The biggest driver is scope. Automating one workflow, like tracking filter-change intervals and sending reminders, is a smaller build than a system that also handles service scheduling, water-test follow-ups, and rental billing under one roof. Most dealers start with whichever task causes the most missed revenue or the most manual chasing, then add pieces once the first one is working. A full custom product, with its own logins for staff and customers, a database, and payment handling, costs more than automating an existing process, because there's simply more to design and more that can go wrong.
The other driver is whether we build it and hand it over, or build it and keep running it. Build-only means you get a working system and your team maintains it. Build-and-operate means we keep watching it: catching a failed test-result import, adjusting when reminders go out, and stepping in when something needs a person, like a customer disputing a rental charge. Operate costs more than build-only because it's ongoing, not a one-time project. Some parts stay human no matter what, like actually driving out to swap a filter or reading a genuinely confusing complaint.
We don't run a price list because the same automation is worth different amounts to different dealers. Automated rental billing follow-up matters more if invoices are piling up than if they aren't; a filter reminder matters more if you're losing customers to competitors who never miss one. We quote each engagement on what it's worth to your business, so the real number comes from mapping your workflows first, not a menu. A reasonable way to judge it yourself: notice how much of your week goes to reminders and follow-ups that don't actually require a judgment call, and whether the ones that slip are costing you renewals. If that's real, the conversation is worth having.