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The Guide To No Code Marketplaces
1. Â
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The Guide To NoÂ
Code Marketplaces Â
Everything you need to know about building,Â
launching, and scaling an online marketplaceÂ
using no code.Â
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JULY 2020Â Â
CREATED BYÂ
Mike Williamsâ (Yoroomie)Â
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A RESOURCE FOR EVERYTHING MARKETPLACESÂ
www.everythingmarketplaces.comÂ
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Introduction & BackgroundÂ
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Iâm Mike Williams or you might know me as Yoroomie. Iâve built and launched multipleÂ
marketplace startups, most notably (thatâs relevant to this) I built and launchedÂ
Studiotime (âwww.studiotime.ioâ) in an evening using no code. âI quickly took an idea toÂ
whatâs now a highly profitable and largest online marketplace for music studios in theÂ
world (35+ countries) using no code, minimal time, & little to no resources. Â
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In addition to building, launching, and operating Studiotime using no & low code, I runÂ
Thinkbox (âwww.thinkbox.ioâ), which is a marketplace focused studio that focuses onÂ
building marketplaces for others using no & low code. Weâve helped build, launch, andÂ
support 75+ marketplaces using no & low code that have generated millions in GMVÂ
annually. Â
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Since I first built Studiotime years ago, no code tools and platforms have matured and areÂ
now ideal to take most marketplace ideas to launch (and even revenue generating) byÂ
leveraging no code tools and platforms. Iâve put together this extensive guide to helpÂ
others understand their specific marketplace needs, quickly identify the options for noÂ
code marketplace builds, understand the tools & platforms that are best-suited for theirÂ
marketplace through, provide a basic framework, examples, and also brief interviews andÂ
insights from operators of successful no code marketplaces to accelerate the typicalÂ
learning curve. Â
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If youâd like to access more marketplace resources you can join the marketplace foundersÂ
group that I also started, Everything Marketplaces (âwww.everythingmarketplaces.comâ).Â
By joining, youâll have access to a more comprehensive version of this guide, tutorials,Â
deals on some of these tools & platforms, and also help every step along the way fromÂ
myself and other marketplace founders. Â
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Thanks for reading and be sure to let me know when you launch your own marketplace! Â
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-MikeÂ
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ContentsÂ
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1. Thinking through your marketplace idea as a businessÂ
2. The basics of marketplace business models Â
3. The main types of online marketplaces & typical functionality Â
4. Why no code? Â
5. The no code tools & platform options for buildingÂ
6. The considerations & decision making factors for building a marketplace using noÂ
code related to each optionÂ
7. Operating no code marketplaces Â
8. Overcoming potential no code limitations & customizing your marketplace-specificÂ
to itâs requirements & workflowsÂ
9. No code marketplace founder insightsÂ
10.SummaryÂ
11. âResourcesÂ
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Your Marketplace Idea Â
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When you initially come up with your marketplace idea (& before you start building), it isÂ
beneficial to thoroughly think through it and ask yourself a few key business questions:Â
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1. What problem are you solving? Â
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2. For who are you solving it for? Â
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3. What are your skills, resources, and timeline for building, launching, and runningÂ
your online marketplace? Â
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3. How are you uniquely positioned to solve this yourself and through creating anÂ
online marketplace?Â
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4. As a marketplace, how are you going to add value to both supply and demand?Â
With that answered, what is your desired relationship with each as aÂ
marketplace? â(i.e: providing listings as a simple directory, connecting them withÂ
demand, owning the transaction and payment layer, etc)Â Â
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5. How are you going to monetize this?â (i.e: listing fees, booking commission fees, etc)Â
