I Built A Free Text Generator. Here Is What I Learned.
I launched a small side project a few months ago. It is a tool called Tulisan Aesthetic. It converts plain text into stylized Unicode fonts. Users use it for Instagram bios, TikTok captions, and WhatsApp statuses.
I built it with HTML, CSS, and vanilla JS. I used a large Unicode character map.
The tool works by replacing standard letters with mathematical symbols that look like fonts. This works in places that do not support custom fonts.
Here are three things user data taught me.
- Mobile is everything.
I thought 60% of users would be on mobile. Over 85% were on mobile. This changed my design approach. I made the copy button large for thumbs. I made the font list scroll smoothly. I fixed the iOS auto-zoom issue by using a 16px minimum font size.
If you build for social media users, design for mobile first. Desktop is secondary.
- Focus on the main action.
I started with a multi-column grid. It looked good on desktop but failed on mobile. I watched how people used the tool. They only wanted the copy button. Everything else was noise.
I rebuilt the tool as a single scrollable list. Each style has its own row and a clear copy button. This change improved engagement and lowered the bounce rate.
Find the one thing your tool exists to do. Make that action effortless.
- Speed is your SEO strategy.
I spent zero dollars on ads. All growth came from organic search.
Most tools in this niche are slow and full of ads. My tool is lightweight. The total page weight is under 80KB. My Lighthouse score is 98 plus. Because my tool loads fast, I ranked higher in search results.
For niche tools, performance is how you win search rankings.
Technical details:
- Frontend: Vanilla HTML, CSS, and JS.
- Page weight: Under 80KB.
If I did it again, I would add more languages from the start. I saw traffic from Indonesia and Brazil immediately. I was not prepared for that.
Try the tool here: tulisanaestheticid.com