Digital products are exactly how we make 80-90% of our full-time blogging income. The best part? It’s completely PASSIVE once you get your product created! Find exactly what product to make for your blog AND grab our free ebook template to make it happen!
Ready to grow your email list? Get our FREE Lead Magnet Template Pack! Create high-converting lead magnets AND promotional graphics for lightning-speed list growth!
The very first monetization course we took was about five minutes after we started a blog.
We always knew we wanted our blog to be a business. As it was, we started blogging in order to generate income from home.
The person teaching the course was all about “products, products, products.”
Of course, not knowing anything about the online world, our minds went to “physical products,” not digital products.
Thus started the Etsy shop.
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Our Etsy shop was both a success and a failure. People liked and bought our stuff; however, each product needed to be individually sewn and assembled.
We sold things like military-inspired blankets, dog collars, keychains, etc. They were embroidered and would take us anywhere from an hour to a day to create.
The orders piled up, and soon, we had a two-week waitlist. We were spending almost ALL of our time at the sewing machine, cursing at it and getting frustrated.
We hated it. We quickly decided this wasn’t for us and needed a way to generate a more passive income.
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AND THEN WE LEARNED ABOUT DIGITAL PRODUCTS.
Digital products can be a hit or miss, especially for bloggers. Luckily, they cost almost nothing to make (especially when you design them yourself using Canva).
The key is to build your audience first and your product second.
Related Post: The Easy Way to Create and Sell Printable Products
Ask them what they want, survey them, hang out in Facebook groups where they ask questions, and keep a running list of reader questions/concerns.
Once you know your readers’ problem, then it’s time to brainstorm solutions.
If you do that, they’ll buy it. And if you design it where it’s visually appealing and easy to use… You’ve hit the jackpot.
By the way, if you need more help with this, check out our FREE Product Creation Training!
Now, let’s jump right into the 12 best digital products (that sell like hotcakes)!
1. WORKBOOKS
Workbooks work for almost every niche. There is something you can teach your audience that can be stepped out into a workbook. Take a moment to brainstorm!
We’ve seen everything from cleaning and organizing to budgeting and finances. We’ve even seen a workbook on parenting techniques and getting your child to listen (cool, right?).
Related Post: How to Design a Workbook in Canva
Workbooks sell because it’s a step-by-step way of teaching that walks someone through the process of solving their problem. We’re workbook junkies. Show us a Pinterest-pretty workbook, and we’ll buy it.
Can you not commit to a full workbook just yet? Don’t worry—we have you covered with another hot digital product idea!
Start small by creating worksheets using our FREE Lead Magnet Template Pack!
Worksheets were one of our very first digital products/lead magnets, which we used to grow our email list to over 20k subscribers!
2. WORKSHOPS
Workshops are a combination of workbooks and e-courses (actually, a combination of both). They are interactive e-courses that include worksheets and other learning materials.
The selling point of the “workshop” is that the person is able to interact with you and other students, rather than an e-course which is self-paced and usually through a program like Teachable.
Related Post: How To Sell Tons of Courses on Teachable
Workshops are not generally held all the time because the creator needs to be involved. However, when a course is not constantly open for enrollment, it builds suspense and urgency, and people are more likely to jump on it when it opens.
Another amazing thing about workshops is that you don’t spend nearly as much time “creating” them. Full e-courses can take months to build.
If you decide to sell a workshop, you can spend about an hour outlining what you’ll cover in the class and set up a sales page. That’s it!
The “product” is created when you spend the 1-2 hours teaching, and then you’re done!
3. PLANNERS
People love planners, and there are so many ways to use them. You can create a life planner, budget planner, organizational planner, chore planner, meal planner, etc.
QUICK TIP: Create multiple themed planners and then give people the option to purchase multiple ones! That way, they can essentially “customize” their planner by having the sections they need, and you can get repeat sales!
Once you have a few planner options, you can also offer bundles at a lower cost.
Planners also make fantastic digital products. Again, show us a Pinterest-pretty planner, and we’re in!
