64: From Code to Cash: My 7-Step Blueprint for Profitable Digital Products
In this episode of Think Inside the Square, you'll learn how to create and sell your very own digital product. From identifying your best idea to launching it into the world, I'm covering it all. And guess what? You might already have the perfect product sitting right under your nose!
This isn't some "how to get rich quick" concept here. I'm sharing what I've learned as an online business owner who has sold thousands of digital products to a very niche market.
Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting out, get ready for some game-changing tips that'll help you turn your expertise into a profitable product.
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[00:00:00] The idea of making money while you sleep sounds pretty darn awesome, and the idea of passive income, well, that's a little bit of a misnomer. There is a lot of work that goes into creating a high quality digital product that sells all the time. In this episode of Think Inside the Square, I'm going to break down the concept of creating a digital product and offering it to your audience.
[00:00:26] Based on my experience. Now I am not a millionaire, but I do have thousands of Squarespace users who have purchased digital products from me. So I know a thing or two. And in this episode, I'm going to give you the behind the scenes details. Welcome to think inside the square, a podcast full of tips and tricks to help you build a website that you're proud of.
[00:00:43] I'm your host, Becca Harpain, Squarespace expert and educator. And in this episode, I am giving you the actionable steps you can take to create a digital product and sell it to your audience. For a transcript of this episode, along with the links to any resources mentioned, visit [00:01:00] insidethesquare.co/podcast
[00:01:00] maybe you've been toying around with the idea of writing an e book, or perhaps you've thought about creating a course that could help others in your industry. Or maybe you're a Squarespace designer who's thought about selling templates or pre made code snippets. Whatever your idea is, I'm here to tell you that it is possible, and I'm going to walk you through exactly how to do it in this episode.
[00:01:22] In my career as a Squarespace designer, I created a lot of custom code for my client websites. Anytime I did a neat customization and I thought wow, that was cool. I might want to use that later I would put it into a google doc now over time This google doc ended up being about 30 pages of random code snippets that I used to customize Squarespace I had quite a few codes in my collection, but I thought some of them were extra cool So I recorded a couple of youtube videos in between client projects when I was bored And I put them out on the internet and taught people how to use a few of the codes in my code collection You Those videos ended up being really popular.
[00:01:59] And [00:02:00] that was when I had my digital product idea. I realized if everyone likes these one off code snippets, maybe my code collection would be valuable to people other than me. Somebody out there might want to purchase all of the codes that I've already created. So I spent an afternoon reorganizing that Google Doc.
[00:02:17] I added a little header and footer with my brand name on it. And I put it up on my website for $34.99. That is how the Squarespace CSS Cheat Sheet was born. I posted about it in the Squarespace forum, and overnight, about 150 Squarespace users had spent $34.99 to access my code collection. That was more money than I had made in my last Squarespace website project.
[00:02:43] And my code collection, it was already done. It was finished. Sure, I'd be adding to it over time, But the idea that I had something that I had already created that I could sell over and over again? That was a game changer for my business. Since then, I've developed a lot more products here [00:03:00] inside the Square, but my Squarespace code collection is still the core digital product that I offer.
[00:03:05] Now, over the last five years, that code collection has gone from a 30 page PDF to a 130 page PDF, all the way to a Notion database. I now have a Notion database with over 500 selectors, hundreds of code snippets and pro tips tucked in there. It's a massive resource that's used by over 4,000 square spacers around the globe.
[00:03:26] If you want access to my code collection, you can get it at insidethesquare.co/css that's insidethesquare.co/css.
[00:03:36] But this podcast episode isn't a promotion of my digital product. I wanted to share that story with you to let you know that your best digital product idea, the one thing that you could offer to your audience overnight, it could already be created.
[00:03:50] You could be sitting on it right now. So let's talk about how you take the content you already have And what steps you need to take to turn that into a digital product that [00:04:00] can sell while you sleep. I'm going to walk you through my seven step process for creating a digital product. But before I do that, I want to define it for you.
[00:04:08] A digital product is a non tangible item. It's something that you can't physically hold. It exists on the internet. This item is created, sold and distributed entirely electronically. Digital products don't have a physical form. Now, technically, someone can print an image or a PDF or a file like that, but you're not selling the printer.
[00:04:29] You're not selling the paper. You're selling the file itself. Digital content that can be downloaded or accessed through the internet, usually right after a purchase, is a digital product. Some examples include eBooks, audio files, online courses, website templates, and even the videos that you buy on a streaming service.
