Profile collage

Transforming Instagram grid design

Every social media manager knows the struggle: hours spent in Photoshop trying to create that perfect Instagram grid layout. Back in 2018, we spotted this pain point and wondered - what if we could make this process as simple as a few clicks? That's how Profile Collage was born - choose your grid size, upload your images, and export your creation in seconds.

The problem we solved

If you're a social media manager juggling multiple accounts and needing to make engaging content you don't want to waste time fighting with complex tools. You want to create a stunning Instagram grid that tells a story. You're a social media manager, you're not a Photoshop expert.

We heard from social media managers that the existing tools are either too complex or too expensive to use. We heard this frustration time and time again, so we decided to build something better.

Building a solution that just works

We love a good challenge at Add Jam, especially when it involves making complex things simple. For Profile Collage, we combined React's smooth user interface capabilities with Ruby on Rails' robust backend to create something special.

The frontend, built in React with TypeScript, gave users a buttery-smooth experience with real-time previews of their grid layouts. Behind the scenes, our Ruby on Rails API handled all the heavy lifting - processing images, managing user accounts, and ensuring everything ran like clockwork.

Making complex technology feel simple

The magic of Profile Collage wasn't in its complex technology (though we're quite proud of that too!) - it was in how simple we made it feel. Users could drag and drop images, instantly see how their grid would look on Instagram, and export their creation in seconds.

We built some clever features under the hood:

• Smart image processing that automatically optimised photos for Instagram
• A template system that made starting new layouts a breeze
• Intelligent cropping that kept the important parts of photos in frame
• Cloud-based storage that made everything lightning fast

From idea to reality in two weeks

One of the most exciting aspects of Profile Collage was how quickly we brought it to life. In just two weeks, we went from initial concept to a working product. The first week was all about planning - mapping out user journeys, designing the technical architecture, and setting up our AWS infrastructure.

Week two saw us coding furiously, bringing together the React frontend and Rails API, and making sure everything worked seamlessly. It was a perfect example of how Add Jam approaches projects - fast, focused, and always with the user in mind.

The numbers tell the story

Before we retired Profile Collage in February 2025, the numbers showed just how much impact a focused tool could have:

We helped process images of all sizes and maintained rock-solid reliability. But the stat we're most proud of? Users could create professional-looking grids in under 2 minutes - a task that previously could take hours.

Lessons that made us better

Every project teaches us something new, and Profile Collage was no exception. We learned that sometimes the simplest solutions have the biggest impact. Our early decision to use TypeScript saved us countless hours of debugging, and Imgix proved to be the perfect choice for handling our image processing needs.

The Profile Collage legacy

While Profile Collage may no longer be active, its legacy lives on in how we approach projects today. It showed us that with the right combination of technical expertise and user-focused design, we could create tools that make a real difference in people's work lives.

What this means for your project

If you're looking to build a digital product, our experience with Profile Collage demonstrates our ability to:

• Turn complex problems into simple solutions
• Build fast, reliable web applications
• Handle challenging technical requirements with ease
• Deploy and scale effectively using cloud infrastructure

Ready to build something amazing?

Whether you're looking to streamline a business process, create a new digital product, or transform an existing one, we'd love to help. Profile Collage is just one example of how we can turn great ideas into reality.

Get in touch to discuss how we can help bring your digital product ideas to life. We're always excited to tackle new challenges and create solutions that make a difference.