Product Creation Clinic – How to Create a Sellable Online Information Product in 5 Days

I’ve talked with so many people who have awesome talent and expertise, yet they still don’t have an online product created.

For all of you and everyone else, here’s a simple process for creating your signature product in 5 days.

• DAY 1. Come up with a topic (easier than most people realize).
• DAY 2. Quickly define what content you want to include.
• DAY 3. Create the content – text, audios, videos, animations, and/or slide presentations.
• DAY 4. Package it — with a title, cover graphics, and pricing.
• DAY 5. Post it online (using a pre-packaged platform like JigsawBox).

This video gives you a brief overview of some of what will be covered below.

… Read More [ismember]

Now here are the five days explained in detail.

DAY 1. Choose Your Topic.

Start by listing everything you know that others do not. It could be experience you have, a hobby or passion, professional or life skill, or something else — that people would be interested in having or knowing.

Eric Weber was a shy college student who wondered how to get a date. So, with a tape recorder in hand, he approached pretty girls and asked them what were the best approaches and the worst they had experienced from guys wanting to date them.

 (That’s a great pickup line, by the way… “I’m doing a book on How to Pick Up Girls. Could I ask You a Few Questions?)

He transcribed the recordings, came up with a great title, HOW TO PICK UP GIRLS, created a cover photo, found a printer to help pay for the printing costs (the printer agreed to pay the printing costs in exchange for half the profits), ran a small ad in Playboy Magazine and… generated millions in sales within a few years! [Today I would get releases from everyone I interview so I could also use the recordings. Audio and video added to text can greatly increase what people will pay].

Once you have a seemingly good general topic, go to Amazon.com and review which books are selling related to your topic (by reviewing the best sellers and looking at the rankings for each book). If people are buying certain books, there’s a good chance it’s something people would be willing to pay to get training for. Also, the specific topics and titles in Amazon may further help you define what you want to write about.

NOW YOU HAVE A TOPIC

 

DAY 2. Define the Contents You Want to Include.

Next, create a mind map or a bullet list of everything you want to cover on your topic. White boards are great for this, and are definitely worth the investment. List everything you want to cover in your mini-training course.

A Google search on your topic can generally give you ideas about content you want to make sure you include.

Don’t plagiarize. There’s plenty of software that can catch you. And besides, this is the process many million-dollar products are created from. If you are able to generate great income from this product you create, the last thing you want is to suffer a lawsuit once the money starts flowing in. Inviting a lawsuit is especially crazy when there are so many ways to get legitimate content.

Here’s what a Mind Map looks like:

 

NOW YOU HAVE AN OVERVIEW OF THE INFORMATION TO INCLUDE IN YOUR PRODUCT’S

 

DAY 3. Create the Actual Content.

Creating content is easier than many people realize, using text, audio, video and/or slide presentations.

 TEXT ——————————————-

• WRITE IT YOURSELF OR HIRE A WRITER — You can write the content yourself, or hire someone to do it for you, through a site like Elance.com or Odesk.com.

Create it using a word processing program (like WORD), add graphics and images to jazz it up (see DAY 4 – COVER GRAPHICS below for graphics sources), then convert that document to a PDF file so it’s easier for people to download.

Free PDF conversion programs come with newer computers, and are available online for free (if you worry about downloading viruses, etc, you may want to try downloading a free PDF converter through www.Cnet.com, which tends to be safe.)

and/or…

• GET ARTICLES FROM BLOGGERS — Use other people’s articles (with permission) – You may get great content from bloggers and others by paying them, or in exchange for giving them exposure to your audience, maybe including a link back to their website at the end of the content.

and/or…

• USE COPYRIGHT FREE ARTICLES AND CONTENT:
  • from Wikipedia — much text is copyright free in Wiki,
  • from Federal Government documents — most are copyright free since they are created using taxpayer dollars (state documents are generally not copyright free),
  • from older books and documents where the copyright has expired — Original books like Think and Grow Rich and As a Man Thinketh are out-of-copyright, but be careful that you do not reproduce someone’s upgraded version– try searching www.gutenberg.org/ for samples of out-of-copyright books.

