13h • General Discussion
Agency quoted $18k for a workflow they said "requires custom development." Built it in 7 minutes. Zero code.
Agency quoted $18k for a workflow they said "requires custom development." Built it in 7 minutes. Zero code.
THE SETUP
Client: "Need approval routing based on invoice amount"
Agency response:
"Requires custom backend logic"
"Need database for approval rules"
"API integration necessary"
Quote: $18,000
Timeline: 6 weeks
Client: "For approval routing?"
Agency: "Complex conditional logic"
THE CALL
Client: "They said it needs developers"
Me: "What does it need to do?"
Client explains:
- Invoice under $500: Auto-approve
- $500-$5k: Manager approval
- Over $5k: Director approval
- Send notifications
- Log decisions
Me: "That's 3 conditions"
Client: "They said it's complex"
Me: "Give me 5 minutes"
THE BUILD
Opened Skada.ai
Described the workflow.
Generated in 4 minutes.
Tested with sample invoices:
- $200: Auto-approved ✓
- $2,000: Routed to manager ✓
- $8,000: Routed to director ✓
Total time: 7 minutes.
Client: "That's it?"
Me: "Want to see it process a real invoice?"
THE TEST
Client submits actual invoice for $3,400.
Workflow triggers.
Routes to manager.
Manager gets Slack notification.
Approves.
System updates.
Accounting notified.
Works perfectly.
Client: "The agency wanted 6 weeks for this"
THE COMPARISON
Agency plan:
- Week 1-2: Requirements and architecture
- Week 3-4: Development
- Week 5: Testing
- Week 6: Deployment
- Cost: $18,000
My delivery:
- Minute 1-3: Requirements
- Minute 4-7: Build and test
- Cost: $2,400
THE AGENCY'S RESPONSE
Client: "We found another solution"
Agency: "It won't be production-ready"
Client: "Been running for 2 weeks"
Agency: "What about edge cases?"
Client: "Handled 247 invoices, zero issues"
THE PATTERN
Counted 9 similar cases last month.
"Needs custom code" really means:
- Needs IF statements (apparently "complex")
- Needs data lookup (apparently "requires database")
- Needs notifications (apparently "API integration")
Average agency quote: $16,400
Average my build time: 8 minutes
Average my cost: $2,800
CURRENT RECORD
"Most complex" workflow an agency said needed custom code:
- Multi-step approval with 5 conditions
- Agency quote: $34,000, 10 weeks
- My build: 12 minutes
- Running 4 months, zero issues
Client's message: "I almost hired a development team"
THE REAL ISSUE
Agencies know one way to solve problems.
When that way costs $18k and takes 6 weeks, everything looks like it needs that solution.
When you have faster tools, most problems are simple.
Who else has been quoted thousands for basic conditional logic?
10
15 comments
Agency quoted $18k for a workflow they said "requires custom development." Built it in 7 minutes. Zero code.
skool.com/the-ai-advantage
Founded by Tony Robbins & Dean Graziosi - AI Advantage is your go-to hub to simplify AI, gain "AI Confidence" and unlock real & repeatable results.
Leaderboard (30-day)
1
🔥
+1271
2
+1119
3
+790
4
+746
5
+520
Powered by