What are the Best Personal Brand Products to sell online?
Outsource Creating Personal Brand Products.
Where to Resell Personal Brand Products.
Best Personal Brand Product ideas.
Who is your market? Your market is Anyone with digital content online
Channels, Pages, Groups, Courses, Videos, info Graphics, Books, Websites, Sales Funnels or Landing pages, Music, and Email lists. Create Your brand Ad and monetize your life.
1. eBooks.
eBooks have been and continue to be one of the most popular digital products for both creators and customers. They are relatively simple to produce since they require little more than written text and a few relevant images. eBooks are simple to distribute via large marketplaces or self-created online stores. They’re easily consumed by customers, who can read them on e-readers, tablets, computers, and even their mobile phones.
The beauty of creating eBooks is that you can share almost anything you know, or are passionate about, in text form. You can educate, advise, or curate existing content with an eBook to then sell on your website.
Interested in selling eBooks? We wrote an entire post on the topic here.
2. Software
Selling software online is something we should know a fair amount about. Not only have we helped thousands of customers sell software online, but it was originally the entire purpose that we created Easy Digital Downloads for; to sell WordPress plugins online. All types of software sales combined makeup nearly 28% of sites using our platform, so it is something we truly care about.
The software industry is enormous and consistently growing. It is also extremely ripe with opportunities. Any person’s ability to write code of any kind can result in new, useful products. Whether it be desktop software, web-based applications, website templates, mobile apps, video games, or anything else powered by code. The possibilities are endless, and an established market likely exists.
If you speak (or rather, write) a code language, you can develop numerous things to sell online. Whether you have experience with apps, plugins, themes, snippets, websites, or something else entirely different, you can turn code into cash.
Want to know more about selling software online? A more detailed post is over here.
3. Video
Video is an extremely popular and effective format for delivering information online. This content can be educational, informative, or entertaining. It’s significantly more engaging than text and can be easily consumed by clicking a play button and watching. Users love video, and in many cases are happy to pay for it.
If you’re a great public speaker, have a visual-based passion, or just love sharing your thoughts on video, with a little editing time up your sleeve you can sell videos online.
For a much more detailed exploration of the topic of selling videos, wander over this way.
4. Audio & music
Audio is a powerful medium for communicating messages, and there are many different types of audio digital products. People pay for audio tracks that entertain them, soothe them, inform them, inspire them, and help them achieve business goals, to list just a few examples. Audio products can include:
Recorded lectures
Musical samples
Audiobooks
Foreign language lessons
Relaxing background noises
Karaoke versions of popular songs
Reusable sound effects
Full lyrical or instrumental music tracks
Have a passion for music or other audio-based products? A far more in-depth guide is over here.
5. Photography
High-quality, premium photos are one of the most sought-after digital products today. The biggest consumers of online photographs are bloggers and website owners.
It’s true that stock photography has commoditized the market to the point where some photos are sold for less than they are worth (or they are given away for free). However, for truly spectacular images (and not some of the cheesy stuff you’ll find on stock websites), photographers can still command fair prices.
One of the biggest downfalls of stock sites from a customer perspective is not knowing exactly how much one or two images are. In some cases, a membership to the stock photo site is required. If you’re a photographer, you can combat stock photo sites by selling your images on your own website for the price you want (and undoubtedly deserve).
A website is a vital part of a photographer’s portfolio. Showcasing your work beautifully is imperative to raising your profile. With competitive pricing and excellent quality images, it’s possible to do very well selling your independent or client-commissioned photos on your own website.
If you’d like to dig even deeper into the topic of online photography selling, check out this other post.
6. Graphics & digital art
Graphic designers and digital artists can create a wide variety of unique and valuable products. From logos to PSD templates, to icon packs, to PowerPoint themes, to original artworks, designers can apply their skills in numerous ways to create digital products for sale.
Graphic designers can create and sell card designs, patterns, brushes, backgrounds, UI assets, and more. Digital artists can sell finished pieces, drawings, and sketches. Finished original art of exceptional quality can be priced higher than graphic design pieces. If you can produce artwork digitally, it’s worth selling online (just be sure to license it correctly!).
If you think two paragraphs is not enough on the topic of selling graphics, you’re in luck because we wrote more about it here.
7. Documents
Documents come most often in the form of informational pieces (like industry reports, manuals, or guides) or templates (like resumés or proposals). There are documents that are password-protected, documents that include large files, documents with variations on the same files (like other languages or color schemes), documents that can be well suited for recurring models (like periodically revised or updated reports), and documents shared freely as lead magnets.
