7 Steps To Create A Digital Product That Sells
Ready to tap into the world of passive income? I mean, who doesn’t want that?
Whether you’ve been in business for a hot minute now or are just starting out, digital products provide a great way to generate more income for your business.
The only question is: how exactly do I do that?
If you’re ready to build your business with digital products, today I’m breaking down the process into seven actionable steps.
Step 1: Identify Your Target Market
A successful product isn’t built on what you want to create. It’s about how you can help serve your audience. So let’s kick things off the right way and get specific about who that is.
The foundation of any successful product is understanding your audience. Who is s/he? What are they struggling with? What are their other interests? Try to build a picture of who they are and what they need.
Do research online to help with this if you need to (in forums, Facebook groups, Reddit, wherever!). Go “stalk” them and see what they’re struggling with.
Step 2: Solve a Problem
Now that you know who you’re helping, the next question is: how can you help them? For this, think about what problems your ideal client or customer is experiencing right now. (Or think about where you were a year ago, for example.) What is the biggest issue that they’re facing? What problem is holding them back?
Your next successful digital product should provide a solution to a specific problem your target audience faces.
On that note, a digital product is never about how long a video is or how many pages a workbook is. It’s about getting the desired result and solving the problem. As long as you can solve someone’s problem (and you’re putting yourself out there), you will find success.
3. Validate Your Idea
If you have the time and ability, validating your idea is always a good idea. Basically that means, figuring out if other people are offering something similar or solving the same problem as you.
Trust me, there’s nothing worse than putting your sweat and tears into something only to have no one buy it. (Been there! Ugh.) Validating your idea is how you prevent that from happening.
So go out there and do research if you need to. See what other people are using for to solve their problems.
But don’t let your findings discourage you! You might be tempted to think that if someone else is already doing it, that means you shouldn’t bother. However, it’s quite the opposite! If someone else is already doing it, that’s a great sign that people will be willing to pay for your product too.
(Note: this definitely doesn’t mean flat-out copying people’s ideas or stealing their actual work!)
Another way to do this is by pre-selling your product. That means: getting people to pay for it before you make it. Say whaaaat? I know that sounds crazy at first but people do this all the time. One way to do this is by offering an early-bird discount. Just make sure it’s always clear that the product will be available at a later date.
Finally, validation is nice but sometimes you have an idea so hot it’s almost bursting straight out of you. So if you wake up one day super inspired by something and just feel the burning desire to put it out there, go for it! Many times it’s that passion that ends up selling the work for you.
4. Select A Format For Your Digital Product
The best format to teach your product is determined by a combination of how you best teach or communicate and how the content is best consumed.
If you’re demonstrating how to do something (like a cooking tutorial), video is almost always the best choice. But if you’re a great writer or you’re teaching something to do with writing, perhaps a written format makes more sense.
If you’re naturally great with talking, video content is great (either in presentation/ slideshow style or in a more informal YouTube video style). You could also do an audio recording or private podcast.
Finally, you don’t need to stick to just one format! Personally, I like to offer video plus audio and workbooks for most of my courses.
5. Make A Course/Workshop/Book Outline
Especially when you’re first starting out, it can be overwhelming to package up your knowledge and teach it.
One big mistake I’ve made in the past is trying to put everything into one product. In my mind, I was just going above and beyond for my clients. But in reality, I was just confusing them and overwhelming them by giving them too much information.
Remember, your goal is to actually get your students through your process or to the finish line! So
After you outline your product, go through and review which format will be best to teach each core concept, but don’t forget to infuse your teaching style into it too!
6. Create your Digital Product
Now that you’ve got a hot offer idea and a great outline, it’s time to start making your digital product!
Here are some great resources to create your digital product:
Zoom: for live workshops or classes (or bonus one-on-one calls)
Loom: Use as a great screen recorder or to upload your live classes or other pre-recorded videos.
Camtasia: Great for recording video and doing combo video/slide presentations.
Canva: Perfect for slideshow/presentations, ebooks, ebook covers, social media, everything!
QuickTime Player: I use this to record audio or do screen recordings.
Pages (for MAC): I use this for creating ebooks and workbooks
Google Docs: Awesome free place to create templates, swipe files or even eBooks.
Depending on how you work, you may be able to knock out all the content in a week or a day depending on how extensive your digital product is and what you’re teaching.
7. Launch Baby Launch!
Your final step is to launch your product into the world! Even your most dedicated follower won’t just know that you’ve got something new. You’ve got to get out there and tell them.
But your launch strategy is up to you. You could host a series of live Q&A’s on Instagram, create a launch series of email for your list, or show up in your Instagam stories every day for a week to talk about it. (Or all of the above!) Plan ahead and pick a strategy that you can stick to.
To make your offer extra enticing, you might also want to offer a limited-time bonus, an introductory sale price or a cart closing. That way people will be motivated to buy ASAP, instead of putting it off until next month.
Final Thoughts
Don’t let your fear talk you out of starting your digital product journey! Personally, I love digital products and I honestly believe they can create a strong source of income for many coaches and entrepreneurs.
You never know until you try! But don’t be surprised if you end up loving them as much as I do.
Have fun with it and good luck!
PS – Want more? Check out this post about how to start a spiritual business or this one about 100 spiritual business ideas.
