Just What Should You Sell?

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by Michael Wong

I recently received a letter from a frustrated newsletter subscriber, David Mizrachi. Here's his email:

"Hello, I have read several of your pieces, my problem is that I don't have a product to sell, and while all of the tips and ways to drive traffic to a site are great, I can't seem to get past the 1st hurdle. It is a frustrating thing, there are tons of books and courses, but it means nothing if you don't have anything to sell. I hope you can see where I'm coming from. I have thought about a site for webmasters, with tools, and promoting different products, with an opt-in list, and getting a commission on the sales of the affiliate programs I promote, but that seems to be the best I can do. I have identified a short term goal, to make money initially so I know that it works, then if I could make only $2,000 a month, I could quit my job and do it full time. Any help would mean a lot to me. Thank you."

David's letter brings up a problem that many people have experienced. Just what should you sell? David mentions creating a site for webmasters. That is one possibility, but I think there are other opportunities that may present a better chance of success. Think about these opportunities.

eBooks

You can write about the ins and outs of your job. Write an eBook, based on your experience. This is invaluable information for anyone new to the industry. There are hundreds of books on helping sales people to sell. I think there's a market for books on other occupations as well.

If you have really useful advice to share, you can write about it. For example, someone wrote a book about buying goods at huge discounts at government held auctions. They sold millions of Dollars worth of this booklet.

For more information on ebooks, visit:
http://iboost.com/profit/other_revenue_streams/ebooks/index.html

Sell your skills

If you can draw, learn how to use a graphics design package and offer to design banners and logos for a fee.

If you have an eye for design, team up with a programmer and a graphics designer and set yourself up as a Web design company. I know of people who have actually done this. Instead of a partnership, they out-source the programming and graphics design work.

If your English is particularly good, offer a proofreading, writing or editing service

Learn programming

If you have a logical mind, you could learn how to program. There's always a demand for programmers and the pay is good too! Perl programmers can command over $100,000 per year. Begin by learning it online. If you can't grasp it, you haven't lost anything. It's not as hard as you may think. Some people can learn programming, others can't. You won't know until you try.

Affiliate programs

This is probably the easiest moneymaking route. I have seen many people earn a very good living from affiliate programs, sometimes as much as $100,000 a month.

The number one rule of selecting an affiliate program is this: go where the money is. Select a program that offers a product or service that is in demand. You can find out what people are searching for by using the GoTo Suggestion tool at:
http://inventory.go2.com/inventory/Search_Suggestion.jhtml

Another good method is to see what search terms receive the highest bids in GoTo.com. It is logical to conclude that if someone is willing to pay $5 per visitor that there is a lot of profit in that product.

One of the best ways to earn a great deal of money is to promote an affiliate program that offers a residual income. There are plenty of programs that pay you 10% or more of the earnings of affiliates that you refer to the program. Imagine earning 10% of the income of 1,000 affiliates. Even if they only earned an average of $100 a month, you would make $10,000 per month (10% of 1,000 x $100)

You can set up a site to promote an affiliate program simply by pushing people to a co-branded version of the affiliate site. Alternatively, you can build a community around the affiliate program, by offering added value content and services. For example, if your affiliate program is for women's health care products, you could offer advice on different aspects of women's health, have a forum where women can meet and discuss their problems, offer a newsletter offering even more advice and include news on women's health.

Well David, I hope I have given you much food for thought. Look at all the opportunities I have presented. Once you decide on the opportunity to pursue, follow your new path with all the determination, willpower and effort you can muster. You will have to put a lot of effort into your new challenge and make a few sacrifices along the way. You will experience setbacks and mistakes. But don't worry. These are merely learning experiences. If you work hard enough, you will be successful.