High-Demand Automation Solutions for SMBs Using Make.com

To give you the best suggestions, could you clarify:

  • Target Business Type: Are you focusing on specific industries (e.g., e-commerce, healthcare, real estate)?
  • Budget & Complexity: Do you prefer low-cost, easy-to-implement automations or are you open to more advanced setups?
  • Key Pain Points: Are there particular challenges you want to solve (e.g., lead generation, customer support, invoicing)?
  • Subscription vs One-Time Sale: Do you want automations that generate recurring revenue (e.g., SaaS-style solutions) or one-time sales?
  • Preferred Platforms: Should these automations integrate with specific tools (e.g., Shopify, QuickBooks, CRM software)? Let me know so I can tailor the recommendations to your goals!Got it! I'll research the easiest and most profitable automation solutions that can be built with Make.com and sold to small to medium-sized businesses. I'll focus on solutions that require minimal technical expertise, have high demand, and provide a good return on investment for you as a seller. Expect recommendations that streamline operations, save time, and improve efficiency for SMBs. I'll get back to you with the findings soon!

High-Demand Automation Solutions for SMBs Using Make.com

Small and mid-sized businesses are increasingly adopting automation to save time and boost productivity. In fact, 88% of SMBs say automation helps them compete with larger companies and two-thirds consider it essentialsalestechstar.com. Make.com (formerly Integromat) is a no-code automation platform that lets anyone connect apps and automate workflows with minimal technical skillwww.make.com. Below are some of the easiest and most profitable Make.com automation solutions you can build and sell to SMBs – each offers broad cross-industry demand and strong return on investment.

1. Lead Generation & CRM Automation

  • Use Cases: Automatically capture leads from web forms, social ads, or chats and insert them into a CRM with instant follow-ups. For example, new inquiries trigger personalized email or SMS responses and create tasks for sales reps. Fast response is critical – responding within 2 hours yields up to 60× higher conversion rates than waiting 24+ hoursthecmo.com. One company used Make to classify and assign incoming leads in minutes (down from 24 hours)www.make.com, dramatically improving their lead conversion speed.
  • Target Business Types: Any business that relies on leads and sales pipelines. This includes B2B services (consultancies, agencies), real estate and insurance brokers, SaaS startups, home improvement contractors, etc. – virtually any SMB that collects customer inquiries online can benefit.
  • Potential Pricing Models: Offer as a one-time setup fee (to connect forms/ads to CRM and configure automations) plus an ongoing monthly service for maintenance or tweaks. Alternatively, charge a monthly subscription per lead volume or per user (e.g. tiered pricing for managing 100, 500, 1000 leads/month). Given the direct impact on revenue, businesses are often willing to pay a premium for reliably managed lead automation.

2. Appointment Scheduling & Reminder Automation

  • Use Cases: Streamline appointment bookings by integrating calendar apps (Calendly, Google Calendar) with email/SMS reminders and CRM updates. When a client schedules a meeting, the workflow can log it in a database, send a confirmation with details, and schedule reminder messages 24 hours and 1 hour before the meeting. This reduces no-shows significantly – automated reminders have been shown to cut no-show rates by up to 60%topflightapps.com. It also frees staff from manually confirming appointments.
  • Target Business Types: High demand among service-based industries – e.g. medical and dental practices, salons, consulting firms, home services, fitness trainers, etc. Any SMB that runs on appointments or reservations can use this to improve client attendance and satisfaction. It’s also useful for sales teams booking product demos or real estate agents arranging property viewings.
  • Potential Pricing Models: Sell as a subscription package (e.g. Xpermonthperlocationorcalendar)thatincludesthebookingformintegrationandunlimitedautomatedreminders.Alternatively,chargeasetup+monthlymodelaflatsetupfeetoimplementtheschedulingworkflow,withasmallerrecurringfeeforongoingsupport,adjustments,andsendingremindernotifications(whichmayincurplatformoperationcosts).BusinesseswillseeROIthroughfewermissedappointmentsandsavedlabor,makinga X per month per location or calendar) that includes the booking form integration and unlimited automated reminders. Alternatively, charge a **setup + monthly model** – a flat setup fee to implement the scheduling workflow, with a smaller recurring fee for ongoing support, adjustments, and sending reminder notifications (which may incur platform operation costs). Businesses will see ROI through fewer missed appointments and saved labor, making a ~n50–$200 monthly price easy to justify in most cases.

