n8n for small-business automation: where it fits and where it doesn't
A visual workflow tool you can host yourself. Good for glue work; not where I'd put business logic.
Software and automation for small businesses, built by one engineer you can talk to.
I build the tools your business runs on, automate the jobs that eat your week, and host it all somewhere you own. You deal with the person writing the code, start to finish.
Sample workflow: a new enquiry for a trades businessSelect a step
This is the kind of thing I build. The dashed box is the step a person always keeps. Select any step to see what happens there.
What I do
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Custom software
Internal tools, customer portals and the system that finally replaces the spreadsheet everyone is scared to touch.
From £3,500fixed price per phase
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AI automation
Agents that handle the repetitive reading, sorting and drafting, with a person approving anything that matters.
From £1,800for a working pilot
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DevOps and self-hosting
Servers, backups, monitoring and deployments set up properly, on hardware or hosting you own and control.
From £650for an infrastructure review
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Ongoing care
Updates, backups checked, small changes and a named person to ring when something looks wrong.
From £180a month
How working together goes
Every project follows the same four steps, so you always know where things stand and what you have paid for.
A conversation
A free 30-minute call about the problem, not the technology. If I'm not the right fit, I'll say so.
A written proposal
What I'll build, what I won't, a fixed price for the first phase and a date. Plain English, two pages at most.
Build in the open
Short phases with something you can click at the end of each. You see progress weekly, not at the end.
Handover you own
The code, the accounts and the documentation are yours. Keep me on for care, or take it elsewhere.
From the Journal
Notes on the tools I use for client work, and why I picked them.
- Automation
- Infrastructure
Why your app probably needs one good server, not Kubernetes
What a single well-run machine gives a small business, and the point at which it stops being enough.
- AI
Using AI coding assistants on client work: what I still check by hand
They make me faster. Here is what that means for your project, and the parts they don't get to touch.
Tell me what's taking up your week.
A few lines is enough. I'll reply within two working days, and the first call costs nothing.
Start an enquiry