Build something on WhatsApp for a real business. Get that business paying you. Points, not a judging panel. Building runs 17 September to 22 October.
The rules, the scoring, the prizes and the goal, at Indie Hackers Cape Town #53. Everyone registered gets an email when it opens.
First standings, and the first builds get shown. Connect numbers early: Meta verification is the one step with an unpredictable wait.
Second standings. More builds shown, and time to ask whatever is blocking you.
Third standings. Still time to land a second client.
Last standings before demo day. Final chance to get a client over the line.
Final standings, demos from the top entries, and every prize handed out.
Standings go up, a few entries show what they have built, and you can ask questions. Seeing the work across the sessions is how you decide your People's Choice vote, which closes before demo day.
Anyone in South Africa, 18 or older, any technical background or none at all. Solo or teams of up to three. One entry per person.
No entry fee. The kick-off is a separate Indie Hackers meetup with its own R30 ticket, and you do not have to be there to enter or to win.
Anything WhatsApp focused, used by a real business, with any tool or stack you like. You keep the work and all the IP in it.
Message the WhatsApp number before 21:00 on 17 September, when registration closes and building starts. First come, first served, and people at the kick-off get preference.
Registration closed at 21:00 on 17 September, when building started. Everyone who registered before then is in.
Tap what you think you can pull off in five weeks. Every row repeats for each business you onboard.
| Action | Points | How it is proven |
|---|---|---|
| Bot live on a WhatsApp number | 40 | Number connected to a Meta Business Suite account, and it replies when we message it |
| The business is paying you | 40 | An invoice or bank statement showing the client paid |
| Every R100 a month you charge above R570 | 5 | Same invoice. Capped at 50 points |
| Project still live and running on Paige on demo day | 20 | Project active and unbroken on 22 October |
| Build in public post | 5 | Tagged post on LinkedIn, link submitted. Max 5 a week, capped at 50 for the sprint |
| Verified, reproducible bug report | 15 | Triaged and accepted by Green Pages |
| Critical bug that blocks a core flow | 30 | Triaged and accepted by Green Pages |
| Accepted documentation fix | 10 | Merged into the Paige docs |
| Bugs and docs together are capped at 150 points for the sprint. Making Paige better is worth real points. It should not out-earn shipping to a client. | ||
Five posts a week, 5 points each, up to 50 for the sprint, plus its own award. Building where people can see it is half the point of doing this.
A subscription can be started the week before judging and cancelled the week after. An invoice your client has actually paid cannot.
Eligible, but you may claim at most two. A business means a distinct trading entity with its own customers.
Send your proof on the WhatsApp number whenever you earn something. We check it, add it, and the leaderboard moves. Standings are shared every week so you always know where you stand.
An invoice or statement for a payment. A live number we can message. A bug or docs fix we have accepted. A link to your post.
Anything in by 18:00 on the Wednesday shows up in that week's standings. Later rolls into the next one. Final cut-off is Wed 21 October.
Ties break on more paying clients, then on whose first client paid earlier. Query anything on the WhatsApp number. Demo day standings are final.
Black out whatever is commercially sensitive on an invoice. We only need the payer, the amount, the date and the fact that it was paid.
Every category winner gets a bottle. Tell us and it is a good alcohol-free one instead, no questions asked.
Faking a client, a payment, a deployment or a bug takes you out of the competition. So does being unpleasant to other entrants, to the Paige platform, or to anyone at the events. That is really the whole rulebook.
You take part at your own risk and you carry your own costs. Green Pages runs and funds the competition, decides the scoring, and may adjust the rules or the calendar if something material changes. Points already earned are never taken away.
You keep everything you build and all the IP in it. Entering lets us name your entry, say what it does, and show it on the leaderboard, on demo day and afterwards.
Your WhatsApp number, your name and your proof are used to run the competition and nothing else. Only your name, your entry and your points ever appear in public. Ask us to delete your details any time on the WhatsApp number.
Anything not covered here, email info@greenpages.app.
