Build a small business tool without writing code
Go from "I wish we had a tool for this" to a working prototype your team can try, safely.
- Time
- One or two days
- You'll need
- An AI app builder or AI coding assistant · A copy of real (but anonymized) data
- You'll end up with
- A working prototype of one internal tool, tested by the people who'll use it.
The steps
- 01
Write the one-page spec
Who uses it, what they do today, what the tool should do, and what it must never do. Include three real examples of the job it handles.
Prompt Help me write a one-page spec for a simple internal tool. Ask me questions one at a time about who uses it, what they do today, what the tool must do, and what it must never do. Then write the spec.
- 02
Prototype, don't specify
Give the spec to the builder and ask for the simplest working version. A clickable tool gets better feedback in ten minutes than a document does in a week.
- 03
Test with the real users
Sit with two people who'll use it and watch them try the three examples. Write down every place they hesitate.
- 04
Decide: keep, fix or bin
Most prototypes should be thrown away or rebuilt properly. Keep one only if it's used, tested and someone owns it.
What breaks
- The prototype quietly becomes the system of record with no backups or owner.
- Real customer data ends up in a tool nobody reviewed.
Keep it safe
- Prototype with anonymized data.
- Before real use, check who can log in, where data is stored and that it's backed up.
- Make sure you own the code and can export the data.
How you'll know it worked
- Time saved on the task it replaces.
- Whether people still use it after a month.
Do it with Workshop
Custom software, built with AI, for people who don't write code.
Describe the tool you need. Workshop plans it, builds it and hands you working software you own.
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