About The Automated Shop
Why we exist
Most small businesses don't need more software. They need the software they already pay for to stop making them copy and paste. Leads sit in an inbox, invoices go out late, review requests never get sent, and the owner ends up doing the busywork at 10pm.
The Automated Shop exists to help small businesses automate the boring stuff: the follow-ups, reminders, handoffs, and reports that eat hours every week, so the people running the business can spend that time on the work only they can do.
What we do differently
- We build every workflow we write about. If a guide says "this automation sends a text when a lead comes in," we've set it up in the tool and run it on test data. Where a test is still pending, the article says so plainly.
- We show real costs. Prices come from official pricing pages, with the date we checked, and we work out what a workflow actually costs at small-business volumes, not just the sticker price.
- We give you the template. Each guide comes with a checklist, spec sheet, or calculator so you can copy it instead of starting from scratch.
- We say when you don't need to pay. If a free plan or a simpler tool does the job, that's our recommendation.
Who we write for
Businesses with roughly 1–50 people: home-services companies, agencies, shops, clinics, and solo operators. No engineering team required.
Who's behind it
The Automated Shop is an independent publication, written and published as The Automated Shop team. We put the brand, not a personal profile, on our work: every article is judged on what it shows (the build, the run history, the dated price), and every claim should be checkable by you.
How we use AI
We use AI tools to help research and write articles. Every article is reviewed before publishing, and every workflow, screenshot, and cost figure comes from an actual build or an official, dated source. If something wasn't tested, we say so. See How we test.
How we make money
Some links are affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you. We never pick tools based on payout. Commissions don't decide our recommendations, and when the free or cheapest option is the right answer, we say that. See the affiliate disclosure for details.
Contact
Questions, corrections, or a workflow you want us to test: [email protected]