DIGITAL PROFITS: SPEC
Introduction
So,
you want to join the multi-million-dollar marketplace selling digital products
like the pros. Chances are, you’ve heard countless success stories of people
who have built incredibly successful home-based businesses on the back of
digital information products.
Now
you’re ready to venture out on your own. You have the drive and determination
to do it. There’s just one major question:
What will you sell?
Digital
products come in many different formats. From imagery to content based
products, the possibilities are endless. And with that, so is the income potential. Since digital
products don’t require tracking, packing or inventory, there is no costly overhead
to worry about.
Better
yet, you can get started with even a very minimal budget just by hiring content
creators to do the work for you!
In
this special report I’ll outline the top digital products worth selling. All
you have to do is choose which one most appeals to you, research
the market for
ideas, and create your bestselling product.
Are you ready?
Let’s begin!
The Big “E”
Creating
informative, unique and well-written eBooks are one of the easiest ways to make
money online. When you think eBook, what comes to mind? Perhaps you could write a
bestselling fiction book and self-publish on Amazon. Or, you could write a
comprehensive guide to dominating your niche market, or write a report that
solves a problem and sell it to an ever-growing audience.
I’ve
personally made a lot of money selling eBooks in various markets and in many
different formats. For example, I began by selling short reports in Internet
Marketing that helped new entrepreneurs’ set up a profitable business online. I
later ventured into health niches where I wrote guides on dating, weight loss
and even gardening. These short reports and eBooks sell like hotcakes because
they solve a problem, address an issue and speak directly to my target
audience.
Digital books are also one of the easiest ways to start
making money online because they carry no overhead. Better yet, it’s exceptionally
easy to set up a digital storefront so that visitors can purchase your
content
and have it automatically delivered after purchase. This means you can
completely automate your business!
To
keep things simple, I used http://www.ProductDyno.com to build my digital
storefront. Product Dyno works for all digital product formats including
plugins, license software and of course, eBooks and it’s just one of the easiest ways to get set up with
minimal cost and effort. Be sure to
check it out.
Here
are few ideas to help you get started:
Inventory your own interests
and skills
What
are you most passionate about? What are your hobbies? What obstacles have you
overcome in your life?
You
likely already have all the knowledge you need to create your first information
product. Think about the experience in your life that others may also be going
through and how you could help them overcome a problem, learn a new skill, or
improve their life in a meaningful way.
Have you been through a divorce?
Are you a single parent? Have you struggled with weight? Do
you have pets?
All
of these experiences could easily be turned into a killer information product
that will genuinely help your customers!
Evergreen Markets
You
should base your digital products around strong, proven, evergreen markets. Evergreen
simply means that your market will continue to be in-demand for years
to come, rather than based on
some temporary fad or trend
that’ll leave you scrambling for the next big thing as soon as it fades out. Don’t waste your time or
energy on that. Instead, focus on
forever-niches like quit smoking, weight loss, credit repair and parenting.
Focus on Problem Solving
Your
digital product should solve a specific problem. Whether you have decided to
write a book, create a digital training program, or create a plugin or app, it should
provide direct assistance in some way (even if that is simply by giving your customer hours of entertainment!).
Problem
solving products will always be easier to sell, but they also help you identify and target your customer
base so that when it comes time to create marketing campaigns
you know exactly how to reach
your audience.
Examples:
·
How to repair your credit in 72 hours or less!
· How to Avoid Foreclosure!
·
Life after divorce:
How to be the happiest
you’ve ever been!
Test Your Market
Before
you spend months writing an information product, consider testing the waters by
writing a series of short reports. Not only will this help you determine
whether potential customers are interested in your content, but you can get a pulse
on your target audience through customer feedback so that you can create a more
in-depth, informative product that tackles their greatest problems.
It’ll
also let you cut your teeth on the developmental
process of creating a bestselling
information product without taking up too much
of your time. Shorter books or reports will help you get started faster,
and if you choose to outsource your content to a qualified ghostwriter, shorter
projects will cost less and give you the opportunity to gauge the overall
profitability of your market.
Also,
going about it this way will give you the opportunity to build a list of prospective buyers by setting up a simple
landing page and offering a free download (a report, or special offer of some
kind that will persuade them to give you a chance), and
go from there.
Create How to Guides
With
a how-to style digital product, you’re offering a systematic, step- by-step
approach to accomplishing a specific task. Your job is to organize and break down
the information into simple steps that your reader can follow. You’re a problem solver!
Examples:
·
How to potty train your child in 7 days or less.
·
How to train your dog in under a week!
· How to create a
polished resume in one hour!
· How to repair
your credit report easily!
Q&A Format
You
can create a hot selling digital product just based on market research. Create
a swipe file of the top 10 questions from within your chosen market. Then,
create an eBook that answers those questions!
Example:
Your
Burning Questions Answered: How to maximize your book sales with the top
strategies from bestselling authors!
No
matter what your eBook, report or content is about, your readers want an
instant solution to their problems. They want quick help, advice and information that will steer them
in the right direction, improve their lives in some way, and ultimately, help
them reach their goals and objectives.
