Lesson Objectives

• Explore how automation tools like Make.com can help educators solve real problems.

• Learn how I pivoted from a platform that didn’t meet my needs to build my own solution, and how you can do this in your life too.

• Feel empowered to take control of your processes, save money, and create tools that work for you.

Do Now

Think about a process you currently rely on a paid platform for. What would it feel like to have full control of that process—its content, appearance, and timing?

What We’re Discussing Today

A recent challenge I faced exactly mirrors many of the frustrations educators have with educational platforms, tools, and apps that were created for us with the best intentions by people who do not understand education or our specific needs. This experience directly highlights the important for educators to learn how to use AI and automation so that we can build our own solutions.

Following the release of my 30-Day AI & Automation Email Course for Educators, I immediately faced a challenge. A school psychologist friend signed up and let me know she couldn’t open the content because Gumroad isn’t supported on Android devices. On top of that, she wasn’t receiving the scheduled emails after the initial welcome message. I couldn’t figure out what was going wrong on the backend, and that’s when I knew I needed to pivot.

Instead of relying on a platform where I couldn’t monitor or fix errors, I decided to bring the course back into my own hands using Make.com. What could have been a frustrating setback turned into an exciting opportunity: a chance to use my automation skills to create a better, more refined system.

I Do, We Do, You Do

I Do: Automating the Course with Make.com

When I originally built this course for my friend Jenn, I used Make.com to automate the emails. It worked perfectly for a single user, but as I scaled the course for multiple enrollments with varying start dates, the process became more complex. Without fulling realizing it, I did exactly what I advocated against. I moved over to an existing platform without fully thinking through what the loss of oversight meant.

When an issue immediately arose, it gave me the opportunity to quickly pivot again. I took the course back into my own hands. There was something very serendipitous about it—this was my first big project. I built it and it felt right to take it back into my hands.

This pivot gave me the chance to refine the course even further. I updated the email templates to include clickable video thumbnails, making the emails more visually appealing and user-friendly. The solution I built didn’t require advanced coding—just some HTML to enhance the design and Make.com to automate the process.

What’s more exciting is that in just two days, I transitioned the course off a platform I couldn’t control and created a fully customized system that works better for my needs. This is the true power of AI and automation: educators creating solutions based on their own pain points, instead of relying on platforms designed by people who don’t understand our needs.

Watch the video of my automation process here: 

We Do: Let’s Build This Together

Imagine you’re an educator sending a weekly newsletter to parents. Maybe you’re paying for a subscription to a platform because it offers nice templates and simplifies the process. But what if you could create a newsletter process entirely on your own—without the subscription fees?

With tools like Make.com, you can automate your weekly emails, add custom designs, and control the timing of every send. Your audience (parents) doesn’t change significantly week to week, so the process can be automated easily. You save money, take control of the content, and ensure everything works exactly the way you want.

You Do: Build Your Own Solution

This week, identify one tool or platform you rely on that isn’t meeting your needs or costs more than it should. Ask yourself:

• Can this process be automated using tools like Make.com?

• Would building my own solution save time, money, or hassle in the long run?

Start small. Try automating just one email or creating a workflow for a recurring task. See how it feels to have full control of the process!

Think-Pair-Share

• Think of three tasks in your daily or weekly work that could benefit from automation.

• Pair up with a colleague and brainstorm how you could streamline one of those tasks together.

• Share your progress with our community of educators and inspire others with what’s possible!

Exit Ticket

Ready to explore automation and take control of your processes? Join the FREE 30-Day AI & Automation Email Course for Educators to learn how to build solutions tailored to your needs.

Let’s stop waiting for tech companies to create solutions for us and start building what we need ourselves. Together, we can innovate education from the inside out.

Looking for a live hands-on course on AI and Automation? Join the waitlist for the AI Mastery for Educators Course now!

Follow us on Gumroad for Edumated resources. Coming soon: a FREE course on Canva basics for Educators.

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