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6. How are you going to differentiate as a marketplace and ensure there is noÂ
platform overlap with other marketplaces? Â
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Marketplace Business Models Â
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Peer-To-Peer (P2P) Marketplaces Â
Marketplaces that connect supply and demand directly and facilitate the exchange ofÂ
value, sales, or services directly through their platform. Â
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Business-To-Consumer (B2C) Marketplaces Â
Marketplaces that connect business to consumers directly through their platform. Â
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Business-To-Business (B2B) Marketplaces Â
Marketplaces that connect businesses to other businesses directly through their platformÂ
for the exchange of services, goods, or other value exchange. Â
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Managed Marketplaces Â
Marketplaces that connect businesses to other businesses or businesses to consumersÂ
directly through their platform for the exchange of services, goods, or other valueÂ
exchange.Â
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*Note that managed marketplaces typically assume more liability and risk through inventory,Â
holding costs, etc. Examples of this are both The RealReal and GOAT App with inventory. Â
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The Main Marketplace Types Â
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Spaces MarketplacesÂ
Marketplaces that connect supply and demand directly and facilitate the exchange ofÂ
value, sales, or services directly through their platform. Â
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Services MarketplacesÂ
Marketplaces that connect business to consumers directly through their platform. Â
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Products or Goods MarketplacesÂ
Marketplaces that connect businesses to other businesses directly through their platformÂ
for the exchange of services, goods, or other value exchange. Â
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The following are common core marketplace functionality and features required forÂ
spaces marketplaces:Â
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1. User accountsÂ
2. User listing creation and managementsÂ
3. Basic availability and scheduling managementÂ
4. Location based search and listing discovery based on location Â
5. User to user messaging on platformÂ
6. Booking request and transaction processes Â
7. Booking managementÂ
8. Booking reviews Â
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The following are common core marketplace functionality and features required forÂ
services (physical or virtual delivery) marketplaces:Â
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1. User accountsÂ
2. User listing creation and managementsÂ
3. Basic availability and scheduling managementÂ
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4. Location based search and listing discovery based on location Â
5. User to user messaging on platformÂ
6. Booking request and transaction processes Â
7. Booking managementÂ
8. Booking reviews Â
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The following are common core marketplace functionality and features required forÂ
products & goods marketplaces (physical & digital) marketplaces:Â
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1. User accountsÂ
2. User listing creation and managementsÂ
3. Basic availability and scheduling managementÂ
4. Location based search and listing discovery based on location Â
5. User to user messaging on platformÂ
6. Booking request and transaction processes Â
7. Booking managementÂ
8. Booking reviews Â
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Why No Code? Â
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Marketplaces are generally speaking businesses that do not leverage proprietaryÂ
technology or require new user experiences, functionality, or operational capabilities.Â
Given that, marketplaces are uniquely positioned to leverage no code platforms that areÂ
specifically built to allow you to take your idea to a live marketplace using little to no code. Â
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The Main BenefitsÂ
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+ No code is much cheaper and faster than building your marketplace platform fromÂ
scratch. Â
+ Most marketplaces have the same basic functionality requirements, such asÂ
creating a listing, communication between users, and handling bookings andÂ
transactions. Â
+ There are no code tools and platforms that have productized (and modularized)Â
