📱 Best Platforms
Chrome Web Store, Gumroad, Product Hunt
📖 The Hustle
Build a Chrome extension that lets users create text shortcuts that expand into full snippets. Freelancers and support agents type the same emails, proposals, and responses daily. Instead of paying $5-10/month for TextExpander or Magical, users pay a one-time $12 fee for your extension. Chrome extensions have a built-in distribution channel through the Chrome Web Store, and a useful tool gets discovered organically through search.
🚀 First Step
Create a new Chrome extension manifest (V3), build a popup where users add shortcut/snippet pairs, and implement a content script that listens for shortcut keywords typed in any text field and replaces them with the full snippet.
🔑 Keys to Success
- Include import/export functionality so users can share snippet libraries with team members — this feature creates organic growth when one buyer shares their snippets with colleagues who then buy your extension
- Build for Manifest V3 from day one — V2 extensions are being phased out, and building for V3 ensures your extension does not break when Google completes the migration
- Offer niche-specific pre-built snippet packs (real estate agent emails, freelancer proposals, customer support responses) as bonus downloads to differentiate from generic text expanders
🛠 Tools & Resources: JavaScript/HTML/CSS, Chrome Extension APIs, Chrome Web Store, Gumroad, VS Code