3 Automations Every Business Should Set Up First

Let’s be honest, automation sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie until you realise it’s just getting an app to do the stuff you keep forgetting.
You don’t need to be ‘techy,’ you just need to be sick of doing the same thing for the 100th time.

Here are three automations that’ll save you time, energy, and the slow emotional death of doing admin you hate.

If you caught last week’s blog on working on your business, not in it, there are two extra ideas in there, so here’s a few fresh ones to add to your toolkit.

‍

1. Instant website enquiry replies

Someone fills out your contact form, and by the time you reply, they’ve already booked with someone else. Brutal, but true.

Set up an autoreply that says something like:

“Hey there, thanks for getting in touch! We’ve received your message and will reply within one business day. In the meantime, here’s a bit more about how we work: [link].”

If you’re using Webflow, Squarespace, or Gravity Forms, this is built in, just turn it on.
Or if you can do it through Zapier:

• Trigger: “New Form Submission”

• Action: “Send Email”

Done. You’ve just gone from reactive to reliable in under 10 minutes.

2. New client → Welcome pack automation

You know that moment when someone signs a proposal and you’re excited… until you realise you now must send the welcome email, the contract, the invoice, and that one link you can never find?
Yeah, let’s automate that.

Here’s how:

In Zapier, set up your trigger as “New client signed” (if you’re using something like Better Proposals, Dubsado, or PandaDoc).
Choose Gmail (or Outlook) as your action app.
Create a friendly email template that includes:

• A genuine “welcome aboard” message

• What happens next (e.g. “You’ll receive your invoice shortly”)

• Any links to onboarding forms or folders.  

• Optional: attach your welcome pack PDF or link to your Google Drive folder
  Test it once, tweak it, and never send that same email manually again.

If you’re on Zapier’s free plan, you can create a second 2-step Zap for your project setup too:

• Trigger: “New client signed”

• Action: “Create new project in Click Up / Asana”

Now, every time you land a client, the entire onboarding chain kicks off automatically.
You get to look like you have your life together, without touching a thing.

Because let’s be honest, you didn’t start your business to manually attach the same PDF seventeen times a week.

3.  Invoice follow-up reminders

You send an invoice, then three weeks later you’re awkwardly emailing,  

“Hey, just checking if you got this…”

Don’t. Let automation be the bad guy.
In Xero, go to Business > Invoices > Invoice Reminders and flick them on.
Customise the wording, set reminders for 7 and 14 days, and let it chase politely while you get on with your actual work.

Start small, win big

Pick one thing you do every week that makes you sigh - then automate it.
Once you’ve done that, you’ll start spotting opportunities everywhere.

It’s not about being techy. It’s about being done with repetitive admin.

AC
x

‍