basic marketplace functionality. This allows you to leverage all of these basicÂ
mechanics, functionality, and features to build a marketplace and customize it forÂ
your specific use case. Â
+ Using additional customizations, tools, and even integrations, can also createÂ
additional features on top of the existing feature sets of these no code marketplaceÂ
platforms and provide for a more custom user experience for yours. Â
+ No code tools and platforms also allow you to operate, iterate, and support yourÂ
marketplace using minimal time and resources. Â
+ Before no code, building and running an online marketplace was typically capitalÂ
intensive, but has now been made possible in a more resourceful way with no codeÂ
platforms. Â
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The DrawbacksÂ
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While no code is much cheaper and faster then building your marketplace platform fromÂ
scratch, it does have some limitations. Â
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- There is still a learning curve to building your marketplace, launching it, gettingÂ
users, traction, and supporting it within the constraints of a no code marketplaceÂ
platform. Â
- As with most platforms & tools, there are also some feature, functionality, andÂ
customization constraints that you might face once you get real users transactingÂ
through your marketplace. Â
- If initial limitations are not an issue at the earliest stages of your marketplace, theyÂ
might be more realized as your marketplace starts to gain more traction, your usersÂ
require more advanced functionality, and your marketplace would be better withÂ
more custom marketplace workflows, along with a better user experience. Â
- There are also costs to using no code platforms and tools that can scale inÂ
proportion to your marketplace business as it begins to scale. Â
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The Most Common No Code MarketplaceÂ
PlatformsÂ
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SharetribeÂ
Sharetribeâ is a marketplace specific platform that allows you to take your idea to a liveÂ
marketplace without code. Sharetribe emphasizes that it is used by 1,000+ marketplacesÂ
that are live and is a solution that allows you to go from idea to scale using itâs Go and FlexÂ
offerings. Â
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BubbleÂ
Bubbleâ is a code-free programming language that lets you build interactive, multi-userÂ
apps for desktop and mobile web browsers without engineers. It emphasizes total designÂ
freedom with a drag and drop editor, robust and scalable infrastructure for hosting, andÂ
collaboration as benefits on itâs website. Â
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WebflowÂ
Webflowâ provides you with the power to design, build, and launch responsive websitesÂ
visually, while writing clean, semantic code for you. It emphasizes the ability to quicklyÂ
build well-designed websites, launch, and scale as distinguishing features on itâs website. Â
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The Considerations & Decision Making FactorsÂ
For Building A No Code MarketplaceÂ
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The primary considerations with building a marketplace using no code are your skills, yourÂ
resources available (developer for customizations if youâre not technical), your timeline,Â
and budget. In addition to these are the business requirements to factor in when choosingÂ
the right platform that are shown below, such as marketplace business model, theÂ
marketplace type, required functionality, etc. Â
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 SharetribeÂ
GoÂ
SharetribeÂ
FlexÂ
Bubble Webflo
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Basics    Â
Monthly pricing Starts atÂ
$79Â
Starts atÂ
$299Â
StartsÂ
at $29Â
Starts atÂ
$35Â
Marketplace specific? â â  Â
Customizations with third-partyÂ
integrations possible?Â
 â â âÂ
Marketplace Business Types    Â
Peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplaces â â  Â
Business-to-consumer (B2C)Â
marketplacesÂ
â â â Â
Business-to-business (B2B) marketplaces   â âÂ
Managed marketplaces   â âÂ
Marketplace Types    Â
Spaces marketplaces (Airbnb, Hipcamp) â â â Â
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Services marketplaces (Fiverr, Upwork) â â  Â
Skills & labor marketplaces (Taskrabbit) â  â Â
Products & goods marketplaces (Grailed,Â
Etsy)Â
â â  Â
Marketplace Functionality     Â
User accounts & management â â â* Â
User listings & management â â â* â*Â
Location & keyword search â â â* â*Â
Bookings & transactions â â â* Â
Platform payments  â â â* Â
PayPal integration for payments â  â* Â
Stripe integration for payments â â â* Â
Reviews â â â* Â
User accounts & management â â â* â*Â
