Earn cash by leveraging your love for books: A guide for avid readers.

Earn cash by leveraging your love for books: A guide for avid readers.

Ya know what, buddy? If you're sick of scraping by with just enough to feed your cats and buy some books, hey, who can blame ya? I'm gonna spill the tea on how I'm making bank online selling digital products - and you can, too. This ain't no pyramid scheme or get-rich-quick scheme, but it's legit and pretty darn sweet.

So, what are digital products? They're just files - like ebooks, Google Doc templates, video workshops, and printables - that you can sell as downloads or access online after a purchase. You could dream up nearly anything that your customers can use online, on their tablets, or even print out themselves.

I'm selling mine on Etsy, but I also have a PayHip store and use ThriveCart. Etsy gets a ton of daily traffic, and people tend to trust them more than some random website. If you're packing a huge social media following, why not funnel all that to your own website?

Most of my income comes from Etsy because it's a marketplace, but if you've got a big following, you could make more selling directly on your own site. With my products, I talk about them a lot on my blog and create Pinterest pins for my blog posts. I post about them on Pinterest, too, but those don't seem to do as well as getting folks into my blog first.

I've also got digital courses and a few other digital products on ThriveCart because it gives me more autonomy than selling on Etsy. I can collect people's emails, send updates, and other important stuff - something Etsy doesn't offer.

Some of my digital products are very small and inexpensive, while others are more complex and cost a pretty penny. I like offering products at different price points, and since I sell writing-related stuff, I want something for every experience level from newbie scribes to advanced wordsmiths.

I generate new products regularly and either retire or update older ones. It's October 2024, and I'm having a slow month, but business is usually picking up soon. Last February was my best month, and I made almost as much as I would've in my nursing job - which is dandy, 'cause I'm not planning on ever going back to that nonsense, snicker.

Now, I gotta address this common bullshit argument I've been seeing on Reddit: "If you were actually making money from digital products, you wouldn't be teaching them and you would reap all the cash yourself." To that, I say: There are plenty of scam artists out there, and I'm aware of them. But if you're good at something, why wouldn't you want to help others become good at it too? That means more money, but also, we can barley find joy when we're sucking money-wise, and if I can help even one peep escape that mess, then I'm happy, dammit!

Many folks seem to think it's easy to cheat your customers and still make bank with your digital products. Sorry to burst their bubble, but nobody's buying that drivel. If you wanna stay in business and make a profit, you gotta deliver quality; people won't come back for more crap.

Now, without further ado, lemme share some ideas for bookworm digital products. Your educational digital products should help your customers with one of these four things:

1. Learn
2. Improve
3. Remember
4. Organize

You'll have two types of customers: one who wants to learn your skill and one who already knows it. Not every subject or product idea lends itself to every category, but you gotta know who you're marketing to.

Your educational digital products should be in one of these formats:

1. Ebooks
2. Google Docs/Sheets templates
3. Notion templates
4. Video workshops
5. PDFs with linked pages for Goodnotes and other PDF annotation apps
6. Printable or digital worksheets, trackers, and logs
7. Printable or digital workbooks

Let's say you wanna teach someone something, like a book club or maybe a certain literary style. You could create "how-to" type products - like ebooks or video tutorials. If you wanna help someone improve their skills, you could offer workbooks that help them practice what they've learned. For keeping stuff organized, you could create trackers or Notion databases.

So, what kinds of bookish digital products could you create? If you're a literature enthusiast, you could design study guides or Google Sheets templates for keeping track of your To-Be-Read list, with links to the Kindle Store. You could also create a Notion template for tracking reading goals, or a printable book review template with prompts to use in online book clubs.

Maybe you're into fantasy novels or fan fiction, you could create printable book-themed games, like bingo or word searches. You can even design your own book club games, puzzles, and quizzes to keep members engaged.

If you've got the graphic design skills, you can make these products even more unique - and unbeatable.

Here's your action plan for starting your new Etsy shop:

1. Decide On Your Niche: What kind of educational digital products do you want to focus on? Literacy resources, study guides, or language learning tools? Identifying your niche will help you create products that are in demand and allow you to specialize in a particular area.
2. Design Your Digital Products: You'll need graphic design software to create your products, like Adobe Illustrator or free alternatives like Canva.
3. Set Up Your Etsy Shop:
4. Create an Etsy Account: If you don't already have one, sign up for an Etsy account and set up your shop.
5. Understand Etsy Policies: Familiarize yourself with Etsy's policies on digital products to ensure compliance.
6. Optimize Your Listings: Use relevant keywords and descriptions to make your products discoverable. Utilize SEO techniques to improve visibility.
7. Automate Delivery: Etsy allows you to upload digital files directly to your listings, which are automatically delivered to customers upon purchase. For customizable products, consider using services like Corjl or Templett to facilitate personalization and delivery.
8. Market Your Products:
9. Promote on Social Media: Use platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to showcase your products and reach potential customers.
10. Join Educational Communities: Engage with teachers, students, and parents on forums and social media groups to understand their needs and promote your products.
11. Offer Discounts and Promotions: Periodically offer discounts to attract new customers and encourage repeat business.
12. Monitor and Improve:
13. Analyze Sales and Feedback: Use Etsy's analytics to track sales and customer feedback. This will help you refine your products and marketing strategies.
14. Continuously Create New Content: Keep your shop fresh by regularly adding new products or updating existing ones to keep customers engaged.
15. To expand your digital product offerings, consider creating a workbook that helps customers practice creative writing skills, aligning with the theme of lifestyle and entertainment.
16. For those interested in learning more about writing tips, you could develop a video workshop or an ebook on effective writing techniques, focusing on improvement.
17. To cater to users who appreciate literature and books, consider designing a digital workbook that helps them organize their reading goals and track their progress, enhancing their overall lifestyle.

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