AUDIO ——————————————-

• USE A RECORDED PHONE CALL — Interview someone or have someone interview you on a free recorded phone call using a service like www.freeconferencecallhd.com.

and/or…

• USE A RECORDED INTERVIEW — Interview someone or record yourself using a tape recorder, an iPhone/SmartPhone, an iPad/Tablet or a computer.

and/or…

• USE FREE EDITING SOFTWARE — Edit your recordings with free audio software from  many sources including http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/

VIDEO ——————————————-

• RECORD AN INTERVIEW ON YOUR  PHONE OR CAMERA — Interview someone or explain something, recording it using your iPhone/SmartPhone, iPad/Tablet, computer’s camera, or video camera.

and/or…

• CREATE A SLIDE SHOW — Create a Powerpoint or Keynote slide show, record audio over it and post it on YouTube (newer versions of PowerPoont and Keynote allow you to record your slide show directly to YouTube).

and/or…

• CREATE AN ANIMATION USING AN ONLINE SERVICE — Upload slides or photos with audio and your narration to Animoto or BrainShark, which enable you to easily create animated presentations that you can upload to YouTube.

and/or…

• CREATE AN ANIMATION USING LOW-COST SOFTWARE — Use software like www.videomakerfx.com/, that lets you easily create animated presentations you can upload to YouTube (or other video platforms).

and/or…

• USE OTHER PEOPLE’S YOUTUBE VIDEOS — Use other people’s YouTube videos that you embed on your website. YouTube allows you to put other people’s videos on your website. Here’s how:
  • At YouTube, find a video you want to have on your website.
  • Below the video, click the SHARE link.
  • Then, click the EMBED link.
  • Capture the highlighted code, and paste that code where you want the video to appear on your web page. (If you are using a WordPress website, paste the code in the TEXT tab, not the VISUAL one).
  • Before you capture the code, make sure the SHOW SUGGESTED VIDEOS WHEN THE VIDEO FINISHES is unchecked. Otherwise competitor videos will appear once the video ends.
  • Note that YouTube also lets you change the size of the video to better fit your page, if needed.
  • Also, if you put too many videos on a website page (more than 3 or 4), it may load very slowly, which can be a turnoff. So beware.

 

TIP: If you want to videotape yourself doing a long presentation, try this.

• Create a PowerPoint or Keynote of the presentation (just put words on the slides to remind you what you want to say).
• Don’t put too many words on each slide. Just enough that you can read the slide from 8-feet away.
• Get a wireless clicker to advance the slides (from Staples or Office Depot for about $20).
• Put your computer or laptop about 8-feet from where you will stand, at eye level, with the slides facing you.
• Place your video camera or SmartPhone just above the computer screen (so when you read the slides, it will appear that you are looking into the camera),
• When ready, turn on your video camera and flip through the slides as you speak your presentation.
• Now you can have an extensive presentation, with the slides keeping you on track so it sounds professional.

NOW YOU HAVE FINISHED CONTENT FOR YOUR PRODUCT

 

DAY 4. Package It — with a Title, Cover Graphics, and Pricing.

First, you’ll need a killer name for your product. This requires creativity and research. Consultants are available to help, or you could do it yourself — by going to sites like Amazon.com and Google to review other products and program names with a similar topic to yours.

A killer name can make a tremendous difference.

• John Gray’s book “Men and Women in Relationships” went nowhere until he changed it to MEN ARE FROM MARS, WOMEN ARE FROM VENUS, after which it became a blockbuster.
• Jack Canfield struggled trying to come up with a name for his book. Then one day, out of the blue, the name CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL popped into his head and he had a title that went on to become the most successful book series in history.
• Tim Ferris asked people on Facebook and other social media for name ideas, and tested his own ideas, eventually coming up with THE 4-HOUR WORKWEEK, which went on to become a massive international success.

Some people have the creativity to come up with great names better than others.

But if you’re not able to get a fantastic name, don’t worry. Creating a descriptive name should be fine — that defines:

• What is the topic?
• For who?
• How it is different from everything that’s out there, and/or
• Why should they buy it — what benefit will they get by using it?

HOW TO PICK UP GIRLS is obvious.

MEN ARE FROM MARS, WOMEN ARE FROM VENUS is not so obvious, so the sub-headline says, A Practical Guide for Improving Communication and Getting What You Want in Your Relationship.

Always start with a descriptive title. Then, ask friends, family and others for suggestions for a catchy title.

If you cannot come up with a catchy title,  GO FORWARD with a descriptive title. You can always change the name later, if need be.

I’ve seen too many people get so stuck on which name to use, they never get off the launching pad, despite their having an incredible product.

Get a name (title and subtitle) that clearly describes what your product is, and move on.

COVER GRAPHICS

If you’re willing to spend the money, you could hire a graphic artist to design a professional look and cover for your product. Some sources include:

• www.KillerCovers.com who will design a unique cover for about $120;
• www.99Designs.com where you post your criteria of what you want and how much you’re willing to pay, and people from around the world will post examples until you find something you like.
• www.fiverr.com where for $5-$20 you can get someone to create a cover for you.

