Aug

31

Use Your Blog to Create Profitable Information Products

Filed Under Online Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Information Products, Blogging, eBooks, Information Marketing, Internet Business | 3 Comments

Here are some quick ideas for creating a profitable information product from your very own blog…

1.  Expand one fruitful post into a much larger piece.
Look for posts that you could easily expand into chapters or subtopics.  Perhaps it’s a post you’d love to write more about but felt limited by the blogging medium.  Here, you’re putting passion ahead of testing and viability, but that’s not always a bad thing.  Remember, you’re just looking for something fruitful to get the wheels turning.

2.  Use a post-series and add supplementary materials for added value.
I can think of a number of great series out there in the blogosphere that have really contributed to my life and, frankly, I probably would have paid for the information.  Unfortunately, once material is available for your readers, it’s a bit hard to justify simply collecting all the posts into one easy-to-download ebook for a price.  But… you might be able to take that series and “repackage” it along with some other additional “exclusive” material. 

3.  Rank your posts by popularity and create a related product.
Figure out what your readers really like.  Then, use that post as a starting point for your brainstorming process.  Connect this idea with #1 above for extra punch.

4.  Work on a joint venture product or co-author an ebook with regular commentators.
This idea makes the most of the “social” or “networking” benefit of being a blogger.  You might find another avid info marketer out there who wants to team up under your lead.  Or, you may find a handful of folks who’d willingly contribute to the work for a kickback – link to their site, royalty, etc.  Two minds are always better than one.  Three or nine are awesome!

5.  Review natural search hits to uncover profitable keywords.
Are you using HitTail?  Well, you really should be by now.  Whatever your method, figure out how people are getting to your site and create a pool of keywords for generating ideas.  Sometimes the audience has a way with words, if you know what I mean. 

These are not fail-proof plans for creating an information product – just helpful starting points or hubs for creating something truly great. 

If you’re a blogger and you enjoy writing and communicating with a hungry market, then information products may be a shoe-in for you. 

On the other hand, you may just uncover lots of new ideas for future blog posts.  Either way, it’s all right there at your feet.  Have fun!

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Aug

1

Info Product Brainstorm

Filed Under Information Products, Online Business Ideas, Information Marketing, Internet Business | 1 Comment

Product development is a crucial area in any business. Investing plenty of time in the initial phases of product creation can make or break the success of your release to the market.

I have been hard at work in developing my next information product and thought I’d share some of my insights into that very important first step: brainstorming…

1. Generate a list of niche areas based on your own expertise and interests.
It’s always best to look to your own life in the early stages of brainstorming. The idea here is to chase something you’re actually interested in from the start. The greater your own level of interest, the longer you’ll manage to sustain the idea over the course of its “shelf life.”

2. Choose one specific area and solve one of its problems.
Sometimes the obvious move from step one to step two lies in solving a problem in the first place. If you generate a list of 10 interest areas in the step above, but only one seems to have a problem you’re interested in solving, you’ve already narrowed the list.

Also: avoid getting “hung up” on the problem itself. The trick here is to effectively combine productive problem-solving with attentive market research. You’ll see what I mean soon….

3. Develop some general ideas for products.
Perhaps the best way to approach problem-solving by product-idea is to put yourself in the market. Become your own customer. Ask yourself, “If I were searching for a product to solve problem X, what would I want in the product? What benefits would I look for? How would I want to get the product/solution?” And so on.

When you arrive at a good idea (hopefully, a few good ideas) it’s time to start testing - the next phase in the product development process. We’ll look at that process in a later post.

Happy brainstorming!

Reader Toolbox:

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May

16

3 Reasons Your Web Site Does Not Make Money

Filed Under Marketing Strategy, Online Marketing, Information Products, Online Business Ideas, Creating Wealth, Information Marketing, Internet Business | Leave a Comment

Leaving money on the table in your internet business? Not satisfying your “hungry market”? Not confident in your ability to make real money on the web?

