eBook as the "core" product

That's the model I chose, and I think that many others have proven it to be a sound one to follow. You can repurpose so much of an e-book to use as things like video scripts, blog posts, articles, and pod casts, that it is a great resource to have. You can also repurpose the aforementioned to use as the core of your e-book. Many people have used some combination of the two strategies to form a successful product mix.

I agree that an ebook is a good place to start in many niches. Use that to give away a good answer to a small problem, then you can continue to promote the larger products further down the sale funnel.

With that said, ebooks aren't the only solution. If you follow the logic that you're only initially giving away the answer to a smaller problem, the presentation mechanism doesn't matter so much. For instance, you could still use a video course, and this will be more appealing to certain sectors of the marketplace to make the initial sale.

Thom

An ebook is just a medium. One possible vessel for delivering information.

People consume digital information in all kinds of formats and everyone has their own preferences.

As some stated above, what matters is the value of the information you provide as well as the positioning of your information and your brand in the marketplace. Whether you're using ebooks, videos, membership sites, webinars or a blog to deliver the information is secondary.

Having said that, here are a few tips from personal experience:

- In several surveys I've done, I've seen that a majority of people prefer videos and PDFs (online and downloadable), when it comes to info products.

- I recommend that you choose media that you are most comfortable with. If you don't like making videos, then don't let the above statement get in the way. If you're better at writing, then concentrate on that and you can do just fine.

- Webinars seem to have a lower perceived value as a teaching medium, but are fantastic for "hot off the press" material as well as interacting with your audience. o, the promise of webinars as the main product is not that great, but the promise of live webinars as a bonus or the use of webinars for delivering new info and updates works great.

I always start with a good solid eBook (PDF format) with a extra surprise eBook or my favorite a Video Training with a upsell at the end. Although webinars are considered "less" value by some markets, I like a good webinar to provide good free training. Good luck

Sounds like you've already figured it out.

Rope in your customers and follow-up with more offers.

I want to second the idea that a well-written eBook is a great tool and gives you the opportunity to reuse the information for other media formats.

With some reworking of the eBook it can be converted to audio-books, articles, slide shows, podcast episodes, even quick social media messages giving you maximum exposure and widening your marketing funnel.

This method of broadcasting your message also gives you more ways to generate and build interest leading up to your upsell. Yep, definitely give people a choice of how they will consume your information.

-Mark

I almost always start with an ebook or a report....that will help me get the type of target audience I want and easier to follow up with another set of ebooks....

start with a couple of reports or ebook and move them higher to the sales process....

I'm totally aligned with this. Something else that has worked magnificently for me is to host free live phone conferences ( Free Conference Call Services for Conference Calls - Free Conference Calling ) and at the end of the conference, drop a line or two about your E-book. This is a very great way to get back to the HUMAN SIDE of things. When people hear your voice, it's a lot different than reading your text! Great thread, E-books are a great "core!"