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Automation playbooks

33 workflows we've already designed

Every playbook follows the same shape: a trigger, what the automation does, and exactly where a person stays in the loop. Pick the one that costs you the most hours; that's your proof of concept.

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Invoice & receipt capture

~3–5 hrs/wk
Trigger
A vendor invoice or receipt arrives by email, text, or a photo from your phone.
What it does
  • Reads vendor, line items, tax, total, and due date, even from a crumpled photo
  • Matches it to a job, PO, or property so the cost lands in the right place
  • Posts the bill to QuickBooks or Xero with the right category and schedules payment
  • Files the original in a dated folder you can hand to your accountant
Where a person stays in the loop
Anything over $500, a vendor you've never paid, or no matching job.
Connects to
Gmail / OutlookQuickBooksXeroGoogle Drive
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Try it live →

Reminders, reschedules & no-show recovery

~2–3 hrs/wk
Trigger
An appointment is booked, changed, or missed — or a layaway or installment plan has a payment due.
What it does
  • Sends confirmations and reminders on your schedule, by text or email
  • Handles 'can we move it to Thursday?' replies and rebooks from open slots
  • Fills a cancelled slot from your waitlist automatically
  • Sends the after-visit note and review request
  • Runs layaway and installment plans on held items: deposit, schedule, pay-link reminders, and the written terms at intake
Where a person stays in the loop
Cancellations inside 24 hours and anything involving a fee.
Connects to
Google / Outlook CalendarSquare AppointmentsSMSEmail
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Try it live →

Timesheet & payroll prep

~2–3 hrs/wk
Trigger
Crews text their hours, or drop a photo of the paper timesheet, on Friday.
What it does
  • Reads hours per person per day and per job, however they were written
  • Checks against the schedule and flags overtime, missing days, and duplicates
  • Produces the payroll import file for Gusto, ADP, or your bookkeeper
  • Splits labor cost to jobs so your job costing is real
Where a person stays in the loop
Overtime and any week that doesn't reconcile with the schedule.
Connects to
SMS / photosGusto / ADP / QuickBooks PayrollSheet
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Try it live →

New client & patient intake

~4–8 hrs/wk
Trigger
Someone new calls, fills in the web form, or is referred — a patient, a prospective client, or a new tax client.
What it does
  • Captures the who, what, and when from the call, form, or referral fax and creates the record in your practice system
  • Runs the first checks: conflict search against existing matters, insurance eligibility, or prior-year return status
  • Sends the right packet — engagement letter, HIPAA and consent forms, or the document checklist — and books the first appointment
  • Chases unsigned forms and keeps the front desk's list of who is ready to be seen and who is not
Where a person stays in the loop
Every conflict hit, every fee quote, and anything that reads as urgent or clinical.
Connects to
Phone / web form / referral faxClio / Drake / athenahealth / your PMSE-sign (DocuSign, Adobe)Calendar
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Try it live →

Document chase & records requests

~6–15 (season) hrs/wk
Trigger
Tax season opens, a records request arrives, or a matter needs documents from the client.
What it does
  • Keeps a per-client checklist (W-2s, 1099s, K-1s; discovery items; prior records) and ticks items off as they arrive by portal, email, or photo
  • Reads what came in, files it to the right client and year, and flags what is still missing or unreadable
  • Sends the nudge in the client's channel with a secure upload link — three, then a call scheduled for a person
  • Handles inbound records and referral requests: logs, checks the authorization, and routes to the right person
Where a person stays in the loop
Any release of records, anything privileged, and every client who is 30 days late.
Connects to
Client portal (SmartVault, Clio, patient portal)Email / SMS / faxPractice systemGoogle Drive / SharePoint
Usually Growth Build · $7,500+Ask about this →

Voicemail triage & deadline calendar

~3–6 hrs/wk
Trigger
A voicemail lands, a court or IRS notice arrives, or a matter gets a new date.
What it does
  • Transcribes every voicemail, sorts it (new client, existing matter, billing, scheduling, urgent) and drafts the callback note
  • Reads notices and orders for the dates that matter and puts them on the calendar with the tickler your office uses
  • Gives whoever answers the phone a morning list of who needs a call back and what it's about
  • Flags anything that mentions a deadline, a hearing, an audit, or a symptom for a person to see first
Where a person stays in the loop
Every date that goes on the calendar, and every call flagged urgent or clinical.
Connects to
Phone system (RingCentral, Ooma, Google Voice)Email / scanned mailCalendar / docketingPractice system
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Ask about this →