Booking Calendar â â â* Â
Multiple-languages â â â* â*Â
Third-party integrations  â â* â*Â
Customizable transaction process &Â
workflowÂ
 â â* Â
Possible to build native app experience  â â* Â
Other Factors    Â
Platform & data migration possible? â â  Â
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Developer support?  â â â âÂ
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â*â denotes possible with custom development and potentially requiring tool integration. NoteÂ
that for Bubble, some of these are embedded within the Bubble platform ( i.e: user accounts &Â
management, listings & management, location & keyword search, etc) and can be customizedÂ
within Bubble through the data tabs, thus might not require external plugins or third-party toolÂ
integrations. Â
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Sharetribe In More DetailÂ
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What Is It Ideal For?Â
Sharetribeâ is the ideal solution for building âpeer-to-peer marketplacesâ that âconnect supplyÂ
and demand directly and facilitate the rental of spaces, booking services, or selling physicalÂ
goods to other users directlyâ through their platform. Â
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What Are The Options When Building With Sharetribe?Â
Sharetribe has two products they offer for those looking to build and launch and onlineÂ
marketplace based on the required functionality and customization possibilities:Â
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Sharetribe GoÂ
Create a peer-to-peer marketplace like Airbnb, eBay, or Fiverr and make money whileÂ
your users book spaces, services, or sell physical goods & products. Using âSharetribe Goâ,Â
you can build and launch your fully functional marketplace without any code.Â
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Sharetribe FlexÂ
Take your peer-to-peer marketplace business to the next level (web &/or mobile) usingÂ
Sharetribeâs Flexâ solution. Build a more custom user interface, features, and specificÂ
marketplace functionality on top of Sharetribeâs Flex API. Sharetribe Flex is a marketplaceÂ
backend-as-a-service and requires using and customizing their front end web templates,Â
which they refer to as Flex Templates for Web (FTW). Â
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The Sharetribe Go Or Sharetribe Flex Decision MatrixÂ
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Basics SharetribeÂ
GoÂ
SharetribeÂ
FlexÂ
Monthly price Starting atÂ
$79Â
Staring atÂ
$299Â
Support & Updates Included â Â
Front-End Hosting Included â Â
Backend Hosting included â âÂ
Custom Development/Skills Required?  No âÂ
API Integrations Possible?  âÂ
Customer support  â (backendÂ
only)Â
Marketplace Types  Â
Selling physical products â Â
Offering & booking services â âÂ
Selling tickets  â âÂ
Listing & offering free goods, products, services, etc.  â Â
Marketplace Functionality   Â
User accounts & management â âÂ
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User listings & management â âÂ
Location & keyword search â âÂ
Bookings & transactions â âÂ
Platform payments  â âÂ
PayPal integration for payments â Â
Stripe integration for payments â âÂ
Reviews â âÂ
User accounts & management â âÂ
Booking Calendar â Â
Multiple-languages â Â
Third-party integrations  âÂ
Customizable transaction process & workflow  âÂ
Possible to build native app experience  âÂ
Included Saas Services  Â
Location search â Â
Email notifications â Â
Server, error, and status monitoring â (backend)Â
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Sharetribe ExamplesÂ
www.shopuni.ioâ (Sharetribe Go)Â
www.tribehire.ioâ (Sharetribe Go + custom landing pages)Â
www.studiotime.ioâ (Sharetribe Flex extensively customized) (âFounder interview &Â
insightsâ)Â
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www.theshoot.ioâ (Sharetribe Flex customized) (âFounder interview & insightsâ)Â
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See more examples âhereâ. Â
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Bubble In More DetailÂ
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What Is It Ideal For?Â
Bubbleâ is an ideal platform for marketplaces that connect businesses to consumers (B2C)Â
directly through their platform. It is not the best-suited option for peer-to-peer (P2P)Â
marketplaces (where Sharetribe is ideal) or managed marketplaces that donât requireÂ
backend functionality (where Webflow is ideal). Â
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What Are The Options When Building With Bubble?Â
When building with Bubble, you can utilize pre-existing templates to get started buildingÂ
from, or even jump into a blank project and build a fully-customized user experience andÂ
workflows. Bubble is a no code platform in itself, but specific marketplace functionalityÂ