3. Invoicing & Payment Automation

  • Use Cases: Automate the billing process to speed up cash flow and reduce manual data entry. Common scenarios include generating and emailing an invoice whenever a deal is marked “Closed-Won” in the CRM, syncing online payments to accounting software, or sending payment received alerts. For example, a Make scenario can create a QuickBooks invoice from a signed proposal and notify the finance team in Slack when the invoice is paid, so everyone stays updatedwww.getmagical.com. Overdue invoices can trigger reminder emails or tasks. This ensures no bill slips through the cracks and saves hours of bookkeeping work.
  • Target Business Types: Professional services and any SMB that invoices clients. This ranges from freelancers and agencies to law firms, consultants, maintenance contractors, wholesalers, etc. Even retail or e-commerce businesses that use invoicing (e.g. for B2B sales or large orders) can benefit. Essentially, if a company uses tools like QuickBooks, Xero, FreshBooks, or PayPal for payments, they likely have repetitive billing tasks that can be automated.
  • Potential Pricing Models: Offer as a one-time implementation (to integrate their CRM, accounting app, and email) coupled with optional monthly support for monitoring and updates. Another approach is a per-month subscription based on transaction volume (e.g. tiers for up to 50, 200, 500 invoices per month). The value proposition is strong – even a few hours saved on accounting per month (plus faster payments) easily covers a few hundred dollars in setup or a moderate monthly fee.

4. Customer Support Ticketing Automation

  • Use Cases: Help businesses respond to customer issues faster by connecting support systems with other tools. For instance, link a help desk platform (Zendesk, Freshdesk) with Slack and email to alert the team of new tickets or important customer messages in real timewww.getmagical.com. Automations can also assign tickets based on keywords (like “billing” queries to Finance) or send an instant “we received your request” confirmation to the customer. This reduces response times and ensures nothing gets overlooked. One e-commerce firm found that using Make for support integrations (instead of custom code) was “the difference between walking and riding a bicycle” in efficiencywww.make.com.
  • Target Business Types: E-commerce and tech companies are prime candidates – any SMB with an online customer base or user community. However, the solution applies broadly: local businesses that field many emails, IT service providers managing support queries, software startups offering customer success, etc. Even small teams without a dedicated support department can use automation to provide prompt, professional service.
  • Potential Pricing Models: Pricing can be per integration or workflow (e.g. XforsettingupSlacknotificationsfornewtickets,X for setting up Slack notifications for new tickets, Y for auto-responders, etc.), or as a comprehensive support automation bundle on a monthly retainer. For example, a package could be $200/month for monitoring the Make scenarios that route and notify tickets, ensuring uptime. Since better support directly affects customer retention, many businesses will invest in a managed solution that guarantees quick help desk automation without needing in-house tech expertise.

5. Marketing & Social Media Automation

  • Use Cases: Automate repetitive marketing tasks to save time and maintain consistency. A popular use case is social media content scheduling – e.g. when you publish a blog post, an automation could take the title and link and auto-post it to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. You can also set up routines to curate content: for instance, pull new articles from an RSS feed or Instagram mentions and queue them in a social scheduler (Buffer, Hootsuite) for approvalwww.getmagical.com. Email marketing can be automated too (adding new contacts to Mailchimp lists, triggering drip emails based on sign-ups or purchases). By automating social posting, teams drastically cut down the time spent on manual updateswww.getmagical.comand ensure marketing happens even when staff are busy.
  • Target Business Types: Small marketing teams or owner-operated businesses that can’t dedicate full-time staff to social media or emailing. This spans nearly all industries – retail shops, restaurants, blogs, nonprofits, real estate agents, you name it – since most need an active online presence. It’s especially useful for companies that produce regular content (blogs, podcasts, newsletters) or those heavily active on multiple social channels.
  • Potential Pricing Models: Offer as a monthly managed service where you maintain the Make.com workflows that handle postings and integrations (effectively a mini marketing automation SaaS). Pricing might scale by number of channels or campaigns – e.g. a basic plan for 2 social accounts and simple email list sync, and higher tiers for more platforms and complexity. Alternatively, do a one-time setup of templates (say, connect WordPress to Twitter/LinkedIn, or set up a weekly curated newsletter workflow) with an upsell for ongoing adjustments. Since this automation replaces either manual effort or the cost of separate tools, a ~100100–n300/month service can be positioned as far cheaper than hiring an assistant or subscribing to multiple single-purpose apps.

