Information products are one of the hottest selling items on the Internet. And for good reason. Where else can you get timely, relevant information that is exactly what you want…even at 2 am in the morning?

The problem with information in books at the bookstore is that many times it is not specific enough. I don’t want to know everything there is to know about audio engineering, I just want to know how to record a talk, edit it and burn it to a CD to sell on my web site. Try finding that at your local Barnes and Noble! But it is relatively easy to find an ebook about that topic on the Internet. Even better, a video!

Another problem with buying information at the book store is that any information is at least one year old. That’s how long it takes to edit a book, send it to a publisher, get it printed and finally placed on the shelves in your local book store. By contrast, an ebook or other information product will usually have the latest, cutting edge info on your topic because they are so easily updated.

Information products can include anything from ebooks, videos and special reports to complete home study courses that go “thud” when the mail man drops it on your customer’s front porch. But information products can also include teleseminars, membership sites and paid newsletter subscriptions.

Tip 1: Ask your prospective customers what they want.

I know this sounds obvious, but what you think your customers want and what they really want can be two different things. You have a lot of knowledge about your topic…that’s why you are creating an information product. But your customers do not have your level of knowledge and are probably asking different questions than you are.

So, while you are collecting their first name and email, add a custom field that asks their biggest question about your topic. After about 100 email subscribers, you will have a really good idea what it is they are looking for! And you can use that information to write your sales letter as well.

Tip 2: Think of the trade your customers are making.

When purchasing your information product, your customer is trading his dollars for your information. Therefore, make it an easy trade for him. I will trade $47 for information that makes me $4700 every day of the week! That is why “how to make money” ebooks sell so well.

I will also trade $47 for information that saves me 2 days learning how to do something. That is a no-brainer! I am less likely to trade $47 for cute stories, recipes or how to sew my own clothes. Get the picture? Make the trade very easy for your customer!

Tip 3: Try to include one or more of these angles in any information product.

Will the information in your product:
- make people money?
- save people money?
- save people time?
- save people pain (physical, emotional or financial)?

If you can include one or more of these angles in an information product, you will have a real winner on your hands!

Tip 4: Break your long ebook into parts.

If you have a 150 page ebook, consider breaking it up into three 50 page ebooks. Everyone likes to get more value and it feels more satisfying to get three different ebooks rather than one fat one. It feels like you are getting more for your money.

Tip 5: Add enough bonuses to make the purchase a “no-brainer”!

After you create an information product, go out an find about 5 to 6 related products that you can offer as bonuses. If I am buying a $47 ebook and you offer me $500 in downloadable bonuses, it makes the buying decision very easy. I recommend downloadable bonuses because they are easy to deliver and don’t cost you anything. This is also a good excuse to get their email for your owner’s list - you need their email to deliver their bonuses.

Tip 6: Sell first to those who have already bought from you.

Online business owners are like cows many times. We always think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. We are always looking for NEW customers when our best customers are the ones that have already demonstrated their loyalty by buying our product!

We need to ask them what else they want. Another great way to monetize existing customers is a membership site. So much per month for access to special info, a monthly conference call or even a private newsletter. Can you say residual income?

So, start with a niche. Ask that niche what they want. And then start creating information products that satisfy the itch they are ALREADY telling you they have. It is a blast and you will achieve expert status in your niche in no time at all!

For a long time, I resisted writing ebooks. After all, why write a $27 ebook, when you can create a $447 multi-media home study course? Why risk losing the big sale when by offering an inexpensive ebook?

Let me give you several reasons and then I will show you an easy way to create an ebook that doesn’t require writing at all! First, an ebook provides a low cost way for a prospective customer to get to know you. Many people would rather spend $27 to see if you are legit, before spending $447 and risk getting burned. An ebook gives them an opportunity to test the waters first. If they are comfortable, then they will be willing to risk more.

Second, an ebook allows you to reach a broader market. Let’s be honest. You only have so many names on your email list and there are tons of people who want to become your customers…they just don’t know it yet! Huge home study courses usually require complicated affiliate programs and thus, this reduces the number of people who will help you market your course.

Ebooks, on the other hand, are very portable and using a company like ClickBank allows thousands of people you have never met to promote your ebook for you. Think of your ebooks as little ambassadors, reaching people you can not physically send a message to.

Ebooks also lead to bigger products, such as your $447 home study course. If they liked your ebook, then they will love your home study course that has step-by-step videos instead of just screen shots in a pdf file. And they will certainly love your three day workshop where you go beyond the step-by-step videos and actually show them in real time how to do whatever it is your ebook is teaching.