might require plugins (payments, reviews, etc) and most Bubble marketplaces alsoÂ
require extensive customization in order to achieve their specific marketplaceÂ
functionality. Â
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Webflow In More DetailÂ
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What Is It Ideal For? Â
Webflowâ is ideal for marketplaces that connect businesses to other businesses (B2B)Â
directly through their platform. Also, other marketplaces that benefit from aÂ
well-designed and custom user experience without complex backend functionalityÂ
required. Â
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What Are The Options When Building With Webflow?Â
Just like when building with Bubble, you can utilize pre-existing themes to get startedÂ
building from, or even jump into a new project and build a fully-customized userÂ
experience and their CMS capabilities. Webflow is a no code platform in itself, it doesÂ
typically require other no code tool & platform integrations in order to achieveÂ
marketplace functionality, which is most common with Airtable (user database &Â
management), Jetboost (search), Zapier (integrations & notifications), and MemberStackÂ
(user accounts, subscription, etc). Â
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Webflow Marketplace ExamplesÂ
www.dwellito.comâ (Webflow, Zapier, Parabola, Jetboost, Airtable) (âFounder interview &Â
insightsâ)Â
www.unicornfactory.nzâ (Webflow, Zapier, Parabola, Jetboost, Airtable) (âFounderÂ
interview & insightsâ)Â
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See more examples âhereâ. Â
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Operating No Code MarketplacesÂ
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Operating a no code marketplace business has its own unique operational requirementsÂ
as a business. Unlike a SaaS tool, a marketplace connects two parties for the exchange ofÂ
value or services, so there is a virtual or in-person interaction that originates from yourÂ
online marketplace. With that in mind, there are a few factors to consider and prioritize:Â
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â Operator functionality thatâs required for your marketplace via an admin panel:Â
â User management Â
â Listing management Â
â Transaction management Â
â Payments managementÂ
â Review managementÂ
â Understanding potential points of friction & high touch for custom supportÂ
(pre-authorized bookings, payment, cancellations, etc)Â
â If youâre non-technical, having a product and technical resource available to helpÂ
you understand potential improvements, integrations, and customizations if yourÂ
marketplace requires more customized functionality and workflows as it scalesÂ
(common with Sharetribe Flex, Bubble, & custom Webflow marketplaces). Â
â Understanding the potential increased costs for no code tools & platforms as yourÂ
marketplace begins to scale. Â
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*Note that if you are bootstrapping and less than a year old as a business, most tools &Â
platforms will offer some sort of bootstrap or early-stage startup discount. Â
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Overcoming Potential No Code Limitations &Â
Customizing Your Marketplace-Specific To ItâsÂ
Requirements & Workflows Â
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As your marketplace begins to build liquidity and scale, it will most likely require moreÂ
customized workflows & features. Given that your marketplace is built using no code, itÂ
might not initially be possible to customize and add these requirements using just an outÂ
of the box platform like Sharetribe Go, A Sharetribe Flex FTW, Bubble templates, or basicÂ
Webflow build. While most of the platforms covered in this guide allow for third-partyÂ
integrations, there are also creative ways to âintegrateâ other tools or platforms toÂ
creatively build out additional functionality and a better user experience.Â
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An example of this is using a landing page builder, such as Instapage, Carrd, or evenÂ
Webflow to build static pages and host landing pages (homepage, why page, etc) on a topÂ
level domain (i.e: âwww.studiotime.ioâ) and then having the core marketplace functionalityÂ
(user accounts, listings, bookings payments, reviews, etc) on a subdomain such asÂ
app.studiotime.io. This is how we creatively build a better user experience, builtÂ
subscription functionality, and were able to scale Studiotime from initial MVP to six-figureÂ
revenue without coding and able to operate the company with under $500/month inÂ
expenses. Â
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Using creative workarounds, integrations, and even low code customizations to these noÂ
