Independent Researcher, Nairobi, Kenya teresiadigital@gmail.com September 2026 Abstract A recurring puzzle in small business research is that firms with satisfied customers, a functioning product, and competent staff often fail to grow. This paper argues that the puzzle arises from conflating…

Independent Researcher, Nairobi, Kenya teresiadigital@gmail.com Abstract This paper examines whether and how artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way consumers discover and evaluate businesses. Rather than treating this as a binary question, the paper argues for a more precise claim…