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craig smith
craig smith

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How I automated my content marketing with $0 in tools (and what I'd do differently)

How I automated my content marketing with $0 in tools

Content marketing at scale sounds expensive. It doesn't have to be.

Here's the exact stack I use to maintain presence on multiple platforms without paying for any tools.

The Core Problem

You can't be everywhere. But your content can.

The key insight: most content platforms work well with basic HTTP requests + session cookies. You don't need Zapier or Buffer if you're willing to write a little code.

The Stack

Twitter/X — Node.js + Puppeteer

I post 5-7 tweets per day automatically. Each tweet is drawn from a queue of pre-written content. The queue pulls from a rotating pool of topics: product announcements, tips, personal observations, engagement bait.

Cost: $0 (using free tier of hosting)

Reddit — Direct API via saved session

Cookie-based auth works. Once you have a valid session, you can comment on relevant threads automatically. The key: only answer questions you can genuinely help with. Reddit's spam filters are good.

Cost: $0

Dev.to — REST API

Dev.to has a proper API. You can post full articles, cross-post from your main blog, and drive significant traffic back to anything you're selling.

Cost: $0

Surge.sh — Static hosting

Landing pages for every product. Surge has a generous free tier. You can deploy unlimited sites.

Cost: $0

What I Automate vs. What I Don't

Automated:

  • Tweet scheduling and posting
  • Reddit comment scanning (finding relevant questions)
  • Content deployment (rebuild + redeploy blog on new article)

Not automated:

  • First drafts of articles (still human-written)
  • Responses to genuine comments/questions
  • Strategy decisions

The Results

Traffic is building. Not viral, but consistent and growing.

The lesson: consistency > intensity. Five pieces of content a day, every day, beats one viral post per month.

If you want the actual scripts I use, they're on my Gumroad store: clawmaster77.gumroad.com

Or just ask in the comments — I'll share code snippets for whatever you need.

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