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13 Comments

Simplescraper just hit 20,000 chrome installs!

Hey Indiehackers,

I've lurked more than I've posted since signing up in 2017. For the last year+ I've been busy building Simplescraper (https://simplescraper.io/) as an easy to use no-code web scraper and it just passed 20,000 active Chrome installs (and 4.6 star rating :) this week.

Its been a long grind. I've started an event guide, a film festival, a digital magazine, a project management tool, multiple chrome extensions, a todo app. Almost all failed. But each idea failed a little less and I learned heaps of what not to do so I'm thinking that's just part of the journey.

The idea for Simplescraper came up by accident. I wanted to build a charting API (still do) and realized I needed sample data and so began exploring web scrapers. Every one that I tried was a little meh so decided I'd create my own "over the weekend".

7 months later I had something that kind of worked and I've been iterating since.

Browsing IH with a coffee inbetween coding breaks has become a daily routine and seeing people hustle each day - especially other solo-founders - has been super motivating so thanks to everyone for sharing their stories.

It may be a little messy in 2021 but the internet is still magic. Add enough value and I believe it will eventually be returned in spades, so let's keep chasing those goals.

Peace,
Mike

  1. 2

    Well done Mike.

    I remember when I first used it and was impressed with how you solve this difficult problem.

  2. 2

    Really love the story, design and the execution of the tool. All the best for the growth spurt coming ahead :)

  3. 2

    Very cool Mike. The iterations can be painful, but with the potential scale of internet products it only has to work well once. Keep up the great work!

  4. 2

    Congratulations - I tried it and it was simple enough to use it. It is a great way to gather data for quick prototypes. :)

  5. 2

    Great product and landing page. It’s cool to read an update like this!

  6. 2

    I never thought of creating a scraper as chrome extension.

    That's awesome, congratulations!!

  7. 2

    Looking good, how many of those installs have turned to paying customers?

  8. 2

    I really like your landing page. I think I’ll give this a try instead of digging for an old script that I need.

    What are your plans for pricing?

  9. 2

    Uplifting little read on my coffee break :) Congrats!

  10. 2

    Congrats Mike! --- I used your product when I needed it few months ago. It was simple and just worked as expected.

    Wish you the best!

  11. 2

    Congrats! That's a healthy milestone.

  12. 2

    Congratulations!

    I hope this product is successful and you start generating monthly revenue. Tool seems great.

  13. 1

    This is cool. Just installed. I don't know when I'll need it next I've had this need many times in the past. Congrats!

  14. 1

    This comment was deleted 3 years ago.

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