What are Zapier, Make and n8n?
They are workflow automation tools. You connect the apps you use, choose a trigger, such as a new form entry or a new email, and build the steps that follow. They are widely used, flexible, and well suited to moving information between apps. n8n can also be self-hosted.
All three are tools. They give you the parts, and you, or someone you hire, assembles them, tests them and looks after them. That is a real strength if you have the time and the inclination, and a real cost if you do not.
What does done for you mean at Seby?
Seby is installed by us, run by us and owned by you. Twelve weeks to running, six months to handover.
We map where your week actually goes and rank what Seby takes first.
The brain, the agent in your tools and your engines, wired into what you already use.
We run it alongside your team and hand over with your own operator trained.
You show up to a weekly call and approve the first sends. Every change you ask for becomes a ticket with testable acceptance criteria, and nothing closes until it is proven on the live surface. See how it works.
How do the two approaches compare?
| Question | DIY workflow tools | Seby, done for you |
|---|---|---|
| Who builds it? | You, or someone you hire. | We do, against your real work. |
| Who keeps it working? | Whoever built it. When a connected tool changes, they fix the workflow. | We run it alongside your team and fix anything that breaks, then hand over to your own trained operator by month six. |
| What does it remember? | Each run acts on the data passed into it. Any longer-term memory is something you design and store yourself. | One shared brain keeps a living memory of your business: every person, deal and meeting. |
| Where do you work with it? | In the tool's own editor. | In your inbox, your Teams or Slack, and one command centre. |
| How do you change it? | Edit the workflow yourself. | Ask in Teams, in Slack or on the weekly call. It becomes a ticket, built, tested and proven live before it is closed. |
| How is it priced? | The tool's own plan, plus the time of whoever builds and maintains it. | From US$1,999/mo for a single engine that we run for you. Billed monthly, no lock-in. |
Who builds it, and who keeps it working?
With a DIY tool, the building is yours. That includes the less visible work: deciding exactly how each job should run, handling the odd cases, and testing it on real examples. Once it is live, it is also yours to maintain. When a connected app changes, a field moves or the business changes how it works, someone has to notice and fix the workflow.
With Seby, that work is ours. We build the engines against your real work, run them alongside your team, add jobs as you feel it work, and fix anything that breaks. By month six your own operator is trained to run it.
"There was no one to drive it."
What does each approach remember?
A workflow runs when its trigger fires and acts on the information passed into it. It does what it was built to do, every time, which is exactly what you want for a simple, repeatable step. What it does not have by default is a picture of your business: who this client is, what was agreed in last week's meeting, what was sent last time. If you need that, you design it and store it yourself.
Seby starts from that picture. Underneath every engine is one shared brain that reads your email, meetings and documents and keeps a living memory of your business. So a follow-up can refer to what was actually said, and a proposal can draw on everything you know about the client. Read more in what is a company brain.
When is DIY the better choice?
Often. A workflow tool is usually the sensible answer when:
- You need a few simple, stable connections between apps, such as copying form entries into a spreadsheet.
- Someone on your team enjoys building, and has the time to maintain what they build.
- The process is clear, rule-based and rarely changes.
- You want full control over every step, and you are happy to own the fixes.
- The job is small enough that a monthly service would not pay back.
When is done for you the better choice?
Done for you tends to fit when:
- Nobody on the team has the time to build and maintain automations.
- The work runs through email, meetings and documents rather than neat forms.
- You want a system that knows your clients and their history, not one that only moves data.
- You want work drafted in your voice, with a person approving what goes out.
Seby does not ask you to replace the tools you already use, so it is not all or nothing. If a simple workflow is already doing its job, there is no reason to rebuild it. For the money side, read how much AI back office automation costs and see pricing. For invoicing specifically, see Seby Billing.
FAQ
Is Seby a Zapier alternative?
For some businesses, yes, but it is a different approach. Zapier is a tool you build automations in yourself. Seby is done for you: we build, run and maintain a shared brain and the engines on top of it, and you approve the work.
What is done-for-you AI automation?
It is AI automation that a provider builds, runs and maintains for you, rather than a tool you assemble yourself. With Seby that means installed by us, run by us and owned by you.
Do I need technical skills to use Seby?
No. You talk to the agent in Teams, in Slack or in the command centre, and you ask for changes in plain words, in chat or on the weekly call.
Can I keep the tools and automations I already have?
Seby does not ask you to replace the tools you already use. It runs on top of your stack, so what already works can stay in place.
Which costs less?
It depends on how you count. A DIY tool's plan is only part of its cost; the time to build and maintain the workflows is yours. Seby starts from US$1,999/mo for a single engine that we run for you. Priced in USD, billed monthly.
Not sure which fits your business?
Book a call. We look at where your week goes, tell you which job to hand over first, and what it costs. Then you decide.