4. E-COURSES
E-courses are so popular because they help your readers learn something and also create a passive income for you. They can be created for free through email or through a platform like Teachable (just like us!).
When you create an e-course through a platform, you can set up an affiliate program and get people to promote your course for free. E-courses generally take more time to make than other digital products but can be sold for 3, 4, or even 5 figures!
The best e-courses also have worksheets, checklists, and video content as well. Take the time to make your course awesome; it will pay off.
SIDE NOTE: Grab our FREE Product Creators QuickStart Kit with a checklist, cheatsheet, and Canva eBook template to help you plan, design, and launch your first (or next) digital product!
5. E-BOOKS
E-books are a great tripwire product, opt-in, or digital product. You can sell it through your blog using Payhip, Etsy, or even through ConvertKit Commerce!
E-books are pretty easy to make because you can repurpose a lot of your existing content, particularly if you have a blog post series or a lot of posts on ONE topic.
Related Post: 5 Ways to Build Your List by Repurposing Blog Content
The key to a bestselling e-book is a killer cover, which we review (and SO much more!) in our COMPLETE Canva course, Confidently Canva.
You’ll learn everything there is to know about Canva so you can feel completely confident in your designs because now you truly understand the tool you’re using and the design concepts involved.
Enroll now and get $20 off Confidently Canva today!
You can make an awesome cover in Canva, upload it to myecovermaker.com, and create an eye-catching 3D model. They say, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” but people totally do, especially online.
6. MEMBERSHIP SITES
Membership sites are fantastic for recurring income. The possibilities for membership sites are pretty endless.
Maybe you’re a fitness blogger? Create a membership site that provides different workout routines, meal plans, and accountability meetings each month.
Maybe you sell sewing patterns? Each month you can release a new set of patterns for your members. The list can go on and on.
SIDE NOTE: Join our FREE Facebook community to help brainstorm membership ideas for your digital products!
Some memberships are less about “new product” deliver and more about community and interaction. Many include weekly or monthly meetings; some have support groups, and others have challenges.
You can really get creative with it! Each month, you can release a new set of patterns for your members.
7. COACHING SESSIONS
Coaching is less “passive” than most other digital products. It does involve time with your client, but it allows for individualization and a personalized approach for your customer, which is a major selling point.
Plus, much like selling digital workshops, coaching doesn’t require actually creating anything ahead of time!
The “product” is the time you spend with your client, so there’s really not much to do prior except setting up a sales page and possibly an onboarding system to allow your client to sign contracts, book appointments, and pay.
SIDE NOTE: Before we retired our design coaching service, we used and loved Dubsado!
Each person learns differently and is at a different point in their journey. Allowing a set amount of time to talk about where your client is, where they want to be, and how to get it is priceless.
Not to mention, many people are willing to pay higher price points for this.
8. APPS
You do NOT need to be an app developer to create an app.
All you need is a killer idea. You can hire an app developer to create it for you (find one on upwork.com), and then you can sell it.
Another way to make money with apps is to treat them as their own sales funnel by offering them for free and offering an upgraded paid version or in-app purchases.
This is the least popular out of all the digital products we mentioned, but the upsells within the app will pay off!
9. TEMPLATES
If creating digital templates to sell sounds like your cup of tea, you’re in the right place.
“Done for you” solutions are always a big hit! Especially anything that has to do with copy, spreadsheets (with formulas), etc.
Templates are essentially fill-in-the-blank mini-products that someone can customize to make their own. It gives them a jumping-off point and saves them a ton of time (like our templates)!
Our biggest source of income has always been selling digital templates. Because they’re entirely customizable, they work for every niche.
In fact, our first product launch made over $10k in sales with an email list of only 2,077 subscribers. Design templates SELL! Check out our Complete Blogger Template Toolkit to see why!
However, we want to make one thing abundantly clear: If you sell Canva templates, you must abide by Canva’s Content License Agreement.
There are some major legal dos and do n’ts regarding Canva templates. Don’t break their agreement just because you’re trying to make money with your blog!
