The latest articles on DEV Community by Jose Zamudio (@soyzamudio). https://dev.to/soyzamudio https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3639894%2F63c22ea0-01bc-4042-905c-72705446634a.jpeg https://dev.to/soyzamudio en Jose Zamudio Wed, 03 Dec 2025 01:40:14 +0000 https://dev.to/soyzamudio/i-built-a-waitlist-tool-with-viral-mechanics-7o4 https://dev.to/soyzamudio/i-built-a-waitlist-tool-with-viral-mechanics-7o4 <p>I built a waitlist tool with viral mechanics (because I was tired of paying $79/mo for basic features)</p> <p><strong>Background:</strong> I'm an indie hacker who's launched a few products. Every time I needed a waitlist, the tools were either:</p> <ul> <li>Expensive ($79-199/mo)</li> <li>Missing features (no API, no webhooks)</li> <li>Cluttered with features I didn't need</li> </ul> <p>So I built ReferralLoop.</p> <p><strong>What makes it different:</strong></p> <ul> <li> <strong>Actual viral mechanics</strong> - People move UP in line by referring friends. Not just "share to get updates" - actual position movement. This created 3x more referrals in my testing.</li> <li> <strong>Developer-friendly</strong> - Full REST API, webhooks, Zapier integration. Every competitor either has no API or charges $200+/mo for it.</li> <li> <strong>Affordable</strong> - Free tier that's actually useful (100 signups). Paid plans start at $29/mo with API access included.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Features:</strong></p> <ul> <li>8 professionally designed templates (Apple-inspired minimal, gaming leaderboards, Shopify-style, and more) - fully customizable</li> <li>Beautiful public waitlist pages</li> <li>Automatic referral tracking</li> <li>Position advancement based on referrals</li> <li>Email notifications</li> <li>CSV export</li> <li>Analytics dashboard</li> <li>API + webhooks</li> <li>Zapier (connect to 5,000+ apps)</li> </ul> <p><strong>Tech:</strong> Next.js, Supabase, TypeScript, Tailwind</p> <p><strong>Pricing:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Free: 100 signups, 1 waitlist</li> <li>Starter ($29): 1K signups, API access</li> <li>Growth ($99): 10K signups + custom domains</li> <li>Pro ($199): Unlimited</li> </ul> <p>Try it: <a href="https://referralloop.dev" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://referralloop.dev</a><br> Check out the templates at: <a href="https://referralloop.dev/templates" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://referralloop.dev/templates</a></p> <p><strong>Coming soon:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Rewards: Automate gift card/cash payouts to top referrers when they hit milestones. Integrates with Tremendous API for delivery. Supports Amazon, Apple, Steam, and other gift cards, Visa prepaid, and cash transfers.</li> <li>Email Campaigns: Design and create email campaigns that you can use to send massive emails to your signups. Filter by different criteria to target the signups you need to.</li> </ul> <p>Happy to answer questions! </p> <p>Also open to feedback - what features would make you use this over alternatives?</p> saas showdev startup tooling