code platforms is very common now and most (if not all) examples of live and successfulÂ
marketplaces provided as examples above do this. Â
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The following are common Sharetribe Go & Flex integrations and customizations:Â
â Instapageâ, âCarrdâ, or âWebflowâ for custom landing pages on top-level domain andÂ
core marketplace on subdomain and Sharetribe.Â
â Chargebeeâ and âStripeâ used for subscription functionalityÂ
â Calendlyâ used for calendar integrations on Sharetribe GoÂ
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The following are common Bubble customizations:Â
â User accounts & managementÂ
â User-to-user messaging with real-time notificationsÂ
â Customized marketplace transactions processes & workflowsÂ
â Stripe integrations for payment gatewayÂ
â User reviewsÂ
â Custom admin panelsÂ
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*A note on the above is that these customizations for Bubble might require significantÂ
customization and/or potentially require plugins.Â
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The are common Webflow customizations:Â
â Airtableâ and âZapierâ for user, listings, and reviews database. Zapier automatesÂ
populating via Webflow CMS.Â
â Parabolaâ to synch data between tools and platformsÂ
â Jetboostâ to filter and search data Â
â Airtable, Zapier, and email system for automating sales, Â
â Memberstackâ to monetize via paid memberships, subscriptions, hiding specificÂ
content or pages, etc.Â
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Founder Insights From Those RunningÂ
Successful No Code Marketplaces Â
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Studiotime Â
www.studiotime.ioÂ
No code marketplace stack: Sharetribe Flex, Twilio, Chargebee, Instapage, & Stripe Â
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Answering my own founder and operator questions as the founder of StudiotimeÂ
(6/26/20)Â
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How did you specifically benefit from using no & low code to take your idea to liveÂ
marketplace?Â
âThe original story of Studiotime is that I basically had the idea in an evening after seeingÂ
friends text each other asking about music studios and thinking that there was already anÂ
âAirbnb for music studiosâ. I did a quick search and to my surprise there wasnât. With thisÂ
in mind, I came across Sharetribe when it was in the early days and quickly learned how toÂ
use it to build the MVP, customize it, onboard initial supply (via Craiglist manualÂ
outreach), and launch on Product Hunt. The rest is sort of history as it quickly generatedÂ
quite a bit of traction, I focused on building supply, and we had 1k+ music studios,Â
generated six-figure revenue, and soon became the largest online marketplace for musicÂ
studios in the world (now 35+ countries). Without finding Sharetribe and using other noÂ
code tools, I would not have been able to quickly build, launch, and test an idea without aÂ
substantial time and cost investment. To be honest, I probably wouldnât have even builtÂ
and launched it.âÂ
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What are your approximate monthly costs? Â
âFor the first few years Studiotime was built on Sharetribe Go, custom landing pages, andÂ
used a few no code tools for integration to help automate processes, workflows, andÂ
support. The total costs were under $500/month. Â
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Since we migrated to a more customized marketplace thatâs built using Sharetribe Flex,Â
our costs have increased but remain relatively low at under $1k/month for all of our tools,Â
services, and any minor development needs.âÂ
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The Shoot Â
www.theshoot.ioÂ
No code marketplace stack: Sharetribe Flex, Stripe, Relevance, Twilio, Chargebee, &Â
UnbounceÂ
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Interview with Fiona, Co-founder (6/26/20)Â
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How did you specifically benefit from using no & low code to take your idea to liveÂ
marketplace?Â
âWe were able to take our vision to launch in around 4 weeks, at a cost of around $4,500.Â
To provide some context, I am a UX designer so I spent a few weeks before this, designingÂ
the wireframes and user journeys for the website. Neither me, nor my co-founder areÂ
technical so we employed developers in Vietnam to do the additional development workÂ
and build the marketplace-specific customizations for our Sharetribe marketplace. TheyÂ
were fantastic and completed the work within a month. We were also able to bootstrapÂ
our marketplace whilst remaining in full-time employment.âÂ