Hiring & new-hire onboarding

~3–8 hrs/wk
Trigger
An application arrives from Indeed, Facebook, your website, or a walk-in — or you make an offer.
What it does
  • Screens applications against your must-haves, drafts the interview invitation, and books the slot from your calendar
  • Keeps a one-page pipeline: who applied, who's scheduled, who's waiting on you
  • After the offer: collects the I-9, W-4, direct deposit, and handbook acknowledgment by e-sign, and chases what's missing
  • Prepares the E-Verify case and the state new-hire report, and sets the person up in payroll
Where a person stays in the loop
Every hiring decision, every rejection before it goes out, and the I-9 document check in person.
Connects to
Indeed / Facebook / web formE-signGusto / ADP / QuickBooks PayrollCalendar
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Ask about this →

Monthly close & sales tax

~4–10 hrs/wk
Trigger
The bank feed updates, receipts arrive, or the sales tax return is ten days out.
What it does
  • Categorizes the bank feed and matches receipts and invoices to transactions
  • Sends the owner one weekly text with the handful of items it couldn't place, instead of twenty questions
  • Prepares the sales tax return from POS sales by jurisdiction, including local option taxes
  • Hands the bookkeeper a reconciled month with a short list of what to look at
Where a person stays in the loop
The bookkeeper or owner reviews and files; nothing is submitted by the automation.
Connects to
Bank feedQuickBooks / XeroPOS exports (Square, Clover, Shopify)SMS / email
Usually Growth Build · $7,500+Ask about this →

Overdue invoice follow-up

~1–3 hrs/wk
Trigger
An invoice passes its due date.
What it does
  • Sends a friendly reminder with a payment link, then escalates tone on your schedule
  • Reads replies: promises to pay, disputes, 'never got it' — and responds appropriately
  • Pauses the sequence the moment payment lands
  • Gives you a weekly aging list with the story behind each one
Where a person stays in the loop
Disputes, payment plans, and any account you've flagged as sensitive.
Connects to
QuickBooks / Xero / StripeEmail / SMS
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Try it live →

Inbox triage & drafted replies

~3–6 hrs/wk
Trigger
Email arrives, all day.
What it does
  • Sorts into needs-you / needs-someone / FYI / noise
  • Drafts replies for the routine ones in your voice, ready to send
  • Pulls the ask out of long threads into one line
  • Ends the day with a five-line summary of what's still open
Where a person stays in the loop
Nothing is sent without you. Drafts wait in your outbox.
Connects to
Gmail / Microsoft 365
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Ask about this →

Monday owner's brief

~1–2 hrs/wk
Trigger
Every Monday at 6 a.m.
What it does
  • Pulls sales, cash, overdue invoices, open jobs, and upcoming deadlines
  • Writes a one-page brief in plain English with the three things that need a decision
  • Compares to last week and the same week last year
  • Answers follow-up questions by text: 'why is cash down?'
Where a person stays in the loop
It's a report; you decide.
Connects to
QuickBooksPOS / CRMCalendarEmail / SMS
Usually Growth Build · $7,500+Ask about this →

License, permit & certification renewals

~1–2 hrs/wk
Trigger
A renewal date approaches for a license, insurance certificate, or staff certification.
What it does
  • Tracks every expiration in one place and reminds the right person early
  • Drafts the renewal packet from last year's plus what's changed
  • Requests updated certificates from subcontractors and chases them
  • Warns you before you schedule a job with an expired credential on it
Where a person stays in the loop
Signing and paying.
Connects to
Sheet / calendarEmailState portals (manual)
Usually Starter Automation · $2,500–$6,000Ask about this →

Don't see yours? Most businesses have one we haven't written down yet.

If it arrives as text, photos, PDFs, or forms and ends in a decision or a data entry, it's a candidate. The $950 proof of concept is how we find out.

Describe your workflow
Automation playbooks — Carolina Solutions Architects