We are living in the digital age where making money is not as difficult as it used to be over a decade ago. There are a million ways to make money online and selling digital products is one of them. If you want to learn how to create digital products, keep reading as this article will answer all of your questions.
From eBooks to online courses, and templates to stock photos, digital products are revolutionizing how people earn, connect, and share knowledge. People love using digital products as they can be instantly downloaded to their devices and solve their problems instantly.
If you are looking for the best side hustle that will also work as a passive income stream, you can create a digital product and sell it repeatedly. With a digital product, you can earn money without having to bear the repeated costs and complexity of traditional manufacturing or shipping that comes with a physical product.
In this article, we’ll cover how to create digital products and sell them for profit. You will get a step-by-step guide on how to create digital products, where to sell them, and how to market them.
Table of Contents
What is a Digital Product?
Unlike physical products, A digital product, an intangible asset or content that can be distributed online. Digital products have no physical form as they’re delivered electronically through the Internet, making them easier and more cost-effective to produce and distribute, especially when you want to start earning but don’t have a heavy investment.
Digital products are in high demand because they offer multiple advantages to businesses and creators.
- They have a global reach and are easily accessible to anyone with an internet connection, allowing their creators to connect with their customers anywhere.
- They have low production costs allowing us to sell them for higher profit margins.
- They are extremely easy to distribute and can be delivered instantly with just a few clicks.
Types of Digital Products
There are different types of digital products and here you will find a few examples of popular digital products.
- E-books (how-to guides, tutorial guides, etc)
- Online Courses
- Subscription Memberships
- Digital Templates (for planners, calendars, etc)
- Printables such as worksheets, coloring pages, planners, etc.
- Stock Photography/Videos
- Website Themes (Templates for WordPress, Shopify, etc).
- Digital Art (Illustrations, stickers, wallpapers, etc.)
- Music/Sound Effects (For podcasts, YouTube, and video production).
- Guides & Cheat Sheets (Step-by-step instructions for specific tasks).
How to Create Digital Products in 5 Steps
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create digital products:
1: Identify Your Target Audience and Their Needs
Define your Audience:
First, you will have to identify your target audience. Define your audience in your mind. Who do you want to sell your products to?
You can do this by following these steps:
- Think about your customer’s interests and their pain points. Why will they want to buy from you?
- Now consider your skills and experience and think about who can benefit most from your insights.
Conduct Market Research:
Thoroughly search the market to identify your customers’ needs and problems. You can do this through social media, forums, surveys, and Q&A sites like Quora or Reddit. These sites are goldmines to get to know your customers.
After you have your research data, you need to know if there is an actual demand for your product. You can easily do this by using tools like Google Trends or survey responses.
2. Choose the Digital Product
Now when you search how to create digital products, you get a ton of responses about different types of digital products like eBooks, templates, printables, etc.
Once you have your data, you need to assess the nature of the information you have that can solve your audience’s problem and how your customers would prefer that content.
For example, if your customers are looking to learn a skill like copywriting, your preference should be to create an online course and upload it on platforms like Teachable or Udemy.
3. Plan and Outline Your Content
The first step here should be to organize your content. Create a flowchart to organize your ideas into a flow chart so that it has a logical flow.
Gather any resources that support your content. For example, you might be creating a fitness guide and any research related to some nutritional aspect of some food should be supported.
If you are creating a course, make sure to include quizzes, assignments, and downloadable files. Use relevant images, tables, and charts to improve readability.
4. Create the Digital Product
Now is the time to gather all your data and develop your product.
Choose the Right Tools
- For eBooks, your focus should use a user-friendly design and software, such as Canva, Microsoft Word, or Adobe InDesign. These tools have unique features that can help in formatting the book.
- If you are creating a video course, you should choose a video recording and editing tool like Camtasia, OBS Studio, or Loom. These platforms will make it easy to capture high-quality videos and further edit content to enhance the user’s experience.
- For printables, you can use Canva and Adobe Illustrator as both of these tools are ideal for designing printables like checklists, planners, and templates.
You can find detailed videos to create such products on YouTube.
Draft the Content
- Now follow the structure you used in your outline create content and just ensure that the information is easy to understand and there is logical flow.
- Also, make sure to use a consistent voice and tone in your digital products such as eBooks and courses.
Edit, Refine, and Format the Content
Use tools like Grammarly to ensure that there is clarity and the content is error-free. Your content should be pleasing to the human eye so make sure to use headers, margins, headings, bold text, italics, and a suitable font where necessary.
5. Set a Price
You can look for your competitors and then search for their products that are similar to yours. You can do this on different platforms like Etsy, Gumroad, and Amazon which can also provide information about what customers are willing to pay.
There are different pricing strategies from which you can choose what you like.
1. One-Time Purchase: It’s a perfect strategy for standalone products like eBooks, templates, guides, etc.
2. Bundles: Assembling different products into bundles can increase their value and also justify a higher price. For example, you can group related templates or courses as a bundle which often appeals to customers looking for a comprehensive solution at a slightly discounted rate compared to individual purchases which would cost them much more than this bundle.
