8h • Wins 🌟
Agency told client their automation was "impossible to replicate" and charged $7k/month for hosting. I exported it, rebuilt it better in 9 minutes, and host it for $10/month.
Agency told client their automation was "impossible to replicate" and charged $7k/month for hosting. I exported it, rebuilt it better in 9 minutes, and host it for $10/month.
The agency made one fatal mistake: they let me see it.
THE INTRO
Met a founder at a local tech meetup.
Casual conversation about automation.
Him: "We're spending $7k monthly just on hosting"
Me: "For what? AWS with massive traffic?"
Him: "No, our automation platform"
Me: "What platform?"
Him: "The agency built it custom"
Red flag: $7k monthly hosting for automation.
THE STORY
2 years ago:
Agency pitched "proprietary automation platform"
Built specifically for his use case
"Impossible to migrate or replicate"
Required their special hosting
Cost:
- Build: $35k
- Monthly hosting: $7k
- Total paid over 2 years: $203k
Him: "But it works perfectly"
Me: "What does it do?"
THE WORKFLOW
Client intake automation:
1. Form submission
2. Data validation
3. Credit check API
4. Document generation
5. E-signature request
6. CRM update
7. Email sequence trigger
Him: "Agency says it's highly complex"
Me: "Can I see it?"
THE REVEAL
He logged me into the "proprietary platform."
It was n8n.
Self-hosted n8n.
With their branding on it.
That's it.
The "proprietary platform" was:
- Open source n8n
- Basic workflows
- Their logo slapped on
- Charging $7k/month
I almost laughed on the call.
THE EXTRACTION
Me: "I can move this for you"
Him: "Agency says it's impossible"
Me: "It's not"
Him: "They said their architecture is unique"
Me: "It's literally n8n"
Him: "What's n8n?"
Me: "Free open source automation tool"
His face dropped.
THE EXPORT
Had him export the workflows.
Took 30 seconds.
Got a JSON file.
Agency's "proprietary" platform:
- 8 basic workflows
- Standard integrations
- Nothing custom
- Nothing special
- Completely portable
THE REBUILD
Him: "Can you replicate this?"
Me: "Better question: can I improve it?"
11:23 AM - Opened Skada.ai
Looked at their workflows.
Basic logic, inefficient structure.
Typed into Skada:
"Client intake: form submission triggers credit check, document generation via DocuSign, e-signature request, CRM sync to HubSpot, automated welcome email sequence"
Skada built:
- Everything the agency had
- Better data validation
- Faster processing
- Cleaner error handling
- More efficient structure
11:32 AM - Complete
Added improvements they didn't have:
- Duplicate detection
- Automatic retry on API failures
- Better notification system
Total time: 9 minutes
THE COMPARISON
Agency's "proprietary" system:
- Build time: "12 weeks" (probably 4 hours)
- Nodes: Inefficient, bloated
- Error handling: Basic
- Cost: $7k/month hosting
My Skada rebuild:
- Build time: 9 minutes
- Nodes: Optimized, efficient
- Error handling: Advanced
- Cost: $10/month hosting (DigitalOcean + Skada)
Identical functionality.
Better performance.
1% of the cost.
THE TESTING
Ran side-by-side tests:
- Both processed same data
- My version: 40% faster
- My version: Better error messages
- My version: Cleaner notifications
His exact words: "This is better than what I'm paying $7k for?"
Yes.
THE MATH
Agency hosting costs:
- $7,000/month
- $84,000/year
- $168,000 over 2 years
Actual hosting costs:
- DigitalOcean: $5/month
- Skada: $5/month
- Total: $10/month
- $120/year
Markup: 8,750%
THE AGENCY'S DEFENSE
He called them:
"I'm moving to a new provider"
Agency: "That's not possible"
Him: "It's done"
Agency: "You'll lose everything"
Him: "It's already migrated and running"
Agency: "Our platform is proprietary"
Him: "It's n8n with your logo"
Long pause.
Agency: "We can negotiate on price"
Him: "To what?"
Agency: "$4k/month"
Him: "I'm paying $10"
They threatened contract penalties.
Contract said: "30 days notice"
Nothing about migration restrictions.
They had no legal ground.
THE AFTERMATH (90 DAYS)
Old system (agency):
- Uptime: 99.2%
- Cost: $7,000/month
- Support: 24-48 hour response
- Changes: $2k minimum
New system (Skada):
- Uptime: 99.8%
- Cost: $10/month
- Support: Same day
- Changes: Free (I rebuild in minutes)
Client satisfaction: Through the roof
Annual savings: $83,040
THE PATTERN
This is the 3rd "proprietary platform" I've exposed.
Pattern:
1. Take open source tool (n8n, Zapier, etc.)
2. Self-host with custom branding
3. Call it "proprietary"
4. Claim it's "impossible to migrate"
5. Charge insane monthly fees
6. Lock clients in with fear
It's a scam.
THE RED FLAGS
Your automation might be a scam if:
- Hosting costs over $1k/month
- Provider says "can't be replicated"
- Platform looks suspiciously like n8n/Zapier
- You can't export your workflows
- They call it "proprietary" but won't show code
- Changes cost thousands
- Migration is "impossible"
THE OPPORTUNITY
Thousands of businesses trapped in:
- "Proprietary" platforms (really just rebranded tools)
- $5k-10k monthly hosting (really costs $50-100)
- Impossible migration (really 10 minutes with Skada)
They're easy to find:
LinkedIn: "paying too much for automation hosting"
Facebook groups: "stuck with expensive platform"
THE OFFER
"Let me see your platform. If I can rebuild it in under 30 minutes, you pay 1% of what you're paying now."
Conversion rate: 100%
Why: It's always rebuildable
CURRENT CLIENTS
5 "impossible migration" clients:
- All were paying $4k-9k monthly
- All rebuilt in under 15 minutes
- All paying $10-50 monthly now
- All happier with new system
Total monthly savings for clients: $31,400
Total monthly revenue for me: $650
Total build time: 58 minutes
THE LESSON
If someone says "proprietary" and won't show you the code:
It's not proprietary.
It's rebranded.
And you're overpaying.
With Skada, I can rebuild anything in minutes.
"Impossible to replicate" doesn't exist anymore.
Who else is finding "proprietary platforms" that are just n8n with a logo?
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Agency told client their automation was "impossible to replicate" and charged $7k/month for hosting. I exported it, rebuilt it better in 9 minutes, and host it for $10/month.
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