Before you sell an ebook on your website, you might want to read this first. That’s what I did several years ago. I had bought an ebook from eBay and downloaded it. This struck me as a pretty perfect business model. It’s completely automated and there’s no dealing with any physical goods or customers. So I wrote my own ebook about how to become a stuntman. (See my post how to escape the 9 to 5 with a dream job).
I set up the website so that it could be bought (using a Paypal) button which redirected to the pdf document upon purchase. It was all ready to go and then guess what?! Nothing happened! The reason? I didn’t know how to attract traffic to my website.
Before You Sell An Ebook On Your Website
So I put myself on one of those “earn money online” courses in order to learn how to attract more sales. This is going back to the early 2000’s now. What I discovered was a clever business model known as affiliate marketing. With affiliate marketing you can earn money through the sale of other people’s products and services.
So, for example, the first thing I promoted was the course I had bought. I could earn $40 per sale through selling the course, compared to the measly $9 I was charging for my ebook (which nobody seemed to want by the way!).
So what I’m saying here is that before you spend hours and hours creating your own ebook, start with a course first and learn affiliate marketing instead! The real skill in selling anything online is the marketing. That is, the ability to attract an audience to actually sell.
Once you’ve learned this skill, you can apply it to anything. But it’s much easier to learn by selling something that’s already popular.
Before You Sell An Ebook On Your Website – Why Selling Ebooks Is Tough
It’s tough selling ebooks because so many website owners simply give ebooks away as lead magnets for free! They use an ebook to encourage their visitors to sign up to their email list. Not many people want to pay for something they could find elsewhere for free.
With all the video content available online too, an ebook is less appealing to some. Video content has made people lazy and they would much prefer to watch a few videos than read an ebook.
I’ve even found giving away an ebook can be a challenge because more people are savvy to the email marketers strategy. That is to get you on their email list and spam you with a tonne of messages which never stop! Ebooks can sell.
But you’re better off learning how to sell online using a high value course which is already selling in volume. You can earn more, it’s easier and more lucrative to boot!
Why Use Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a business model which rewards third party referrers for online sales. You can be up and running much faster as an affiliate than nearly any other business model. Affiliates simply refer sales online. You don’t need a product to sell of your own because you can use existing products which are super valuable.
So what are the skills you need to become a successful affiliate? Marketing of course is the answer. Run an advert, create content, drive traffic and make sales. This skill is the skill you need if you’re going to sell your own ebook online too.
But it’s much easier to learn it when you start as an affiliate promoting existing products. Existing affiliate programs already have the marketing materials set up and ready to be used. So you can simply grab a banner, or a video and use it in your marketing. Plus, if you choose products which are in massive demand already, it’s much easier to sell them.
Getting Started As An Affiliate
To get started as an affiliate click here and sign up to the free video series. You’ll be able to access training and resources which take you step by step in setting up your own online sales platform, complete with products ready to sell. This is the “technical” setup process I went through when I tried to sell my own ebook. But you don’t need to waste time learning most of this because a program will do all that for you. The real work of making a sale online is the marketing approach you choose.
Once set up you will have your own online “digital shop”. The next step is to attract an audience to it, and sell a product. Although this requires some training, you’ll basically be deciding on a marketing method. Some affiliates use organic marketing methods, such as blogging and content creation. Others use paid marketing methods to drive traffic more quickly. Whatever method you choose, get the right knowledge up front and it will save you a lot of wasted effort.
Done For You Digital Storefronts
Have you noticed all the “done for you” digital storefronts available online today? Etsy stores, Amazon stores, Shopify digital storefronts? Anyone can pay a monthly fee and get their almost immediate “done for you” store up and running in no time!
Sure it’s a digital store with products built in. That’s amazing. What isn’t amazing is the lack of interest once you invest in this “store” – and tie yourself to a monthly fee no less! Digital “ready made” storefronts may well be cutting edge and super easy to put up, but unless you know how to market them, you may as well not even bother.
This was the same deal when I created my ebook “How to be a stuntman”. It was effectively a digital store which could make money on complete autopilot! All I needed was customers! But that’s the “catch”. When you buy your “digital storefront” you’re sold it based on the amazing benefits it can offer – but the small print is that it’s going to cost you a fortune promoting it because everyone wants to advertise online!
The real skill then is in learning a marketing method which brings customers to your store for less than you make. Once you crack this you can do it over and over and of course (with digital products) you have a globally scalable business model.
The Email List
The email list is where the money is with an online business. Marketers use the email list to build up a subscriber base and build trust over time. If their subscribers are carefully targeted and the correct messaging used, the email list can be a hugely valuable resource for an online marketer.
Even if only a small percentage of your email list purchases from you, with a large enough list you can make large earnings. If you use subscription products too, you can earn even more. A subscription product gives you recurring income. This is something you simply can’t earn from the sale of an ebook. Then there’s high ticket products which pay out much larger commissions than most.
In the simple course I promoted as a beginner affiliate, I was already earning more per sale than I would with my own ebook.
So, before you sell an ebook on your website, check out this video course – or access my free ebook on affiliate marketing below: