At if/else agency, we design sequences that perform. But in recent months, a trend has been alerting us: automation is gaining speed, but sometimes losing relevance. Too many smooth e-mails. Too many impersonal paths. Too many decisions without nuance.
The challenge today is not just to do things faster. It's about being right. Relevant. Human. Because a good CRM isn't just an engine. It's a link.
At if/else agency, we design sequences that perform. But in recent months, a trend has been alerting us: automation is gaining speed, but sometimes losing relevance. Too many smooth e-mails. Too many impersonal paths. Too many decisions without nuance.
The challenge today is not just to do things faster. It's about being right. Relevant. Human. Because a good CRM isn't just an engine. It's a link.
In the space of a few years, automation has gone from being a technical lever to a strategic reflex. The meteoric rise of no-code and low-code tools has made the creation of complex workflows just a click away. Generative AI has amplified the phenomenon: content, reminders, customer responses - everything can be produced and triggered without human intervention.
The result: high-performance sequences on paper, capable of running at scale without fatigue or delay. It's fluid. It's fast. It's almost too simple.
But this widespread automation is beginning to show its limits, not in the dashboards, but in the way people feel. Customers and employees alike are feeling disconnected. Messages seem too mechanical. Follow-up messages lose their accuracy. Customer journeys, while effective, lack emotion and personalization.
What we gain in efficiency, we sometimes lose in relationship. And for brands betting on loyalty, engagement or recommendation, this is no mean feat. At if/else, we see that too much poorly calibrated automation degrades the experience more than it improves it. It's time to rebalance.
Used wisely, automation is a formidable ally. It allows you to eliminate repetitive tasks, launch multi-segment campaigns in a few clicks, react immediately to user behavior... in short, to save precious time where it no longer adds human value.
Above all, automation means freeing up time. Fewer manual tasks, less risk of error, less friction. It's also the key to scaling up without multiplying teams: the same sequence can be adapted to 50, 500 or 5,000 contacts. And when properly designed, it guarantees seamless, fluid, measurable execution.
It's a powerful lever for marketing and sales strategies. A solid foundation for industrialization without degradation.
But this well-oiled machine also has its drawbacks. By dint of predicting everything, scripting everything, automating everything, we sometimes erase what makes a human exchange so rich: the unexpected, active listening, intuition.
Messages become predictable. Follow-ups fall flat. The relationship is impoverished, because the prospect or customer no longer feels individually considered. And that's when you miss out on what makes the difference.
At if/else, we're convinced of one thing: automation must never erase the human dimension. It must amplify it, support it, make it more available. Not replace it.
Not all automations are created equal. When deployed without careful thought, they can have exactly the opposite effect to that intended: distance, weariness and rejection. Too many brands forget this when they think they're doing the right thing.
We've all received those email sequences that are too generic in tone, too perfect... but profoundly empty.
Follow-ups with identical timing, messages with interchangeable content, onboarding tunnels that listen to nothing of what the user is actually doing.
These standardized experiences create an immediate disconnect. They give the impression that we're talking to a machine, not a brand. In an era where the experience is more important than the product itself, this is a strategic mistake.
Automation also means delegating decisions. And if we don't understand the criteria on which these decisions are based, the risks are real: involuntary exclusions, biased recommendations, unfair filters.
Opaque scoring, matching based on poorly-trained models, automated responses without nuance: without human supervision, certain processes can do more harm than good, and damage a company's reputation.
There is also an internal impact. Employees who feel reduced to process executors, marketing teams who never interact directly with a customer... This undermines commitment. It creates a culture where distance replaces empathy.
On the customer side, this translates into a lack of warmth and sincere personalization. It means “clean on paper” customer journeys that are disconnected from any real consideration.
At if/else, we believe that automation doesn't mean smoothing everything out. Impact also comes from the rough edges, the attentions, the micro-moments that escape preconceived scenarios.
The problem is not automation per se. It's automation that forgets about people. Re-humanizing doesn't mean going back to 100% manual processes, it means putting people back where they create value. And this is perfectly compatible with automated sequences.
Intelligent automation incorporates human control points. This is what we call the Human In The Loop model: the human intervenes to validate, adjust, or take over if necessary. In this way, the system retains its power without losing its discernment.
In concrete terms, this may involve:
Tools such as HubSpot enable us to go much further than binary if/then statements. By combining behavior, timing, CRM history and manual input, we can create truly relevant adaptive branches.
Examples:
This is the difference between an automated process and an orchestrated one.
Automation must never be an escape route from customer relations. On the contrary, it must free up time for a fairer, more qualitative and better informed customer relationship.
This means:
At if/else, we defend this vision of automation augmented by humans. Not more complex, but more relevant. Because that's where the experience lies.
Automation was never intended to do everything. It's there to structure, streamline and relieve. But when it stifles human initiative or freezes processes, it becomes counter-productive. What's needed is the right balance. And it's not theoretical: it's what we see every day in the field.
Multiplying tools has never guaranteed a better experience. On the contrary, misaligned automation can dilute intent. Sequences that are too linear become predictable, cold and mechanical.
Conversely, those that leave room for human intervention - a call, a personalized message, an ad hoc adjustment - generate more engagement, more response, more conversion.
It's not an intuition: it's recurring feedback. It's these unexpected but well-placed interactions that transform a marketing tunnel into a relationship of trust.
At if/else, we design hybrid workflows that combine the best of both worlds:
Concrete examples integrated into HubSpot:
Each automated action paves the way for human interaction, and each human interaction reinforces the relevance of the system. It's this logic of complementarity that, in our view, gives automation its full value.
Automation without disembodiment is possible. But it requires real intention in the design of the customer journey. Here are the levers we systematically activate to guarantee a fluid, personalized and engaging experience.
Not all stages of a customer journey are created equal. Some can be streamlined without loss, while others require a real human presence. This is where you need to focus your attention.
Customers don't reject automation, they reject ambiguity.
Transparency creates trust. And in the digital world, it's a rare and precious asset.
Automation is not a fixed device. It's a lever that must constantly adjust to feedback from the field.
At if/else, we build HubSpot sequences that are alive, monitored and enriched. Because automation is never an end in itself: it's a means to creating smarter, more useful, more human experiences.
Automation means saving time, streamlining customer journeys and structuring engagement. But it doesn't mean, and never should, cutting ourselves off from the customer's reality.
At if/else agency, our approach is based on a simple principle: efficiency doesn't exclude attention. We don't scale trust, loyalty or emotion like we scale a campaign.
That's why we design hybrid experiences, where automation doesn't replace the human touch, but rather makes room for it. Room to better listen, better respond, better bond.
Because in an increasingly automated world, it's the human relationship that really makes the difference.
Crédit : Picture of Aakash Dhage on Unsplash