So what is the bad news? Who wants to sit down and grind out an ebook? Not me! So, I talk my way through an ebook. I schedule a free teleseminar, invite interested people to the teleseminar, have them send questions in advance and then record the teleseminar. I then have the recording transcribed, lightly edit the transcription and convert the whole thing to a pdf file.

I then list it on ClickBank, send out a few emails and in rolls the money! ClickBank takes care of the affiliates, processing the order and sends me a check every month. It is really that easy!

So now I am killing two birds with one stone. I am assessing demand before I pour a ton of time and energy into a huge home study course. If the ebook doesn’t sell well, I know the home study course won’t sell well either. I am also generating a positive cash flow to help fund my home study course. And I am gathering customers from all around the globe through the hundreds of thousands of ClickBank affiliates who will want to promote my ebook. Make that three birds instead of two!

So, pick a topic and schedule a free teleseminar today. You will be creating a foundational product for your information empire and it is actually a lot of fun!

As an expert in teaching families to start online businesses, I am asked a lot of questions about selling on the Internet. By far the most common question is, “What do I sell on the Internet?”

The answer is…you are asking the wrong question. Why? Because products come and go, but the people you are marketing to remain forever. Meaning, the product you are selling this year may not be the same product you are selling next year, but you will be selling to the same people. That is, if you are collecting their name and email on your web site.

That is why your top priority as an online business owner (after you determine what your niche is) is to collect the emails of your visitors. This can be done with a simple email capture form available with any autoresponder service. Then you can use that autoresponder service to send sequential messages to the people on your email list.

For example, if Bob joins your email list (via your email capture form at the top of your home page) on Monday, he will begin receiving an email every 7 days about who you are, what your credentials are, what you are selling, why they should buy from you as opposed to the other guy, and so on. If Sally joins a month later, she will start receiving your messages in the order she needs to receive them.

Sally will not receive the same message 17 that Bob is receiving because she needs to receive messages 1 through 16 first! The messages that Bob is receiving since he joined a month before will not make sense to her. That is why you need to send sequential emails through an autoresponder.

Think about that! How many of your products require more than one email to answer all the objections your customers have? Or how many of your products require some basic knowledge before your customers realize they can’t live without it? Nothing is better than sequential emails for getting the job done.

Another benefit of sequential emails is that people will see them eventually even if they join your email list at month later. This catches the missed sales that are so prevalent when online business owners have a single promotion that misses everyone who came to the web site after the promotion is over.

So, get an email capture form and place it front and center on your home page or most popular page. Offer something really valuable in exchange for their first name and email. It doesn’t have to be expensive, a downloadable report, mini-course via email or a link to a video will do, but it should be something that your customer really wants to entice him to give you his most prized possession…his email address!

Concentrate on building that list of email subscribers and you will have an online business for years to come. Neglect building an email list and you are at the mercy of products that may not last through year’s end!

Starting a home business can be very confusing. That is why I recommend a few criteria for selecting a home business that you and your family can enjoy. In fact, these are my requirements for the “perfect” home business!

#1 - My new home business must not require debt.
Debt makes everything happen too fast. It puts too much pressure on your new business. And it puts someone else in the driver’s seat of your new business, namely your banker. Debt is the #1 reason most businesses fail in the United States.

#2 - My new home business must be something that can start small.
You don’t want to bite off more than you can chew. If you have never had employees, you do not want to start off with 10 of them! Remember, all things need a chance to incubate before they can grow and your family business is no exception.

#3 - My new home business must include my kids.
The whole purpose in starting a family business is to spend more time with your family. If you start a business in your garage and never involve your kids, what is the point?!?

#4 - My new home business must have a low capital investment.
If you had a ga-zillion dollars, you wouldn’t need to start a home business, right?

#5 - My new home business must require a low time investment.
Again, the point is to not go out and quit your day job…yet! Grow your new home business to the point that it eclipses your day job. One day you will wake up and say, “Why am I going to work? I make more money at home!”

#6 - My new home business must generate passive income.
I can’t start creating wealth until my passive income exceeds my monthly expenses. For a great discussion on this concept, read Rich Dad, Poor Dad. I want to earn money when I sleep (or while I’m on vacation!).

#7 - My new home business must give me high reward for little risk.
Hey as long as we are dreaming, I might as well throw this one in as well. I do not want to large risks, but I do want a huge upside potential!

The only home business I know that meets all 7 of my requirements is an online business. Just think, for $15 a year for your domain name and $50 a year for your web hosting, you can own a home business on the internet.

So next time you are looking at home business opportunities, consider an online business. There is no better bang for the buck!