Your First Information Product: Choosing a Topic That Will Sell
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Your First Information Product: Choosing a Topic That Will Sell
by Marcia Yudkin
The other day I asked about 100 people who had signed up for a session on developing infoproducts what was their biggest concern about creating their first information product.
To my surprise, less than 10 percent said they worried most about the technicalities of the product creation process or felt a lack of confidence that anyone would buy. A bit less than 20 percent indicated that their biggest obstacle was lack of time. And a whopping 72 percent said that most of all, they weren't sure what their product should be about.
Two Topic Selection Strategies
There are two sound ways to select an infoproduct topic. Strategy #1 is to pick a topic that positions you well with your target market and has synergy with your ongoing business. For example, someone who specializes in writing autoresponder copy would logically create a product explaining how to win over customers, email by email. Maybe you help people plan healthy menus after a diagnosis of diabetes - that's a terrific topic for a small report.
Strategy #2 is to look to a hobby you're passionate about, that's separate from your business or profession. Where one person is passionate about coffee, maybe your thing is working with rescue dogs or beginning Urdu or winning in fantasy football. If you're going to focus on your hobby, you probably already know where people who are into the same thing you are hang out online, and that's a big advantage when it comes to marketing your product.
Three More Tips
Remember also that it's going to be much, much easier to sell information that solves a problem for a set group of people than information that's simply interesting or simply informative, for no one in particular.
Likewise, it's much, much easier to sell information that someone has to have, as opposed to hmm, that would be nice to know. And sometimes the difference between saleable and unsaleable consists in how you pitch the information rather than the intrinsic nature of the information content.
For example, an infoproduct called "Understanding Employees' Personalities" sounds like it's a noble and nice thing to learn, but definitely not necessary. Transform it into "17 Ways to Turn Staff Who Think Selling is a Dirty Word into Sales Stars," which solves a certain problem for some managers, and you'll find it much easier to sell.
In the same way, a report or recording called "Raise a Happy, Healthy Dog" seems valuable, but change it "The 11 Most Common Dog Health & Happiness Problems - Solved" and you have made it far more compelling to someone who has even one of those issues with their dog.
And last, never pick a topic solely because you know of a group that would find the topic irresistible. Don't forget, you need to bring the content of that product into being and promote it effectively so customers buy. Do not select a topic that bores you. Choose a subject that gets you excited, and that enthusiasm easily passes along to your ideal customer, who presses the "buy" button after consuming what you wrote or spoke.
The author of 11 books and seven multimedia home-study courses, Marcia Yudkin has been selling information in one form or another since 1981. Download a free recording of her answers to the most commonly asked questions about information marketing by entering your information into the privacy-assured request box at http://www.yudkin.com/infomarketing.htm .
by Marcia Yudkin
The other day I asked about 100 people who had signed up for a session on developing infoproducts what was their biggest concern about creating their first information product.
To my surprise, less than 10 percent said they worried most about the technicalities of the product creation process or felt a lack of confidence that anyone would buy. A bit less than 20 percent indicated that their biggest obstacle was lack of time. And a whopping 72 percent said that most of all, they weren't sure what their product should be about.
Two Topic Selection Strategies
There are two sound ways to select an infoproduct topic. Strategy #1 is to pick a topic that positions you well with your target market and has synergy with your ongoing business. For example, someone who specializes in writing autoresponder copy would logically create a product explaining how to win over customers, email by email. Maybe you help people plan healthy menus after a diagnosis of diabetes - that's a terrific topic for a small report.
Strategy #2 is to look to a hobby you're passionate about, that's separate from your business or profession. Where one person is passionate about coffee, maybe your thing is working with rescue dogs or beginning Urdu or winning in fantasy football. If you're going to focus on your hobby, you probably already know where people who are into the same thing you are hang out online, and that's a big advantage when it comes to marketing your product.
Three More Tips
Remember also that it's going to be much, much easier to sell information that solves a problem for a set group of people than information that's simply interesting or simply informative, for no one in particular.
Likewise, it's much, much easier to sell information that someone has to have, as opposed to hmm, that would be nice to know. And sometimes the difference between saleable and unsaleable consists in how you pitch the information rather than the intrinsic nature of the information content.
For example, an infoproduct called "Understanding Employees' Personalities" sounds like it's a noble and nice thing to learn, but definitely not necessary. Transform it into "17 Ways to Turn Staff Who Think Selling is a Dirty Word into Sales Stars," which solves a certain problem for some managers, and you'll find it much easier to sell.
In the same way, a report or recording called "Raise a Happy, Healthy Dog" seems valuable, but change it "The 11 Most Common Dog Health & Happiness Problems - Solved" and you have made it far more compelling to someone who has even one of those issues with their dog.
And last, never pick a topic solely because you know of a group that would find the topic irresistible. Don't forget, you need to bring the content of that product into being and promote it effectively so customers buy. Do not select a topic that bores you. Choose a subject that gets you excited, and that enthusiasm easily passes along to your ideal customer, who presses the "buy" button after consuming what you wrote or spoke.
The author of 11 books and seven multimedia home-study courses, Marcia Yudkin has been selling information in one form or another since 1981. Download a free recording of her answers to the most commonly asked questions about information marketing by entering your information into the privacy-assured request box at http://www.yudkin.com/infomarketing.htm .