If you’ve been following me awhile, you know I get frustrated someone presents something simple as rocket science.
One area where we see this trend is product creation. It’s a shame because many service businesses would benefit from adding even a few simple products. Yet it’s easy to be intimidated by all the steps: choosing a topic, creating the product, developing marketing materials, and finding a way to get paid when you actually sell something.
Recently I came across Dennis Becker’s 6 Easy Pieces of Product Creation, which actually makes things simple instead of more complicated. (Does anybody else remember the movie this comes from?)
Ten Steps To Simplify Content Creation (Even If You’re Super-Busy & Hate To Write)
1 – Mostly you need the confidence to get out there and do it. (True!)
2 – You don’t need a 30,000-word piece for a big publishing company. You need 5000 words on ONE topic. (Tough if you published a “real” book first – like I did – but also true.)
3 – You can figure out the topic by focusing on problems your audience has. What resources are available? What have they done so far? (Dennis came up with 11 questions to hone in on your topic — also good for choosing blog post and webinar topics.)
You can also dig into your client’s motivation by finding their backstory – a brand new course I just released.
4 – Be friendly! Write to the elementary school reading level. (This one was hard for me – and still is.)
5 – Write one section at a time. (Yes! If you don’t pace yourself you burn out halfway through the book. Guess how I learned that one.)
6 – Start simply, with an ebook. Audio and video products are awesome, but there’s a learning curve.
“If you’ve never created a video, set up a membership site, or offered any sort of product before, I highly suggest you start out with an ebook. Otherwise, the learning curve might frustrate you a bit.” (I couldn’t have said it better.)
Above all, don’t get caught up in technology. I’ve been there myself. “Well, first I have to learn this … which means buying a NEW product for training …” It’s a vicious circle and it’s dangerous.
7 – Research can actually be fun (and he’s got some cool ways to organize your notes).
8 – After you draft your ebook, polish it up. Then write the sales letter.
9 – Set up a payment system (jvzoo comes with a built-in affiliate marketing program, highly recommended).
10 – Don’t stop! Most people give up – between steps 7 and 9. It seems huge: getting your product out there. But if you can push through you’ll get rewarded and next time will be easier.
In fact, some people get hooked and that’s why you see some people sending out a new product every week (or so it seems).
You can get Dennis’s full report here for a price that’s a no-brainer for most people – just a fraction of what a lot of others are charging for massive info that just makes things more complicated.
Click here to begin creating your first or next product.
I bought it myself. I’ve got a number of info products and this is the Real Deal … plus I picked up some things that even I, as a veteran, hadn’t been aware of. And it meets my test for, “Keep it simple. REALLY simple.”
BTW, I’ve created tons of content over the years. If you’d like to work with me one-on-one to blueprint your next steps – and get help getting started – just click here. Or click on this link if you’d like to ask some questions first.