It would behoove you to READ THIS ARTICLE FIRST before you start creating and selling your Canva templates.
In addition to graphic design products to sell, copy templates, spreadsheet templates, and many other versions of templates can easily be shared via Google Docs.
Ensure the Doc or spreadsheet is in view-only mode and instruct people to make a copy before editing.
10. PATTERNS
Typically, this is more for the craft niche. Sewing, knitting, crocheting, etc. These patterns are awesome digital products, and they totally sell like hotcakes. People love them!
Not to mention, things like these make great tripwires, bundles, and opportunities for a membership site.
Related Post: Profitable Tripwire Products to Design for Your Blog
In our opinion, though, patterns fall under an “instructional format” digital product.
This can include recipes, DIY projects, and anything else that requires a list of needed items and then step-by-step instructions.
You’re essentially teaching someone how to create something, and it’s amazing!
11. DOWNLOADABLE FILES
If you know how to create files like fonts, embroidery art, clip art, stock photography, etc., then you have it made, friend.
People, especially bloggers or content creators, pay good money for things like this!
Plus, you can sell it on your own site along with sites like Creative Market (entirely digital products) or Etsy. If you do stock photography, sell it to the major stock photo sites and boost your income even more!
Of course, these things are also great to sell to clients as well. Selling to clients requires a little more “time for money” than other digital products.
However, you can sell it at a much higher price point!
12. SWIPE FILES
People love to know how you did it! Swipe files (you can create one in Google Drive) that include your exact copy for sales pages, launches, emails, etc.
The idea is that they will personalize it to their own style of writing that fits their product (similar to a template), but you are giving them direction.
It’s a huge bonus if you’ve had success. If you say something like “the sales copy that made me $10,000 in 3 days,” you are guaranteed to make sales.
The benefit of this is that you’ve already created it; you’re just packaging it up and selling it. The downside is that you may be exposing yourself to copycats.
Realistically, that’ll happen with all digital products. Be sure to make your Terms of Service very clear!
OF COURSE, HAVING AN IDEA FOR DIGITAL PRODUCTS IS ONE THING.
But knowing how to make it is another.
Most of these things can be made or designed in something like Canva (you can also grab our FREE Product Design Planner to help you get started).
It doesn’t take a fancy, expensive product to make digital products sell. It just takes an eye-catching design that stands out among all the other things fighting for your audience’s attention.
Once they buy it, your amazing content will keep them coming back for more.
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS POST:
- The Easy Way to Create and Sell Printable Products
- 5 Easy Ways to Create Worksheets to Grow Your Blog Fast
- Profitable Tripwire Products to Design for Your Blog
- 5 Ways to Build Your List by Repurposing Blog Content
Don’t forget to grab our FREE Lead Magnet Template Pack! These fully editable Canva templates will help you create lead magnets that build trust so they’re ready to buy!
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To be honest? It’s the best $14.99/mo OR $119/yr we spend on our business because that time we save with every single design is put back into making MORE money in our business!
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Nomzy says
Thank you. I’m currently choosing to sell planners and a few other downloadable files.
LaToya says
I learned about this site from the book “How to blog for Profit”…your blog posts are simple, easy to read, and easy to locate. I like how your site is organized so thanks for the tips and guidance!
karafidd says
Aw thank you so much, I’m glad it’s been helpful!
Dawn says
You and your site are awesome! I’m hoping to make your ideas work for me in 2020 🙂
Content creation is tough for me, I have ideas just gotta plan things out.
karafidd says
Aw thank you so much!! You got this!!
Charisty says
I’ve been looking for a page with different products you can make like this! I love how you list easy and hard and it’s fantastically written. I’m saving this in my Trello board for when I need some inspiration on what to create next.
karafidd says
Thank you so much Charisty! I’m glad it was helpful for you!
Amanda Mitchum says
Dropping a line to let you know that this is one of the most well-designed sites I’ve seen. Your pins are smart & I like the colors that you’ve chosen. Awesome! Love the post! Keep ’em coming!
karafidd says
Thank you!