Gramlab.io

How Gramlab.io Reached $5K Revenue in Just 15 Days

January 18th, 2025

Founded By

François Delporte

Monthly Revenue

$5K

Days To Build

Founders

Profitable

Yes

Days To Build

Year Started

2024

Customer

B2B & B2C

Founded By
François Delporte: Monthly Revenue
$5K: Days To Build
15

Founders
2: Profitable
Yes: Days To Build
15

Year Started
2024: Customer
B2B & B2C

Who is François Delporte?

Gramlab.io was co-founded by François Delporte, who is an entrepreneur with a keen interest in digital tools and social media growth strategies, though specific educational or geographical background details are not readily available.

What problem does Gramlab.io solve?

Gramlab.io saves creators and brands from the tedious task of manually managing Instagram Close Friends lists, boosting story views 5-10x effortlessly.

Gramlab Homepage

Founder-Market Fit

Skills

What skills did François Delporte have that led to their success?

No Code

How did François come up with the idea for Gramlab.io?

Inspiration for Gramlab.io struck when François and his friend Maxime, who was an Instagram growth expert, identified Instagram's Close Friends feature as a powerful yet underutilized tool for enhancing user engagement. Recognizing the potential to prioritize stories with a distinct green ring, they saw this as an opportunity to help creators and brands deepen their audience connections.

However, they quickly realized that manually adding followers to the Close Friends list would be a daunting task, especially for those with large follower bases. This inefficiency sparked the idea to build a tool that automated this process. Their belief in the concept was further validated by observing successful strategies, like how Billie Eilish effectively engaged her massive following with the feature.

Committed to exploring this uncharted potential, they rapidly moved to build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) in just 15 days. The process involved gathering insights from influencers and other creators on the perceived value and challenges of the Close Friends feature. They embraced feedback, refined Gramlab.io's offerings, and remained focused on solving the specific pain point—saving users countless hours while boosting story views and engagement efficiently.

How did François Delporte build the initial version of Gramlab.io?

Gramlab.io was built in an impressively short span of 15 days, leveraging a highly focused approach to create a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). The founders utilized existing software tools to automate Instagram’s Close Friends feature, which presents an opportunity to increase Instagram story views by 5-10x. With an intense focus on rapid execution, the development team bypassed extensive preliminary testing and iterations found in traditional product development, opting instead for a quick deployment that aligned with the goal of time-efficient innovation. Despite the compressed timeline, they successfully launched on December 26, encountering several challenges, particularly around quick decision-making and meeting tight development schedules. This rapid build approach highlights the potential of focusing on specific problems and needs - in this case, saving creators hours of manual work by automating a time-consuming task on Instagram.

What was the growth strategy for Gramlab.io and how did they scale?

Telegram Groups of Infopreneurs

Gramlab tapped into Telegram groups filled with creators and entrepreneurs on the lookout for Instagram growth hacks. By sharing their tool in these communities, they targeted individuals who were already interested in boosting their Instagram engagement.

Why it worked: Telegram groups serve as niche hubs where like-minded individuals gather, providing a direct line to potential customers who are likely to be interested in Instagram growth tools. This allowed Gramlab to effectively reach and engage a relevant audience without extensive marketing budgets.

Affiliate Program

Gramlab introduced an affiliate program offering a 30% revenue share, incentivizing marketers to promote the tool. This strategy engaged marketers with established audiences to recommend Gramlab, effectively expanding their reach.

Gramlab Affiliate Marketing

Why it worked: Affiliate marketing leverages the trust and networks of others, allowing Gramlab to access broader audiences through trusted recommendations. Offering a generous commission encouraged more marketers to participate, leading to increased sign-ups and conversions.

SEO Targeting

Gramlab focused on specific keywords such as "close friends automation" and "boost Instagram story views" to drive organic traffic to their site. This approach positioned them as leaders in a niche market where potential customers were actively searching for solutions.

Why it worked: By targeting niche keywords that aligned with their product offering, Gramlab capitalized on search traffic from users actively seeking exactly what they provided. This strategic keyword targeting increased their visibility in search engine results, attracting users who were already interested in such a tool.

Mass Instagram DMs

Gramlab identified potential users by looking at Instagram accounts with link-in-bio setups, then reached out to these users via direct messages. This personalized outreach targeted creators using Instagram for business, who would benefit from adding their followers to a Close Friends list.

Why it worked: Direct personal contact via Instagram DMs allowed Gramlab to connect with potential customers who valued enhancing their story engagement. This method works effectively as it delivers a direct message to users who already use Instagram professionally, immediately conveying the benefits of the tool in a relatable context.

What's the pricing strategy for Gramlab.io?

Gramlab.io charges a one-time fee based on follower count, with rates starting at $10 per 1,000 followers and decreasing to $0.75 per 1,000 for larger accounts.

Gramlab Pricing

What were the biggest lessons learned from building Gramlab.io?

Rapid Development Can Work: Gramlab was built in just 15 days, proving that a quick MVP (Minimum Viable Product) can be successful if focused on solving a clear problem.
Trust Your Vision Over Quick Cash: Despite receiving a tempting $85,000 buyout offer soon after launch, the team turned it down, believing in the product's bigger potential and long-term value.
Targeted Marketing Yields Results: Early growth was driven by strategic marketing in Telegram groups, a strong affiliate program, SEO, and direct Instagram DMs, highlighting the importance of knowing where your potential users are.
Feedback is Key: User feedback confirmed Gramlab's impact, with reported 5-10x increases in story views, validating the product's effectiveness and market need.
Resilience Pays Off: Rejecting a substantial buyout offer requires confidence in your product's future and a willingness to bet on its potential, emphasizing resilience and long-term commitment in entrepreneurship.

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