Have you written blog posts on your website specific to your industry or profession? If so, consider the value of packaging up your content and selling it as a manuscript or white paper so others can learn from you. You’ve already shared your knowledge on your website – curating it into a useful document for sale will be beneficial for both you and your site visitors.
8. Courses
e-Learning is an industry rich in innovation and is growing with unprecedented momentum. As it grows, we are starting to see traditional educational institutions. Exploring new ways to make their content available to learners. As for established educational programs, learning material can be sold in a few different ways:
1 As a downloadable one-off course
2 As a downloadable collection of courses
3 As a memberships/subscription to a web-based service.
Courses are very often sold the same way as other digital products, and with the same tools, which is why we’ve become very familiar with online course sellers.
According to our recent user surveys, the number of people using Easy Digital Downloads to sell courses has quadrupled in one year. This is the most drastic increase for a specific product type we’ve seen since we started monitoring this data through our surveys.
Some courses are entirely autonomous, while others offer interaction with a teacher or assignment reviewer. Many courses provide students with some form of certification or reward upon successful completion.
Courses are becoming an increasingly popular foundation or complementary component for online businesses, due to consumer trends, and the prevalence of affordable and easy-to-use Learning Management Systems. They offer a lucrative outlet for anyone with knowledge or expertise and enable educators to reach a broad audience without being constrained by geography, technology, or time.
Our in-depth coverage of what you need to know when selling courses online can be found in this post.
9. Professional services
Services are, of course, not products at all. However, they are very commonly sold in the same way digital products are. They are often sold one of two ways:
As fixed-price services. The cost of the service is predefined and known to the customer before needing to engage with the service provider.
On a case-by-case basis. The required work is scoped by the service provider. Quote to the customer, and the cost is agreed upon by both parties.
In the world of eCommerce, the line between products. Service has become a little fuzzy, and in many cases, the customer doesn’t care very much about the difference. Customers can buy pre-made logos as a product with a defined price. They can also pay a predefined price. And some sites have someone design a logo which results in a very similar experience and end result.
With many service-based jobs, you are selling. your time in exchange for a specific outcome or result, instead of a product. Or, you may be selling your time for a completely bespoke product, unique only to that one customer.
These days, all kinds of service providers are opting to sell their services online. Below is a very brief list of some of the professions that can sell services online:
And that’s barely scratching the surface! This is another segment of digital products we have seen on the rise, with. More than three times as many people selling services using Easy Digital Downloads now compared with a year ago.
For an excellent, detailed read about selling services online, head over to another post we wrote on the topic.
10. Tickets
Though definitely quite different from other digital products due to the fact that they are (usually) applicable only for a certain time period, relate (often) to some physical location, and (normally) have limited availability, tickets are very commonly sold in the same way everything else in this post is. Customers can make their selections, checkout, and receive their tickets independently and instantly through a seller’s website. These tickets can get them into conferences, concerts, carnivals, and other time-based events or can be for admission to amusement parks, zoos, and museums that may not enforce a specific time. Tickets can also be sold for purely online experiences such as webinars, classes, online conferences, or in-person conference live stream feeds.
11. Fonts
Typefaces are a great example of a digital product that is always popular and constantly experiencing change as customer preferences gradually shift over time. Fonts can be created and distributed for use on the web by website creators, or for use in desktop applications like Microsoft Word and Adobe Photoshop. Enthusiasts appreciate fresh new fonts which mean continuing to expand one’s commercial catalog overtime may be necessary in order to maintain revenue.
12. Web-based applications
Web-based applications are similar to software but are not downloaded from the web. Instead, this category encompasses anything customers pay to use within a web browser. Also called SaaS (Software as a Service) businesses, they are not digital products in the truest sense but can be sold and perceived very similarly, so they are important to acknowledge.
Many software creators find themselves faced with the choice between building a web-based SaaS app, and a distributed, installable program. Examples of these applications include services for email marketing (like Drip, MailChimp, AWeber, and Constant Contact), contact management (like Salesforce, Nutshell, and Pipedrive), site monitoring (like Pingdom and Status Cake), project management (like Basecamp, Asana, Podio, and Jira), online course-based learning memberships (like Team Treehouse, Lynda, Skillshare, and Coursera) and file storage (like Dropbox, iCloud, Google Drive, and MediaFire). Since customers are paying for access to tools/services, recurring payment models are standard.
For a much more exhaustive look at what goes into selling a SaaS, we’ve got an entire post right over here.
