AI for CRM and Follow-Up Automation Webinar May 7th
This webinar shows how to build a simple CRM on local files with Codex or Claude Code, then keep it current with a daily AI routine that reads your emails and meetings so no follow-up gets missed.
Pour qui: Solo operators and small business owners who track leads across email, calls, WhatsApp, LinkedIn and SMS and keep forgetting to follow up.
À retenir
Own the file, not the app
I stick with Codex and Claude Code because everything you build stays in local files you own, including the databases and the conversations stored in your workspace. I point to the idea called File over App: once you own the data, you can build any application on top of it. The data has the value, not the interface, which is why I prefer a local workspace over tools where your work may be locked inside the application.
A CRM is simpler than the name suggests
A CRM keeps track of leads (people you already contacted), potential customers (people you have not contacted yet) and successful projects. Without one, the information sits in the owner's head and across five channels: WhatsApp, SMS, calls, LinkedIn and email. With five customers that is twenty-five channels to watch. The core fields I list are status, last method of contact, follow-up date and whether the person is an active customer.
Let the agent interview you before it builds
Every business handles its sales funnel differently, so a one-size-fits-all CRM rarely fits. Instead of asking Codex to build a CRM, I ask it to question me first, then limit it to ten questions and no automations or integrations for version one. My answers: CRM only for me, three contact types (cold lead, warm lead, current customer), track messages and last contact channel, and views as tables, profile page, Kanban and dashboard.
A JSON or CSV file is enough to start
The CRM Codex built is just JSON files and spreadsheet files on my computer, opened as a local dashboard. You do not need a database at first. If you want something more technical you can run a local SQLite database, and once you reach critical mass you migrate the file into a proper database. My one rule: always keep a backup of the file.
Solo operators can sync with a daily skill
You do not need a live web automation to keep the CRM current. A Claude Code or Codex skill can run once or twice a day (I mention 7:00 or 8:00 morning and night), fetch your meetings and emails, and tell the agent to update the CRM from what happened: close a deal, move a follow-up date. Tell it to trust the last thing the customer said when there is ambiguity. Teams need something running on the web instead.
Automations are code, wherever they run
The nodes in n8n or Make are code running in the background, so anything you build there can also be built with Claude Code. The real difference is where it runs. Deploy to the web when something must trigger live, such as an incoming email. A scheduled skill fits solo operators who do not need live action. Visual platforms suit teams where several people work on the same operation.
Add signals and nurturing on top
Once the follow-up core works, you can add enrichment. With Apify you can check whether a target posted on LinkedIn lately and whether that post is a signal they need you, and track their company: hiring, finances, investments. Use the CRM to nurture people every couple of weeks with something useful. My math: with a 20 percent close rate and a 2K average ticket, every forgotten follow-up costs real money.
Outils présentés
- CodexThe main build tool in the session: the macOS app built the CRM dashboard, generated test emails and meetings, and read my real emails through connectors. Fast mode is included in the paid plan.
- Claude CodePresented as an equivalent to Codex: the same CRM, connectors and scheduled daily sync skill can be built with it, from the same workspace.
- FirefliesMeeting note taker connected to Codex, used as the source of meeting transcripts to sync into the CRM.
- GeminiCalled through its API by a one-off script to generate fake email threads and meeting transcripts for testing the CRM sync.
- ApifyRecommended for enrichment and signal tracking, such as checking whether a lead posted on LinkedIn or whether their company is hiring.
- UnipileRecommended for connecting Codex or Claude Code to your LinkedIn and WhatsApp accounts so you can fetch the day's messages into the CRM.
- n8nUsed as the example of a visual automation platform that runs code on the web for live triggers.
- MakeMentioned alongside n8n as a visual workflow platform where each node is code running behind the scenes.
- GoHighLevelDiscussed in Q&A: worth keeping if you rely on its automations, not if you only use its basic interface.
Questions du public
Where does the CRM data actually live?
In a JSON file on your computer. Your CRM does not need to be a database: a JSON or CSV file can hold everything. If you want to get more technical, you can run a local database with SQLite, but you do not need that before you build a full application. Once you reach critical mass, you move the file into a new database. Just keep a backup of the file.
The dashboard is static. How do I keep it updated without telling the agent every time I do something?
Define the channels you want synced and let a skill do it. For a solo operator, the sync can be a Claude Code or Codex skill that runs every day, for example at 8:00 in the morning and at night. It fetches your meetings and emails, gives them to the agent, and asks it to update the CRM from what happened, using the customer's latest message when things conflict. Teams need something deployed on the web instead.
Can I build automations in Claude Code instead of n8n or Make?
Yes. In n8n or Make, every node in the visual workflow is code running in the background, so you can build anything with Claude Code that you could build with n8n. The difference is deployment. If you need something to trigger live, like when an email arrives, the code has to run on the web. If running once or twice a day is fine, build a skill that follows the steps on a schedule.
Can a system like this replace GoHighLevel?
It depends on what you use GoHighLevel for. If you rely on its automations, that money is well spent, because it will take time to build a CRM at that level. If you only use its basic features to get a nice interface, the account adds no real value. I showed my own synced back office as an example: LinkedIn posts, YouTube videos and follower counts updated automatically every day at 7:00 AM and 7:00 PM.
