How Sublaunch Turned Telegram Channels into a $36K/Month Engine

Problem: Monetizing Telegram Channels Was Tough

Telegram channels had millions of eyeballs but almost no direct way to turn subscribers into revenue. Most admins relied on ads or paid posts, but that approach would rarely crack five figures per month without charging high rates. There was a clear gap for a plug-and-play paywall solution embedded inside Telegram.

Solution: Sublaunch Paywall Service

Julien Levallois launched Sublaunch: a web app that lets any channel owner charge a subscription fee per user. He built a simple dashboard and billing engine, then connected to Telegram via bots. Users sign up, pick a plan, and join the channel, automated payment and access control handle the rest.

Early Growth: Cold DMs and Viral Links

Without a marketing budget, Julien cold-emailed and DM’d potential power users directly on Telegram. In the first few weeks he onboarded 15 creators who then shared their success stories. Sublaunch issued each creator a unique referral link (sublaunch.co/username) that turned into a built-in growth loop. This link drove about 20% of new signups purely by word of mouth.

Pricing Model That Scales with Creators

Sublaunch has a free tier with a 15% transaction fee, and paid plans beginning at $49/mo with an 8% fee. As creators earn more per subscriber, Sublaunch revenue rises in tandem. This alignment turned every new subscriber into a stake in the platform’s success.

Metrics: From $0 to $36K/Month on a $15 Server

By September 2023, creators on Sublaunch had generated $1 million in earnings in nine months. By December that year, the platform had 17 372 active subscriptions. In February 2024, Sublaunch itself was pulling in $36 385/mo, all on a $15 shared server for a 99.92% profit margin.

Key Lessons

Julien’s story shows that a minimal feature set, direct outreach, and a revenue‐share alignment can outcompete big-budget startups. Low overhead and a self‐sustaining referral loop kept Sublaunch lean yet profitable.

What's Next

Sublaunch plans to expand beyond Telegram into other chat platforms like WhatsApp and Discord. New analytics and promotional features will help channel owners squeeze more value from each subscriber, while Julien maintains a single‐server setup to keep costs flat.