Monetization plan for a Telegram Bot: From zero to first profit.
Tags: monetization, telegram, startup, telegrambot
Published: 2023-12-12 04:04:55

Hello,

My name is Alexander, and I’m a solo entrepreneur. Currently, I’m involved in launching and developing my third project, a Telegram bot for domain monitoring.

I want to share my plans for monetizing the project and outline the functionality through which I intend to generate revenue. Overall, I’ll elaborate on my plans to create an effective income-generating machine.

![Telegram bot for domain monitoring.](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/qm486ej3kqxv7d6xh5pz.png)

## Identifying the target audience

I always start with identifying the target audience. Identifying the target audience provides an understanding of their needs and expectations of the product. I categorize the target audience into groups and highlight the value the product brings to each group.

### First group: Web developers
When a web developer takes on the development and ongoing support of a client’s website, they become responsible for renewing the domain. The client typically delegates this responsibility to the developer, and the process of transferring this right can be complex and time-consuming. The Telegram bot for domain monitoring provides convenience and security for both parties.

### Second group: SEO optimizers
SEO optimizers share a similar situation with web developers. The responsibility for monitoring the domain falls on SEO optimizers. The value of using the Telegram bot lies in its convenience and security.

### Third group: Startups and entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs may have a large number of domains to monitor. An unrenewed domain can significantly impact an entrepreneur’s activities, leading to a loss of traffic, new customers, and revenue. The Telegram bot offers convenience and security in such cases.

### Fourth group: Cybersquatters
Cybersquatters register domains associated with well-known brands or trademarks with the intention of reselling them at inflated prices or using them in fraudulent schemes. They need to monitor and renew numerous domains promptly, making the Telegram bot’s notifications an additional security measure.

### Fifth group: Domainers
Domainers or domain investors register domain names for resale or advertising purposes. Like cybersquatters, they have many domains to manage, and Telegram bot notifications can serve as an extra layer of security and tracking.

## Free features
I consider the basic bot functionality, provided for free, as follows:

![Adding a domain for monitoring.](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/5vjlaj0eqrc9we8e8z4u.png)

- Adding a domain for monitoring.
- Adding a domain for monitoring.
- Receiving notifications about the need to renew a domain.
- Viewing the list of monitored domains.
- Removing a domain from the monitored list.
- Managing notification dates: the ability to specify how many days before the domain registration expiration date to send a notification (planned).
- Additional notification about SSL certificate expiration (planned).
- Displaying the number of people monitoring a domain (planned).
- Whois service (planned).

## Premium features
I categorize the bot functionality available only with payment as premium features:

- Limit on the maximum number of domains added for monitoring. Users can add 10 domains for free, and additional slots for monitored domains must be purchased.
- Ad-free experience.
- SMS notifications to a phone number (planned).

## Advertising opportunities
Advertising services and products, such as domain registrars or hosting providers, in the Telegram bot’s notifications. Companies can inform their target audience about discounts, promotions, new services or offer more favorable conditions.

![Ad integration in the domain renewal notification.](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/owx8r52s505otgsmes6x.png)

![Advertising broadcast to all Telegram bot users.](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/v7oh9gm9axr2wglepduz.png)

Advertising services of a domain registrar, hosting provider, or related companies on the Telegram bot’s website. Pages describing the domain zone can feature an active action for registration or service purchase or include a block with a trade offer or banner.

![Advertising integration on the Telegram bot’s website.
](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/pcl85ktop0h9lqd0218x.png)

## In conclusion
As a result, I’m testing two hypotheses. The first hypothesis involves monetizing users through premium features, with donations as an experimental approach but without high expectations. The second hypothesis, which I consider the primary one, is monetization through advertising company placements.

To achieve the goals of the second hypothesis, I plan to implement personalized commercial offers in the newsletter. I will be able to share the results in three weeks when [my four-week sprint](https://medium.com/@a.drobushevskiy/i-plan-to-promote-the-telegram-bot-over-4-weeks-from-scratch-to-publication-on-producthunt-91c88b695270) on promoting the Telegram bot from scratch to the Product Hunt publication concludes.

I share interim results and the process of working on my projects on my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/aadrobushevskiy).

See you soon!