The challenge is clear: small local businesses struggle to navigate the complex world of higher education procurement. Vendor requirements are often difficult to understand, opportunities are hard to find, and the decentralized nature of university purchasing makes it challenging for small businesses to know where to start. You can learn more about this challenge by reading the Lab for Inclusive Entrepreneurship’s research reports – click here.
To address this knowledge gap, the Lab sponsored the development of a specialized AI-powered chatbot designed specifically for small, local businesses. Over the past two years, teams of Informatics students at Northeastern’s College of Professional Studies, along with two dedicated Northeastern co-op students, have built an innovative tool that draws on publicly-available information.
The chatbot has three key objectives:
- Providing an easy-to-use, on-demand resource to familiarize users with higher education procurement.
- Enabling users to learn about the procurement process at 40 Massachusetts colleges and universities.
- Serving as a research tool to better understand what information diverse suppliers actually need.
What User Behavior Tells Us
Based on user interaction with chatbot between March and June 2025, here’s what we learned. The most telling insight from our chatbot data isn’t what users ask – it’s how they ask. Users don’t just pop in with a quick question and leave. Instead, they engage in extended conversations, moving from broad questions like “How do I do business with universities?” to increasingly specific queries about certifications, sustainability requirements, and proposal processes.
This pattern reveals something important: the university procurement world feels complex and intimidating to small business owners. They need to build understanding layer by layer, which is exactly what the chatbot allows them to do in a low-pressure, on-demand environment.
The Power of Always-Available Guidance
Unlike traditional support channels, the chatbot provides immediate answers 24/7. Users can explore topics at their own pace without feeling rushed or judged. Our data shows they’re taking full advantage of this – diving deep into compliance questions, asking for clarification on certification requirements, and seeking step-by-step guidance on processes. The chatbot is a safe space for learning, where users can ask “basic” questions they might hesitate to ask a person. Questions like “What exactly is an RFP?” or “Do I really need sustainability certifications?” flow freely in chat conversations.
The data shows users consistently return to four core areas: understanding processes, certification requirements, sustainability standards, and RFP guidance.
Click here to access the chatbot – we’d appreciate your feedback!
