Measured Updated dailyMarkdown copy
Free alternative anchored to the paid app
A viral tech and ai format on TikTok and Instagram
Pitch free or open-source tools by naming the paid software or service they replace, ideally with its price.
3
accounts it worked for
20x
median, times their usual
#15
of 26 in tech and ai
Angle
Slideshow, Voiceover, Screen recording
Why it works
Putting a big dollar figure or a familiar paywalled app next to a free tool shows the value in one line. It also widens the audience beyond developers.
Hook formulaThis free [tool type] replaces [paid app] without [annoyance 1], [annoyance 2] or [annoyance 3].
How to make it
- 1Name the popular paid app or its price ($24,000/yr)
- 2Show the free tool doing the same job
- 3Give the name or URL and say which annoyances it removes
Examples
Best first, one per account. Each links to the original post.
- @your.aimentor
13K followers, TikTok
“10 GitHub Repos So Good They Shouldn't Be Free”
71x their usual views, slideshow, ai tools
- @theaiimpact
53K followers, TikTok
“Concat FREE CapCut Alternative”
20x their usual views, screen recording, ai tools
- @unrealtoreal
41K followers, TikTok
“iPhone tips & tricks you (probably) didn't know existed”
12x their usual views, voiceover, computers
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Get the MCPMore tech and ai formats
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11 accounts, median 10x their usual
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7 accounts, median 19x their usual
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8 accounts, median 11x their usual
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4 accounts, median 45x their usual
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3 accounts, median 84x their usual
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6 accounts, median 8x their usual
- Custom animated mockup for every list item
3 accounts, median 54x their usual
- Gate the prompts or links behind a one-word comment
3 accounts, median 51x their usual
How this is measured
- Every post is compared with its own account's usual reach, not with other accounts. "14x their usual" means the post got 14 times the median views of that account's recent posts.
- TikTok videos and Instagram Reels are measured on views. Instagram carousels have no view count, so they are measured on likes against the account's usual likes, and say so.
- A post makes the library at 2x its account's usual or more. A format is a repeatable move (what is said or shown, or how it is edited) that several accounts used in breakout posts. It is listed here once it worked for 3 or more different accounts.
- Formats rank on how many accounts they worked for and how far above usual, damped so a fluke on one tiny account cannot outrank a format that worked for ten.