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I’m now a Zite Certified Bronze Partner. If you haven’t heard of Zite yet, here’s the short version: it lets me build simple, custom business apps without the cost or wait of traditional software development. Client portals, calculators, request trackers, proposal tools. The kind of thing you’ve wished existed for your business but couldn’t find off the shelf.
I want to show you what that looks like in real life, because “custom app” can sound bigger and scarier than it is.
What is Zite?
Zite is an app builder from the team behind Fillout. You describe what you need in plain language, and it builds a working web app with its own database, user access, and automations. From there, I refine it until it fits the way your business actually works.
Zite can be used for internal tools your team uses every day, like a simple CRM or applicant tracker, or for things your clients see, like a branded project portal. It connects to tools you already use, and I can link it to ClickUp, SmartSuite, Airtable, and the rest of your stack with Zapier or Make. Or you can use Zite’s own databases and integrate your tools.
Here are a few things I’ve built with it.
1. A pricing calculator for a nonprofit camp
For almost 10 years, I ran a nonprofit camp. Every year we faced the same question: how low can we keep the price for families without ending the season in a deficit?
We used to answer it based on vibes mostly, and later we tried to do it with a spreadsheet that was overly complicated and never really gave us a clear answer. So I built a calculator in Zite. You plug in the expected number of campers, staff costs, facility fees, food, supplies, and scholarships, and it shows you the lowest price per camper that still covers everything. You can try different scenarios side by side, like “what if we get 20 fewer registrations?” or “what if we add two more scholarships?”
It turned a stressful annual guessing game into a 15-minute conversation, and anyone on the team could use it.
2. An NDA comparison tool
Many businesses deal with NDAs coming in while they also have their own. I built a tool where you simply upload the client’s NDA or paste in the text, and it compares it to your NDA and points out any discrepancies.
3. A HoneyBook or Dubsado alternative
A lot of service businesses pay for an all-in-one client management platform mainly for one thing: getting from “yes” to “paid” without a pile of manual steps. If you only use a few of those features, you’re paying for a lot you don’t need.
So I built a simpler version in Zite:
- A pretty, branded proposal your client can review online
- Details from the proposal flow straight into the contract, so you never retype names, packages, or prices
- The client signs the contract with an e-signature
- An invoice is created and sent automatically
It does the part that matters, it looks like your brand, and it’s built around your actual process instead of someone else’s idea of it.
4. A client portal that sits on top of ClickUp
This is the one I get asked about most. If you manage client projects in ClickUp, you’ve probably run into this problem: you want clients to see what’s happening, but you don’t want them inside your workspace, and they don’t want to sign up for another tool.
The portal I built gives clients their own custom-branded space, connected to your ClickUp. From there, they can:
- See the status of their project
- View and approve the tasks you’ve chosen to share with them
- Upload documents
- Leave comments
You keep working in ClickUp the way you always do. Your clients get clarity without a ClickUp account, and you get fewer “just checking in” emails.
More ideas for what Zite can do
- Client onboarding hub: one place for new clients to fill out intake forms, upload files, and see what happens next.
- Request tracker: clients or team members submit requests, and you see them all in one list with status and priority.
- Simple CRM: track leads, follow-ups, and where each person is in your sales process, without the clutter of a big CRM.
- Applicant tracker: collect applications, review candidates as a team, and move people through your hiring steps.
- Team resource library: SOPs, templates, and training in one searchable place, with the right access for each role.
- Custom order tracker: for product-based businesses, collect order details and keep track of each one from request to delivery.
- Internal dashboards: pull key numbers from your tools into one simple view, so you don’t have to dig through five apps to know how things are going.
When Zite is (and isn’t) the right fit
I’ll be honest: not every business needs a custom app. My approach is always business first, process second, technology third. If your process isn’t clear yet, a new app won’t fix it. It’ll just give the confusion a nicer home.
Zite is a great fit when:
- You’ve outgrown spreadsheets, but big software feels like too much
- You’re paying for a platform and only using a small part of it
- Your clients need visibility into their work, but not access to your whole system
- You need a bigger-picture dashboard that your current tools can’t handle
- You keep wishing a tool did “just this one thing” the way you work
If that sounds like you, it might be worth a conversation.
Want to see what this could look like for you?
As a Zite Certified Bronze Partner, I can help you figure out whether a custom app makes sense for your business, and if it does, design and build it around how you actually work. It can connect to ClickUp, SmartSuite, Zapier, Make, and the other tools you already use.
Book a free call and tell me what’s going on. We’ll talk through whether Zite, ClickUp, an automation, or a simpler fix is the right next step.
