One-Person Directory Site Makes Over $1 Million a Year

About

Milled is a searchable directory of promotional emails from thousands of brands. It lets users browse and explore marketing emails.

The Team

Chaz Yoon created Milled in 2012 and has been running it solo ever since.

Business Model & Revenue

Milled earns revenue primarily through a subscription product called Milled Pro, targeted at marketers and e-commerce teams. The plan includes advanced search and email tracking features.

The site makes an estimated $1.2 million per year, all with no employees or external funding.

Traffic

Milled gets over 640,000 visits per month, largely from organic search and repeat visitors.

The primary traffic sources are:

• Direct: 55.95%
• Google: 35.86%
• Duckduckgo: 1.98%

Keywords

Milled ranks for brand-specific queries like Nike newsletter, jim cramer newsletter, and newsletter database. These keywords bring in users researching email strategies or looking for current deals.

Tech Stack

• Backend: Custom-built, likely PHP or Ruby
• Search Index: Custom email database and search interface