Here
are a few evergreen markets worth exploring:
· Self-Improvement
(weight loss, public speaking)
·
Finances (budgeting, retirement)
· Relationships
(marriage, dating, repairing relationships)
· Health Related
(acne, insomnia)
·
Entrepreneurs (home based business, startups)
· Parenting (potty
training, family budgets, meal planning)
Develop
Kick Ass Apps
Developing
apps for both Apple and Google is a billion-dollar market and one that continues to grow. But, how can we jump into this market if we know nothing about code?
Freelance
websites like Upwork.com put you in direct contact with experienced coders who
are willing to create an app for you at reasonable rates. You could also short-cut the process by
purchasing an app from marketplaces
like www.Flippa.com and
then hiring a coder to reskin the design of the app (not the code) so that it fits your brand.
And
there is yet another easier way to claim your share of this incredibly lucrative niche: purchase source
code or grab a license to an existing app that allows you to resell it and rebrand it as your own!
Even
free apps can make you a lot of money just by featuring advertisements within
your content, or allowing users to pay to upgrade the app to include additional
content (such as access to extra game levels).
One
of the best places to feature ads within your free app is at the start of the
loading process. I’ve used https://www.revmobmobileadnetwork.com to
quickly monetize a free app I purchased from a developer, but there are many
other networks worth considering, including https://www.chartboost.com/
In
order to publish apps on the App Store or Google Play store you’ll need to set
up a developer account which will cost you $99 for Apple and less than $30 for
Google Play. Your app will also go through a review process to ensure that it’s
suitable for the store and follows Apple and/or Google’s terms of service.
Here
are a few places where you can buy pre-made apps and application templates:
https://www.sellmyapp.com/ https://flippa.com/apps https://www.fliptopia.com/buy https://appngamereskin.com/
Courses
& Training
People
are very happy to pay for knowledge and information. That’s why websites like www.Udemy.com are so
incredibly successful.
Why do people pay so much money for online courses?
Quite simply,
because people have problems that they want to solve.
Perhaps
they want to build a deck but can’t afford a carpenter. Or, perhaps they have a
wedding coming up and really want to lose weight to fit into that dress.
Whatever the case, people will gladly pay for solutions to their problems.
Here
are a few reasons why creating online courses and training material is so
profitable:
Anyone can do it.
If
you have a marketable skill of any kind, you can easily create an online course that will make you money.
Whether you are experienced in gardening, carpentry, design, baking or music, there’s
an audience
waiting to
purchase your course.
Little startup costs.
Most
your upfront costs will be in the time it takes you to create the course. You
can go on to register a domain to feature your course, and create a mailing
list of customers, but neither of those are required to get your course off the
ground. All you need is your course materials
and a few hours of your time to jumpstart
a marketing campaign!
Tap into the power of training communities.
You
can feature your course on websites like www.Udemy.com or www.SkillShare.com and reach a broad market quickly and
easily with very little marketing required. Plus, Udemy will help you structure
your course, set up your pricing model and deliver the very best training
product possible.
Or,
go it alone by hosting on your own website while still gaining access to useful tools with a training
system like: https://teachable.com
Sell 24/7.
Create
your course once, set it up so that customers can purchase and gain immediate
access to your course, and you can set your business on
total autopilot,
selling access 24 hours a day.
Potential to easily increase
profits on back-end.
You
could add auxiliary components to your course or upgrade options including
one-on-one consultations, Skype sessions, bonus training products including
mind maps, videos and more.
High Profit Margin
People
are selling access to courses for as much as $499 or more! Online courses also
offer ultimate scalability as well since you are not limited by how many
students you can teach in any given day.
Graphics
& Stock Photos
Do
you love photography? Are you proficient with Photoshop? If you have experience
taking cool photos, or you’re an experienced graphic designer, you can make
money online just by showcasing and selling your digital imagery!
Websites
like ShutterStock.com and 123rf.com
will pay you
good money for your stock photos, even if you are an amateur
photographer. All you have to do is create a free account and upload your photos!
When
just starting out (depending on the stock site), you could earn anywhere from
20-40% per sale, but the more extensive your portfolio, and the more you sell,
the more you will be compensated with higher percentages and additional
exposure.
The
key to making money in stock photography is in a balance of quantity as well as quality. You’ll want to
build an extensive portfolio that
features the hottest selling imagery online. Take a look through the top
selling photos (the most downloaded) to give you a better idea as to the type of photos
that business owners
and marketing professionals
are
looking for and build your own portfolio around those types of images.
You’ll
definitely want to invest in a quality digital SLR camera so that your photos
are of excellent quality. Then, work towards building a diverse and robust
portfolio of high quality images. Get started!
Tip: Start by applying at stock photo websites that are known to be
easier to get into such as Dreamstime.com.
If
you are a graphic artist with a penchant for creating awesome graphics, consider selling book cover
services to authors, promotional material to business owners or web designs to
new startups. You can feature your services on freelance websites like
Upwork.com, to gain quick access to an ever-growing community of potential
clients that will allow you to build up a clientele. Make sure to also take the time to build a quick website that features graphics
you’ve created in order to showcase your skills. Just be sure to ask permission
from clients before featuring their work.
