Whenever I talk with people about writing an ebook in 6-weeks or less – as outlined in the 6-week Information Product Profits Course at InfoMarketer’sZone) – I get an equal number of dis-believers and those that are curious to see just how it is possible.
Not only have I done it several times, but I’ve known many other who have also produced successful information products (ebooks, reports, audio and video products) in less than 6-weeks – while still working at their main job, business and not alienating their families.
Here’s a great case study just posted over at Problogger about a blogger named Leo Babauta who operates a successful blog about being organized, maximizing productivity and generally speaking, getting things done.
Here are some great takeaways from this very informative interview that will help you with your infoproduct publishing business:
- Leo started with a blog, building his niche to 21,000+ subscribers with utold more regular readers building a powerhouse platform from which to generate new ideas, get feedback on topics and sell his ebook when it was ready
- His own subscribers practically "begged" him for an ebook – talk about built-in demand
- He wrote his ebook in 2-weeks! That’s while working a job and tending to his family – not bad…
- He’s already working on ebooks 2 and 3 – now that’s how to do it!
- Leo outsourced the design of his ebook – not a bad decision, but there are also templates available to make your design appealing from the start – we have a good selection through InfoMarketer’sZone
- He hoped to sell 100 ebooks – then sold that in just the first few hours by having the platform and building anticipation
- His tips on attracting subscribers and readers to his blogs is pure gold – leading your business with a blog is a crucial first step in our 6-week Information Product Profits Course, of course the more traffic and readers, the better quality your content, the bigger your platform and authority will be.
Building a platform for your information product publishing business is a great way to de-risk your writing and product development while ensuring higher sales and profits once you launch your products.
Here are some suggestions that Leo may want to explore…
1. Testing different price points for his ebook. $9 is leaving some serious profits on the table and may also impact the number of affiliate that signup to actively promote his book given that the commission will be small. He may indeed have the right price point – I likely would have tried $17 or $27.
2. Get a back-end. Now that he has hundreds of customers buying his $9 material, it’s time to monetize the back-end. Some options would be… plan a 1-2 day seminar, open a membership site, develop a multimedia course or package around his methods, or simply feed someone else’s back-end product for significant commissions through a joint venture.
3. If he hasn’t done it already – it’s time to go all out with publicity – press releases, advertising offline, etc… with his topic he could easily secure magazine and radio advertising spots based on his teachings taking his business to the next level.
Writing an ebook doesn’t need to take months and be a painful process if you follow a proven system where you involve your market early, capture their mind space and let the products come naturally.
Jeff
