idea and want to build a strategy doc’ followed by a very detailed prompt."
“Harris had the crazy idea,” Keri laughs, referring to the job of sourcing and connecting with these customers. “Our creative and production team got to work bringing the idea to life. They started with thousands of Workspace customers and then we gave Gemini some criteria to help us narrow down the list,” Harris says. They wanted to be sure they selected a wide array of businesses, from different locations and industries, as well as showcase the many ways they were using AI. With Gemini’s help, they narrowed the list down to under 500 companies and then used AI Studio to build a tool that reviewed and summarized interview transcripts so selecting companies took less than 15 minutes instead of hours.
After connecting with the final 50 customers, the team only had 10 weeks to film. “Obviously we couldn’t have one production company, because we had 50 shoots in 50 states!” Harris explains. A crew of 50 — split into five teams — captured hundreds of hours of footage in all 50 states in just weeks. The team then uploaded interview transcripts to NotebookLM to find great quotes and voiceover lines for the ad spots, making the whole process efficient.
Whether you live in O’ahu, Hawaii; Fort Worth, Texas; Oldwick, New Jersey or somewhere in between, you’ll learn more about a local small business during this year’s big game. Keri hopes the ads excite the featured companies, and inspire entrepreneurs everywhere: “Now that Gemini is included for all Workspace customers, we can’t wait to see the next wave of stories!”
