What to Sell Online: 3 Foolproof Products/Services That Make BIG Money Online
The most important thing to appreciate with the “Internet” is that, in the end, it’s people who watch things.
These people are not cattle, sheep or lemmings. They have aspirations, ideas and experiences of their own. They are using the Internet to connect with people of exceptional quality or experience. This is the true value of “online”.
The problem that people have is that when trying to figure out how to “make money” with this, they will end up falling into the trap of hyperbole and rumour; using any kind of “trick” to get as much money as possible from people.
While there is nothing wrong with exaggerating things, the truth is that people buy quality.
The higher the quality of your products, services or ideas, the more people will want to interact with them. This means that if you’re thinking of becoming an online provider, you need to consider *what* you’re actually offering and how it will work.
The way this works is very simple. There are TWO things that people buy through the “Internet”: products and services…
- products they are obviously “physical” widgets that are typically delivered via local delivery service within a country (courier, state-operated post, or local deliveries).
- Services are typically provided for various “expert” level practices such as “copywriting”, “digital marketing”. software development etc While services are highly profitable, they are entirely dependent on the type of service provided and the underlying “value” it provides to the buyer.
All of this means that the first step in becoming a “supplier” online is to initially look at whether you are willing to offer a “product” or a “service.”
The secret here is that in BOTH cases, people are *really* buying a “secret sauce” that you created or found. For example, with products, it could be that they are part of a larger appeal (“natural acne cure”), in the case of services, it could mean that you have some kind of hidden knowledge that not many people appreciate.
To add to this, the “real” trick with selling online is to SELL THE SECRET (not the product). Most people make the mistake of selling “copywriting services,” which hardly anyone really wants. Instead, the best people “frame” this service as something the end user can use in their day-to-day business… “Amazon Listing Writer – Get your products listed and SOLD on Amazon today…”
It’s also important to understand that success “online,” where the competition is fierce, is basically determined by how well you can present an offer to your audience. In other words…sell YOURSELF. Instead of offering a particular product, explain your service and how you’ve been in business for X years, etc.
“Buy New Vango Store – £39.99”
gold
“Buy a new Vango tent – £39.99 (next day delivery, over 20 years in business, IMMEDIATE dispatch, 24/7 customer service)”
Regardless of this, without understanding how to offer products/services that people will actually buy is useless.
There are 3 products that *always* do well online…
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Creative services (design, marketing, copywriting)
Places like Fiverr and UpWork are FULL of people with cash, waiting to give you money in exchange for LUCID creative work. If you have experience with Photoshop, 3D modeling, digital marketing, or copywriting, you’ll usually find a large audience waiting to try your services. However, the fact that there is a large amount of demand does not make it easy. These people want RESULTS and they expect you to deliver them. If you’re going to offer creative services, the best thing to do is do some “free” work to build your portfolio. After you’ve done a bit for free, start listing your “naked” services on Fiverr and see if anyone bites. Don’t be afraid to offer a SUPER LOW price ($5 or something, just to get some traction). Once you get a bit of momentum from this, you’ll need to start looking for a “killer angle” that you can take advantage of. An example of this is the SPXMAC writing agency on Fiverr; they started writing articles and quickly moved on to writing for “Amazon Listing”, which now receives over 30 orders a day.
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Technical Support / Innovation Services + Products
While you could frame this as “software”, it’s more than that. If you have ANY kind of technical skills, whether it’s with programming, system administration, etc., you’ll find a HUGE number of people wanting their websites/web apps/servers/ecommerce stores to get sorted out. Now, there are typically TWO kinds of ways this works… First, you have a group of people who just need the technical expertise (“fix my WordPress site” or something else). These will pay the market rate for their websites to work properly. They will generally respond better to “HIGH CONVERTING” designs (this increases sales). If you work with a lot of people like that, the ONLY thing they really need is traffic. If you can offer them “traffic building” services, you’ll usually do quite well. Second, you will have people who just want to increase their online presence. They may have latched onto some tool like WordPress, ClickFunnels or something like that; the point is that they will usually be very interested in getting the most out of your system. If you’re interested in getting more out of these purchases, create the opportunity for them to expand your sales funnel with MARKETING AUTOMATION and other product-focused services.
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Popular products (offered at a discount)
Lastly, while offering “discounts” is NEVER something you really want to do, dealing with popular products is. Especially with the proliferation of e-commerce outlets (Amazon, etc.) now offering HUGE opportunities to smaller businesses, there are *lots* of opportunities to make money by offering products that people are already looking for. Now, remember that this doesn’t mean you can hide behind products – the SAME “rule of thumb” applies here as it does with other things… people are buying from you (not your products, etc. ). To this end, there are TWO ways to offer “hot” products and make a substantial profit… either by offering the products themselves (e-commerce) or by offering REVIEWS of the products. From an eCommerce perspective, the big mistake people make here is simply listing products and prices. They have NO differentiation, and so they end up competing with Amazon (you will NEVER win a battle). The best “e-commerce” sites are powered by influencers (meaning you actually *do* something with the products you offer). For example, let’s say you’re offering tailored suits, and you’re selling various fabrics and the tailoring services to go along with them. There is very little differentiation you can make about the products themselves… but with the way they are used (EXCLUSIVE events/networking), things start to get interesting. By focusing your energies on creating the most lucid, exclusive and PROFITABLE events possible, you automatically create demand for your custom suits/shirts etc. By virtue of being an “influencer,” you can grow an eCommerce business from anything. In addition to this, you *may* want to see the “REVIEWS” experiences as well. These are websites/apps that cover, in depth, all the “best” products in a market. Now, it used to be the case that you could launch a faceless review site and have it generate commission from Google rankings. Not anymore – social media has become a massive element of the review marketing mix. If you are prepared to invest in becoming an “influencer” in a particular field, you can effectively review products and receive a commission on their sale through the largest stores. This gives you the ability to make the most of demand without the need to actively compete with companies like Amazon etc.
While these often work well, it’s very important to understand that buyers ultimately want to connect with exceptional people. Offering “mundane” services isn’t going to cut it, and that’s why most people who start “online” businesses (usually like e-commerce, etc.) fail. Literally no one cares what a boring offer they are making. .
In the modern world, where 12-year-olds have access to the same tools, audience, and resources as you, it’s so important to set yourself apart.
*HOW* you do this determines exactly the type of buyer that will show up with your credit cards. The mindset you really need to have is one of humble service; treat each purchase/project as an opportunity for more profit and progress; always look for new services/products to offer, and NEVER “sell” the product itself. In any case, sell yourself…
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