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A fractional AI operations consultancy that automates repetitive work for small teams and earns project fees plus retainers.
500 AI agents running · retainers from about $2,500/month after a $1,500 inbox audit
“Measure first, then you’ll automate something too.”
Fewer bars = easier, cheaper, or faster for an AI-assisted solo builder. Editorial judgments based on the case details.
Lemonbrand.io is Simon Bergeron’s fractional AI and automation consultancy for small teams. Instead of choosing one vertical, Bergeron looks for companies with roughly five to 20 employees where repetitive work recurs across email, customer follow-up, bookkeeping, reporting, and delivery. He says he built the business to 500 AI agents and $40,000–$50,000 a month in revenue, while beginning to hire because monitoring the agents and owning client relationships remain human work. His first client was an employer that converted his internal automation work into a one-year freelance contract. He then approached a local gym owner about website work and uncovered operational problems: free-trial bookings, no-shows, gym-management software, QuickBooks reporting, and local marketing. A $2,500 initial project became a $1,500 monthly retainer that he says continued three years later. Bergeron frames the work as measured operational improvement, not flashy technology. He describes API cost controls, tenant-level kill switches, and a one-automation-at-a-time rule as essential operating safeguards.
For a small-business automation consultancy, start with a relationship where you can observe the work before pitching a tool. Bergeron’s first engagement came from an employer already seeing his internal web and automation work; he asked to convert that role into a one-year freelance arrangement.
The quick-reference card — acquisition channels, replication playbook, and risk map — is members-only.
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Two production-grade prompts per idea — a full build spec and an SEO growth plan — plus 10 tailored build specs a week. Members only.
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Data credibility: The host, Nick of Side Hustle Nation, states the $40K–$50K monthly revenue and 500 AI agents in his introduction; Simon Bergeron himself gives the pricing: a $1,500 inbox audit credited against retainers, retainers starting around $2,500 a month, and a gym client that went from $2,500 upfront to $1,500 a month for three years. No financial statements are shown.
Bergeron’s first dollar came through paid implementation work attached to a relationship, rather than a self-serve software checkout. His first client converted an existing work arrangement into a one-year freelance contract.
A consultancy compounds when each implementation creates a trusted operational relationship and reveals the next high-value bottleneck. Bergeron’s gym example began with a booking and no-show problem, then expanded into gym-management software, QuickBooks reporting, and marketing support.
An early automation practice can stall when prospects hear abstract AI promises but cannot see a safe, bounded first step. Make the first conversation diagnostic: map a single workflow, count its handoffs, and identify where errors or delays cost the business time or sales.
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