How I built a fully automated content pipeline that scrapes NRL news, generates branded graphics, and posts to Facebook twice a day with zero manual effort.
Jason Corbett
Founder, FELTLAB
Best on Ground is an NRL fan voting app. Think of it as "The People's Dally M." Fans vote 3-2-1 for the best players after every match, track leaderboards, and compete in private groups.
The app had 200+ signups before Round 1 even started. But growing a Facebook page from zero followers with no marketing budget meant posting consistently. Every day. With engaging visuals. The kind of thing that burns hours if you do it manually.
The goal was simple. Post NRL news content to the Best on Ground Facebook page every day without anyone lifting a finger.
A fully automated content pipeline that runs on a schedule. Here's what happens twice a day at 10am and 2pm:
1. Story sourcing. The system scrapes r/nrl on Reddit for trending NRL news. Player transfers, rule changes, injury updates, Origin selection drama. It picks the most engaging story based on recency and comment activity.
2. Image generation. It finds an action shot of the relevant player from photo libraries, then composites a branded graphic. Full-bleed player photo, gradient overlay, bold uppercase headline, and the Best on Ground logo. LAD Bible style. 1080x1080 for optimal Facebook display.
3. Caption writing. One short punchy sentence. No hashtags. No marketing speak. Just a line that makes you want to click. The tone matches what sports fans actually engage with.
4. Automated posting. The system opens the Best on Ground Facebook page, creates a new post, uploads the graphic, adds the caption, and publishes. It even dismisses the promotional popups Facebook throws at you after posting.
The whole pipeline runs end to end in about 7 minutes. No human input required.
The image generation uses an HTML/CSS template rendered via Puppeteer at 1080x1080. This approach is way more flexible than trying to composite images programmatically. Change the font size, layout, or branding and it just works. No image library dependencies.
Facebook posting is handled through browser automation. The system navigates the actual Facebook UI because Meta's API requires app review and approval that would take weeks. Browser automation got us posting on day one.
Story selection pulls from Reddit's public feed. No API key needed. The system filters for NRL-specific content and avoids duplicate topics between the morning and afternoon posts.
The page went from zero posts to consistent daily content within 48 hours of setup. Every post follows the same branded style. The content is always fresh because it's sourced from what NRL fans are actually talking about that day.
The system has been running autonomously since launch. The only manual intervention so far has been style tweaks to the template based on how posts look in the feed.
For a fan app trying to build an audience before the NRL season starts, this is the difference between a dead Facebook page and one that looks active and engaged. And it costs zero hours per week to maintain.
Most businesses that need social media content either hire someone to do it manually or use scheduling tools that still require a human to create the content. This system does both. It finds the content, creates the visual, writes the caption, and posts it.
The same approach works for any business that needs consistent branded content from a predictable source. Real estate listings, job boards, product launches, industry news. If the data exists somewhere public, the pipeline can turn it into posts.
If you have a content problem that's eating your time, let's talk about automating it.
If you're thinking about rapid prototyping, AI integration, or need to ship working software fast, let's talk about how a FELTLAB Sprint can help.
