Tell me how familiar this scenario is.
You come up with a great idea. You research it in great depth. You write a fantastic ebook on the topic. You edit, proofread and revise it several times. You even get a designer to create a lovely graphic for the cover.
You excitedly set up a website to sell the ebook, looking forward to a flood of sales.
And then, nothing happens!
You barely make a sale or two – or maybe even none. You are upset and angry and frustrated. You decide something must be wrong with the sales letter, or the website design, or the price. You tweak these things and try again.
You spend money on buying an ad, or drive some traffic to your sales page, or twist the arm of a friend who has a big email list to help promote your ebook.
Still, nothing happens!
You’re just not making any sales!
Ever had that happen to you? I have. A few times. It is NOT fun!
What’s the reason for this? Usually, it is one of four things.
Nine times out of ten, the reason your ebook didn’t sell like hot-cakes is because it did not solve a problem. It’s easy to sell something that fills a demand or need in the marketplace. It’s almost impossible to create excitement and desire for something no one sees as being the solution to an existing problem or difficulty they are facing in their lives.
There are many real problems. Like a business owner wondering why his profits are sinking like a rock. Like a golfer worrying about his slice. Like a young man who is losing hair and growing bald. Like a parent with a child suffering from allergies or eczema. Like a dog owner unsure about what to feed his little puppy (by the way, meet Muffin…our new six week-old Lhasa Apso!).
So, does your infoproduct solve an existing problem? If it doesn’t, then YOU have a problem on your hands! However, if it does, you’ll definitely be able to sell your ebook… provided that people realize that they have a problem.
Some problems are glaringly obvious. If your puppy is barking all night long, you have a problem. If your rose garden is barren and flowerless, you have a problem. If your advertisements aren’t getting clicked or acted upon, you have a problem.
And you are aware of it.
But there are some problems that aren’t so apparent. For instance, in the Internet marketing niche that I’m active in, recent changes with Google’s algorithm (called the ‘Farmer’ or ‘Panda’ update) have led to significant changes with ‘article marketing’. Things that once worked well stopped working so well, and require some changes to be made.
Not everyone is aware of this shift, though. There is a problem, but some people don’t know they have one. The same is true about other situations like substance addiction, health issues, financial problems, career progress and even relationships.
If this is the hurdle you are facing, there’s a way to overcome it. It’s called – Education Marketing.
You have to educate your prospect about the problem. Share information with them to highlight the condition. Make them aware of what could go wrong. Paint a dismal picture of the future if they do nothing about it. Show them how things could be better if they take corrective action today.
Then, they’ll start seeking a solution – which you have thoughtfully created for them!
If you have an audience of prospects who know they have a problem and are actively seeking a solution, you’re halfway home.
Sometimes people are fully aware that they have a problem – but will blissfully carry on ignoring it. It’s hard to say why, but inertia plays a major role in this behavior. You’ve probably heard of the “boiling frog syndrome” – when you throw a frog into boiling water, it’ll jump out…but if you put it into lukewarm water and slowly turn up the heat, it will boil to death!
Your prospects may be in a similar state of apathy. It is your marketing challenge to shake them out of it. Agitate the situation. Highlight what’s wrong, or bad, or dangerous about leaving it for too long. Get them worried about having it fixed – before things go pear-shaped. If you do this effectively, you’ll have them clamoring for a solution – and they’ll consider buying the one you offer them.
This final consideration is actually of great importance when it comes to creating a profitable and successful information product.
You may come up with a miracle solution to a serious and painful problem, but unless your audience is able to afford to pay you well enough to make it worth your while, you’ll still be under-performing.
Let’s say you’ve got the most amazing collection of ‘cheats’ for the hot video game that’s being played by thousands of school kids. You may not be able to profit massively from it, because your market doesn’t have credit cards or the financial power to buy it from you.
Contrast this against a solution that’s directed to people who have enough money and are ready and willing to spend it to relieve their pain or take them closer to their dream, and you’ll realize that making your solution affordable to your market is a critical element of your infopreneur strategy.
To sum it up, you’ll create a best-selling ebook (or infoproduct) that will rake in wild profits and make you rich when you solve an existing problem that your audience is aware of, and already seeking relief from…and do it in a way that is affordable and convenient for them to order.
And learn how to build a better blog.