The Mentalist: Jan 16, 2009

There are a number of ways to create revenue online ... Adsense, affiliate marketing, membership sites. But the best way to build the foundation for an online business is by creating your own successful product.

So how do you get started creating your own product?

First, don't skip the most important step ... take the time to make sure there's a market for the product you have in mind. Enter the keyword for your product into Google search and see what comes up. For instance, let's say you're considering writing an ebook about how to make custom jewelry. Do a Google search on "make custom jewelry." Check out how many ads there are along the right side. Follow some of the links. See what's selling and make note of what you don't see. Note how many competing websites Google lists (this information is located at the top on the right in the light blue bar).

Next, try the Overture Keyword Selector Tool to see how many searches are conducted for custom jewelry every month. This tool has been a little fickle lately, but give it a try. You'll receive a list of the top 100 searches that include your search term "make custom jewelry." This will give you a ballpark figure of the size of your potential market.

Finally, check Google Groups to see if there are any custom jewelry groups. If there are, this can be a great place to not only find out what everyone else is selling, but also to find out what people are looking for. This is the type of information that will aid in forming the structure of your product and help assure that you don't leave out anything that might be vital to its success. You can also do a similar search for any forums that are related to custom jewelry.

Got a market for your potential product?

Great! Now it's time to get down to work.

Understanding Your Choices

Now, at one time, most Internet products were delivered either as an ebook or as a software program. While both of these continue to be popular mediums, the Internet has evolved. Today, products are also delivered in the form of video lessons, audios, transcripts, CDs, hard packages (mailed directly to the buyer's home), monthly membership sites, or any combination of these.

Your choices are really wide open.

But having such a variety of choices requires that you make some decisions. What is the best way to convey information to your targeted audience? In the case of "making custom jewelry," is an ebook the most effective medium? Or is it, perhaps, a video series actually showing you going through the process? Or a membership site that delivers a training series on new designs every month? Or perhaps a combination of these?

Part of your decision making process will undoubtedly involve your budget. Can you afford the software required to put together a video series? Can you afford the software for a membership site? In the end, these should be secondary considerations. Your primary consideration should be your potential customers. What will best suit their needs? With a little hunting around, you should be able to find some shortcuts that will make any required software reasonably affordable.

Remember: think in the long term, not the short term. You're building a business, not playing around with a product idea.

In Part Two, you'll begin to research your topic and organize your material.

If you'd like to learn more about creating your own products, visit: Nitty Gritty Marketing. To begin to build your own Internet business the right way, visit: Nitty Gritty Marketing On Squidoo.

The Mentalist

Friday, January 16, 2009

How To Create Your Own Successful Product - Part One

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