The Hidden Trap of Automation: Sometimes You Need to Think, Not Automate
As business owners, it's easy to get stuck doing the same tasks over and over. We procrastinate on important things that need our full attention or decisions because they’re either boring or tough to tackle. Beyond just the routine, we also struggle with coming up with new ideas or finding creative solutions. When we get too comfortable in our daily habits, it becomes hard to think outside the box or try new things.
This brings up an important question: How much of our time is spent doing the same old things instead of figuring out what we should really be doing? We often talk about automation like it’s the answer to everything, but we don’t talk enough about strategy—about figuring out what actually works and where to focus our time.
The Automation Trap: Are You Automating the Right Things?
I often see this during customer demos. Many people are eager to automate their processes, thinking that it will save time. And while that makes sense, I’ve noticed something: Most of the time, they’re trying to automate things they’re not even sure are working. Automation should come after you’ve figured out what works, not before. If you're automating something that doesn’t work well, you’re just speeding up a bad process.
One thing that stands out is this: almost no one is asking to automate tasks that improve the customer experience or service quality. Instead, the focus is almost always on optimization, productivity, lead generation, or analyzing competitors. While those are important, it’s worth remembering that the customer experience is what really makes a business stand out. Automating things that improve how customers feel about your business can have long-lasting benefits.
Another thing I’ve seen: customers start calculating small costs, like $50 or $100, when using Hexomatic to automate tasks. If you’re spending this much time worrying about small expenses, maybe you’re automating the wrong things. Automation should make tasks faster and easier, allowing you to do 10 or 100 times more than a human could. If small amounts like $50 or $500 matter that much, you might need to rethink what you're focusing on.
Knowing What to Automate
When it comes to automation, in my opinion there are two types of tasks:
Tasks that should be automated and calculated: These are repetitive tasks that save time and money. Automating them makes sense because they improve efficiency.
Tasks that shouldn’t just be about numbers: These are areas where creativity, innovation, and new ideas are essential—more about research and development. They might not provide an immediate return on investment, but they contribute to long-term growth. Think of it like bees venturing off the beaten path to find new resources—it’s not an instant payoff, but it’s crucial for the future of the entire hive.
If you’re too focused on small costs, you might be missing the bigger picture. Automation should free up your time for more important activities, like improving your strategy, finding new ways to connect with customers, and experimenting with new ideas. Automation can also generate valuable data that sparks new insights or helps you test creative ideas that couldn’t be done manually.
The Key: Knowing What to Do
It’s easy to stay busy, but we need to ask ourselves if we’re working on the things that truly matter. Knowing what to do is the key to being truly productive and effective. It’s not about working harder, it’s about working smarter. Often, we spend our time on tasks that don’t make a meaningful difference to the bottom line.
But what’s really important is:
What brings in new customers?
What improves the customer experience?
What strategies are actually working?
It’s also about having the freedom to try new things and experiment with ideas that might lead to new opportunities. Automation is great for handling routine tasks, but we also need to automate the process of creativity—feeding in data, insights, and new ideas that inspire innovation. Testing and experimenting with new approaches are crucial for staying ahead, and automation can provide the tools to help you continuously try new things and measure the results.
Automation is helpful, but without a clear strategy, it won’t take you far. If you don’t know what works and what doesn’t, how can you optimize or improve it? This is where clarity becomes essential.
The Role of Hexoscope
That’s why we came up with the idea of Hexoscope. It’s not just another tool—it’s a platform designed to help you figure out what’s working, what’s not, and where you can improve, at least from the perspective of what’s available online and how it affects your overall business reputation. That’s why we call it an Online Content & Reputation Management Platform. Hexoscope will help you know what to focus on before automating. It benchmarks your business against competitors, highlights areas for growth, and offers suggestions for improvement, giving you more ideas to test and experiment with. You’ll have insights on what others are doing—and what they aren’t—on a larger scale.
Hexoscope will help you uncover new ideas, spot anomalies and discrepancies, and identify correlations. Beyond that, it provides tools to improve customer experience and test new concepts, ensuring you’re not just following trends but creating your own path to success.
We’re still in the prelaunch phase, and for those interested, the limited-time pre-launch offer is still available. Don’t miss the chance to be among the early adopters whose contributions will help shape the platform and enjoy exclusive early-bird pricing!
A video I recommend watching after reading this.