By Stephanie
Chandler
There is a tremendous opportunity for
business owners, authors and professional speakers to generate new
revenue streams from information products such as e-books, special
reports, teleseminars, etc. If you’re not sure what kind of products
you can create, the following list should help you generate some new
ideas.
1. TEACH THE AUDIENCE HOW TO DO
SOMETHING
To begin the brainstorming process, make
a list of everything you know how to do. For example, if you are a
career coach, you probably know how to write a killer resume,
prepare for an interview, what to avoid saying during the interview
process, what you should say during the interview process, how to
dress for success, etc.
2. FIND OUT WHAT YOUR CUSTOMERS
WANT/NEED
You can ask them directly by soliciting
feedback or conducting a survey.
3. PAY ATTENTION TO QUESTIONS YOU ARE
ASKED MOST FREQUENTLY
Often times this can hold a key to
creating a product that will be in high demand. For example, as a
small business expert, I receive a lot of general business startup
questions. One that I am often asked is, “How do I find free money
to start a business?” I could meet the needs of my audience by
creating a special report with resources for locating business
capital.
4. USE WHAT YOU ALREADY HAVE
Compile your best articles or blog
entries or take topics from your existing book and break them down
into short reports. Also, look at the databases you keep for
personal use and ask whether people would be willing to pay for
them.
5. LEARN SOMETHING NEW AND SHARE
For example, if you are a financial
planner and want to learn how to find emerging new stock
opportunities, do your research and then teach your clients how to
do the same.
Here are some additional examples:
*If you’ve created and formatted a
spreadsheet for tracking sales leads or monitoring your business,
sell it!
*Compile a list of media contacts for
your industry and sell it as a directory.
*Outline one of your customer’s success
stories (with their permission) and explain how the reader can
benefit from what the customer learned.
*Compile a white paper that includes the
latest statistics for your industry.
*If you’ve had success with antiques,
collectibles, electronic products, homemade goods or anything else
on eBay, help others understand what worked.
*Tell your story: “How I took $500 and
built an amazing business, and how you can too!”
*Create an anthology. Contact other
experts in your field and ask them to contribute an article or
essay.
*Compile articles you have written into
a book.
*Compile your best blog entries and turn
them into a special report.
*Show how to start a business in your
industry. Include sample forms and worksheets that you use in your
daily business operations.
*Compile articles that you have written
and create exercises to attach at the end of each one to develop a
workbook. For example, include an article about how to decorate a
living room, then add a worksheet that will help the reader outline
a color palate for her own decorating adventure.
*Show how you did something then include
an outline for the reader to do it too. For example, you could
explain how you marketed your business over a three-year period and
then include an outline for a marketing plan, with room for the
reader to fill in his own details.
*Develop a companion workbook that the
audience follows through while you give a presentation or one that
compliments a book you have written.
*Conduct a weekly class via email and
have students send back homework for you to review. You can even
automate the delivery process using auto responders.
*Offer daily exercises for a month. For
example, “30 Days to Positive Thinking.”
Get creative when developing your
products. Make a list of ideas and pick the one that is easiest to
implement, yet has the most demand with your target audience.
Produce quality products and your customers will return again and
again.
About the Author:
Stephanie Chandler is an author of several business and marketing
books including “The Author’s Guide to Building an Online Platform”
and “From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur.” She is also founder and CEO
of
AuthorityPublishing.com, which provides custom book publishing
and author marketing services for business, self-help and other
non-fiction books. A frequent speaker at business events and on the
radio, she has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, BusinessWeek,
Inc.com and many other media outlets. For hundreds of resources for
entrepreneurs, authors and speakers visit
http://BusinessInfoGuide.com. For author and speaker details,
visit
http://StephanieChandler.com.
*You are welcome to reprint this
article provided the author bio is included.
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