Making a million $ with NoCode

Hey there,

For close to 4 years, all of Flexiple’s tech was on NoCode - i.e. we wrote almost no code. We still powered to millions in revenue. It seems almost unbelievable, doesn’t it?

In a world where almost all startups are powered by tech, the skill to code has become super valuable. To an extent, we see developers as magicians. They are messiahs who can make our entrepreneurial dream a reality.

While that is broadly true, it also isn’t entirely. The world of NoCode changed the landscape a lot. Even with no knowledge of code, really quality products can be built.

It seems quite counterintuitive for a founder of a company that helps hire engineers to talk about this. But well, the goal is to share my own experiences and help you :)

Our $60/month NoCode stack

Even when our annual revenue crossed $3 million, our stack was fully NoCode. It cost us $60/month. Here’s the split:

• Marketing website: Unicorn Platform ($10)

• Product: Airtable ($0 - on credits) & Bubble ($25)

• Scale & side projects: Webflow ($25)

While we have moved many parts to code now, this served us very well for years.

7 types of NoCode tools for all your startup needs

Now, the way I can add value here is to share 7 types of NoCode tools. Each category can help you build tech for your startup with zero code. I have neatly broken down each category into 4 parts:

• Tools

• Use cases

• Example

• Alternatives

1. Marketing websites

A) Tools: Unicorn platform, Umso

B) Use cases

• You can simply drag & drop elements onto a page

• Build a marketing website in less than 60 minutes

• Easily edit your marketing copy & communication to customers

C) Example
The entire website of Flexiple containing over 100+ pages was built on the Unicorn platform till late last year.

D) Alternatives: Carrd, Webflow

2. Database storage and information websites

A) Tool: Airtable

B) Use cases

• Advanced and more UI-friendly Excel

• Easily collect data using an intuitive form

• Neatly present the data on your website in intuitive layouts

C) Example
To help individuals laid off due to COVID, we built a page listing those who could be hired. And it was super easy to set up.

D) Alternatives:
If anything, Google Sheets is the only alternative. Tools like Sheet2site work well with it to make quick websites.

3. Beautiful info & e-commerce website

A) Tool: Webflow, Softr

B) Use cases

• Build beautiful custom layouts without Code

• Leverage its “CMS” to make numerous automated pages

• Use particularly if you are a designer and want to implement custom design to pixel perfection

C) Examples
We built numerous side projects on Webflow.

D) Alternative:
Bubble: However, if the focus is pixel-perfect design, Webflow is much better.

4. Automate workflows

A) Tools: Zapier, Integromat

B) Use cases

• Automate recurring manual effort

• Store data in CRM, send automated mails, integrate tools, etc.

• Zapier is more intuitive but costly, Integromat has a steeper learning curve but handles complex cases

C) Example
Almost all our dynamic flows were handled by Zapier or Integromat.
User signup -> storing their data in our db -> sending them a mail

D) Alternatives: Parabola, Automate

5. Login & membership systems

A) Tools: Memberstack, MemberSpace

B) Use cases

• To convert your static website to have signups/logins and to also manage SAAS memberships

• Restrict content or pages to only paid users

C) Example
Before we moved to Bubble, our dashboard for viewing new projects, sharing invoices, etc. was built using Memberstack (along with other tools)

D) Alternative:
Bubble offers an in-built authentication system but doesn’t manage subscriptions

6. Any complex web-based product

A) Tool: Bubble

B) Use cases

• Job boards, marketplaces, internal tools => build varied applications using its “workflows” & database

• Quite self-sufficient and removes the need to depend on other tools

• Responsive design is not the best

C) Example
Flexiple’s entire product is entirely built on top of Bubble.

D) Alternatives: Retool, Drapcode

7. Mobile apps

A) Tools: Glide, FlutterFlow

B) Use cases

• Build complex mobile apps with a simple drag & drop functionality

• Automate user actions with in-built workflows

• Use their own DB or even Google Sheets to store data

C) Example
Not used these products myself, but many cool apps were built to help organize & share COVID resources with people.

D) Alternatives: Adalo

Have you used any of these tools already? Let me know how your experience has been with them :)

Best,
Karthik

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