[00:04:50] That's a digital product. So now that you know what it is, let's talk about how to create a really good one. We're going to start by identifying your idea, validating that idea. [00:05:00] I'll talk to you about how to outline the content of your product, how to create the product itself, sharing some of the tools that I personally use.
[00:05:07] Then we'll talk about setting up your sales system, actually launching the product, and then gathering feedback to make it better. So let's jump into identifying the idea. I want you to think about your own skills and knowledge. Have you solved a problem for yourself recently that other people might also be struggling with?
[00:05:25] Take a look at the content you work on every day in your business. Is there something that you do over and over and over again that you could teach people about? Do you have skills or knowledge about a specific type of content that you create, or a specific process that you take that other people in your industry would find valuable?
[00:05:43] I genuinely didn't realize that my custom code collection would be so popular with other Squarespace ers. I had been working on it for years, and I had no idea that so many other Squarespace users out there wanted to save time by using the codes that I had already created. The knowledge I [00:06:00] had, and the skills it took to create that content, That was second nature to me, but it's not second nature to everyone.
[00:06:06] So I want you to think about things that you have done in your day to day work, problems you've solved, skills that you have, and knowledge that you've acquired that could be valuable to other people. Once you have a few ideas, the next step is to validate them. Now, to be totally honest, I had no idea I was actually doing step two when I posted my first YouTube videos.
[00:06:28] I was just genuinely excited that I had figured out how to change a button color on a hover. And I wanted the world to know how to do it, too. I thought it was way too cool to keep to myself. So if there's a part of your business process, something that makes your job so much easier, or something that you're so delighted about, find a way to share that with your audience and see how they react.
[00:06:48] Share it on Instagram or on TikTok. Send it out to your email list. Let people know of something cool that you created. Drop some knowledge. Share some skills. Solve a tiny bit of a bigger problem [00:07:00] and see how your audience responds. If a few people write back or comment letting you know how cool it is, that's definitely an indicator that you're on the right track.
[00:07:09] Another way to validate your idea is to look at what's already out there. If you find similar products on the market, don't be discouraged, be excited. This actually means that there's a demand for what you want to create. That's why I want you to focus on your knowledge, your skills, and your expertise, the way that you solve a problem.
[00:07:27] Well, the problem could be faced by many people in your industry. Your unique spin on the solution could be exactly what someone needs. Alrighty, so step one, we came up with an idea. Step two, we validated that idea. Now it's time to move on to step three, organizing the content for your offer. This is something that I really didn't do when I first created the Squarespace CSS cheat sheet.
[00:07:51] I threw in a quick table of contents and assumed that was good enough. Well, let me tell you, my friend, it was not. This is a [00:08:00] crucial part of the planning process and a very important step that I've taken with all of the other digital products that I've created since. So I really want you to pay attention to this one.
[00:08:09] Outlining your offer is so much more than just creating a table of contents. Yes, you need to organize what you're sharing with your digital product, but during this outline phase here in step three. What I want you to organize is the plan for the consumer. How will your customer use this information?
[00:08:27] What other information do you need to share with them so they can make the most of your digital product? Now, using my own example here with my Squarespace CSS cheat sheet, I realized that people needed to learn more about code. Some people purchasing this product weren't as advanced as others. So I had to include some more information about how to install code in Squarespace, how to create custom border effects, how color codes worked.
[00:08:54] I had to include additional information so that my digital product could be used to its fullest [00:09:00] potential. So here in step three, I don't want you to just organize the digital product that you're selling. Okay. But I want you to organize all of the information that people will need to get the most out of the product that you're creating.
[00:09:12] Once you have that outline prepared, you're ready to actually create the digital product. There are so many different types of digital products available out there, and I'm not going to spend the next three hours explaining each different software program that you could use to create it. But I will share with you a few that I've used that I highly recommend.
[00:09:30] If you're doing anything visual, like you want to sell templates or make something extra pretty, using a web based graphic design program is a great choice. A lot of people love to use Canva, and a lot of people love to use Adobe Express. I'll include links to both of those in the show notes for this episode.
[00:09:47] When it comes to creating text heavy products like an e book, you can go as simple as something like Google Docs. Google Docs can work great. At the time of recording this, it's still completely free. Sign in with a Google account [00:10:00] and you can make a document. And inside that document, you'll have all of your standard text editing features like adding images, creating headings, and tables of content.
[00:10:09] You can even create a hyperlink inside the text document if you want to send someone to a different website. It can be an incredibly simple document that you then export as a PDF. The key here is to focus on providing value, not achieving perfection, okay? This first version, it will not be perfect. The important thing is to get your product created and get it out there.