So, what will you start selling?
We are constantly observing changes in the popularity of certain types of digital products for sale, as well as technological advances to make selling digital products easier. Courses, services, and web apps are all on the rise. WordPress plugins, video, and graphics are still very strong. Clip art and Flash-based games appear to have seen their day. I'm interested to see how things will change over the next few years!
Did we miss any products on our list? We have looked at what people were selling in 2019, and in previous years. Is there something you believe we’ll see more of in 2020 and beyond? Are you already selling digital products on your site? Join the conversation in the comments below!
And remember to sign up for our mailing list to keep an eye out for future blog posts that will dig deeper into the digital products mentioned above. Let us know if there is something you’d like to see us cover in more detail!
Treat Digital Content Creation as a business
We all spend time and energy to produce and refine our digital content from writing product descriptions, responding to support emails, and running a social media campaign, it can seem like a, sometimes daunting never ending mental and physical hurdle! So, how can you overcome these difficulties to optimize your routine and maximize your output?
In this post, we’ve outlined some tips and tricks to help you increase your productivity as a digital content creator, and get even better results!
Marketing digital content can take a lot of time and discipline, primarily if you run your own store. In this week's Digital Generation, we’ve outlined some tips and tricks to help you improve your productivity and get better results!
Address pressing issues first
One of the biggest blocks to creativity and a smooth workflow is the background pressure of daunting tasks. If something critical is bugging you, you will likely find it difficult to concentrate, much less be efficient! Consider taking time out of your day first thing in the morning to address these issues that can otherwise drain your energy. This can free up mental bandwidth, leaving you feeling free to create, produce, and operate at an overall higher capacity.
Respond to important emails right away, pay bills that are in the back of your mind, renew subscriptions that are due to expire, pay your affiliates, product creators, and service providers, address an influx of support requests, and dedicate time to making final calls on things that you’ve been indecisive about. These kinds of concerns can take up a remarkable amount of your energy, so if you tend to them right away, you might find yourself with more time to spend on making products and running your business – and less stress throughout the day.
Create products in batches
One particularly effective “hack” that works especially well for people selling downloadable graphics, photography, audio, video, documents, and courses is batch creation. For example, instead of just making one product, you could push out as much content as possible within a certain topic, style, genre, or category, and then split your work into multiple products, or create a multi-volume series of products. This can make your work go a lot farther, essentially allowing you to drip feed your products, instead of creating them as you go along.
Utilize templates
Whether it’s product creation, support emails, social media posts, templates can save you a lot of time. Product templates can help you get started faster, and can always be edited later, while support email templates can cut down on any repetitious messages you have to type out. And making your own social media post templates means less deliberating, less typing, and less hassle! You can adopt day-of-the-week specific post trends like “Throwback Thursday” to reduce the decisions you have to make about content, or even create your own!
Consolidate and centralize
When it comes to optimizing your productivity, think about your most inefficient problem areas. Communication is a great example; this can include things like writing emails and communicating with your clients, team, and affiliates. Needless to say, getting interrupted every few minutes can seriously compromise your workflow, so what can you do to cut down on the breaks in your stride?
Well, you can start by consolidating and centralizing your communications. For example, using a cloud-based system like GSuite (Google’s collection of productivity apps) can help you keep everything in one place, and allows entire teams to collaborate on schedules, documents, and other files. GSuite makes it easy to stay organized, as everything is created, edited, and/or stored on the cloud in a shared digital space. The more you can consolidate, the less time you have to spend sending out redundant information, attaching files to emails, and so forth.
Here are a few more tools to consider:
Slack: This communication “hub” offers customizable discussion channels based on projects, topics, or other groups, and allows you to chat with your team individually and in groups, in one central place.
Trello: This collaborative tool enables communal organization and management of projects, assignments, labels, categories, comments, and other customizable elements.
Zapier: The “glue” that connects all of your productivity apps, allowing you to automate tasks and build workflows that save time and energy.
Zoom: A popular video conferencing tool is known for its efficiency and reliability, you can use Zoom to get face-to-face time with your clients and teams, easily share screens, and have group and one-on-one meetings.
MailChimp: All the cool kids are using it these days! MailChimp is the one-stop-shop for email marketing, from managing your newsletters and mailing lists to creating affiliate and sales emails.
HelpScout: This support platform integrates with your email to make managing support requests simple and streamlined, with notable features like embeddable widgets and an easy-to-use interface.
