So there I was, scrolling through Reddit at 1 AM (as one does), when I saw this post from a guy who owns a small HVAC company. He complained about being overwhelmed by leads and struggling to keep up with follow-ups. Classic small business problem, right?

Now, I’m not some tech genius. I work in marketing, I know Excel pretty well, and I once built a WordPress site without crying. That’s about it.

But something clicked. I commented, “Dude, I bet I could automate that for you in like 3 hours.”

He messaged me. Long story short, I spent my Saturday afternoon connecting his Facebook lead forms to a simple email sequence using some tool called Make.com (it’s like Zapier but cheaper).

Three weeks later, he texted me: “Bro, I’m booking 40% more jobs. This thing is printing money.” His relief and satisfaction were palpable, and I couldn’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment.

That’s when I realized I might have stumbled onto something.

The Thing Nobody Talks About

What nobody tells you about the “AI revolution” — most small businesses are drowning in it, not surfing it.

I started paying attention after the HVAC thing. Everywhere I looked, I saw the same pattern:

• The dentist down the street manually enters appointments into three different systems
• My barber is forgetting to text appointment reminders (and losing money on no-shows)
• A local restaurant owner spends 2 hours every morning sorting through DoorDash, Uber Eats, and walk-in orders

Meanwhile, everyone’s talking about ChatGPT and how AI is going to change everything. But these business owners? They want their phone to stop ringing at 9 PM with booking requests.

The Accidental Experiment

I decided to test something. I reached out to 50 small businesses in my area with a simple message:

“Hey, I noticed you’re [specific problem I observed]. I think I can automate that for you in about a week. Want to chat?”

The responses were interesting.

Week 1: 23 people ignored me. Fifteen people thought I was trying to sell them something. Eight people asked, “What’s automation?” and four people wanted to discuss it.

Week 2: Had coffee with those 4 people. Built a simple solution for 1 of them, a massage therapist who was losing clients to no-shows. I set up an automated reminder system that sent text messages to clients the day before their appointments. It took me 6 hours. She went from 30% no-shows to 5% in two weeks.

Week 3: Word spread. Got three more meetings.

Month 2: Had five clients paying me between $500 and $1500/month for systems that took me 3–8 hours to build.

Month 4: 12 clients, $8,700/month. I hired my neighbor’s college-age son to help with the simple stuff.

Month 8: $15,200/month. I still work my day job, but now I’m seriously thinking about what comes next.

The “Stop Playing Phone Tag” Solution

Small service businesses (plumbers, electricians, therapists) lose SO much money on scheduling back-and-forth. I set up systems where customers can book online, get automatic confirmations, and receive reminders.

Real example: A dog groomer was spending 90 minutes daily on scheduling calls. Now it’s automated. She books 30% more appointments and gets to groom dogs instead of playing secretary.

The “Follow Up Without Being Creepy” System

Most businesses get leads and then… do nothing with them. Or they follow up once and give up. I build email sequences that nurture leads over time.

Real example: A personal trainer was converting maybe 1 in 10 leads. Now he has a 6-email sequence that shares workout tips and client success stories. His conversion rate tripled.

The “Sort the Chaos” Automation

Restaurants, especially, are drowning in orders from 47 different platforms. I build systems that collect everything in one place and automatically calculate what they need to order for ingredients.

Real example: A pizza place owner was staying up until midnight every night reconciling orders. Now it’s automatic. He sleeps better, and his inventory is accurate.

The “Don’t Lose Hot Leads” Alert System

This one’s my favorite. When someone visits a business’s website, fills out a form, or calls during off hours, the system immediately alerts the owner and starts appropriate follow-up.

Real example: A roofing contractor was missing 60% of his leads because he couldn’t respond fast enough. Now he gets text alerts within 2 minutes and has a 90% response rate.

The Tools I Use (Nothing Fancy)

I’m not using some $10,000 enterprise software. My entire toolkit costs me $127/month:

Make.com ($29/month): This is where the magic happens. It’s like connecting digital Lego blocks. If this happens, then do that—no coding required.

Calendly ($10/month): For scheduling. Because apparently “pick a time that works for both of us” is impossible without software.

ConvertKit ($29/month): Email marketing that doesn’t suck. I use this for the follow-up sequences.

Typeform ($35/month): For creating forms that people want to fill out.

Notion ($8/ 8/month): To keep track of everything. Also, because I’m not a barbarian who uses Excel for project management.

Airtable ($20/month): Database stuff that makes sense to non-database people.

That’s it. No AI-powered blockchain quantum computing nonsense. Just basic tools that work, and that anyone with a bit of tech-savviness can master.