[00:10:31] You can always improve and update it based on feedback from your customers over time. That is why I'm a firm believer in offering lifetime access to these digital products. Anyone who's ever purchased my Squarespace CSS cheat sheet has lifetime access to it. As long as this code collection exists, they'll be able to access it.
[00:10:50] And if you're creating a digital product, I strongly recommend that you consider lifetime access as well. All right, let's move on to step five and talk about setting up your sales [00:11:00] system. This is how you're actually going to offer this product to your audience. I strongly recommend creating a sales page devoted to this individual product.
[00:11:09] You can do this in Squarespace by adding it to the not linked section of your site. If you do want to have it in your main navigation, by all means, go for it, but I strongly recommend creating an individual page. Individual sales page for one specific product. Now for this sales page, there are plenty of different strategies out there on exactly what you need to add.
[00:11:29] And I have heard that the more expensive the product is, the longer the sales page should be. And I kind of agree with that, with a few caveats, of course. But the most important part of this sales page is to make sure that your customer understands exactly what they're purchasing. You need to be clear about what you're offering.
[00:11:46] how they're going to receive this information, how much it costs, and then any additional information that's going to be important for them to know, like what your refund policy is, what the terms and conditions are for purchasing things on your website. To be clear, this [00:12:00] is not legal advice, but there are definitely some important things that you need to consider when creating a sales page.
[00:12:05] I'll include some links in the show notes to places where you can find more information about creating that content. But the point here of step five, the point I really wanted to make in this podcast is that I strongly recommend creating an individual sales page for the unique digital product, your audience, and how they can get it.
[00:12:23] Again, you can create that sales page inside Squarespace, or if you use Flowdesk like I do, you can create the checkout process directly in Flowdesk. They have sales page templates, they have the purchase process, and then the follow up for how the product is actually delivered. It's all integrated right into Flowdesk and it's really darn cool.
[00:12:42] So if you do have Flowdesk, I want to encourage you to explore the checkout templates that they have available. And I've said it before on this podcast, but I'll say it again, I'll include some links for you in the show notes. All right, moving on to the next step, step six, actually launching the product.
[00:12:58] So how do you get your brand new [00:13:00] product in front of your audience? You should definitely post about it on social media platforms if that's where you are. You should also email your list. I think every business owner should have a list. So send out emails letting people know that it exists. But before your product is even ready, I want you to consider sending out some teaser emails, putting a few behind the scenes posts on social media.
[00:13:20] Get people hyped up about the exciting new content that you're about to share before you're ready to share it. Not only does this warm your audience up to the idea that you're creating something they're going to love, But it also puts the pressure on you to actually finish the thing. I don't know about you, but I am quite a procrastinator by nature, unless I have a deadline.
[00:13:40] Deadlines are very motivating for me. And setting out a pre launch strategy across social media into an email list? Oh, that is a great way to keep me on track. Now, when launch day comes, make sure that you send out an announcement to your email list, and share it across all of your platforms. You might sound like a broken record [00:14:00] repeating the same sales message over and over and over again But it's important to know that some people will need to hear about this product more than once Some people might not know that it exists I still get emails to this day from people letting me know that they just now found my youtube channel And I have hundreds of videos published and I've been doing it for years.
[00:14:20] So don't be afraid to be a broken record. Put your content out there over and over until all of the people in your audience who might need it have seen it. Now, finally, we're moving on to step seven here, gathering feedback and iterating. Once your product is out in the world and people have purchased it, it's really, really important to listen to their feedback.
[00:14:40] I'm going to tell you the truth. No matter how great your product is, the feedback won't always be nice, but it can be gold. Even the negative stuff can help you improve your current product and give you ideas for future ones. Now, if somebody is being rude, by all means, ignore the feedback, delete their comments.
[00:14:58] Don't give them a second [00:15:00] thought. But be open minded to some of the critical feedback that you might receive. One of the number one things that people would tell me about my CSS cheat sheet was that it was difficult to find the information that they needed. The first version was not nearly as organized as it could have been.
[00:15:14] And using the new Notion database that I have now, it is so much easier for people to find the code snippets that they're looking for. That kind of feedback was really important for me to evaluate the best way to share my digital product with my audience. So take all the feedback that you get and use it to improve what you're offering.
