That being the case I'd like to lay out the 7 steps that ANYONE can follow to start and build a successful information product marketing business.
Step 1 - Determine Your Niche
The first thing you've got to do is to is determine your niche. The niche must be something that you both enjoy AND that can make you money. You're looking for the intersection of two sets: passion and profit.
Make a list of any and every niche you would be interested in working in. Then go to Google and see if there are others selling products in your niche. If there are, that's GOOD. What you don't want is too many people competing in the space you're considering, but there should be some!
Step 2 - Write the Copy to Sell Your Product
I used to make this step 3, but I've changed my approach. It's always better to write your copy for the product before you do it. This will give you the BASIC outline of the product you have to create. Even if you don't feel like you're the greatest copywriter, make sure to initially write it yourself. If you need help after writing the copy, look at www.SabrinaBrick.com or www.SuperFastTweak.com.
Step 3 - Create the Product
Now expand the copy you've written into a more extensive outline to actually create the product itself. A good outline is critical to creating a great product. Then select what modality you'll be using. Should it be an audio, a book, a video or an experiential event? After making a selection that makes sense, you have to create the product. Don't worry about making it perfect. Get it done! Done is always better than perfect.
Step 4 - Create a Website that Sells
You'll first need to reserve a domain name. I suggest you go to: www.UltraCheapDomains.com to reserve a domain name. Additionally, you'll need to have your website hosted somewhere. I suggest you use: www.HostWithStan.com. He's who I use and highly recommend him.
As far as sight design, you're not looking for anything fancy. You want something functional. Feel free to basically copy any of the sites that I have. Remember, this isn't about having a pretty site, it's about putting together a site that SELLS products.
Step 5 - Drive Traffic to Your Site
In order to make sales you have to get people to visit the site. There are two ways to do this: paid and unpaid. The best way to get paid traffic is by using Google Adwords. This will get you the most people the fastest. You'll need to go there and set up an account.
To get as much unpaid traffic and you can, you'll need to do two things. Create a lot of highly relevant content on your site AND get as many related sites to link to you. Both of these will take a little time, but your work will be well worth it. All search engines love those two items.
Step 6 - Convert Your Traffic
Once people get to your site your primary goal is to get them to buy what you're offering. Your fallback position will be to get those people who don't buy to give you their email address. Then you can try and sell them again at a future point in time.
You'll be doing great if you get 3% or more of your visitors to buy, so your real challenge will be getting the other 97% to opt-in to your list. Do this by offering them a very enticing digital "bribe." Offer them something that they will really want and that will highlight your expertise, like a PDF report.
Step 7 - Continue Selling More and More Often
Once you get people to buy your initial offering, then you'll need to work on getting them to buy more products and services from you. In addition to your own products you'll also want to look for other people you like and trust who sell products in your niche. You'll be amazed that people will actually buy MORE from people you recommend.
After you get them buying products, you'll need to increase the frequency with which they order from you. This is best done by creating a relationship with them. Put people on an email list and send them content messages on a regular basis. (use www.WebMarketingMagic.com to do this). It's fine to try and sell people things, but make sure you give them plenty of relevant content before trying to sell them something.
Conclusion
That''s it. Yup, it's simple, but it's not easy. The steps are relatively straight-forward, but the process of implementing them is not that easy. Do what I suggest above and you'll be on your way because most people won't take the time and the energy to make it happen. Good luck, you're on your way!
