📜outsmart tariffs with AI

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Hey! It’s Dr. Marcella Wilson!

Tariffs are here.  Here’s what you need to know right now:

• The AI shortcut that helps you quickly escape the tariff chaos and stay profitable.

• The hidden danger of raising your prices — and the simple AI trick that keeps your customers loyal.

• A powerful AI prompt that helps you find “tariff-free” suppliers most sellers don’t even know exist

• And much more

Tariffs might scare store owners or slow others down.  But smart eCommerce entrepreneurs like you can use AI to stay profitable (and even grow).  Keep scrolling to learn how.

PROMPT OF THE WEEK

Today’s Prompt

Need new suppliers because of rising tariffs? Try this prompt:

"List 10 alternative manufacturers for [your product] outside of [China/country].
For each manufacturer, include:

• Website link
  

• Product types
  

• Location
  

• Any available certifications (ISO, CE, GMP, FDA, etc.)."

Use it to:

• Find manufacturers located in tariff-free zones
  

• Compare supplier costs faster
  

• Keep your margins strong even as tariffs rise

It’ll save you hours of manual research — and help you spot the best opportunities at a glance.

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BEYOND THE SCROLL

Don’t Let Tariffs Wreck Your Margins (Use These 3 AI Tricks)

When I sold physical products, almost everything I sourced came from China. I worked with several factories over the years, but eventually built a great relationship with one that produced most of my inventory.

Still, no matter how strong that relationship was, sometimes prices would suddenly jump — and there was nothing I could do about it.

It was incredibly frustrating. But I had two choices:
➔ Eat the extra cost myself, or
➔ Raise my prices and risk losing sales.

Neither option felt great — especially with so much competition on platforms like Amazon and Etsy, where dozens of sellers were offering the same or similar products. A small price increase could easily mean a big drop in sales.

If you’ve been in ecommerce for a while, you know exactly what I mean.

And now, with the tariffs placed on Chinese goods, many sellers are feeling that same pressure again.

That’s why today’s issue is so important.

I'm showing you three smart ways you can use AI to protect your margins and stay profitable — even when outside forces like tariffs try to squeeze you.

Try these 3 AI tricks…

1. Find Alternative Suppliers Quickly

If possible, try to get your product manufactured in the United States so you can avoid tariffs completely.  Now, I know this can be tricky because the United States isn't really set up for manufacturing like China is.  And honestly, trying to find manufacturers on sites like Thomas.net can be frustrating as it is not as user-friendly and optimized as sites like Alibaba.com.  But if you can find someone to manufacture one or a few products in the United States, it might save you tons of cash.

If manufacturing in the US isn't possible, try using AI tools (like ChatGPT) to research suppliers based in countries unaffected by new tariffs.  Scroll up and use the “Prompt of the Week” to create a list.  

If you find a promising supplier, follow up by asking ChatGPT to summarize reviews, certifications, and reputation for the potential supplier. It won't replace real vetting, but it’s a fast first filter!

2. Automate Your Pricing Updates

When tariffs raise your costs, you either have to eat the loss (ouch), or raise your prices (smart, but tricky).  If you raise prices the wrong way (too high, too fast, or without a strategy), you scare away customers.  If you do nothing, you lose profit.

I recommend using AI automation.  Here’s how it works.  You simply feed your pricing changes into an AI pricing tool or build a simple spreadsheet with AI help to update your product prices strategically.  This way you won’t scare off customers.

An AI automation can help you:

• recalculate your prices fast based on new costs

• Apply small, smart price increases (not huge jumps)

• Keep your margins healthy

• Save you HOURS compared to manually changing every product

So instead of panicking and randomly changing prices when tariffs hit, you set up a system (a simple AI prompt or spreadsheet) that calculates and updates prices for you automatically — so you stay profitable without losing customers. 

3. Create Clear Customer Messaging

If your prices go up — because of new tariffs, supply chain issues, or rising material costs — it’s critical to communicate openly with your customers.

If you don't explain, customers might think you're getting greedy or trying to take advantage of them. 😬

But if you proactively tell them what’s happening, most people will understand — and stay loyal.

Here’s the good news: You don’t have to stress over finding the right words. ChatGPT excels at crafting empathetic, professional messages.

You can ask it to help you write:

• A quick email announcement to your list
  

• A short website banner or pop-up
  

• A social media post explaining the update

You can also tell ChatGPT to focus on empathy + transparency + gratitude.

• Tell them why prices are changing ("Due to increased costs from new import tariffs...")

• Emphasize it’s about maintaining quality and serving them better

• Thank them sincerely for sticking with you

Prompt Example: “Write a short, friendly [email/social media post/website pop-up] to customers explaining a small price increase due to new tariffs on imported good. Emphasize appreciation for their support and thank them for their support.”

My Recommendation

Take a deep breath.

I know how frustrating this tariff situation feels — especially when it’s completely out of your control.

But here’s the truth: This too shall pass.

Tariffs tend to be temporary. And almost every day, there’s a new story about negotiations or deals being discussed behind the scenes. Nothing stays the same for long in global trade.

In the meantime, remember:
➔ Some sellers will panic and give up.
➔ Some stores will shut down.
➔ But you? You are going to adapt.

Because you’re smarter. You’re using AI to find new suppliers, update your prices the right way, and keep your customers loyal.

The bottom line:
👉 You can’t control tariffs but you can absolutely control how you respond.

Stay calm.

Stay strategic.

And know that every shift like this clears out weaker competition — creating even more opportunity for you.

AI gives ecommerce entrepreneurs like you a massive edge — especially when the market gets tough.

Use it.

SCROLL TO THE END

Here’s how I can help you stay ahead:

1. New to AI? Start learning with my free, email course → ChatGPT 101  

   (Learn the basics so you can move faster when the market shifts.)

2. When times get tough, showing up matters more than ever. When tariffs hit and rising costs make the market unstable, your audience needs to hear from you more, not less.

   The AI Social Media Prompt Journal gives you daily prompts to help create powerful, scroll-stopping posts — without wasting time wondering what to say. Get the journal→ AI Social Media Prompt Journal

3. Pressed for time but still need results fast? Grab the AI Content Kit with 50+ prompts, images, captions, hashtags, templates + more → AI Content Kit

See ya next week!

Dr. Marcella Wilson

P.S. - With all the time I saved using AI last week, I watched “White Lotus (season 3). It was slow at first but ended well. The first 2 seasons were better but it’s still a good watch.