BUSINESS AUTOMATION PLAYBOOK: MAKE.COM IN 10 STEPS
Ever wonder why some business owners work half as much but make twice as much? They're not working harder. They're automating.
Your rivals use Make.com right now to slash their workload while you're still doing things by hand. Skip this guide and stay stuck in the past - or read on and join the future.
WHAT THIS GUIDE WILL DO
By the end, you'll know how to turn Make.com into your 24/7 digital worker. One that never sleeps, never complains, and costs pennies compared to hiring staff.
STEP 1: GET STARTED (10 MINUTES)
Don't overthink this. Just:
- Go to Make.com and sign up for a free account
- Skip the fancy stuff
- Click "Create a new scenario"
This isn't rocket science. If you can use Facebook, you can use Make.
STEP 2: SPOT YOUR TIME-WASTERS (15 MINUTES)
Grab paper. Write down three tasks you hate doing that:
- You do over and over
- Follow the same steps each time
- Take up too much of your day
Look for things like:
- Copying data between apps
- Sending the same emails
- Updating spreadsheets
- Posting on social media
These are your automation targets.
STEP 3: PICK YOUR FIRST WIN (5 MINUTES)
Choose ONE thing from your list to automate first.
Pick something:
- Simple
- That you do often
- With clear start and end points
Example: When someone fills out your contact form, add them to your email list.
Small wins build confidence. Don't try to boil the ocean on day one.
STEP 4: MAP YOUR WORKFLOW (15 MINUTES)
Break your chosen task into steps a child could follow:
1. What starts the process? (TRIGGER)
2. What happens next? (ACTION)
3. What happens after that? (ACTION)
4. What's the end result? (OUTCOME)
Example:
- TRIGGER: New form submission
- ACTION: Extract name and email
- ACTION: Create new contact in email tool
- OUTCOME: Person added to list
STEP 5: BUILD YOUR FIRST SCENARIO (20 MINUTES)
Now open Make.com and:
1. Click "Create a new scenario"
2. Search for your trigger app (form tool, email, etc.)
3. Pick the trigger event (new submission, new email)
4. Connect your account when prompted
5. Test the trigger to make sure it works
6. Add your action apps following your map
7. Connect them with lines
Make.com uses bubbles connected by lines. Each bubble is an app doing something.
STEP 6: TEST YOUR AUTOMATION (10 MINUTES)
Before going live:
1. Click "Run once" to test your scenario
2. Watch the bubble flow to see what happens
3. Check if the data moves correctly
4. Fix any errors you find
Never skip testing. It prevents disasters.
STEP 7: GO LIVE (5 MINUTES)
When your test works:
1. Click the slider to activate your scenario
2. Set how often it should run (every 5 minutes, 15 minutes, etc.)
3. Save your work
Boom. You've just built your first automation. You're now doing less work than your competitors.
STEP 8: MEASURE THE IMPACT (ONE WEEK)
For one week, track:
- How much time your automation saves
- How many errors it prevents
- What you can do with your free time
Turn these into actual numbers. "This saves me 2 hours every week, which equals 104 hours per year."
STEP 9: LEVEL UP (ONGOING)
Once you've got the basics, try these power moves:
- Connect more than two apps in one flow
- Use filters to handle data differently based on conditions
- Create data stores to track information between runs
- Use Make.com's built-in tools to transform data formats
- Add error handling so you're notified if something breaks
Each new feature multiplies what's possible.
STEP 10: AUTOMATE EVERYTHING (FOREVER)
Look back at your list from Step 2. Pick the next task and repeat the process.
Keep going until you've automated:
- Customer follow-ups
- Data entry
- Report generation
- Lead management
- Order processing
- Inventory updates
The average business owner can automate 30% of their work. The smart ones get to 70%.
REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE
A small e-commerce business owner was spending 2 hours daily copying new orders from Shopify to a spreadsheet, then emailing suppliers.
With Make.com, they built a scenario that:
1. Triggered when new Shopify orders came in
2. Copied order details to Google Sheets
3. Sent supplier emails automatically
4. Notified the team in Slack
Time saved: 10 hours weekly. Cost: £15/month.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Every hour spent setting up automations pays you back 10x in saved time.
Winners in business don't do everything themselves. They build systems that work while they sleep.
Start with one automation today. By this time next week, you'll be hooked on the feeling of getting more done with less effort.
Need help? Visit make.com/academy for free tutorials or hire a Make expert to build your automations for you.
Now go build something that works while you don't.