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What are your approximate monthly costs? Â
âOur monthly costs are roughly in the region of $1,350/month. This includes the cost ofÂ
hosting, new marketplace-specific customizations & features (ongoing development), andÂ
all tool and platform subscriptions.â Â
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Are there any specific insights youâd like to share?Â
âI think no and low code tools are fantastic for building out your MVP. They allow you toÂ
set up a marketplace very quickly, launch, and get initial validation of your business idea. IÂ
would also encourage people to use them if they want something which is not too far fromÂ
the out of the box templates for their marketplace type. They can be restrictive in terms ofÂ
what you can and canât build with them, but you can customize them for your specificÂ
marketplace needs. If you are looking to make major customizations, I would recommendÂ
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costing them out and weighing up whether itâs better to invest in a fully custom build orÂ
ideally leverage no and low code tools and platforms.âÂ
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DwellitoÂ
www.dwellito.comÂ
No code marketplace stack: Webflow, Parabola, Airtable, Zapier, Google SheetsÂ
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Interview with Caleb Barclay, Founder (6/29/20)Â
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How did you specifically benefit from using no & low code to take your idea to liveÂ
marketplace?Â
âLike many other founders, the idea of my company Dwellito started from a personalÂ
journey towards finding a backyard guesthouse that I could use as a rental income. As I didÂ
my due diligence of all the top 10 companies that I was considering, I started to see theÂ
value in the list I had created. A close friend had built a robust CMS in Webflow and IÂ
wanted to learn Webflow, so this project was the guinea pig. Webflowâs CMS allowed meÂ
to spin up all the data that I had collected into a site, in a matter of hours. No joke, this is aÂ
significant competitive advantage of nocode: testing ideas in a fraction of the time. IÂ
wouldnât have tried out this concept had it not been for Webflowâs CMS. The low cost ofÂ
maintenance gives the platform another edge - not just the cost of Webflow but more soÂ
the ability to test multiple ideas around monetization, user experience, and siteÂ
performance, on a weekly basis.âÂ
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What are your approximate monthly costs? Â
âThe monthly breakdown for our costs are:Â
â Zapier: $50/moÂ
â Airtable: $20/moÂ
â Parabola: $5/moÂ
â Acuity: $15/moÂ
â Webflow: $16/mo (CMS plan)Â
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This puts the monthly total to run Dwellito at about $106/month.âÂ
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28. Â
Are there any specific insights youâd like to share?Â
âI would encourage people that are looking to build the next bootstrap marketplace toÂ
first define what their marketplace needs are, then reference existing nocodeÂ
marketplaces to find out how they were built. Webflow has limitations and there areÂ
probably over 15 different ways the site could have been built. Itâs great to look into theÂ
constraints of the platform and ask yourself how do you want to manage customers, howÂ
do you want to manage payment, how do you want to automate, how do you processÂ
updates for the suppliers, and so on. With Dwellito, customers are looking to purchase aÂ
home online so there are fewer transactions, but larger purchases. The strategy is 100%Â
around improving the customer experience on the site; fewer suppliers but betterÂ
presented data.âÂ
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Unicorn Factory Â
www.unicornfactory.nzÂ
No code marketplace stack: Webflow, Parabola, Airtable, Zapier, Memberstack, JetboostÂ
Â
Interview with Connor Finlayson, Founder (6/28/20)Â
Â
How did you specifically benefit from using no & low code to take your idea to liveÂ
marketplace?Â
âI can't code, so being able to use No Code tools was really a game-changer that allowedÂ
me to spin up an online marketplace. When I started building Unicorn Factory, I justÂ
wanted to build a super simple directory without any automation or databases. WebflowÂ
allowed me to do just that. Beyond that, discovering other No Code tools and problems IÂ
had. For example, when I wanted to automate some of my workflows, I came acrossÂ
Zapier. When I needed to have a database to store all the information in one place, IÂ
discovered Airtable. When I wanted to monetize the platform I found and started usingÂ
Memberstack. Now, we have such a huge range of No-Code tools that really solve a lot ofÂ