Let’s look at the three most likely reasons your web site is going broke…

1. You Have a Mental Block

It’s bizarre, but oh so true: Your ability to make money (in any venture) has a lot to do with your ideas about money.I know what you’re thinking: “Not more of this ‘Law of Attraction’ and ‘The Secret’ hullabaloo.

I’m not going to tell you that all you need to do is sit quietly in a room and meditate on your piles of money. That would be about as effective as telling you that all you need to do is sit at a computer all day and create website after website Field of Dreams style.

The key is… you need to do both. And you need to balance both according to your specific needs. Some people need to focus more on the meditation and mental mindset stuff, while others need to work a bit harder at the desk.

In my experience, this balancing act never ends, and if you learn to accept that now, it makes things fun.

But if you’re working really hard and seeing little or no results, the problem is almost always in your head. If so, it’s time to do some mental reconfiguration.

Start with these key questions:

  • What is the difference between the you TODAY who makes X amount every year and the you TOMORROW who makes X+Y per year?
  • How hard do you think a person MUST work to make X+Y?
  • Do you think it’s possible to really enjoy your work (so much that it’s hardly work) and still make a boatload of cash?
  • What feelings of guilt are you still harboring about making (or having) a lot of money?

2. Your Prices are Too Low

Here’s another common problem: guilt-reducing price cuts!

Can you believe that many people are out there selling their own products and services for prices far lower than they actually deserve? Believe it. Chances are, you’re among them!

When I started working as a freelance copywriter, I had the hardest time quoting my prices to clients. Some part of me actually felt guilty charging the industry standard for my valuable services.

Despite the fact that I was qualified to do the work, my copy was always effective, and I gave my all to every project on my desk, I still managed to come up with tons of reasons to lower my prices.

Let’s start here: If you don’t believe in the value of your products and services, who will?

Ask yourself: how much is this product/service really worth? (Spend some time really thinking about what it’s going to do for your customer.)

Also: how much is my time really worth? This question alone can change your life. If you decide you’re worth $100 per hour, then absolutely every minute of your working day becomes incredibly valuable to you.

But, alas, problem #2 here is DIRECTLY related to the opening problem #1 above.

3. You’re Giving it All Away for Free

This last problem is especially true on the web.

Yes, it’s a good idea to give some things away for free, especially if it’s going to result in kickbacks later (email sign ups, client referrals, future purchases, etc).

But… You can’t give it all away all of the time. The key here is knowing how much is too much.

Blogging provides a useful example: In the beginning, as you’re building a readership, you’re going to give it ALL away for free. But you absolutely must have an end game in mind.

What are you giving away every day that you could easily package for sale? (Bloggers, for example, might consider creating ebooks).

How can you stop or cutback on the giveaways? (Write shorter blog posts, be more disciplined during “free consultations” – you get the idea.)

The worst mistake any business or entrepreneur can make is leaving money on the table. As Dan Kennedy once suggested, the goal is actually NOT “zero resistance selling” - it’s better to turn some customers away because of higher prices than to get all the business at rock-bottom prices!

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May

10

The Top 4 Internet Business Models

Filed Under Online Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Online Business Ideas, Information Marketing, Internet Business | 5 Comments

Are you maximizing the online potential for your business?This is just the question I asked myself during a “business brainstorm” session over a cup of breakfast tea yesterday morning.

That train of thought got me thinking about how I could best categorize the different types of “Internet Business” possible. You might also think of this listing in terms of income streams.

This is by no means exhaustive, but captures the essential methods to make money online.

To illustrate how one person could make use of all four areas, I’ll use “Bookseller Bob” as our case study. Mr. Bookseller owns a small but growing bookstore in his hometown and is thinking seriously about taking his business live on the web.

Each area begins with a “You” statement to sum-up the basic form of doing business – perhaps something like what I might say to Bob as his Internet Business Consultant.

1. Offline-Online Hybrid Marketing
“You can use the Web to enhance your offline marketing systems.”

Technically, we all fall into this category. As the late, great Gary Halbert often insisted, the Web is a “delivery system” and nothing else. While that is debatable, I think Halbert’s point is worth taking.

