Custom Web Scraping API Service
"A bespoke web scraping service providing private APIs for clients to extract data from Google, Bing, Walmart, eBay, and other platforms, integrated directly into their workflows."
Marketing Channels
Direct client relationships
Works directly with clients, providing real-time support and debugging, suggesting relationship-based sales
Hacker News
Shared the project in HN year-end thread
Growth Levers
- Productize the most common scraping use cases into self-serve API plans to reduce per-client support burden
- Create a public-facing website and landing pages targeting specific verticals (e-commerce, SEO, market research)
- Offer tiered pricing based on data volume, refresh frequency, and number of data sources
- Build case studies from existing clients to demonstrate ROI and attract similar businesses
- Target e-commerce businesses that need competitor pricing data — a high-value, repeatable use case
- Leverage the direct client feedback loop to rapidly iterate on the most valuable features
First Customer Strategy
The creator acquired two clients through what appears to be direct outreach or networking. The service is highly customized — the creator provides private APIs specific to each client's use case and offers hands-on integration support. Clients are still in a testing phase, suggesting the relationships are early and revenue could grow.
Pricing Insight
At approximately $300/month per client with only 2 clients, the pricing appears to be in the early/testing phase. As clients validate the data's value in their workflows, there is significant room for price increases. Web scraping API services in the market often charge $500-2000+/month depending on volume and complexity.
New Market Opportunities
- E-commerce competitive intelligence Scraping Walmart and eBay data suggests e-commerce pricing and product intelligence as a core market
- SEO and digital marketing agencies Google and Bing scraping is directly relevant to SEO professionals tracking rankings and search results
Key Takeaways
- • High-touch, customized services can generate meaningful early revenue while building deep understanding of client needs
- • Starting with just 2 clients and direct feedback creates a tight feedback loop that is invaluable for product development
- • Web scraping as a service remains a viable business because the technical complexity creates a natural moat
- • Clients 'testing the market' indicates growth potential — if the data proves valuable, usage and willingness to pay will increase
- • The transition from bespoke service to productized API is a well-known scaling path for data-as-a-service businesses
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