What I Learned Implementing Automation for Real-World Service Businesses (Not Just Online Gurus)
The month I realized “automation” could actually hurt people, I was staring at my bank account wondering how I was going to pay rent.
On paper, I was the “tech guy who had it made”:
Early employee at multiple billion-dollar tech startups
Certified up to my eyeballs
The person other marketers came to when their systems broke
But none of that mattered the night I sat at my kitchen table, looking at my checking account, realizing I had less money than the average abandoned cart.
That was the month I stopped building systems for online gurus…
and started focusing on real-world service businesses.
Because that’s where automation actually matters.
The Moment “Automation” Didn’t Feel Clever Anymore
Before I went all-in on service businesses, I did what a lot of tech/automation folks do:
I worked with “online gurus.”
You know the type:
“Ultimate masterclass”
“$100K in 7 days”
“Just plug in my funnel and print money”
The automations were impressive on the surface: complex funnels, 18-step email sequences, upsell waterfalls, deadline timers, all of it.
They were also… empty.
One week, I helped a guru launch a “high-ticket challenge.”
The automation worked perfectly:
Thousands of people opted in
Emails fired on time
Checkout pages converted
Stripe notifications went “ding ding ding” all night
From a systems perspective, it was a win.
From a human perspective, I wasn’t so sure.
Because I could see what happened after the sale:
No real support
No implementation help
Just more information layered on top of already overwhelmed people
That was the same month I was struggling to cover my own bills.
I remember thinking:
“These people are paying money they probably can’t easily spare… for information that won’t change their life unless someone helps them actually use it.”
That didn’t sit well with me.
Automation didn’t feel clever anymore.
It felt complicit.
The First Local Client Who Changed How I Build Everything
Around that time, I started working with more “regular” businesses:
A mobile restroom company
A solo fitness coach
A sports chiropractor
Local service providers who didn’t have time to hang out in Facebook groups debating funnel hacks
One of them was a local service business that did high-ticket jobs but had a very simple operation.
No fancy funnel.
No webinar.
Just:
People calling
People leaving voicemails
People not getting called back
When I dug into their world, here’s what I saw:
Missed calls all day because the owner was on job sites
Sticky notes with names and numbers everywhere
An inbox full of “Hey, just checking in…” messages
They didn’t need a funnel.
They needed follow-up.
So instead of building an 18-step automation, we did something almost boring:
Set up AI answering for missed calls
Built a simple follow-up sequence for new leads
Put review and referral automations in place once a job was done
No scarcity countdown timers.
No “this offer expires in 37 minutes” nonsense.
Just: when someone reaches out, they actually hear back. Quickly.
The first month, the owner messaged me:
“We’re actually catching people now. I didn’t realize how many leads were slipping through.”
That’s when it clicked for me:
For real-world service businesses, automation isn’t about drama.
It’s about not dropping the ball.
And that felt a lot better than helping someone squeeze a few more dollars out of a high-pressure launch.
The Time My Automation Backfired (And I Felt Sick About It)
This is the part most people don’t share publicly.
Not every automation I’ve built has been a win.
There was a project early on where I set up an aggressive follow-up sequence for a service business. On paper, it made sense:
Leads come in
They get a couple of texts
A reminder email
A last-chance nudge
Nothing crazy… until it was.
One evening I got a message from the owner:
“Hey, I think something’s off. A client just told me they got multiple messages from us at weird times. They’re annoyed.”
My stomach dropped.
Turned out:
I’d misconfigured part of the logic
A segment of leads was getting messages triggered out of order
A few people got multiple pings at bad times
Could I blame the tool?
Sure.
But the truth is: that was on me.
I’d been thinking in flows and triggers and tags…
not in feelings and timing and context.
That night, I sat with the discomfort.
Here’s what I realized:
On a guru’s list, that mistake is annoying.
In a small local business, it can literally hurt someone’s reputation.
Real-world service businesses run on trust.
A weird automation doesn’t just hurt “conversion.”
It hurts a relationship.
We fixed the logic. We apologized. People were kind.
But I never forgot how that felt.
Since then, every automation I design starts with a simple question:
“If this went wrong at 2am, would it embarrass this owner?”
If the answer is yes, it doesn’t ship that way.
