🧱 How I Built a Nationwide Bowling Directory with Replit, Next.js, and AI
Most people build startups around new ideas.
I built mine around an old one — bowling 🎳.
BowlingAlleys.io is a national directory for every bowling alley in the U.S. — reviews, pricing, leagues, cosmic bowling nights, and more. What started as a small SEO test on Replit turned into a full-blown automated system that publishes new, optimized pages every single day.
🧠 The Problem
If you’ve ever tried to find a bowling alley online, you’ve probably noticed how outdated most of them are.
Broken sites. No prices. Out-of-date reviews.
There wasn’t a single modern directory that actually showed what people care about — local pricing, party options, food, cosmic nights, and real reviews.
So I decided to build it myself.
⚙️ The Stack
I kept it lightweight and scalable:
- Frontend: Next.js + Tailwind CSS
- Backend: Firebase for hosting + database
- Automation: Replit for deploying and iterating daily
- AI: Generates structured copy for venues, cities, and experiences (cosmic bowling, birthday parties, leagues, etc.)
- Tracking: GA4 + Search Console + custom event analytics
Everything runs dynamically — new venues, hubs, and experience pages are created automatically and linked sitewide.
🧩 The System
Every day I:
- Add 10 new bowling alleys
- Add or update 1 new city hub
- Publish 1 daily blog post (tips, pricing, party ideas)
- Refresh 1 experience category (like bowling restaurants or leagues)
The result:
Over 5,000 Google Search impressions in under 30 days, all from organic traffic.
No ads. No backlinks (at first). Just structure, speed, and consistency.
🚀 Why It Works
Most local directories fail because they stop at “listing data.”
I went deeper:
- Every page is interlinked (state → city → venue).
- Every venue has FAQ schema.
- Every experience (like “Cosmic Bowling”) connects to real locations.
- Every page updates automatically as Google crawls.
Google doesn’t just see a site — it sees a network of connected data. That’s what builds trust and rankings fast.
📈 Early Results
In the first month:
- 490 unique users
- 3,800+ pageviews
- 829 venue views
- 70+ form starts
- 5K+ search impressions
These aren’t bots. These are real humans scrolling, reading, and clicking “Book a lane.”
That’s how you know you’ve built something valuable.
🧭 What’s Next
- Hit 1,000 monthly users by November
- Launch on Product Hunt
- Add features for alleys to claim their listing
- Keep indexing new venues until I’ve mapped the entire bowling world
💡 The Takeaway
You don’t need a team to build something meaningful.
You just need discipline, automation, and a niche nobody’s paying attention to.
If you can systematize effort, you can outwork entire industries.
Check it out → BowlingAlleys.io
Built on Replit. Deployed daily.
One man, one mission: make bowling searchable again. 🎳
Top comments (8)
nice work!
thank you. it's been awesomet to build with replit.
This project brilliantly illustrates how digital transformation principles apply even to traditional industries like bowling. Leveraging automation with AI to systematize content creation and using modern, scalable technologies like Next.js and Firebase shows the power of combining innovation with discipline. It's a strong reminder for startups and businesses that niche markets often present untapped growth opportunities when approached with the right tech stack and a clear systematized effort. Excited to see how adding listing claims and further user engagement features will drive continued growth and user value.
Thanks for the comment Mike. Yeah. it's one of those things, as someone who builds in tech, I'm always looking for problerms to solve. I'm not that big a bowler myself but when i saw the data and identified the problem I couldn't help but try to make something.
and honesltyi AI has made it hella fun to build. it's easy and fast, and with a lot less bugs. now I'm actually focusing on adding all bowling alleys. which is what i wanted in the first place.
you have no idea ho outdated bowling alley sites are.
Great job.
thank you. I appreciate you liking my work
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