Price Your Automation Script Based on Scope, Not Seats
A simple automation script is priced based on development time, integration points, and maintenance needs. Fair pricing separates the one-time build cost from low, fixed monthly hosting and support fees.
Syntora offers engineering services for designing and implementing custom automation scripts. We help clients fairly price their solutions based on development time, integration, and maintenance. Our approach focuses on delivering tailored technical architectures and clear engagement models for these workflows.
The final scope depends on the number of systems involved and the complexity of the business logic. A script that reads a Google Sheet and sends a Slack message is straightforward. One that pulls from three different APIs with complex error handling and data logging to Supabase requires a more detailed proposal.
Syntora provides engineering services to design and implement custom automation workflows, ensuring clear pricing and a focus on your specific operational needs. We focus on building exactly what your business requires without product lock-in.
What Problem Does This Solve?
Most businesses start with visual automation platforms because they are easy to set up. But the pricing model, which charges per task, quickly becomes expensive. A workflow that triggers on a new lead, enriches it, applies conditional logic, and then adds it to two different systems consumes 4 tasks per lead. At 500 leads/month, that is 2,000 tasks and a bill that grows with your lead volume.
These platforms also fail when business logic gets complex. A simple 'if-this-then-that' branch is easy, but trying to loop over a list of items from an API response to check each one against a database record is often impossible. You end up building brittle, multi-part workflows that are hard to debug and fail without clear error messages.
Finally, you have no control over performance. A trigger advertised as 'instant' might have a 5-minute processing delay due to platform queuing. When you need to process an order confirmation or a critical customer alert immediately, that 5-minute lag is a significant liability. The workflow fails because you cannot control its execution environment.
How Would Syntora Approach This?
Syntora would start an engagement by mapping the entire business process, moving beyond superficial visual builder clicks. The system would use FastAPI to create a single, dedicated API endpoint. This endpoint would serve as the trigger for the automation, designed to receive the initial data payload efficiently. All authentication keys and environment variables would be managed securely using AWS Secrets Manager.
The core logic would be implemented as a clean Python script. Instead of relying on visual branches, Syntora uses standard conditional statements to handle routing and data transformation. For external data lookups, the system would make direct, asynchronous API calls using httpx, which includes built-in retry logic for network timeouts. We often design systems to cache API responses in a Supabase table for a defined period, such as 30 days, to avoid redundant lookups. This pattern has proven effective in reducing API costs in similar data processing pipelines we've built for other domains.
The FastAPI application would be packaged into a Docker container and deployed as a serverless function on AWS Lambda. This architecture is designed for cost-effectiveness, with typical AWS bills remaining low for event-driven workflows. The deployment would be managed with the AWS CDK, which defines the infrastructure as code to ensure the setup is reproducible and version-controlled.
Syntora would configure structured logging with the structlog library, piping all logs to AWS CloudWatch. As a deliverable, a simple dashboard showing execution counts, error rates, and average latency would be built. A CloudWatch Alarm could be configured to send a Slack notification if the error rate exceeds a defined threshold over a specified period, allowing for proactive issue detection and resolution.
What Are the Key Benefits?
Get a Production System in 10 Days
Simple scripts move from discovery to a fully monitored production deployment in under two weeks. No quarter-long project plans for a single workflow.
Pay for Execution, Not Headcount
Your cost is tied to compute time, not user seats. Monthly hosting is often less than a single license for a visual automation platform.
You Get the Keys and the Blueprints
We deliver the full Python source code in a private GitHub repository, along with a runbook explaining how to deploy and modify it.
Alerts Fire Before Your Team Complains
Proactive monitoring via AWS CloudWatch and Slack alerts means we fix failures often before your team even notices a problem.
Connect Any API, Not Just What's Listed
We write direct integrations to any system with a REST API, including your private internal tools. No waiting on a vendor's roadmap.
What Does the Process Look Like?
Week 1: Scoping Call & Proposal
You walk us through the workflow and provide read-only access to the relevant tools. We deliver a fixed-scope proposal within 48 hours detailing the build.
Week 1: Core Development
We write the Python script, set up the cloud infrastructure, and test all API connections. You receive a link to the private GitHub repository to follow progress.
Week 2: Deployment & Testing
We deploy the script to AWS Lambda and connect the live webhooks. You receive a test environment to validate the workflow with sample data before it goes live.
Weeks 3-4: Monitoring & Handoff
The script runs in production for a 30-day monitoring period. At the end, you receive the full runbook and can transition to an optional monthly support plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How much does a 'simple' script actually cost?
- Pricing depends on the number of systems it connects and the complexity of the business logic. A script that moves data between two standard APIs like HubSpot and Slack is on the lower end. A script requiring data transformation and database lookups is more complex. We provide a fixed-price proposal after a free discovery call at cal.com/syntora/discover.
- What happens if an external API is down when the script runs?
- We build in exponential backoff and retry logic. The script will attempt to connect again 3 times over 5 minutes. If it still fails, the failed event is sent to an AWS SQS dead-letter queue and an alert is triggered. This ensures no data is lost and we can manually re-process the event once the external service is back online.
- How is this different from hiring a freelancer on Upwork?
- Freelancers build scripts. Syntora builds and maintains production systems. We provide Infrastructure as Code, structured logging, monitoring dashboards, and a 30-day post-launch support period included in the scope. You get a maintainable asset, not just a .py file that you have to figure out how to run and monitor yourself.
- What if my business needs change mid-project?
- We handle this with a change order. The initial proposal locks the scope. If you need to add a new integration or logic branch, we scope that as a separate, small piece of work and add it to the timeline. This keeps the initial project on track and ensures you only pay for the new functionality you need when you need it.
- Why use AWS Lambda instead of a simple server?
- Lambda is serverless, meaning you only pay for the milliseconds the script is actually running. A traditional server runs 24/7, costing you money even when idle. For event-driven workflows that run intermittently, Lambda is dramatically more cost-effective, often under $20/month for thousands of runs, versus a fixed monthly server cost.
- What does 'hands-on engineer' actually mean for my project?
- It means the person you speak with on the discovery call is the same person writing the code and configuring the cloud infrastructure. There is no handoff to a project manager or junior developer. This eliminates communication gaps and ensures the person building the system deeply understands the business problem you are trying to solve from day one.
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