Showing posts with label Information products. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Information products. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Lessons From the 7-Step Product Creation Challenge Q&A Call

Yesterday, I hosted a Q&A call for participants in the "7-Step Product Creation Challenge" -- a self-guided program to help career industry professionals develop their first -- or NEXT -- information product.

Here are five tips that I shared on the Q&A call that may help you create your information product -- whether that's an ebook, tip sheet, membership program, webinar/teleseminar, live program, or self-study program for jobseekers.

The first tip is START WITH YOUR WHY. What is your motivation for creating an information product? The two biggest "whys" for resume writers and career coaches is usually one -- or both -- of two things. The first reason to create an information product is to generate passive income (and/or recurring revenue) in your business. For most resume writers, they are only making money when they are directly serving clients (1-to-1 work). An information product allows you to make money even while you're sleeping, while you're doing "family things" or even when you're serving clients!

Speaking of serving clients, that's the second reason you may be motivated to create an information product: A well-designed information product solves a problem for a jobseeker. Many resume writers who have developed their products did so because their clients had a need. Here are just a few examples:


The second tip is START EASY AND CREATE OFTEN! Many career services professionals I talk to want to create something big, like a home study training program or a hardcopy book. Instead, if you're creating your first information product, start with something small -- a tip sheet, an ebook, or a teleseminar. Once you've created one, you'll find it easier to do another one!

But DON'T REINVENT THE WHEEL. That's tip number three. Do you already have something done that you can re-use? Look through your email inbox and see what questions you answer over and over again for clients. Then take the content that you've already sent to clients (copy-and-paste from your emails!) and do something with it! And don't forget that Pass-Along Materials are ready-to-go content you can put to work right away!


The fourth tip is to DEVELOP ONCE AND PROMOTE OFTEN! Once you've created your first (or next!) information product, your work isn't done! The next step is to continue to promote it! You can't just "build it and they will come." Make it a point to promote your product -- post about it on social media. Do guest blog posts or be a guest on podcasts where your ideal client for that product hangs out! Excerpt it!

Finally, JUST GET STARTED! One thing I said over and over again on the call was: "Done is better than perfect!" You can always go back and add to the information product. But getting something done and out there is a huge motivator! If you want help creating an information product for your career services business, take the 7-Step Product Creation Challenge! It's just $37 for the self-guided program. It walks you through the process, step-by-step!

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Why a Niche Can Help You Sell More Information Products

Before you begin selling information products online, you want to make sure you’re targeting a niche that will be profitable for you in the short and long-term. A niche is just a fancy term for your "target audience."

Some niches, as you’ll discover, aren’t as profitable as others. You need to look at your audience and see if they’re willing (and able) to spend money for the solutions they’re seeking.

For instance, executives are often willing to invest significant sums in their career development tools, like LinkedIn, or their resume. Many of them also understand the value of having third parties advise them in matters of personal advancement and career.

But another niche, such as new college graduates, might not be willing to pay $67 for an information product showing them how to get their first job. Sometimes it depends on the solution itself. Targeting this same niche of college students, you may find that their parents are willing to make an investment in their kids, paying $197 for them to take a three-session program on finding a job.

One good place to find your niche is with online groups and forums. LinkedIn is a great place to conduct research. Search their Groups offerings and find a couple that target the niche you're interested in.

You’re not just looking for a broad group of people to cater to – you’re looking for those with a lot of problems. When you start creating your information products, you’ll want to build an empire of products that all focus on the same niche, allowing you to market to existing, loyal customers who buy from you time and time again.

Sometimes, you’ll find one large niche and then realize you need to build your information product line around a more targeted, narrow niche of people. For instance, take college students. Instead of targeting all college students, pick one major -- for example, engineering students. You can help them with creating a resume for an internship, landing an internship, creating their online presence (and online reputation management), networking their way to their first real job, and negotiating their first salary.

Just remember that an information product is not really a product at all — it’s a solution, so it needs to be marketed as something that will improve lives. You're not teaching them how to get an internship — you're giving them skills to land their first paying, productive job.