The Reality Check Nobody Gives You

Let me be brutally honest about what this looks like:

Month 1 sucked. I felt like a fraud. Half the stuff I built broke. I spent more time fixing things than building them. I questioned everything.

Month 2 was worse. My first client’s system stopped working during their busiest week. I spent 14 hours fixing it. They were not happy. I almost quit.

Month 3 was the turning point. I finally understood the common patterns. I built my first template. I realized most business problems are variations of the same 5 issues. It was a lesson in perseverance and the power of learning from mistakes.

Month 4 was when I raised my prices. Some clients said no. Others said yes without blinking. I learned that pricing is weird.

Month 6 was when I started saying no. Turns out, not every business problem needs automation. Some businesses need to get their act together first.

Month 8 is now. I have systems. I have templates. I can build most solutions in 2–4 hours instead of 8–12. I’m good at this.

The Uncomfortable Truths

1. Most businesses are messier than you think. That “simple” restaurant ordering system? Turns out they have three different point-of-sale systems, two different inventory methods, and Gary from the kitchen writes orders on napkins.

2. You’re not just building automation. You’re also a therapist, consultant, and occasionally a referee between business partners who disagree about everything.

3. People don’t care about your fancy automation. They care about results. The pizza place owner doesn’t care that I used webhooks and API integrations. He cares that he’s not staying up until midnight anymore.

4. The learning curve is real. You’ll spend your first month feeling stupid and your second month feeling slightly less ridiculous. Your third month, realizing you know some stuff.

5. Cash flow is lumpy. In one month, you’ll make $3,000. The following month, you’ll make $800. The month after that, you’ll land a big client and make $6,000. Don’t quit your day job too early.

What Works for Finding Clients

Forget everything you’ve read about marketing. Here’s what works:

Local networking events. Yeah, I know. But showing up to the Chamber of Commerce breakfast and saying “I help small businesses automate their boring stuff” gets attention.

Referrals. Happy clients tell their friends. Unhappy clients tell everyone. Guess which one happens more often when you do good work?

Cold outreach that doesn’t suck. I send maybe five personalized emails a week. I research the business first. I mention specific problems I noticed. I don’t sound like a robot.

Word of mouth. This is the big one. When the massage therapist tells the chiropractor next door about her booking system, and the chiropractor calls me, that’s worth more than any Facebook ad.

The Three-Month Reality

If you’re thinking about trying this, here’s what you should expect:

Month 1: Learn the tools. Build stuff that breaks. Feel dumb. Get your first client (probably by working for free or at a low cost).

Month 2: Fix the stuff that broke. Build more stuff. Feel slightly less dumb. Get 2–3 paying clients.

Month 3: Start to see patterns. Build templates. Feel almost competent. Hit $2,000–5,000 in monthly revenue.

Months 4–6: Refine everything. Raise prices. Build systems for your systems. Hit $5,000–10,000 monthly.

Months 7–12: Decide if you want to keep this as a side hustle or go full-time. I’m still deciding.

The Part Where I Don’t Tell You to Quit Your Job

Despite everything I’ve shared, I’m not telling you to quit your job tomorrow. Here’s why:

It’s not passive income. You’re running a service business. Clients have questions. Systems need updates. People need hand-holding.

The market is getting crowded. More people are figuring this out every day. The early advantage won’t last forever.

Not everyone is cut out for this. You need to be comfortable with technology, good with people, and okay with things breaking at inconvenient times.

It’s not for everyone. If you hate problem-solving, customer service, or learning new things, this will make you miserable.

Where This Goes from Here

Is this a short-term opportunity or a long-term career change? The market keeps growing, but so does the competition. What I do know is that small businesses are drowning in manual processes, and most of them don’t even know there’s a life preserver floating right next to them.

The automation agency thing isn’t some get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a real business that requires fundamental skills and honest effort. But for now, it’s working. And honestly? I’m having more fun than I’ve had at work in years.

That could be worth something.

A Quick Note on Sources

This whole thing is based on others’ experience, not mine, plus countless hours reading posts from other people doing similar stuff. I’ve cobbled together insights from:

• Reddit communities where small business owners complain about their problems
• Groups for automation nerds
• Conversations with actual clients
• YouTube videos from people who’ve built bigger agencies than mine
• Industry reports I found through Google (some free, some behind paywalls)
• Trial and error (mostly error)

Your experience will be different. Better, maybe worse. That’s how business works.

I have just written and curated the stories and ideas together as a blog that can be read without getting bored 🙂

I’m not promising you’ll make $15K/month. I’m not even promising you’ll make $15. I’m just telling you what happened to me and what I learned along the way.