If you are already deploying to Heroku, you are already doing ops.
It makes zero sense to presume you don't need to know what you're doing or benefit from automating processes just because you can't hire a full-time expert.
True, but there's a difference between solving ops problems by throwing more money at hardware and solving ops problems by thinking smarter. That's why I think that some multiple of an FTE salary is a good metric for when you start transitioning to more complex operational setups, because it gives you a number for when the gain of that new complexity is worth the cost.
It makes zero sense to presume you don't need to know what you're doing or benefit from automating processes just because you can't hire a full-time expert.