The Hidden Cost of Growth: How Rising AI Tech Prices Are Draining Small Business Profit
If you’ve felt like your business expenses keep rising, especially software, you’re not imagining it.
Kajabi. Kit. SamCart. Flodesk. ClickUp. One by one, online platforms are raising prices. And for many business owners, it’s creating a quiet kind of panic.
The truth is, running an online business is more expensive than ever. Software companies are scrambling to adapt to new AI tools, changing market demands, and rising costs. The result? They’re passing that chaos down to you, the business owner.
Your $79 per month software suddenly becomes $1,500 a year. And because your funnels, clients, and systems live inside that platform, switching feels impossible.
So, you stay. But you shouldn’t have to.
What’s Really Going On Behind the Price Hikes
Most business owners don’t plan their tech long term. They piece tools together as they grow, adding one new system after another to fix small problems.
It works for a while. Until it doesn’t.
At a certain point, all those tools start to overlap. Payments double up. Data doesn’t sync. You spend more time managing software than running your business.
According to a 2024 Zapier report, the average small business uses more than 70 different apps to run daily operations, and about 40% of those overlap in function. That’s money and time wasted every single month.
This year alone, Flodesk announced that it’s ending its flat rate pricing and moving to a subscriber-based model. Kajabi, ClickUp, and SamCart all raised rates, citing new AI features. Even platforms like Notion, Adobe, and Google Workspace have adjusted pricing to offset AI integration and infrastructure costs.
What used to be affordable tools for small businesses are now major operating expenses.
The Smarter Way to Scale: A Tech Stack Audit
Here’s where a Tech Stack Audit changes everything.
As a fractional COO, this is one of the first things I do with every client because your tools shape your entire operation.
A Tech Stack Audit reviews your systems to uncover:
What’s working and what’s not. We look at your current tools and identify what to keep, replace, or remove.
What integrates best. We find the connections that make your systems talk to each other so your business runs like a unified machine.
Where you can save. Most clients save thousands each year by canceling unused or overlapping subscriptions.
How to future proof. We choose tools that will adapt to your next phase of growth, not just today’s needs.
How to migrate efficiently. When we find more cost-effective or scalable tools, I help manage the full tech migration process — so you can transition smoothly without losing data, customers, or momentum.
One of my clients, a service-based business generating $600K a year, was paying for 23 different tools. After their audit, we cut that down to 12, saving over $8,000 a year and freeing up hours of manual work every week. I also managed the migration to more cost-effective platforms, so they didn’t have to juggle multiple systems or risk downtime.
That’s the kind of clarity and efficiency most business owners don’t realize they’re missing.
Why This Matters Now
AI isn’t just changing how we work. It’s changing how software companies operate. Tools that feel essential today might not exist a year from now.
If your systems aren’t built to adapt, you risk spending more time and money rebuilding later.
Building your “forever home” tech system now means you can grow from $5K to $5M without constant software chaos.
And no, you don’t need to be a tech expert to do it. You just need a clear strategy and someone who knows how to build and migrate systems that scale.
About Crystal Eva:
Crystal Eva, Inc. is a Fractional COO partner helping service-based business owners streamline operations, scale sustainably, and reclaim balance. Through systems strategy, team alignment, and tech optimization, Crystal Eva helps you move from daily overwhelm to confident, sustainable growth.
Click here to book a complimentary discovery call with Crystal Eva today!
P.S. Looking to impress clients from Day 1? Grab theNew Client Onboarding Workbook that’s been tested and proven to be effective and for a limited time, Crystal is sharing this valuable step-by-step guide and templates with you for FREE!
