On The Double Product Creation

Introduction
Welcome! I’m delighted you’ve decided to invest your valuable time and energy into this
guide about creating your own products. I know all too well, first hand… if you put any
of these techniques into practice, the rewards you’ll reap will repay you the time you
take to read this today, many times over.
Creating your own products is the quickest way to:
o Become known
o Establish your expert status
o Build trust with your subscribers and readers
o Build your list!
o Track conversions and hone your products to even greater value for your loyal
subscribers
o Make money!
And the best part? You get to keep all the profits yourself. No more niggly $4
commissions being an affiliate for someone else’s eBook.
Why don’t more people bother to create their own products?
The truth is, many do try… but so often, products get put on the back burner. People are
distracted into chasing the latest hot offer, or trying to learn how to use their
autoresponders, or keeping up with their blogging lessons.
Often, however, product creation slides to the back burner because you’ve got “stuck”
on something you don’t quite know how to do – or your instincts scream that what’s
being produced doesn’t resemble the highly focused offerings of favorite top marketers
at all.
So would-be product creators get discouraged… and your project fizzles and dies an
ignominious death.
If that sounds like you, you’re reading the right ebook – because I’m going to teach you
how to produce professional quality products faster than you’ve ever thought possible!
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
And I’m going to do it simply and efficiently, so you only grasp the points you need – and
don’t clutter your mind up with disheartening and confusing details you really don’t
need to know.
We’ve got one agenda, in this manual – creating your unique, quality product – one that
will bring you recurring income, again and again!
Let’s get started, shall we? ☺
And just for a little fun. I’ve given each chapter a ranking of difficulty.
- Private
- Corporal
- Sergeant
- Staff Sergeant
- Sergeant First Class
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Why Faster Is Better
“I thought it was all about quality,” you frown. “Why are we talking about
churning products out like tomorrow’s tabloid?”
Well, they say a picture is worth 1,000 words, so let me quickly draw you a little
diagram…
And if you’re still not quite sure what I’m getting at, after staring at the above diagram…
It’s all about new (and not so new) marketers tending to blow product research and
creation up to astronomical proportions till it takes on a life of its own. When that
happens, it stops income creation in its tracks, so people abandon the project.
In short, product creation turns into a bogeyman. And it doesn’t have to.
In order to really succeed in internet marketing, it’s vital that you reach the point
established, experienced marketers are already at: Where product creation is just
another quick method to keep your sales funnel flow spiralling smoothly through its
income-producing cycle.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
The reason this “split” in product creation attitude happens? New marketers often feel
so overwhelmed by the thought of creating the actual product itself, they lose sight of
the “big picture”. First, the research bogs you down as you become more and more
confused by all the tangents you can get sucked into… then once you finally allow
yourself to get past the never-ending research and start creating the product itself it
quickly becomes a huge undertaking that snowballs into a monster.
An experienced marketer, on the other hand, has learned (usually by trial and error) to
focus his or her research. The actual product creation takes place very quickly – they’ve
done it before, and they know what to do. Most of their energy goes into promoting
their product to their list – the way to making solid sales and profits!
The proportions I’ve used in my drawing are approximate, yet they do give you a decent
idea of how it should really be. Actual research and product creation should total no
more than roughly 30% of your entire campaign - maximum (and that’s what your
product actually is – just part of a campaign.)
The rest of your time is best devoted to promoting, selling – and something else we’ll
talk about, much later: “Re-purposing”.
You don’t want to take so long to create your product, you get left behind as the market
changes!
The Advantages Of Quick Product Creation
There are other good reasons to burst this monstrously growing balloon and get it back
down to size. Being able to efficiently and quickly produce products:
o Gives you a firm seat as an authority in your particular niche
o Allows you to test your it on your niche for response and relevancy
o Allows you to quickly build an entire line of products for that niche, leading to a
complete sales funnel progression, from beginning to end
o Allows you to quickly go on to something else, if niche reaction is lukewarm to
your initial offering – without seeing months of hard work (and a lot of personal
and perhaps financial investment) wasted.
Of course, the more new offerings you present, the more income you will make.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
This in turn will attract high quality affiliates (especially if you offer your affiliates lifetime
commissions on prospects they bring in to join your list!)
It Does Grow Easier
Practice also makes perfect. The shorter the cycle you give yourself for product creation
and promotion, the easier it becomes to turn them out – until it’s practically second
nature!
