Case study · Keystone
We run Keystone on Keystone.
Every enquiry, booking, quote and invoice in this business flows through the same kind of system we build for you. We built it with the same AI tools we use for clients, in about 12½ hours of hands-on work.
The problem
One person. Five inboxes.
Keystone started as a one-person studio. Enquiries could arrive through the website, email, WhatsApp, Instagram or a booking link. Every one needed a reply, a follow-up, maybe a quote and an invoice. That's exactly the admin that quietly eats the hours meant for real work, and where leads slip through.
So before taking on a single client, we built Keystone the way we'd build a client's business.
The system
Eight steps. One place.
From the moment you get in touch to the monthly care-plan report, every step is connected. Nothing is copied between apps by hand.
- 01You get in touchWebsite form, audit questionnaire or email
- 02You land in our pipelineKeystone HQ, with an instant alert and an AI triage from n8n
- 03You book a free auditCalendly, synced into HQ as a task and an audit
- 04We run the auditHQ's audit checklist, live on the call
- 05You get one fixed quoteHQ quote, printed in the brand kit
- 06You accept, we invoice the depositHQ drafts it; Zoho Books keeps the books; card payments by Yoco
- 07We build, test and go liveYour accounts, in your name; balance invoice on go-live
- 08We keep it runningCare plan hours tracked in HQ; monthly report
What happens when you contact us
You'll see the system working.
- Minute 0You send the form or book a call.
- Minute 1We're alerted and you're in our pipeline, with your answers attached.
- Same working dayA reply from a person, with a link to book your free audit.
- The audit30 minutes on video. We find the task costing you the most time.
- After the callOne fixed quote in rand, in writing, with any running costs.
Under the hood
HQ is the core. n8n does the triage.
Once your enquiry is saved, a copy goes to an automation in n8n, the same tool we build client workflows in. Claude reads it and suggests which package fits, how urgent it is, three questions for the audit call and a draft reply. It reaches our inbox in about five seconds. A person reads it and decides what to send.
- 01Your enquiry is savedWebsite to database, before anything else runs
- 02Personal details stay behindOnly your business name and message go to n8n
- 03Claude suggests a fitPackage, urgency, a summary, audit questions and a draft reply
- 04The answer is checkedAnything off our menu is rejected; if the AI is down, it falls back safely
- 05It's logged for measuringWithout names, emails or phone numbers
- 06A person decidesThe suggestion lands in our alert email. Nothing is sent automatically
If n8n is slow or down, your enquiry still goes through. The triage is a helper, never a gate.
Built in a day
From nothing to a working business system.
The first line went in on Monday evening, 12 October 2026. By Tuesday afternoon the website, the operating system behind it, the contracts and the compliance calendar were live.
- Mon 19:21Website designed and built in the Keystone brand, desktop and phone.
- Mon 23:52Contact and project forms saved to a database, instant email alerts, newsletter sign-up synced to Brevo, privacy page.
- Tue 06:01Keystone HQ rebuilt: pipeline, clients, projects, tasks, finance and documents, installable as a phone app.
- Tue 07:00Keystone HQ (Pty) Ltd registered with CIPC.
- Tue 08:45Pricing page with fixed packages, and the interactive automation explainer.
- Tue 11:08Pre-audit questionnaire on the website, and a live audit checklist in HQ.
- Tue 15:14Legal and POPIA pages, client agreement, compliance calendar, quotes, care plans, Calendly bookings into HQ, and the Playbook.
How we measured: from the change history of the website and Keystone HQ. Build time counts working sessions with no gap longer than 45 minutes between changes, from Monday 19:21 to Tuesday 17:16 (Johannesburg time). Planning, writing and testing between sessions aren't counted, so the real total is a little higher.
The guardrails
Fast, but never careless.
AI drafts, people decide
Anything that leaves the business, like a reply or a quote, is checked by a person first.
Money is never guessed
Totals, VAT, due dates and invoice numbers come from fixed rules, never from AI.
POPIA built in
Only the access a job needs, every change logged, and personal information handled as your operator.
You own what we build
Your accounts, your data, your workflows. If you leave, it keeps working.
Results
Measuring since October 2026.
We only publish numbers we've measured. These fill in as the months go by.
Average time to first reply
Enquiries that slipped through
Admin hours per week, before and after
What this means for you
The same system, sized for your business.
Quick Fix
Website form to pipeline to follow-up: the first two steps above.
Assistant
A front desk that answers common questions and books calls, day or night.
Ops System
The whole flow, enquiry to invoice, with approvals where money is involved.