use cases you will come across when building an online marketplace. The bigÂ
breakthrough for me was learning how to build within the limitations of the tools and myÂ
skill set.âÂ
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27Â
29. Â
What are your approximate monthly costs? Â
âMy monthly costs can be broken down as:Â
â Webflow Hosting $25/monthÂ
â Webflow Account $25/monthÂ
â Zapier $89/monthÂ
â Parabola $16/monthÂ
â Integromat $9/monthÂ
â Memberstack $25/month + Transaction FeeÂ
â Jetboost $9/monthÂ
â Airtable $24/monthÂ
â Convertkit $49/monthÂ
Â
Thatâs the tool stack and all costs to run Unicorn Factory.âÂ
Â
Are there any specific insights youâd like to share?Â
âI often get asked for templates for others to build a marketplace similar to UnicornÂ
Factory. For anyone out there thatâs thinking about starting their own marketplace, IÂ
would actually advise against using shortcuts when trying to figure out how to set up yourÂ
own marketplace. The only reason I am as comfortable as I am with all of these tools isÂ
because I invested the time to thoroughly learn them all. Even though it might take it a bitÂ
longer to get your MVP up and running, taking this approach will pay huge dividends downÂ
the road. Now, I am a lot more comfortable with adding new features and fixing bugsÂ
myself. That is something you won't experience when you get someone to do a bulk of theÂ
work upfront for you. Â
Â
For me, No Code is not so much about the tools you use. For me, it's about being able toÂ
build online products independently. Unfortunately, there is no template or shortcut outÂ
there that will give you this independence. You just have to invest the time into learning itÂ
all.âÂ
Â
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28Â
30. Â
Â
SummaryÂ
Â
Since marketplaces (generally speaking) share similar requirements that have beenÂ
standardized, templatized, and productized, they are uniquely positioned to leverage noÂ
code. Most marketplace business ideas can be quickly built using Sharetribe, Bubble, orÂ
Webflow to have a live and functional user experience that allows you to quickly takeÂ
your idea to market, generate some initial traction, and hopefully validate yourÂ
marketplace business. Â
Â
In addition to this, you can think of no code as reducing the time, costs, and risks ofÂ
pursuing your marketplace idea. You will be able to quickly get real market feedback,Â
signalling, and know what the next steps are in scaling your marketplace. Â
Â
While there are some completely no code marketplaces that are generating six-figureÂ
revenue per year, most marketplaces that are built using no code tools and platforms thatÂ
are at some sense of substantial revenue and true scale have been extensively customizedÂ
(using custom development), integrations, and have more specific workflows. This isnât toÂ
say they are not no code, but they are highly-customized no code marketplaces. By usingÂ
and staying on no code tools and platforms, you can spend less time and resources onÂ
development and instead focus on every other aspect of building and running yourÂ
marketplace business (like marketing, support, etc). Â
Â
This guide is meant to be a deep dive into no code marketplaces and provide options, aÂ
framework for fitting your idea into, and learning if you can leverage a no code tool orÂ
platform to quickly take your idea to market. It is not prescriptive advice, but hopefullyÂ
serves as a resource that can save you lots of research, time, and money when looking intoÂ
using no code for your marketplace. Â
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31. Â
Â
ResourcesÂ
Â
Everything Marketplaces no code marketplace resources:Â
â The no code marketplace toolkit & dealsâ (30% off Bubble and other no code tools isÂ
available for all Everything Marketplaces members)Â
â No code marketplace examples directoryÂ
â The ultimate Sharetribe doc with step-by-step tutorials, demos, examples,Â
resources, & common customization scripts Â
â + More on your members resources sectionÂ
Â
Other recommended marketplace resources:Â
â Lennyâs Newsletter Â
â Version One Ventures âThe Guide To Marketplacesââ (what inspired this no codeÂ
version)Â
 Â
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Note that I did include affiliate links in this guide. Since Iâve spent a considerable amountÂ
of time creating this guide and am making it accessible to everyone for free, I wouldÂ
appreciate anyone that wants to use any of these tools or platforms to use the affiliateÂ
links for Sharetribe, Bubble, or Webflow. This helps me continue to create valuableÂ
content that I offer for free and make available to everyone. Â
Â
These links once again are (hyperlinked) âSharetribeâ, âBubbleâ, and âWebflowâ. Â
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