What makes a process a good fit for automation?
- It repeats many times a week.
- It follows clear rules, even with a few exceptions.
- It uses digital information: emails, forms, spreadsheets or systems.
- It spans several tools, and someone copies data between them.
If a process meets three of these four conditions, it's probably worth automating.
1. Lead capture and follow-up
Example: someone fills out your website form → the lead lands in your CRM with its source → it's assigned to a rep by service or territory → they get a welcome email or WhatsApp message → if nobody reaches out within 24 hours, the manager gets an alert.
2. Scheduling and reminders
Example: the customer picks a time on your online calendar → the meeting is created with a video link → they get reminders a day and an hour before → if they cancel, the slot frees up automatically.
3. Invoicing and payment reminders
Example: when a deal closes, the invoice is generated in your system → it's sent to the customer → if payment is late, they get friendly reminders on a schedule → your billing team only steps in for cases that remain open.
4. Answering frequently asked questions
Example: an AI agent answers questions on WhatsApp or your website about pricing, hours, order status or policies, using your own information → when a question falls outside what it should handle, it hands the conversation to a person with a summary.
5. Customer or employee onboarding
Example: a contract is signed → the needed accounts and folders are created → a welcome email with next steps goes out → tasks with due dates are assigned to the responsible team.
6. Automated reporting
Example: every Monday, sales, CRM and ad data are pulled together → the weekly summary is calculated → a ready-to-read report lands in your inbox or Teams, or a Power BI dashboard refreshes.
7. Document processing
Example: invoices or forms arrive by email → AI extracts the key fields (vendor, amount, date) → they're recorded in your accounting system or a spreadsheet → anything with questionable data is flagged for review.
How to decide where to start
Work out how many hours per month each process takes: times per month × minutes per run ÷ 60. Start with the one that takes the most hours and is easiest to automate.
| Process | Times per month | Minutes per run | Hours per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Logging leads in the CRM | 200 | 5 | 16.7 |
| Sending appointment reminders | 150 | 3 | 7.5 |
| Building the weekly report | 4 | 90 | 6 |
The numbers in the table are just an example: swap in your own.
Which tool should you use?
- n8n: connects almost any tool, handles complex logic and can run on your own servers.
- Power Automate: a great fit if your company already runs on Microsoft 365.
- AI agents: when the process requires understanding text or talking to people.
Not sure which process to automate first? On a short call we'll review it with you and tell you which tool fits best.