If you want to create a cover for yourself, many sources are available with free and low-cost images, including:

• iStockphoto.com
• 123RF.com
• Graphicstock.com/ (which allows 7-days of free downloads)
• Shutterstock.com
• GettyImages.com (higher priced premium images)

Many free image sources are available, including Creative Commons (http://search.creativecommons.org/) that connects to free images across the Internet, where you will often need to attribute where the image came from or follow other restrictions that are posted for the image.

PRICING

So, how much should you charge? $7 — $19.95 — $49 — $99 — $999 — $13,500?

Famed marketing guru Jay Abraham charged $500 for a book most people would have charged $20 for, and hundreds of people bought it. He teaches that most of us charge way too little.

For example, would you buy a brand new $80,000 Mercedes from someone for $600? For most of us, the answer is no, because we would believe something is wrong. We have a perception of how much it should cost, and that perception governs what we are willing to pay.

Understanding this concept, Jay Abraham got motivator Tony Robbins to raise his prices from $100 to $1,000 for his weekend events, with premium seating selling for $5,000. Today Tony’s events can have ten-thousand people attending from around the world. Plus, people get better results BECAUSE the price is higher. With a higher price, they go into his events with an expectation that, if it costs this much, it must be powerful.

When Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson published their book, 1-MINUTE MANAGER in 1982, despite the small size (about 90 pages of large print), they gave it a premium price, of about $24.95. The high price positioned the book as, “high-priced but worth it,” much like the tagline of L’Oreal hair color with the tagline, “Expensive, but I’m worth it.”

Still, many people will not be so daring that they will charge a premium price.

The real question is not, how much should you charge, but how much will your customer pay.

For most online products, you may have to test your price to find the best one. Internet marketer Ryan Deiss sold $99 Internet marketing programs during economic heydays. Once the recession took hold, he needed to lower his price to $47 to generate maximum revenues for the same product.

Amazon.com believes $3.95-$9.95 is the ideal price for Kindle ebooks, and gives authors a higher commission when they sell at that price.

And by the way, studies have found that 7’s tend to work better than 9’s at the end of a price. $47 works better than $49, for example. This is not an absolute, but you will notice many online products with a 7 at the end, as a result of this.

Here are some rules of thumb that you may consider:

• $7-$17 for an ebook
• $10-$24.95 for a physical book;
• $47-$97 for text with videos or audios added;
• $97-$997 for video training programs;
• $997-$9,997 for 3-6 month coaching programs.

Still, these are rough guidelines for pricing. How much you charge is more a factor of who you are selling to, how strong their perceived need is (what problem are you solving and how big a problem is it for them), how many alternatives they have and the perceived value of your product to them.

So, again, don’t get stuck. Find similar products and price yours relative to those, and generally you will be fine.

 

NOW YOU HAVE A PRODUCT READY TO SELL

 

DAY 5. Post it Online (Using a Pre-Packaged Platform like JigsawBox)

Now that you have a great product, you’ll need to post in online somewhere so people can buy it.

You could create your own site, or have someone build one for you, or use a pre-packaged site, such as JigsawBox.

JigsawBox is one of the best places to post your information product for sale, because — for about $67-a-month it has everything you’ll need to make it “feel” professional and to make it easy to buy.

Top marketers across the Internet swear by JigsawBox because it’s such an easy platform to sell your product from.  It lets you upload text, audio and video content, post it like a course, with chapters that can contain text, audio, video, end-of-chapter quizzes if you want them, and even other ideal elements.

If you want to add a coaching element to your program, JigsawBox lets you easily do that, even with online appointments and collecting payments. Plus it simplifies your ability to upsell additional products to these customers and clients, as you create them, but in a way that’s professional, not pushy.

To learn more, go to www.jigsawbox.com

 

NOW YOU HAVE YOUR PRODUCT ONLINE AND READY TO SELL

 

That’s it.

Five days and now you have an online product that could start generating income for you — from thousands to millions of dollars of income, literally.

Next, you’ll need to let people know your product exists.

We cover that in detail in our TRAFFIC sections, starting with our WEBSITE MAGNETS program, which takes you through the 17 ways to attract “qualified” traffic to your product or website.

 

SUMMARY

So in review, here are the steps to creating your signature product in 5 days.

• DAY 1. Come Up with a Topic.
• DAY 2. Quickly Define What Content You Want to Include.
• DAY 3. Create the Content – Text, Audios, Videos, Animations, Slides.
• DAY 4. Package it — with a Title, Cover Graphics, and Pricing.
• DAY 5. Post it Online (Using a Pre-Packaged Platform like JigsawBox Could Greatly Simplify this Task)

Follow this plan and you could literally have a life-changing, income-generating product faster than you may have thought possible.

 

SEE ALSO:

Website Magnets

Quick-Start – Do You Have a Product to Sell?

Webinars and Teleseminars

Google Hangouts – Creating Free Webinars

 

 

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