What it solves
No-code automation platforms are fast to start and easy to leave half-finished. We design scenarios the way software should be designed: a trigger, clear routing, error handling, logging and documentation — so they keep working after the person who built them has moved on.
Typical problems
- Scenarios that stop and nobody notices for a week
- Operations spend growing with duplicated runs
- Zaps built by three people with no naming convention
- A platform bill that suggests it is time to migrate
- Automations that only one ex-employee understood
What changes
Workflows that keep running after the person who built them has moved on — named, documented, with error handling and an owner. Firms that migrate usually do it to own their automation, stop task-based billing surprises and add AI steps without per-model metering; the running cost after is shown before the decision.
Example workflows
Workflows we build regularly in this service. The “what changes” lines describe the process after the build, not measured results; measured results are published only in case studies, with permission.
Lead to first contact
Leads land in a form tool; someone copies them to the CRM and sends a template email when they get a chance.
Trigger on submission, dedupe against the CRM, enrich, assign an owner, send the first email and create the follow-up task.
What changes: every lead contacted within minutes.
Migration from Zapier to n8n
Sixty Zaps, a rising bill and no error handling.
Scenarios rebuilt on self-hosted n8n with error branches, logging and a naming convention; run cost tracked.
What changes: predictable cost, visible failures, one owner.
Weekly reporting
Someone assembles numbers from four tools into a Slack message every Monday.
A scheduled scenario pulls the numbers, formats the summary and posts it — with a chart — before the meeting.
What changes: Monday morning back.
What gets automated
- Scenario design and build on Make, Zapier or n8n
- Error handlers, retries and dead-letter logs
- Migration between platforms
- Self-hosted n8n setup and hardening
- Audit and clean-up of existing automations
- Monitoring and monthly review
Systems we work in
Tools describe the systems we connect; they do not imply partnership or certification.
- n8n (Cloud or self-hosted)
- Make
- Zapier
- Pipedream
- Webhooks
- Google Workspace
- HubSpot
- Slack
Human checkpoints and security
The rules that keep this service safe to run in a regulated firm. They are written into the scope, enforced in the build and described in more detail on the security and data page.
- Migrations run in parallel with the old platform until every path has been tested on real data
- Cut-over happens on a day you choose, with a rollback plan
- Scenarios that send, pay or update client records keep a human approval step
- Credentials are moved to named accounts, never shared logins
What every build includes
The difference between an automation that works in a demo and one that still works in a year.
- Automatic retries when a connected app is briefly unavailable, so nothing is silently lost
- A run log for every execution — what came in, what was decided, what went out
- Failure alerts to Slack or email after repeated errors, with a pause switch you control
- Idempotent steps: running twice never creates duplicates
- Written handover: a one-page map of the workflow, its owners and how to change it
- Built in your own accounts — you keep every credential, licence and asset
How the work is delivered
Map
Current process documented with the people who run it.
Scope
Written proposal, diagram, deliverables, fixed price.
Build
Short stages in your accounts, demo at the end of each.
Launch
Monitoring, alerts and documentation before go-live.
Pricing and engagement
Written inventory, risk register and priced options in 5–8 working days. Fee credited against an option accepted within 30 days.
New workflows built for reliability, or a staged Zapier/Make → n8n migration priced per workflow after the inventory. Fixed in writing before work starts; nothing outside scope without your written approval. Half on start, half on go-live.
Monitoring, fixes when an app changes its API, credential hygiene and a monthly health report. Cancel any month.
Deliverables
- Scenarios in your workspace, named and documented
- Error inbox and alerting
- Operations-count estimate and cost review
- Handover walkthrough (recorded)
Questions
Make, Zapier or n8n — which one?
Zapier for breadth and simplicity, Make for complex branching at a lower cost, n8n when you want to self-host, run high volume or keep data in-house. We recommend based on volume, complexity and who will maintain it.
Can you take over automations someone else built?
Yes. We audit, document, fix what is fragile and rebuild only what needs it.
Do you self-host n8n?
Yes, on your own server or cloud account, with backups, updates and monitoring set up.
How do you keep platform costs down?
By filtering early, batching, avoiding polling triggers where webhooks exist, and reviewing operations counts monthly.
How does pricing work?
Most engagements start with a fixed-price Automation Reliability Review (from $900). You then get priced options in writing with one price and a delivery date each. Ongoing monitoring and improvements are a monthly retainer you can cancel any month. All prices are in USD.
How quickly can something be live?
A first workflow is usually live within two to three weeks of sign-off. Larger builds are staged so something useful ships early and the rest follows.
What happens when a workflow fails?
Every build ships with retries, a run log and alerts. Anything that does not run as scoped in the first 30 days is fixed at no charge; after that Automation Care covers fixes, or we quote a small fix and turn it around quickly.
Who owns the automations afterwards?
You do. Everything is built in your accounts and documented, and your team is walked through it at handover. You can maintain it yourself or keep us on retainer.