I've been working on workflow automation for this 1.5 years using platforms like Inent Make and others. As I begin to consider commercializing these solutions, I have a question. If I build a workflow, what's the best approach to selling it?
Oh, here we go again. Should I deliver the entire workflow to the client or retain control and run the automation on their behalf? Well, somebody spent 1.5 years getting really good at workflow automation but probably hasn't made any money with it. How much cooler would it be if you learned enough to talk the language in a couple of weeks, then just started talking to customers? You probably wouldn't have been in this situation. In 1.5 years you could have a big book of business with 20 clients. Time will pass anyway. A lot of lead generation mechanisms like cold email and Upwork just require time to pass while active. You might as well have planted a tree 20 years ago; the second best time is today. That's a good analogy. To answer your question about delivering the entire workflow: yeah, deliver it to the client. Then why would they need you? They don't need you for a one-off, but they'll want you if you make them choose needs and such. I get it; it's kind of a Machiavellian way to run the business—strategic and logical—but you don't build as much goodwill with clients and it becomes annoying working with them, especially with handoffs. So, what are you going to do? Hold the business hostage when they want to let you go? Or would you rather be in a situation where the client wants to keep you on because you constantly produce massive value? I like that situation; having a rising floor where clients want more value forces you to creatively find ways to deliver it. That's one reason I agree so quickly.
That mischaracterizes what automation actually is — it's by far the most scalable of service-based businesses, because you don't repetitively make workflows at all; you make them once and profit off them over and over. Example: normally, fulfilling a new client's project takes real ongoing labor — say a $1,000 project costs you $250 (25%) in labor every time, leaving 75% margin at best. With automation, that first project still costs you the full fulfillment effort, but it also produces a reusable template. The next time you land a similar client, instead of spending 25% on fulfillment again, you just copy the template and spend maybe 2% — so you're left with 98% after cost of goods sold. Over time you build up a whole library of templates you can pull from for any new client, which is what makes automation businesses so scalable compared to businesses that redo the fulfillment work from scratch every time.
The second mindset—shifting from fear and scarcity to an abundant, value‑based outlook—is what will make you more successful in the long term. It’s harder because you have to keep improving yourself and your service, show up for the calls, make sure the automations work, and keep getting better. This will make you a better person and a better service provider; sometimes sparring in a harder arena is exactly what you need. Tactically, if I were only trying to squeeze clients for as much money as possible, I’d make sure I owned every part of them and tell them they can’t leave, but I’m not like that. I see far more long‑term potential in making sure the client has everything they need, is happy with it, knows how to use it, and thinks, 'Damn, Nick is awesome—I want him on my team and want to pay him even if I already have what I need.' I also really like the guy and want to see him succeed. Strategically, what keeps clients paying you is often that they lack the time, the energy, or the knowledge to do it themselves, they fear someone else running the automations on their team, or they want to avoid training and hiring costs. This mainly shows up with smaller clients making around $5k a month who are afraid to spend an extra dollar and would rather do it themselves, and those clients aren’t likely to win.
Yeah, for sure. But I think you went about this the wrong way. You started spending tons of time building this product. Now you're considering whether to sell this or something else. A lot of this is wasted time. You might have actually spent time selling a product that nobody cares about. Just to be blunt. The reality is, as beginners, we don't really know what we don't know. So the best way is to put as many possible things in front of as many people as possible. Put as many possible things in front of as many people as you can and let them guide you in the right direction. If you put five possible offers in front of 5,000 people and people disproportionately choose offer number three, then you can invest the time and energy necessary in building the product. This is the modern way of go to market: you go to market first, then build the product based on what people want. People respond positively to this. These are the questions I'm always getting about whether your automation does this or that. So that's what I'm going to build into the freaking thing. Does that make sense? So, it's putting the cart before the horse. Don't lose the forest for the trees. But that's my recommendation there.
Ah, great question. I like this because you're asking how you make the client's life easier—that's really the most important thing. You'll find that as clients grow bigger and better, they want less work on their end and prefer an all‑in‑one done‑for‑you service where they pay a set amount and get the result. I feel the same way: at this point I don’t want to be a partner who constantly discusses the best way of doing things; I’d rather hire someone who’s good at what they do and trust them to deliver a great job. This is taking ownership and minimizing friction—reducing client complexity. Clients don’t care about the inner workings of the black box that is your product; they only care about the input, output, and the interface. So what I think about this is that it’s great—exactly what you should be doing, and what you should have been doing all along. To be that someone, you just position yourself as the person capable of handling everything. You are the person who does cold email: I will handle your cold email systems from start to finish, completely autonomously. All I need from you is a brief three‑minute form you fill out right now, and I’ll do everything for you for 90 days straight. If I don’t deliver the X, Y, Z results I guarantee, you don’t pay a cent. Make it a complete and utter no‑brainer for them—get them to give you what you need up front in a couple of minutes, then you’re off to the races. Handle it completely autonomously, give them progress updates (but don’t disappear or demand anything). That’s how you do it.