Finding Hidden Revenue Sitting in My Own Backend (Part 2)

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In Part One, I shared how I finally stopped fighting HoneyBook and rebuilt my backend CRM from scratch using Airtable and Fillout — all on a flight to San Diego.

That rebuild was my “holy crap, I can actually see my leads again” moment.

And once everything was visible? I started noticing all the tiny leaks I couldn’t see before.

What Happened After the Rebuild

For the first time in years, every lead, referral, and client touchpoint lived in one clean Airtable view.

No more clicking through HoneyBook tabs or guessing where someone was in the process. I could pull up a dashboard and instantly see who needed follow-up, who was ghosting, and who was ready to sign.

But that visibility also exposed the little friction points that had been quietly costing me revenue for years.

Where the Leaks Were Hiding

1) The Scheduling Confusion Leak

HoneyBook’s scheduler made people think they’d booked a call when they hadn’t. Unless they hit “submit” on the entire file, nothing was being added to the calendar — meaning calls were lost before they ever happened. Seeing that pattern made it painfully obvious how much money that glitch had cost me.

2) The Verification Code Roadblock

HoneyBook automatically adds an extra “verify your email” step before someone can even view a proposal. It sounds secure, but it kills momentum. Most leads would tab out, get distracted, and never come back.

3) The Prep-Time Tax

Before every sales call, I’d spend 15 minutes copying client info into a Google Doc just so my laptop wouldn’t freeze during calls because HoneyBook took up so much memory space. Now it takes five minutes, because everything I need — notes, forms, timelines — lives right inside Airtable.

That’s ten minutes saved per call, multiplied across every discovery chat, client meeting, and project check-in. It adds up fast.

The ADHD-Friendly Stack That Finally Clicked

The game changer wasn’t just moving to Airtable. It was pairing Airtable + Fillout — a combo that gave me visibility and simplicity.

Here’s what it looks like now:

• Every new lead submission instantly appears in Airtable.
• Intake answers and call notes live in one place.
• A “last contact date” field auto-updates so I know exactly when to follow up.

No more browser tabs. No more digital hide-and-seek. Just clarity.

For ADHD brains like mine, the goal isn’t to automate everything — it’s to remove friction so you’ll actually use the systems you build.

The Referral System That Keeps Paying Off

Referrals make up around 80% of my leads, so not tracking them well was leaving serious money on the table.

Now, my Fillout form includes a simple “How did you hear about me?” field:

• If someone types in a name that already exists in my Airtable referral list, it auto-links and pings me to send a thank-you.
• If it’s a new name, Airtable creates a new referral record and nudges me to follow up later.

That tiny automation turned referrals from an afterthought into a trackable, nurture-worthy system. And yes, it’s already generating repeat business.

What a Backend Revenue Audit Really Looks At

This is exactly what I do inside a Backend Revenue Audit:
I help service providers uncover the hidden revenue trapped in their systems: the missed follow-ups, forgotten leads, or bottlenecks you can’t see until you have real visibility.

Together, we find the leaks, prioritize what to fix first, and turn your backend into a revenue-generating asset that actually works with your brain, not against it.

The Big Takeaway

More traffic won’t fix a broken backend.
If your systems can’t hold the leads you already have, every new inquiry is just another drop in a leaky bucket.

Once I could see my pipeline clearly inside Airtable, I realized I didn’t need to chase more visibility online — I needed to patch the holes in my existing flow.

That’s what backend clarity does. It turns hidden potential into actual revenue.

Ready to find your hidden revenue?

Book a Backend Revenue Audit and let’s uncover the cash your systems are hiding before you spend another minute trying to “get more leads”