Tip: The most money you’ll ever make will be in promotional material
such as logos, business cards and stationary so focus on honing your
design
skills and target startups and businesses that are looking to refresh their
brand.
After
you’ve been able to develop a portfolio from clients on freelance websites such
as 99designs.com, consider expanding your outreach to places like
CrowdSpring.com and once you have built up a client base of regular customers
you’ll be able to sell directly
through your website, or Facebook page. I’ll provide additional
resources in the back of this special report.
Subscription
Services
How
would you like to get paid month after month by an ever-growing customer base,
all on complete autopilot?
One
of the best ways to build recurring income online is by creating a membership
or subscription website or service. This business model allows you to market
one website while continuing to cash in on the same customer base, month after month!
Membership
sites are based on a recurring content schedule where the website is typically
updated once a month (although you can base your updates around whatever
schedule you choose). The content is protected by a script that provides access only
to paying customers, and typically the system is set up
to auto rebill through either your merchant account, or through Paypal.
Once you have your membership website up and running,
all you have to do is update it monthly with fresh content and keep your customers
happy!
And
don’t overlook other membership formats, including paid access to video content
or training tutorials and guides. Your membership site could comprise of purely
textual-based content or a mix of both, depending on your market and what your audience
wants most.
Make sure to research your market prior to creating your
membership site so that you know what forms of content other successful sites
are offering and what your audience will expect from you.
Finally,
you can choose to host your membership site on your own server, use a remotely
hosted option or use websites like YouTube.com to set up private video access
where people can only gain access to the content once they’ve paid you!
Here are a few resources
to help you get started:
http://www.ProductDyno.com
I’ve
mentioned Product Dyno before when it comes to protecting my content and
reliably delivering downloads to paid customers. You can also use Product Dyno
to create membership based websites where your
content is securely
protected until a subscriber has paid to access
it. It’s hands
down one of the most simplified solutions online.
https://www.membergate.com/
Higher
priced membership solution. Very robust, feature laden and better for the more
experienced web developer.
SubHub: https://www.subhub.com
This
is a pretty cool website that allows you to set up a pay-per-view model rather
than a traditional subscription format. That means potential
subscribers can ‘taste test’ your offer before fully committing.
Think
Outside The Box
I
want you to think outside the box. Literally.
Get creative and think outside the product box. Digital products give you
the opportunity to make an incredible amount of money online with little to no
overhead, and minimal start-up costs.
Other
than the digital products we’ve discussed, what other types of digital content
could you offer?
One couple makes over $400,000 a year selling doll clothing
patterns, while a single mom from Atlanta makes $5,000 a month selling
access via a weight loss membership
site to various low carb recipe books and work
out guides. And yet another guy makes $14,000 a
month selling a powerful Wordpress plugin that creates a floating opt-in form
enabling bloggers to build a list!
The
possibilities are truly endless! Spend some time brainstorming by inventorying
your own interests, skills and knowledge. You’d be surprised at how much
knowledge or personal experience you have that others would gladly pay for
access to!
If
you’re a gamer, consider creating a series of walk-through guides. If you know
a lot about dog grooming, gardening, music, or cooking, consider turning that
knowledge into a full-length course that you can charge access to. If you’ve
quit smoking, went through a divorce or overcame challenges in life – think
about how you could turn that information into a unique, informative and
helpful book that will help others.
By
tapping into what you already know, and sharing that knowledge within your
product, you'll be able to create an informative, thorough and solid product
that is not only completely original but gives you the opportunity to connect
with your target market.
Digital
products are by far one of the most profitable methods of generating a
sustainable income online. Whether
you decide to venture into creating bestselling ebooks,
courses, or membership sites, you have everything you need to build a passive income online.
To your
success!
Resources
Here are links to
the resources found in this guide:
Post
Gopher: http://www.PostGopher.com
The
easiest way to set up a digital content storefront online. My top
recommendation!
Product
Dyno: http://www.ProductDyno.com
I’ve
mentioned Product Dyno before when it comes to protecting my content and
reliably delivering downloads to paid customers.
You
can also use Product Dyno to create membership based websites where your
content is securely protected until a subscriber has paid to access it. It’s
hands down one of the most simplified solutions online.
Stock Photo
Websites (where you can make money with your digital photography):
http://www.ShutterStock.com (harder
to get into but higher pay out) http://123rf.com
Graphic Design Marketplaces:
http://www.Upwork.com (great
starter website to buid your clientele) http://99designs.com
http://www.GraphicRiver.net (more
money, greater audience) http://www.RedBubble.com (great place to create
t-shirts and other merch from your designs!)
https://www.membergate.com/
Higher
priced membership solution. Very robust, feature laden and better for the more
experienced web developer.
SubHub: https://www.subhub.com
This
is a pretty cool website that allows you to set up a pay-per-view model rather
than a traditional subscription format. That means potential
subscribers can ‘taste
test’ your offer
before fully committing.
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