Just think about baking, for example. The first time you tried to make a pie crust from
scratch probably took you four times as long as it does now (assuming you still have time
to bake!) Or learning to use your Palm Pre… at first you were all thumbs (literally) and
no doubt spent some time cussing out the “keyboard” as you tried to send text
messages and made lots of mistakes. (Now, you could bash them out in your sleep!)
By learning my product creation shortcuts and ideas and giving yourself focused
deadlines, you will naturally eliminate wasted time and frustration. You’ll learn to focus
only on what’s essential. Far from making your products feel slapdash, this will ensure
they end up as targeted, lean punch-packers.
Products like these are what splits the pros from the wannabes. Nothing smells
“newbie” more than a cluttered, messy, unfocused report or eBook… ones that tell you
way more than you ever wanted to know about a subject. (And a few other subjects on
the side.)
When was the last time you downloaded an ebook and were delighted with its clear, nononsense
content? I’m sure I don’t have to tell you, they’re few and far between. And
when you get one like that, you treat it like a treasure. You happily buy the next product
that author offers.
And there’s no reason that author couldn’t be you…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Short Reports Are…
That's right – short. If you have any ambition at all to write your own stuff
from “scratch”, and you’re not intimidated by the thought of writing, this is
the ideal way to get started. (But don’t worry – I’ve got lots more tricks up my sleeve, if
this section is not for you!)
How long should a short report be?
As little as 5 pages (padded on top of that with necessary “extras” like legal disclaimer
pages, your eCover and your table of contents.) And certainly no more than 15 pages.
That’s basically enough to cover one aspect of a niche subject – or provide a short
overview.
Treat your short report as a “teaser” that will have your readers eagerly looking for your
bigger product.
A good approach is to stick strictly to the “what to do” – while your bigger product will
offer them the “how to do it.” But make sure that “what” is really something they need
to know, and give it your own unique twist or added value information not usually found
elsewhere.
How much should you charge?
That’s entirely up to you: Many people will offer up a short report as a free taste of what
their larger ebook or report can deliver – the idea is to make the “taster” want more.
Others are actually more successful with charging a small amount – often as little as $1
and usually no more than $7. This particular approach works better, however, if you’ve
already got a list.
Another thing you can do is market your short report for a limited time on one of the
forums you belong to, as a “Special Offer”.
Let your fellow forum members purchase it for $1, telling them that after a certain date,
it’s going up to $7 (or $8 or $9.)
You’re bound to get enough conversions to garner 2 crucial advantages that will give
your career a boost:
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
1. Useful feedback, which can help you tweak your product and correct any errors
before you release it to the general public
2. Testimonials – which you can use as part of your sales letter, when you market it
to the world
A great place to join – if you haven’t already – is the WarriorForum. This is the place not
only to make Special Offers (in the WSO section) – but also get focused feedback, advise
– and really original PLR.
Which brings us to our next section…
60 Things You Can Do With PLR
Well, okay. I’ll admit up front I’m not really going to show you 60 things –
that would be a whole ebook in itself!
(Though actually, I bet you I could…)
My point is: Private Label Rights (PLR) products can be your own personal hidden
treasure chest, ready to be raided and used any way you like, at a moment’s notice.
PLR is highly versatile –the last thing you should ever think of doing is using it “as is”.
(Besides, that’s the shortest way to getting the Google boot.)
Now, I know you’re disappointed at what seems like a lame idea for creating a truly
valuable product… but hold on a sec!
Let me tell you a secret that not many newer marketers understand.
Most PLR feels generic and recycled because people just don’t know what to do with
PLR pieces.
And the beauty of it is – this is not rocket science we’re talking about: Just a few simple
techniques, which I’m going to show you right now, on the spot!
You see, there’s PLR… and there’s PLR…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
There’s stuff that is pure junk – and PLR whose quality is so high, it practically re-writes
itself for you. (You’ll know you’ve got hold of a quality piece of PLR if its hot-knifethrough-
butter easy and fun to rewrite!)
Besides, we’re not going to change just a word or two: We’re going to use it as an
armature, so we can turn it into something completely new, fresh and unique!
If you’ve never been to art college, you might be muttering: “What on earth is an
armature?”
Well, if you’ve ever seen a gorgeous sculpture, like Rodin’s famous “The Kiss”, it didn’t
start out as a perfect piece of polished art.
First Rodin made a miniature. But before he even got to that stage, he constructed a
crude “skeleton” of sticks and wire.
Lovingly, he fleshed over it with clay. And when the clay dried, he cast it in bronze.
