How it works
From a job you do by hand to one that’s taken care of.
You don’t need to understand automation or arrive with a technical plan.
Tell us what happens today, where it takes time and what you would like to improve. We’ll help you work out whether automation is worthwhile, then agree the work, price and responsibilities before building.
No technical knowledge needed. No obligation.
1. Tell us what you’d like to improve.
Tell us about your business, the job you want help with and the tools you use. You don’t need to explain every detail or prepare a technical brief.
Use the enquiry form or email hello@tendsmith.com with a starting point:
- “We enter the same customer details into three places.”
- “Someone has to remember to follow up every quote.”
- “Preparing paperwork takes up too much of the week.”
We’ll reply to discuss your enquiry and arrange a suitable time for your call.
- Your part
- Share a few details and agree a time.
- What you receive
- A reply about your enquiry and arrangements for a discovery call.
2. Talk it through.
Your free 30-minute discovery call is a conversation about the work, rather than a test of your technical knowledge.
We’ll ask what happens now, how often it happens, who is involved and where it gets held up. We’ll also discuss what a worthwhile improvement would look like.
Sometimes automation makes sense. Sometimes a simpler change is the better answer. We’ll be honest about that.
Calls take place on Google Meet, with Fathom taking notes so we can focus on the conversation. You can request a call without recording or automated notes.
- Your part
- Explain the job as you know it.
- What you receive
- A clearer view of whether automation could help and the next step.
3. Agree what we’ll build and what it will cost.
If there is a worthwhile project, we check what your software supports and turn the proposed work into a clear scope.
Your proposal explains:
- What the automation will do.
- Which steps need a person’s approval.
- What access and input we need from your team.
- Any third-party software subscriptions, specialist services or additional usage costs that may be separate.
- How testing, acceptance and handover will work.
- Whether you have chosen ongoing managed care.
More complex projects may need a paid feasibility workshop before we can quote the build. We agree that with you before it starts.
- Your part
- Review the proposal, ask questions and agree the scope.
- What you receive
- A clear proposal and fixed build quote.
4. Confirm the project.
Once you are happy with the proposal, we put the agreed work into an agreement for electronic signature.
You pay 20% of the build price upfront to book in the project.
We also confirm the access, information and people needed to get started.
- Your part
- Sign the agreement, pay the deposit and provide the agreed access.
- What you receive
- A confirmed project with agreed responsibilities and next steps.
5. We build it. You help us check it.
We build the agreed automation and test how it handles the routine steps, approvals and exceptions identified during scoping.
Your team then reviews it against the agreed requirements. We need someone who understands the job to help check that it works as intended.
Nothing goes live until you accept the finished build.
If you request additional work outside the agreed scope, we explain any effect on cost and timing before proceeding.
- Your part
- Answer relevant questions, review the build and provide feedback.
- What you receive
- A tested build ready for acceptance.
6. Accept the build and make the final payment.
Once you accept the finished build, the remaining 80% of the build price is due.
Final payment is required before we launch the automation or transfer it to you for a build-only handover.
- Your part
- Confirm acceptance and pay the remaining balance.
- What you receive
- An accepted build ready for launch or transfer.
7. Put it to work.
With managed care
We launch the automation and begin the hosting, automated monitoring, maintenance and support included in your chosen plan. Where the agreed automation needs AI, reasonable routine processing is included in the managed plan.
You know who to contact, when human support is available and what your plan covers.
Explore managed plansWith a build-only handover
We complete the transfer, documentation and handover agreed in your proposal.
You take responsibility for running and maintaining it under those arrangements.
Explore bespoke builds- Your part
- Complete the agreed launch or handover steps.
- What you receive
- A live managed automation or the agreed build-only handover.
A few useful answers.
What should we prepare for the first call?
An example of the job you want help with, how it works today and the names of the tools involved. Rough estimates of how often it happens and how long it takes are useful. You don’t need perfect figures.
Who should join?
Someone who understands the task and can explain what happens in practice. If another colleague does most of the work, it may help to include them.
Will this disrupt our existing work?
We discuss testing and launch arrangements before starting, including how your team will keep working during the change. Any expected interruption or customer involvement should be clear before launch.
How long does a project take?
That depends on the scope, the tools involved and the access or input needed from your team. We provide proposed timing before you commit.
What if you find that our software cannot do what we need?
We explain the limitation and discuss the alternatives before agreeing the build. We won’t recommend a connection without checking what the software and your subscription support.
What happens after launch?
That depends on the option you choose. A managed plan provides ongoing hosting and care. With a build-only handover, responsibilities are agreed before work begins.
Start with the job. We’ll help with the rest.
Tell us what your team keeps copying, chasing or doing by hand. We’ll talk through whether there is a better way to handle it.
No technical brief needed. No obligation.