In March, I stumbled upon this particular website when scrolling down google news feed. It was about toilet paper, specifically toilet paper calculator. The creator of this website are Ben Sassoon, a student software developer, and Sam Harris an artist from London. They came to the idea after having discussion on how much toilet paper people use and how it will change during the pandemic.
Jimmy Fallon even made a joke about it saying:
“I heard about an online toilet paper calculator that tells you how long your supply will last, so if you think you’re bored, imagine being the guy who just created an online toilet paper site.” – Jimmy Fallon,
The Tonight Show
It pays
The site has been featured on the likes of Fox News, CNN, NBC, The Daily Show… pretty much every giant media broadcast station anyone can think of.
Because of this, over 12,000,000 people have used the site. And it made over $21,000 in its first month! – that’s $252,000 a year. Not bad for being bored. This proves that sometimes being bored or lazy pays off. And its currently on sale here https://empireflippers.com/listing/47884/.
Here’s a snapshot of website: https://howmuchtoiletpaper.com/
Coder, not
After seeing the toilet paper calculator site, I thought I would make one too. Then I just realised I do not know how to code. I would have to learn programming from scratch, that means waste of my time and energy. I did learn many years ago, so I only know very basic. Best option was to get it done by someone or outsource.
Enter Fiverr
Fiverr is a place where all kind of freelancer are available. From singing birthday song to cooking lessons, HR consulting to game development, virtual assistant to web development etc. Its bit irony that most of the services are above fiver. Some services cost hundreds and even thousands. Years ago, all services offered on Fiverr used to be fiver but not anymore. It still is available but very few. I used to buy services frequently back in the day (probably spent ££££). Now, I only buy sometimes.
Finding web developer
- Go to web programming
- Select top rated or level 2 seller
- Contact at least 5 or more with clear instructions.
- Mention budget and TAT (turn around time)
- Give priority whoever response first
- Confirm they understood the given instructions (in my case copycat website)
- Once understood. Agreed on the price.
- Let the seller (freelancer) finish the job
- Review the result if happy, leave a review.
As in the above image, some freelancer even quote me $480, that was above my budget. I eventually accepted one freelancer’s offer of £119.
Website reveal
After 4 days freelancer sent me the completed zip files. I downloaded and uploaded it into my server. And here it is. https://www.toiletpapercalculator.site/
Its not just this copycat website is online – there are many dozens have appeared. Some of them listed below.
My income and expenses
- Freelancer = -£119
- Ad campaign = -£80
- Revenue = +£35
Total spent = £164