3. Subscription Models: Subscription models are best for membership sites, educational content, and content updates. Just think of Chegg, they charge a monthly subscription fee in exchange for unlimited education content.
If you are looking for some other ways to make money on the side, here is the list of best side hustles 2024 that you can do to start earning.
Where To Sell Digital Products
Now that your digital products are ready, it is time to sell them on the right platform by using smart marketing strategies.
Online Marketplaces
Different platforms like Etsy, Gumroad, Creative Market, and Amazon Kindle have a large user base and they can handle much of the setup for you. You will not have to do any major work so they are perfect for digital products like eBooks, templates, and digital art.
Course and eBook Platforms
Teachable, Udemy, and Skillshare are dedicated online and eBook platforms and they also simplify the process of selling online courses.
Use Your Website
Using platforms like Shopify, WooCommerce, or WordPress allows you full control over branding and pricing, making this a great choice for long-term brand-building.
Membership Platforms
For ongoing content, Patreon and Substack offer options for subscription-based products making it the perfect place for earning money from loyal customers.
How to Promote Digital Products
You can promote your digital products in the following ways:
Use Social Media
You can use Instagram for visual promotion, Pinterest for driving niche-based traffic, TikTok for making viral content, and LinkedIn for professional audiences such as business owners, etc.
Social platforms are a great way to do free promotion as they can help you showcase your product, build hype, and reach potential buyers.
Do Content Marketing
Blogging, YouTube, and podcasting are the most popular ways to attract organic traffic by offering valuable content related to your product’s niche. This can help attract buyers through your content.
Email Marketing
You can also build an email list by offering a freebie or discount and then nurture those leads through newsletters that will introduce and promote your product. Automated sequences are a great way to promote your products in the long term.
Paid Advertising
If you have a budget, consider running Facebook Ads or Google Ads to boost your visibility, especially with retargeting ads that will remind potential buyers to complete their purchase if they have seen your product once. This will be a gentle reminder that your product is still available to solve their problem.
Collaborations and Affiliates
You can also partner with influencers or create affiliate opportunities to extend your reach. Influencers and affiliates can drive sales by endorsing your products and adding credibility to them which will encourage their audience to buy from you.
Benefits and Challenges of Selling Digital Products
Advantages
- Digital products can make passive income. There is no inventory limit or the hassle of handling shipping or delivery.
- It has low production costs and requires minimal costs to list on different platforms after it is created.
- It allows you to reach a global audience which in return can boost your chances of earning from anywhere in the world.
Challenges
- Some popular niches are very saturated making it difficult for new sellers to stand out amongst your competitors.
- Creating different products may require some technical skills or premium tools that you may not have or are expensive.
- Marketing any product or service requires time, consistency, and investment. It may take some time for you to sell your first item.
Earning Potential And Success Stories
Digital products have great earning potential. They have already helped multiple creators gain financial success across a variety of niches. For example, Michelle Schroeder-Gardner of Making Sense of Cents turned her personal finance knowledge into a successful online course on affiliate marketing and is now earning six figures annually.
Similarly, Megan Minns, popularly known as a productivity expert, has utilized her knowledge and created a line of productivity templates and planners which helps her earn a steady income through her website and platforms like Etsy.
Finally, Sarah Titus, a single mom who started selling printables is now making a good income through her online shop.
All these stories show that creators and influencers can make passive income by selling digital products and that there is still a huge potential for earning in this field. You can also start and earn passive income by selling digital products.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to create digital products on Shopify?
To create digital products on Shopify, you should log in to your Shopify account and go to Products > Add Product to enter your product details, including title, description, and pricing. Uncheck the “This is a physical product” option under the shipping section. Now, install the Digital Downloads app (or a similar app) from the Shopify app store. This will allow you to upload your digital file and automatically deliver it to customers after purchase. Once uploaded, save your product, and it will be ready for customers to buy and download directly from your Shopify store!
How to create digital products with AI?
To create digital products with AI, choose an AI tool suited to your product type (e.g., ChatGPT for eBooks, Midjourney for digital art) and generate and refine the content, then package it in a downloadable format for sale on platforms like Shopify or Etsy.
How to create digital products on Canva?
To create digital products on Canva, you should choose a template or start from scratch, design your product (e.g., eBooks, planners, or social media templates), and customize different elements as needed. Once complete, you can download your design in a suitable format (PDF, PNG, etc.) for sale or distribution.
Conclusion
Making money by selling digital products is a great side hustle. It is also a great way to build a passive income stream. Throughout this article, we have tried to cover every topic related to digital products.
When you search for how to create digital products, the first step that will always pop up on your screen will be to choose your niche and do market research. This is because, when you know who you are creating your product for, you will be able to make something that will solve their problem and benefit them.
This article will help you create your digital products and start selling them to make money online. You should try and create several
digital products and list them because they are far easier to create in comparison to digital products and you can easily sell them for higher profit margins.