Help Main Street Adopt AI Before Their Competitors Do
The local businesses next to you are scrambling. You're their guide.
Local businesses know they need AI. They don't know how. They'll pay a trusted guide.
Free preview
What this walkthrough gets you
You will become the trusted AI guide for one kind of local business, such as salons or accountants, and sell them an audit, then a project, then a monthly retainer. You are not building AI; you are helping owners adopt tools that already exist, which the vendors will not do for them. It takes about $0 to $500 to start. You do not need to be technical or polished, only willing to build real competence, and the walkthrough follows two operators who started exactly where you are.
Members only
Walk the whole business, step by step.
This walkthrough and the other 20, for one payment of $99. Every step, every tool with its price, every script and template as a download, and Ray beside you the whole way. New walkthroughs are included for life.
Get every walkthrough · $99Already a member? Sign inInside
Every chapter and every step
The full walkthrough · 29 chapters
- Before You Read This
- Start Here
- 1. Reality Check
- 2. The Two Pictures of the Business
- 3. Confidence Calibration: Yes, You
- 4. The Ten Verticals: Where This Framework Works
- 5. Choosing Your Vertical
- 6. The Skills You Need (And Exactly Where to Learn Each)
- 7. The AI Tool Landscape You'll Recommend
- 8. Worked Example #1: Maya and the Salon Practice
- 9. Worked Example #2: David and the Accounting Practice
- 10. The Audit
- 11. The Proposal
- 12. The Sales Process: Every Step, Every Conversation
- 13. Handling Objections: The Twelve You'll Hear
- 14. Delivery: From Kickoff to Done
- 15. The Retainer: Turning a Project into Recurring Revenue
- 15A. The Clean Exit: When the Engagement Ends
- 16. Pricing: The Real Numbers, Honestly
- 17. Finding Your Next Clients
- 18. Your First Three Case Studies: The Bridge from Zero to Paid
- 20. Scenarios, Challenges, and Solutions
- 21. Common Mistakes to Avoid
- 22. Progress Markers
- Case Study: Maya and David, A Year In
- Your Downloads
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Now Go Build It
- Sources
In Steps · 16 steps
- Get ready1Pick your vertical
- 2Build your skill stack
- 3Map your vertical's AI tool landscape
- Build your toolkit4Build your audit framework
- 5Build your proposal and engagement letter
- 6Build your sales playbook (and your confidence)
- 7Set your prices and set up the business
- Make it real8Land your first three case-study clients
- 9Deliver the case-study work and turn it into proof
- Land it10Build your prospect pipeline
- 11Run the discovery call and pitch the audit
- 12Deliver the audit, pitch the project, and close
- Compound13Deliver the project
- 14Convert the project into a retainer
- 15Handle the clean exit when engagements end
- 16Stack retainers into a real practice
Included
5 downloads, ready to use
- The Audit Workbook & Client Deliverable TemplateThe full client-audit framework — what to look for in each vertical, the AI-readiness scoring system, the deliverable template you hand the client at the end of the audit. The thing that opens every engagement.
- The Sales Conversation Playbook — Every WordEvery conversation in sequence: the cold outreach scripts (both verticals), the discovery call script, the audit-pitch close, the proposal call, the twelve objections with the exact response to each, and the close. The thing that gets you to a signed engagement letter.
- Proposal, Engagement Letter & Contract TemplatesThe full proposal template (with both salon and accounting worked-example versions filled in for reference), the engagement letter, the SOW template, and the standard contract terms a Main Street consultant needs — including ownership, confidentiality, data handling, and termination.
- The Implementation PlaybookThe 60-90 day delivery system — kickoff checklist, weekly cadence, the tool-selection framework, the staff-training delivery scripts, the AI-tool-broke playbook, and the ROI-measurement template that justifies the retainer.
- The Practice-Building KitPricing tables with the real 2026 numbers, the case-study template, the referral conversation script, the local-positioning playbook, the first-three-case-studies plan, and the year-one growth roadmap from zero to a stack of retainers.
Answered inside
Questions this walkthrough answers
- Do I really need to pick just one vertical? Answer in the walkthrough
- What if I don't have any business background? Answer in the walkthrough
- Will the federal AI for Main Street Act grants change everything? Answer in the walkthrough
- What if I'm not in the US? Answer in the walkthrough
- Can I do this part-time while keeping my day job? Answer in the walkthrough
- How long until I make real money? Answer in the walkthrough
- What if I can't sell? Answer in the walkthrough
- Can AI replace this whole job? Answer in the walkthrough
- What if a client implements something I recommended badly without me, and then blames me? Answer in the walkthrough
- Should I niche down even further within a vertical? Answer in the walkthrough
Your guide inside
Ray walks it with you
Inside every walkthrough, Ray goes through the steps with you. He points out what matters at each step, saves your place when you step away to a tool, and answers the questions people ask most: 20 ready answers for this walkthrough.
Let's build this together — one move at a time. You'll pick a vertical, build the skills and the toolkit, land three case studies, run the sales motion, and sign your first paying client. I'll only jump in when it matters.
- Ask Ray: What am I actually building?
- Ask Ray: I'm scared I'll freeze in front of a business owner. Can I really do this?
- Ask Ray: What skills do I actually need, and where do I learn them?
- Ask Ray: How does the actual sales conversation go?
- Ask Ray: What do I charge?
Direct support
Stuck on an idea or a build? Email us.
Members can write to us directly about their ideas and their builds, at
Members only
Walk the whole business, step by step.
This walkthrough and the other 20, for one payment of $99. Every step, every tool with its price, every script and template as a download, and Ray beside you the whole way. New walkthroughs are included for life.
Get every walkthrough · $99Already a member? Sign in