6. Customer Onboarding Automation

  • Use Cases: Smooth out the process of onboarding new clients or users by automating the data collection and follow-ups. For example, when a new customer signs up (or a deal is closed), an automation can kick off a series of onboarding emails, create a welcome call calendar event, and update a project management board with the client’s info and tasks. Forms or surveys can feed directly into a CRM or database, eliminating back-and-forth emails. This keeps the experience organized and consistent without consuming staff time. The impact is significant – one education consulting business automated their candidate onboarding with Make and cut 10 hours of work per week while onboarding clients faster and with higher satisfactionwww.make.com.
  • Target Business Types: Service providers and B2B companies with defined onboarding steps benefit greatly. Examples: agencies bringing on new retainer clients, software companies guiding users after sign-up, coaches or consultants enrolling new students, even HR departments onboarding employees or contractors. Any SMB with a multi-step intake process (contracts, welcome packets, account setup, training sessions) can use automation to ensure every step happens timely and nothing is missed.
  • Potential Pricing Models: This can be sold as a project-based solution – build a tailored onboarding pipeline for a flat fee – especially if the process is unique to the business. For more standardized use cases (like a sequence of welcome emails and task checklists), a template + subscription model works: charge an initial fee to customize the template, then a monthly fee to host and tweak the workflow. Because onboarding is closely tied to revenue (new customers who are onboarded well stay longer), emphasize the ROI – losing even one less client to churn justifies the cost. It’s common to see packages in the 500500-n1000 range for setup, plus ongoing support if needed.

7. Order & Inventory Fulfillment Automation

  • Use Cases: Simplify e-commerce or order-based operations by automating steps from order placement to delivery. For instance, when an online order comes in (via Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.), Make can automatically log the order in a Google Sheet or ERP, notify the warehouse or supplier, generate a shipping label, and send a confirmation email to the customer. Inventory levels can be updated across systems to prevent overselling. These automations dramatically speed up fulfillment – one SMB using Make cut order processing time from 15 minutes to just 1 minute by auto-routing orders to the right team and paperworkwww.make.com. Faster processing not only saves labor but also leads to quicker shipping (happier customers and more capacity for the business).
  • Target Business Types: Retail and e-commerce companies of all sizes, including small online shops, subscription box services, wholesalers, and even “brick-and-click” retailers. Beyond traditional retail, this can apply to manufacturers or distributors handling purchase orders, food businesses managing online orders, and any SMB that deals with repetitive order entry or inventory tracking. Essentially, if there’s an order queue or stock to manage, automation can help.
  • Potential Pricing Models: Position this as an operations automation package. Pricing might be tiered by order volume or number of integrated systems: e.g., a base fee to connect an e-commerce store with one shipping service and inventory sheet, then higher tiers to add more channels (Amazon/Etsy shops, inventory apps, etc.). Many businesses will pay a monthly fee per order batch (for example, Xpermonthforupto500orders,X per month for up to 500 orders, Y for up to 2000 orders) or simply a fixed monthly service contract to ensure their fulfillment workflow runs smoothly. You could also charge a setup fee for initial integration (which can be substantial given the complexity), with a smaller ongoing retainer to cover maintenance and updates (which is attractive since any downtime in orders can be costly for the client). Each of these automation solutions addresses common pain points with minimal coding or technical overhead, making them attractive to a wide range of SMB clients. By packaging and pricing them appropriately, you can create profitable offerings that deliver clear efficiency gains. Businesses get to save time, reduce errors, and focus on growth, while you earn recurring revenue for keeping their critical workflows running smoothlysalestechstar.com. It’s a win-win that demonstrates the power of Make.com in real-world business scenarios.