Pre launch / Early Days
Reddit demo posts
Posted video demos of specific product features on niche subreddits using a problem-solution story frame. Added UTM-tracked links to every post. Posted one subreddit per day, never all at once, tweaking copy between posts.
→ $3,000 MRR within 6 months
MRR $3.0k
Early Traction (Reddit Phase)
Reddit community feedback
Used Reddit comments and engagement to gather qualitative product feedback. Feature requests from Reddit posts directly shaped the product roadmap — the 'Super Brain' feature was validated and prioritized based on Reddit response.
→ Super Brain became the flagship feature used by thousands
Accidental SEO Discovery (2023)
Seo support articles
Wrote support/help articles for existing customers (e.g., 'How to create OpenAI API keys'). Discovered one article ranked #1 on Google for 6–8 months, driving significant organic traffic without any intentional SEO effort.
→ Identified Google as a genuine inbound traffic channel; led to deliberate SEO investment
Intentional SEO Buildout (2023)
SEO keyword research
Used Ahrefs ($129/mo) to find keywords with difficulty <20 and search volume >500. Built a list of 30–50 low-competition, high-intent topics. Wrote 2–3 blog posts per week, using AI as a research/outline assistant but adding original insights and humanized tone.
→ ~$70,000 revenue from organic Google traffic in 2023
SEO Scaling — Listicle Strategy
Seo listicle content
Wrote high-intent listicles targeting underserved queries, e.g., '18 Best ChatGPT Mac Apps Free and Paid.' Ranked #1 for this article, capturing users already in buying mode researching Mac AI tools.
→ High conversion rate from article traffic; direct purchases from readers already decided to buy
AI Answer Engine Traffic (Emerging)
Ai answer engines citations
Articles began being cited by ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI answer engines as references. This audience arrives with higher purchase intent — having already decided to buy, they convert faster.
→ High-intent traffic from AI referrals converting directly to purchases
Multi channel Revenue Expansion
App bundle and marketplaces
Listed Elephas on Setapp bundle, Mac App Store, and iOS App Store in addition to their own website (using Gumroad for license sales). Offered lifetime deal pricing alongside monthly/annual subscriptions to match Mac app buyer expectations.
→ ~$110K from own website (Gumroad), ~$12K from Mac App Store, additional revenue from Setapp; total ~$150K ARR
MRR $12k
Community & Retention
Discord community
Built a Discord community for users to submit feedback and feature requests daily. Used Nottn to monitor Reddit and social mentions of Elephas and respond in real time.
→ Continuous product feedback loop and improved retention; community actively engaged daily