How Mike Moloney Built a 200K+ Customer Marketplace from Photoshop Filters
In this interview, Mike Moloney discusses the journey of building FilterGrade, lessons from attracting over 200K+ customers, and his advice for launching and growing a successful digital business.
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In this interview, Mike Moloney shares how he built FilterGrade into a thriving digital marketplace, I discovered him on one of my Reddit threads and thought to feature his journey.
In this interview, Mike shares:
His backstory and how he started.
How he got his first free and paid customers for his product.
What was effective in attracting customers to his product?
His competitive advantages, what gives him an edge, and insights that have proven beneficial to his operations.
Which books, podcasts, or other resources have had the greatest impact on him.
What advice would he offer to entrepreneurs who are just starting out.
Q. Hello! Who are you and what product are you working on currently, and who is your target audience(Age range)?
Hi, my name is Mike Moloney, and I am the founder of FilterGrade, a marketplace for digital products from creators. Our platform offers photo filters, video effects, mockups, design assets, stock assets, and other templates. Our audience includes creators who sell their products and customers looking for these assets, such as advertisers, agencies, marketers, startups, enterprises, social media teams, and educational institutions.
Q. What is your backstory and how did you come up with your idea? What year did you start?
FilterGrade began as a small shop selling Photoshop actions under our brand. After a year, I noticed the demand for Lightroom presets and expanded into that space. By summer 2016, we transformed into a full marketplace. Our first external product came from a photographer on Instagram, which led to recruiting more partners and gaining traction.
Q. Take us through the process of building the first version of your product MVP.
I launched an MVP with a WordPress landing page and I tested the initial products on marketplaces like Creative Market and Envato. I detail this in-depth in my article, “Using Marketplaces to Build an MVP.”
For newcomers, I recommend starting with simple platforms or pre-selling a product to gather feedback before setting up a full website. Focus on solving a problem and connecting with your target audience.
Q. How many employees do you have working on your product? Do you have any co-founders?
My brother, Matthew Moloney, is my co-founder. Together, we’ve been working on FilterGrade for over seven years. While we don’t have any full-time employees, we collaborate with a team of contractors for specific roles to support the marketplace's development and marketing efforts.
Q. How much monthly traffic do you receive?
We drive ~50,000 unique visitors and ~85,000 pageviews per month on the website and 195,000 monthly views on YouTube.
Q. How did you get your first customers for your product and how many free/paid customers do you have currently? (Feel free to list them out).
We got our early customers from:
- Blogging and content marketing
- Tutorials and YouTube videos
- Social media chats on Twitter, Reddit, Quora, and other smaller niche forums
- Instagram and influencer marketing
- Working with other brands on partnerships and freebies
- Free downloads we still share a ton of these here
We have served over 200,000 customers across all of our sales channels and platforms since 2013.
Q. Since you launched your product, What has worked to attract customers?
SEO and content marketing with a long term, strategic approach.
YouTube videos and content development (shorts, reels, tiktok).
Building a personal brand to advocate for FilterGrade and my other companies.
Q. How is your product performing currently, and what are your plans for the future? Can you share your current metrics and revenue figures?
We are currently expanding the marketplace to support a much broader digital products audience. In 2025, we plan to introduce exciting new products and features to support creators and customers better.
Q. Since the inception of your business, have you gained any insights that have provided you with a competitive advantage and proven beneficial to your operations?
Studying platforms and niches over time is the best advantage. I have been studying digital products and stock assets specifically for over a decade now and have watched a lot of changes in the industry in regards to acquisitions, closures, new openings, new innovations, and beyond.
Q. What tools have helped you grow your product?
WordPress, PayPal, Stripe, Photoshop, Lightroom, Google Analytics and Search Console, studying the internet and social media platforms specifically, talking to customers.
Q. Which books, podcasts, or other resources have had the greatest impact on you?
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, The Four Agreements by Miguel Ruiz, Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson, Advice to a Young Man Hoping to Go Somewhere (Or Get Something From Someone Successful)
Q. What advice would you offer to entrepreneurs who are looking to start or have just begun their journey?
Learn as much as you can and stay curious. Work hard and always provide value first.
Q. Are you hiring?
Not at the moment, we are just focusing on getting our internal processes as sharp as possible so we can best serve creators and customers quickly and well.
Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions! What is your contact info if people would like to inquire about your services? You can add all your links.
Thank you! Here are links to my Linktree, Website, Creative Agency, Instagram, X and Medium.
Let me know what you learned from this interview and have a productive week!🙏
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One underrated way to build links as an indie founder is by using your personal brand for thought leadership. Join industry conversations, and post your own opinion pieces. Share fresh insights and data-driven perspectives, and you’ll end up with citations, mentions in industry reports, and high-quality backlinks, all while establishing yourself as an authority in your niche.
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Check out the product, and share your thoughts in the comments!
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