The offline-online hybrid takes Halbert’s advice very seriously and applies the most conservative approach to using the web.

For our case study, Bookseller Bob would begin very simply by putting up a primitive website with basic information about his store and his products. He might also include an opt-in form to collect email addresses and ramp up his email marketing campaign.

2. Affiliate Marketing
“You can create content to promote other people’s products.”

Now that Bookseller Bob is running a website, he might also consider adding a blog for his musings about books, book business, and other topics of interest.

Of course, one approach is to use the blog as a means of promoting his website and thus his bookstore. Or, Bob could monetize the blog to generate some extra cash from Google Adsense or other affiliate programs.

3. Single Product Marketing
“You can promote primarily one or a few products that “live” on the web, but can also be ordered by phone or mail.”

With a great landing-site and a thriving blog under his belt, Bob is becoming quickly convinced of the true marketing power of the web.

A lot of his readers and friends are even beginning to ask questions about his business model. Like any smart entrepreneur, Bob decides to diversify even further and thus pursues his next project: creating an information product.

Info products fit nicely into virtually any business model, but Bob is especially suited for this - he loves to write and knows how to convey information well for others.

Bob comes up with a working title, “Bootstrap Bookshop Marketing,” and starts working immediately on composition and layout. He then buys www.bootstrapbookshop.com, hires a sales-page copywriter, and arranges for credit card processing.

4. Wholesale or Drop Ship Middleman
“You can market other people’s physical products and use drop shipping or wholesale purchasing methods.”

Bob is still on a quest to maximize his web marketing system and is now thinking about increasing his product sales.

He learns about the simplicity of drop-shipping and begins making plans to open up a Yahoo or other merchant store on his website. Instead of only selling his physical inventory, Bob makes arrangements with a wholesale book distributor to drop ship and make light wholesale purchases for his online customers.

While this case study offers a seamless progression through these business growth stages in web marketing, it is by no means a step-by-step guide. Think of each example as a possibility and then position your business accordingly.

That said, if Bob’s process can help you navigate towards higher process, go for it!

Reader Toolbox:
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May

1

The Information Marketing Business System

Filed Under Marketing Strategy, Copywriting, Information Products, Online Business Ideas, Information Marketing | 4 Comments


We all love systems - they make life easier!

In all parts of my business, I think in terms of systems whenever possible to conceptualize the total process.

The best thing about systems is repeatability. If you can handoff a simple checklist with instructions, you have a fantastic system. Of course, this is the key to any entrepreneur’s success…

Here’s a simple system for marketing information on the web:

1. Pick a Niche
You must begin by picking a topic. It’s best to research before jumping in, but sometimes you have to lead with your heart.

For an excellent discussion on picking a niche, check out Sterling & Jay’s Internet Business Mastery podcast – Episode #26.

2. Write a Blog
With a comfortable niche in mind, it’s time to start building your presence on the web.

Blogging is the easiest way to get started. Blogger and Wordpress both offer free blogging sites on their domains, but I strongly recommend getting your own URL and implementing the free software on your own.

3. Market Affiliate Products
Let your blog-website also serve as an income generator by building affiliate links for other information products in your niche.

This is a great way to earn some cash upfront as you begin building your own products and services at the backend of your sales funnel.

4. Learn Copywriting
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Copywriting is the most important skill in the info marketing world.

It’s not necessary to become a world class copywriter, but you will need to read a handful of books on the subject and learn from the experts.

Of course, you can always hire a professional to help, especially for those critical sales letters.

5. Create Your Own Products
OK – so the blog is posting new content to your site every day, you’re making some affiliate sales, and you have a basic understanding of copywriting principles – now it’s time to build the core of your business…

Create your first information product! Ebooks are a great place to begin, but you can also shoot higher and begin with a full blown CD/DVD package if you’re so inclined.

Each niche lends itself to different types of info products. Let your niche be your guide in this place.

6. Rinse and Repeat
Some folks prefer to concentrate all of their efforts in one niche area, while others like to branch out.

This is entirely up to you, but either way you should still “rinse and repeat” if you expect to watch your numbers grow.

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