If you want to create passive income online, most likely you are prepared to invest some time and energy now to receive more income while working less (or not at all) later.
The passive income model involved in building a momstyle business is centered around digital products. It’s what I know personally, having built a 6-figure business primarily from eBooks, digital toolkits, and online courses. It’s also the type of work that can be immensely profitable while also providing an outlet for your active creative spirit.
However, building a consistent stream of passive income online through digital products is not only about the product. The product is only the first step. Let’s look at the 3 critical steps to plan for when building passive income online around digital products.
Step 1 to Passive Income Online – Create a Digital Product that People Want
Creating a digital product (or 2 or 3 or 10) sets you up to receive passive income. You’ve created a product one time and can sell it again and again. However, not just any digital product will do.
A digital product that actually sells is one that people actually want, which can be different than what you think they need. Getting feedback early in your product development process can help you hone in on the real desires of your community. And, as you start your online business, be ready to tweak your product until you discover exactly what kind of offer sells easily to your community.
Step 2 to Passive Income Online – Automate Your Sales Process
Having a digital product sitting on a virtual shelf does not bring in passive income. There also needs to be a process to market and sell it. Often we generate our first sales by implementing a product launch, which generates initial awareness and revenue. However, launch takes a lot of work. And you don’t really want to be launching to your community all of the time.
A second way to market your products is to continue to serve your community with high-value content that mentions your products. For example, I almost always see upticks in sales after sending new content-rich emails or when I deliver live webinars. Over time, you can reuse your best converting content, so generating new sales does not always require new content.
To truly generate passive income, however, you want to be thinking about ways to automate your outreach and sales processes. For example, a lot of my sales are generated through search engine optimization + an online store. I also have a series of automated email marketing messages that generate new sales and upsells.
It this type of online marketing automation system, one that is continually working for you around-the-clock, that creates truly passive income. But to run your online business, you still need to be available to take care of your customers, so let’s look at that step next.
Step 3 to Passive Income Online – Delegate Your Customer Service
The third step to building passive income online to consider is customer service. Here we’re talking activities like sending people a new download link, resending login credentials and, from time to time, processing refunds. And for your income to truly be passive, you’ll want to have your customer service delegated to a virtual assistant.
(As an aside, refunds and a certain amount of negative feedback about your product are not necessarily an awful thing. It’s part of doing business online.)
In addition to customer service, consider any aspects to delivering your offer itself. For example, I sell on-demand online business analysis courses that provide professional credits for business analysts seeking certification. In order to issue those credits, an instructor needs to review a workbook and be available to answer questions throughout the course. Historically, I would do that work myself. I’ve recently begun delegating the instructor work, making the income increasingly passive.
Building Passive Income Online Is Not Just About the Products!
In short, if you truly want passive income, income that doesn’t require to work for the sale or after the sale, you’ll need more than just a digital product. You’ll need a selling system, a well-supported customer service process, and be able to outsource any other work that’s required to fulfill the promised made by your product.
For more support as you create digital products, build your online marketing system, and delegate your customer service, join my Momstyle Your Business Facebook group.
