Top 10 Reasons to Sell Downloads Online

February 10th, 2009

1. Anyone can Create a Digital Product

Just about everyone has a talent or is an expert on something – and that translates directly into a digital product you can easily create and sell as a download online. Expert on a subject? Write an ebook and sell it online. Photographer or artist? Sell your digital photos and art as downloads. Have a skill or talent that can be tought? Create a video tutorial, screencast, or instructional ebook. Information is a hot item, and selling intellectua lproperty as a digital download is an easy and efficient way to make money online.

2. No Geographical Limits, No Inventory Limits, No Sales Limits

Using the Internet, you can sell to customers all over the world. Simple payment processing systems like PayPal allow you to accept payments from hundreds of countries. And with the products being digital downloads, you never have to worry about inventory or limits on what you can sell. The markets are virtually unregulated and the sky is the limit.

3. Zero Cost to Duplicate your Product

Since digital products are entirely electronic, it costs you absolutely nothing to sell additional product. Copies are made electronically on demand, and sold as downloads online. You have an unlimited inventory and unlimited selling potential.

4. No Physical Inventory and No Shipping

Since digital products are simply electronic copies, you have no physical inventory to manage, and your digital inventory is unlimited. There are no items to ship to the customer, no hassles.

5. Instant Gratification for your Customers

Digital downloads sold online can be delivered instantly to the customer after payment. Secure download links allow the customer to access the downloads within a given time frame and download at their convenience. No shipping, no tracking numbers, no nonsense.

6. Instant Payout to you – Make a Sale, Get Paid

Digital download selling systems allow you to link up your store with your own merchant account, such as PayPal. When you make a sale, you get the money instantly. Likewise, your customer is automatically delivered the product. It’s instant gratification on both sides!

7. Low Startup Cost

All types of digital products can be created using just a PC or Mac. Digital products like photos and videos can be created with inexpensive electronic equipment and a laptop. You main investment for creating your digital product is time. There are no manufacturing costs, no delays, no inventory. Create your product and sell it as a download online.

8. Low Barrier to Entry

It’s trivial to get into the digital goods market and start selling downloads – once you create your product you can be selling it online to the biggest market in the world – the Internet. There’s no hassling with distributors, retail stores, or wholesale vendors. You’re in control.

9. Niche Markets

Niche markets tend to be less likely to be dominated by mainstream companies. What this means to the individual or small business is that the market is easily reachable and it’s easier to build customer loyalty. Selling downloads online opens up a whole plethora of niche markets that are easy to target via the Internet. You can gain a competitive advantage by simply filling a need and creating a product that solves real world problems.

10. Sell Downloads 24/7 – Make Money while you Sleep!

Digital download stores on the internet are open 24 hours a day. Since order fulfillment is automatic and instant (it’s just a download your customer can access) – it’s a virtually hands free business that runs itself. Sell downloads while you’re sleeping, and when you wake up the money is already in your account and the customer has their product.

What is a Niche Market?

January 15th, 2009

A niche market is a small, specific subset of a larger market with specific demands that may not be met by mainstream businesses. In simpler terms, it is a small market where the big guys may not dominate.

Niche markets tend to spring up where there are demands for products that may not yet exist, or where technological or cultural changes create demand for a new product.

The business that focuses on a niche market tends to face less competition because there are simply less competitors, and also less viable alterantives to the product (if there are any alternatives at all).

What does this mean to the digital merchant? It means there are a plethora of small, well defined markets where the little guy (or medium guy!) can compete or even dominate the market. These markets tend to be much easier to reach than mainstream markets, and the barrier to entry is much smaller.

Although there are definitely mainstream markets that can be targeted by merchants selling digital goods, we encourage merchants to embrace niche markets where possible. You may find it easier to compete and easier to deliver a product that your customers will want. Ultimately you can build great customer loyalty as well.

When considering a market for your product, or when considering development of the product itself, ask the following questions:

  • What is an affordably reachable market where I am an expert?
  • What is a real world problem, no matter how specific, that I have experienced and know how to solve?
  • Are there any other businesses offering this solution, and if so, do I have a competitive advantage of any sort?
  • Is this market going to be around long term, or come and go as in a fad?

There are many other factors to consider, but this should get anyone started on considering a niche market. In summary:

  • A niche market is a small subset of a market where the demand may not be filled by mainstream businesses.
  • Niche markets can often be reached more easily than mainstream markets, and the competition is usually much less significant.
  • Niche markets and selling downloads go well together because the barrier to entry is low, there are very little up front costs, and many niche markets can be reached through the Internet.

Introduction to Digital Goods

January 4th, 2009

The digital goods market has exploded in recent years. What is a digital good? It’s any product that can be delivered as a download over the internet. Customers use a standard shopping cart and payment processing system, but instead of being shipped a tangible product – they are sent to a secure download page where they can access their purchased product immediately. It’s instant gratification for the customer, and a completely automated and hassle-free source of income for the merchant.

There are many types of digital goods that can be sold over the internet. Just about anything that is a file can be sold as a download. Examples of digital goods include eBooks, software, video tutorials, manuals, guides, music, digital art, and a lot more.

If you already have a digital product to sell, you can be selling your download within 30 minutes using Cerizmo.

If you don’t yet have a digital good – they’re easy to develop and cost nothing to reproduce. There’s no stock to manage, no materials to purchase, and no manufacturing time. The only investment is your own time and expertise, and once you’ve finished your product, you can sell it an unlimited number of times.

How do you get started developing your product? Think of a subject on which you are an expert, and start from there. The following are some tips to keep in mind:

  • Embrace niche markets. It may seem natural to try to come up with a product Everyone will want, but the reality is those markets tend to be very saturated and ultimately become dominated by the big guys. If you pick a very specific group, there is less competition and you are more likely to be able to provide a quality product for which there are few good alternatives.
  • Try to create a product that solves a real problem – preferably one that you have or deal with on a regular basis. Don’t try to imagine a problem that may not exist and then create a solution.
  • Get into a market you understand or are involved in yourself. This closely relates to solving a problem you know about. If you’re a Widget manufacturer, envision a product that provides expertise to other Widget manufacturers, not to Accountants or some other group you are not familiar with.
  • Don’t sell items which came with resell rights, such as many eBooks. These products have been sold a thousand times over to others that are now reselling them. The market becomes so saturated that the products are eventually worth close to nothing, and you cannot compete.

Welcome to Cerizmo Buzz

January 2nd, 2008

Cerizmo Buzz is a new service from Cerizmo that will offer a vast amount of free information to the digital merchant. This blog will feature articles about internet marketing, how to create a digital product, getting free traffic to your site, increasing your sales, and making the most of your Cerizmo store.

We encourage all to subscribe – whether you are already a digital merchant, a Cerizmo store owner, or just curious about how to get started in the digital goods market.

More to follow-

The Cerizmo Team