[00:15:33] I want you to think about sending out a survey to your customers a few days after they've purchased the product to get their thoughts. And if you're not quite ready for that, you don't have to use email automation for this. Send them a message directly. People love to know that the person who created the product genuinely cares about their feedback, and it can be a great way for you to establish a solid relationship with your customers.
[00:15:54] I want you to remember that your goal here is to create something truly valuable for your audience and their [00:16:00] input is crucial. So there you have it. Those are the seven steps for creating your first digital product. Now I know it might seem like a lot, but remember, you don't have to do this all at once.
[00:16:11] Take it one step at a time. And in fact, let's go ahead and review these one step at a time. The very first step was to think about your idea. Think about your skills, your expertise, and the unique ways that you solve problems that you face in your own business. How could you offer that information to others in your industry?
[00:16:30] Then I want you to validate that idea. Is anyone else out there creating something kind of similar to what you want to share that's missing your unique spin? Share a little bit of content if you can and see if your audience responds to it. Then move on to step three, outline the offer. Not just the digital product that you're going to create, but the additional information people are going to need to know to get the most out of what you're creating.
[00:16:53] When you're ready to create the offer, don't be afraid to keep it simple. If you're doing something like a text based [00:17:00] PDF, use a free program like Google Docs. If you've got something a little more visual, try something like Canva or Adobe Express to create the content. Moving on to step five, create an individual sales page for the specific product.
[00:17:13] If you use Flodesk, check out some of the checkout templates that they have. And if you use Squarespace, consider creating a page in the not linked section of your site, so the core focus of that page can be the individual product. Don't forget to make the URL something very easy to remember, so you can quickly reference it in emails and across social media.
[00:17:33] That actually perfectly leads us into step six of launching the product, and that is to share it with your audience. Don't be afraid to do a little teaser pre launch strategy, where you let people know that you're working on something awesome. This can be done in the form of emails and social media posts, where you share some behind the scenes information, or a little sneak preview of what the content's going to be.
[00:17:54] When you're ready to share your offer, promote it everywhere and promote it often. Just one post [00:18:00] on social media is not a solid marketing strategy. One email sent to your list? That's not gonna do it, my friend. You need to share this a few times so everyone who could be interested in this product can be aware that it exists.
[00:18:13] Keep the momentum going with follow up emails, addressing common questions or objections, and make sure that people understand exactly how awesome your digital product is. Then move on to step 7, where you start to gather feedback and create more iterations of your product. Once your product is out there in the world, I want you to email your customers to see what they really think.
[00:18:33] Take their critical feedback and turn it into something extra valuable. I do believe that lifetime access for digital products is so important, because you'll want to refine it and make it better over time. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. This first product, it's not going to be perfect and that's okay.
[00:18:50] Now let's wrap this up with three key action steps that you can take right now to get started on your digital product creation journey. The first action step is [00:19:00] I want you to brainstorm at least three digital product ideas based on your skills and problems that you have recently solved. Did you hear that key part right there?
[00:19:09] Problems you have recently solved. What are three digital product ideas based off of your skills and your expertise that you could share with your audience? The second thing I want you to do is to validate each one of those three ideas by doing a little bit of research. See if you've got some competition in the market out there and consider sharing just a little preview with your audience to see how they respond.
[00:19:33] Maybe hop on Instagram and share a quick win related to the problem and see how many people respond with comments or likes on your post. That can be a great way to start to evaluate the interest on each one of those three ideas that you've created. Now, your third step today is to visit the show notes for this episode, because I have shared so many resources with you.
[00:19:54] I've got some great links in there, insidethesquare.co/podcast. This is episode [00:20:00] 64, so insidethesquare.co/podcast/64
[00:20:05] Check out the resources that I have for you. Just remember, creating a digital product, it's a journey, my friend, not a destination. Each step that you take is going to bring you closer to sharing your knowledge with the world and creating a valuable asset for your business.
[00:20:20] I was amazed at how this simple digital product completely changed my business here inside the square, and I really want to encourage you to think about creating one for your own business. Do not let perfectionism hold you back. Start where you are, use what you have, and do what you can. I cannot wait to see what digital products you create.
[00:20:39] If you do launch a product, please let me know. I would love to hear all about it. You can send me an email anytime. Hello at InsideTheSquare. co That's all for today's episode. Thank you so much for tuning in. If you enjoyed it, please subscribe to this podcast wherever you happen to be listening to this episode.
[00:20:56] And most importantly, have fun with your website. Bye for [00:21:00] now.
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Notion (for organizing and sharing content)
Send me a link to your digital product sales page; I would love to see it: hello@InsideTheSquare.co