Optimize your support
In addition to tools like HelpScout, creating a dedicated support or FAQ page with the answers to customer concerns can significantly reduce the amount of time you spend responding to individual requests. Sometimes, support requests are redundant, and anticipating common problems (and addressing them proactively on your support page) can mean a lot fewer headaches for you and a more convenient and helpful experience for the customer.
If you really want to up your game in the support department (and eliminate unnecessary support tasks), consider creating tutorial videos. With video being one of the most effective methods for learning and retaining information, quick start guides, product overviews, workflow walkthroughs, and other helpful videos can make all the difference for your customers, and your support ticket queue!
Something that we do a lot is making screen recordings of as many things as we can that come through a support request, so we only have to demo that particular thing once. Next time we get the same support request, we simply point the user to a video that we’ve previously made to help them solve the problem.
Using social media management platforms
Business owners struggle to keep up with social media, and for this reason, platforms like Buffer, Sprout, and Hootsuite can come in extra handy! Tools like these automate your posts and help to free up a lot of time that you would otherwise spend painstakingly publishing individual posts to your social media accounts. Instead, you can dedicate chunks of time to scheduling out your posts well in advance, with your content getting dripped automatically on the days and times specified. Anyone who knows what it takes to get social media right will tell you that this can be a very worthwhile investment!
Automate and outsource what you can
The development of automation and related tools has been one of the most significant advancements for many industries, and eCommerce is no different! Automation helps you complete otherwise manual tasks automatically, giving you more time to focus on the important stuff! There are many ways to implement automation when it comes to running a digital store, from marketing emails and scheduling to data entry and content management – and a variety of tools (like Zapier, mentioned above) exist for the exact purpose of improving your productivity in these areas.
When you’re selling digital content, you can automate so much of the education and sales process using email automation tools like Drip, Convert Kit, and others. I use automated emails heavily in my sales funnels, but all of my (pre-written) messages have a personal tone to them, so they prompt a lot of people to reply. I always read and reply to those, especially if it’s a pre-sales question or a question from an existing customer. So, automation + personalized attention = win.
Brian Casel, Productize & Scale
Let’s be honest: there are probably plenty of tasks you simply don’t want to do, or that take so much time you struggle with producing enough output or handling more important matters. You might have a hard time getting motivated when the time comes to do these tasks, or worse, you might make mistakes that could cost you a pretty penny. When it comes to things like accounting and taxes this is especially true. If you’re not proficient in these areas, it’s wise to hire experts to make sure everything is done right.
In general, outsourcing can make a huge difference to your workflow. Just think about it: does writing product descriptions and web copy make your brain feel numb? Do you dread dealing with social media or customer service? Just don’t have time to create a product demo? If you can afford it, you might want to consider hiring some help. Don’t discount freelancing websites like Fiverr, Upwork, and (People Per Hour) if you’re looking for an affordable way to outsource tasks that get in the way of your productivity.
Get physical
Given the nature of digital content, people who create and sell them often find themselves spending a lot of time behind a computer. Some of these dedicated creative people may even forego meal and bathroom breaks when in “the zone”, perhaps neglecting physical needs altogether. While this can feel hyper productive at the moment, putting your body on the back burner can actually work against you. Making digital content often requires a lot of concentration and mental power – things that can be greatly optimized with proper physical activity, nutrition, and rest.
If you don’t already, consider implementing an exercise plan as a part of your daily routine. While it might be tempting to “save time” by skipping out on the workouts, many people report feeling greater mental clarity and higher energy levels – and those things alone could make all the difference to your productivity! Some people swear by treadmill desks, while others utilize standing desks to at least avoid the physical stresses of sedentary work. What works for others may not work for you, but the point is that getting moving promotes your health, and ultimately, your abilities.
Don’t forget to take regular breaks, and listen to your body to avoid the unnecessary stress that can compromise your goals in the long-term. If you just can’t break away to have proper meal breaks, think about other options like smoothies, nutritional shakes, and preparing meals ahead of time. There’s a whole industry dedicated to meal prep, giving you lots of options for saving time and personalizing your diet for maximum effectiveness (meal delivery, anyone?). As silly as it might sound to some, your physical well-being is interconnected with your productivity, for better or worse!
Small adjustments add up
As a digital store owner, there are so many things you have to think about and tend to throughout the day that it can seem extra challenging to make significant gains in the productivity department. However, working on a few smaller improvements at a time can amount to big leaps in the long run.
Have some useful productivity tips to share? What have you done to increase your efficiency as a digital content marketer? Leave us a comment.
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