What Real-World Businesses Actually Need From Automation
After working with local and service-based businesses across different niches, here’s what I’ve learned:
They don’t need more “funnels.”
They need support in four very specific areas:
1. Catching What’s Already Coming In
Most of the owners I work with don’t have a traffic problem.
They have a leak problem.
Calls at bad times
Messages buried in inboxes
People who never hear back
Automation’s job here is simple:
Make sure no legitimate inquiry falls through the cracks.
That’s it. That alone can change a business.
2. Consistent, Human Follow-Up
When I say “follow-up sequence,” people imagine spam.
But good follow-up feels like:
“Hey, just wanted to make sure you got what you needed.”
“Any questions before we move forward?”
“Here’s what to expect next.”
For service businesses, this doesn’t need to be clever.
It needs to be:
Timely
Clear
Respectful
Automation is there to make sure it happens every time — not just on the days when the owner has energy.
3. Simple, Repeatable Upsells and Reviews
Most of the businesses I work with have happy customers… who never get asked for:
A review
A referral
An add-on service
It’s not because the owner doesn’t care.
They’re just tired.
Automation shines here:
“Hey [[Name]], glad we got to work together. Mind leaving a quick review?”
“Since we did X, some clients also get Y. Want to chat about that?”
No pressure. No weird scripts. Just making the obvious next steps visible.
4. Systems They Can Actually Understand
This might be the biggest one.
It’s not enough for me to build a beautiful system.
The owner has to:
Understand it
Trust it
Know how to make small changes without panic
I’ve seen too many people stuck with a “Frankenstein” CRM they’re scared to touch.
So now, part of my job is:
Teaching them just enough
Naming things clearly
Keeping the logic as simple as possible
Because if the system only works when I’m around, I haven’t actually helped.
Why I Stopped Designing for Gurus (And Started Designing for Owners)
Here’s the honest truth:
Building for online gurus stroked my ego.
Big launches
Fancy dashboards
Screenshots of “$X in 24 hours”
But it left something hollow.
Working with real-world service businesses is different.
Nobody’s flexing Stripe screenshots.
They just quietly:
Stop missing calls
Start following up
See more of the leads they already have turn into real revenue
I’ve watched:
Owners who used to be buried in missed calls finally feel on top of their business
People who thought they were “bad at tech” confidently explain their own automations
Burned-out founders rediscover why they started in the first place
And somewhere along the way, my own relationship with “automation” changed.
It stopped being a clever puzzle.
It became a way to protect people’s time, energy, and reputation.
If You’re a Service Business Owner, Here’s the Part That’s For You
If any of this feels uncomfortably familiar, you’re not alone.
Maybe you’ve:
Bought software you never fully set up
Tried a course that left you with more notes than progress
Told yourself, “I’ll fix my follow-up when things slow down”
Here’s what I want you to hear:
You’re not lazy.
You’re overloaded.
Most systems out there are designed as if you:
Have unlimited time
Love spreadsheets
Enjoy watching 20 hours of training
You don’t.
You have customers to serve, staff to manage, and a life to live.
So if you remember nothing else from this story, remember this:
The win isn’t building the fanciest automation.
The win is building the simplest system you’ll actually use.
Start small:
Make sure every lead gets some response within 24 hours
Set up just one follow-up message for missed calls
Add one review request after a job is done
When you’re ready, you can get fancier.
But you might be surprised how far the basics will take you.
Why I Still Believe in Automation (Even After All This)
I’ve seen the ugly side of automation:
Overhyped launches
Overwhelmed customers
Broken trust
I’ve also seen the beautiful side:
The relief on an owner’s face when they realize they’re not dropping the ball anymore
The first month they see consistent follow-up and can actually trust their system
The moment they stop saying, “I’m so bad at this stuff,” and start saying, “I’ve got this.”
That’s why I still do this.
Not to impress other tech people.
Not to chase the next guru trend.
But to help real businesses:
Answer more leads
Follow up more consistently
Grow without burning themselves to the ground
If you’re a service-based or local business owner trying to make sense of all this:
You don’t need to become a “systems person.”
You just need someone who builds like your reputation depends on it.
Because it does.
Want to Fix Your Follow Up In 8 weeks with a system that sticks?
Check out my Win-Your-Money-Back Challenge here.
