Small and medium businesses (SMBs) often struggle with the same problem: too much manual work, too little time. Employees spend hours copy-pasting data between systems, forwarding emails, and updating spreadsheets. The result? Slower processes, more errors, and teams that feel bogged down instead of focused on growth. At Dots & Arrows, we believe automation shouldn’t be limited to enterprises with big IT budgets. Workflow automation with n8n hits different. SMBs can start automating critical workflows in days, not months. The best part? You don’t need a full IT department to make it happen.
5 workflows to automate with n8n within a week
The following 5 workflows can be automated in under a week with n8n. Discover how and what impact they can have on your business.
1. Website leads → CRM (with enrichment)
The problem
Leads come in through your website form, but someone has to copy-paste them into your CRM, enrich them manually, and alert sales. This slows down response time and risks leads being lost.
The automation
- n8n captures form submissions in real time.
- The lead is enriched with company info from LinkedIn or Clearbit.
- The contact is created in HubSpot, Pipedrive, or Zoho CRM.
- Sales gets an instant notification in Slack or Teams.
The impact
No more delays. Sales can contact leads within minutes, increasing conversion rates.
2. Invoices → Accounting system
The problem
Accounting teams often receive PDF invoices by email, and manually enter them into tools like Xero, Exact, or Odoo. This is time-consuming and error-prone.
The automation
- n8n monitors an email inbox for incoming invoices.
- OCR or parsing tools extract relevant fields (vendor, amount, due date).
- Data is pushed directly into the accounting system.
- The PDF is archived in SharePoint or Google Drive.
The impact
Faster, more accurate invoice processing. Finance saves hours every week.
3. HR onboarding (accounts & notifications)
The problem
Every new employee requires dozens of small setup tasks, from creating accounts to sending welcome messages. Those often slip through the cracks.
The automation
- n8n listens for new hire records in your HR system.
- It automatically provisions accounts (Google Workspace, Office 365, Slack, Jira).
- The platform sends a personalised welcome email.
- It creates calendar invites for onboarding sessions.
The impact
Smooth, consistent onboarding. HR saves time and new hires feel welcomed.
4. Support emails → Ticketing system
The problem
Many SMBs handle support emails directly in Outlook or Gmail. It’s easy for issues to get lost or delayed.
The automation
- n8n pulls incoming support emails.
- It automatically creates a ticket in Zendesk, Freshdesk, or Jira Service Desk.
- It sends confirmation back to the customer.
- The support team gets notified in Slack/Teams.
The impact
Every customer request is tracked, nothing slips through the cracks, and response times improve.
5. Weekly reporting dashboards
The problem
Managers often spend hours every week aggregating data from different systems into Excel or Google Sheets.
The automation
- n8n pulls metrics from CRM, accounting, and marketing platforms.
- It aggregates them into a single Google Sheet or database.
- The tool sends a summary report to Slack, Teams, or email every Monday morning.
The impact
Real-time insights without manual effort. Leaders can make faster, data-driven decisions.
Why start small?
The beauty of n8n is its low barrier to entry. Each of the workflows above can be implemented in under a week, sometimes even in just a few hours. For SMBs, this means:
- Quick ROI (savings in hours, not months).
- Teams get excited about automation once they see the results.
- The foundation is laid for scaling automation across the business.
Our perspective on workflow automation with n8n
At Dots & Arrows, we help SMBs unlock the power of automation without the complexity of enterprise-grade iPaaS platforms. We start with pragmatic, high-impact workflows like the ones above, and scale from there.
Ready to save hours every week? Let’s explore where automation can make the biggest difference in your business.
