AI consultant in Des Moines

Practical AI for Des Moines and Iowa businesses.

I’m Aric Asplund, and I run Tangible Tactics out of West Des Moines. I help Iowa companies put AI to work on one real task at a time, using the systems they already run. No big program, no slide deck. Just a tool your team actually uses.

WHERE TO START

Where AI helps an Iowa business first

Cost and price tracking

Watch the input and commodity prices that matter to you every week, flag the big moves and show what they mean for your top products. Pricing and purchasing see it early instead of finding it in margin a quarter later.

Customer reorder alerts

Use your order history to spot accounts that slowed down or stopped buying, so sales hears about it while there’s still time to do something about it.

Bid and RFP monitoring

A daily scan of government, school and institutional bid sites in Iowa and beyond, scored against what you sell and sent as a short list with deadlines. Nobody has to check a dozen portals by hand.

LOCAL

Based in West Des Moines, working across Iowa

I work with owner-led manufacturers, distributors and B2B companies in the Des Moines metro and across Iowa, whether you’re in West Des Moines, Ankeny, Urbandale, Johnston, Waukee, Ames or a smaller town where the plant is the biggest employer.

Being local matters for this kind of work. I can sit with the person who does the task today, see how the work really gets done and build around that. Follow-up, training and support can be remote.

For a first project I usually need:

Read access to wherever the work lives today: the ERP, CRM, spreadsheets or a shared drive
The person who does the task now, for about an hour a week during the build
One person who decides what the tool is allowed to do

You don’t need clean data or an IT project. Not sure where to start? Read how to pick your first AI project.

GUARDRAILS

Where people stay in charge

AI is good at reading, sorting, flagging and drafting. People approve prices, quotes, customer commitments and anything that leaves the building.

Every tool I build shows where its answer came from, so the person using it can check before acting. It runs on accounts you own, and the runbook lists exactly what it touches.

HOW IT WORKS

Three ways to work together

Every company starts in a different place, so there are three ways in:

A diagnostic to find the one or two tasks worth automating first
A pilot build that puts one working tool in front of your team
Monthly help to keep improving what’s working and add the next piece

Each one is scoped up front, and you know what you’re getting before you commit. See how I work, look at tools I’ve built, or read more about AI for manufacturers and AI for distributors.

Frequently asked questions

Do you only work with Des Moines companies?

No. I’m based in West Des Moines and do most of my work in central Iowa, but I work with companies across Iowa and the Midwest. Remote works too when it fits.

What kind of companies do you work with?

Mostly owner-led manufacturers, distributors and B2B firms. If your team spends hours every week on a repeatable task like reading documents, pulling reports together or checking prices, there’s probably a good first project in it.

Do we need an IT team?

No. I work with whoever manages your systems today, whether that’s an outside provider or the one person who knows the ERP.

Do you work on site?

Yes, when it helps. Being in the room with the people who do the work makes for a better tool. Follow-up, training and support can be remote.

NEXT STEP

Pick one task. Let's talk it through.

30 minutes, no slides. You tell me what’s eating your team’s time. I tell you honestly whether AI is the right fix and what a first project would look like. Rather send a note? Use the contact page.