When that turned out well, he corrected a few small design mistakes – and did it again
to produce the life-sized statue we know today!
No one looking at that statue today would ever connect it with the crude structure of
twigs and clay he first put together.
So it is with PLR. It’s your ready-made “armature” or skeleton.
If you have a good, well-designed skeleton, you’ll end up with a solid, valuable product.
Your assignment for today – go find yourself a package of quality PLR.
(Start with the WSO section of WarriorForum . You don’t even have to be a member – all
you need to do is click on the link to the offer, which is usually in the poster’s signature.)
In fact, if you Google your niche phrase along with “PLR” – E.G.: “Create A Blog” PLR –
you’ll most like be directed to the Warrior Forum Special Offer section anyway!
The other thing you can count on, when you purchase PLR from WSO… these marketers
mean business. No Warrior Forum member in his right mind is going to offer fellow
professionals PLR that is token slapped-together.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Google your search phrase anyway (along with the word “PLR”) – and check out different
sites. You’ll soon learn to differentiate between PLR that rocks your socks – and PLR that
would be better off lining your kitty’s litter box, if you were wasteful enough to print it
out.
And now the part you’ve been wishing I’d hurry up and get to – How to use it and create
your product!
Creating Your Custom PLR Product
A. Read through the PLR guide, to see what ideas it sparks. Make notes as you go
(just opening “Notepad” or whatever text editor you prefer is fine, for this
purpose.) The notes can be about sections you’d like to expand. Delete any
sections or parts that don’t fit into your vision, if you’re already developing one
B. Add in new chapters to its table of contents. You will use this as your “skeleton”
– you won’t be writing from scratch.
C. Do some solid research – on the net, at your local library, or by interviewing
experts you discover. Make notes.
D. Read through the first chapter or section again. Read through your research
notes, and decide whether or not (and to what section) you want to add this new
information.
E. Change paragraphs around, change chapters around – it’s just the structure for
your new product. Its yours to mold and shape as you please.
Two tips to make life easier, while you’re doing this:
o Set your word processor so that all new material you type (or all the old
material) is in a different color – that way, you won’t run the risk of
accidentally leaving large chunks of original content in, verbatim! (It
happened to me once, I blush to confess!)
o Go through it and rewrite your PLR in one go. Don’t try to polish it right
now – or you’ll fall victim to the trap of endlessly tweaking till you’ve
stripped all life and your own unique personality right out of it.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Repeat this process, chapter by chapter, or section by section.
If you’re adding a completely new chapter, read through your research before writing
from memory (with a few quick checks or two, if your research contained highly specific
data.)
Everyone is different in what works for them – but I urge you:
if you’ve never done it this way, do give it a real try.
Write at least one PLR article, special report or eBook this
way. If the method “gels” with you, it’s one of the most
proven efficient methods of written product creation there
is. In fact, most professional authors, copywriters and
marketers write from an “outline”, fleshed out with original
research, this way.
The other major advantage this method gives you – there is no interruption in the
“flow” – which I guarantee there will be, if you write without a “skeleton”, or go back to
sections too many times to niggle and play.
Rewrite your book from beginning to end before worrying about editing. This little trick
will makes your report or eBook feel almost like a conversation, translated by your
reader as “high quality”. (It’s all about connection, right?)
But if you’re more the “visual” type, and written products really don’t set you on fire, let
me suggest another great use for good PLR…
Turn Your PLR Into A Video Series
The way to do this: repeat relevant information – broken down, this time, into
essential points – onto “slides” you create yourself, with spoken commentary.
(And by the way, you can use simple screen capture methods to make your “slides” – you
don’t have to re-invent the wheel.)
TIP: Read the research
at least 3 times, before
you start writing. (It’s
okay if you find yourself
“skimming”, the third
time.)
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
The other great beauty of videos? They usually sell for a higher price than written
eBooks and reports. Especially if you create a “series” of lessons, and break your videos
down into shorter chunks. (Recent studies have shown that people actually prefer
shorter video clips – they have less and less patience and opportunity to dedicate large
chunks of time to things like videos.)
My next brilliant PLR idea:
Create A Physical, Hard-Copy Book
This is not as hare-brained as you might think. There are physical product
fulfilment companies like Lulu.com or Kunaki who will print, publish and even ship each
book for you – at a very reasonable cost, on demand.
That means never having to order a huge numbers of copies, and no getting stuck with
unsold merchandise you’ve paid for but can’t recoup.
Also no storing and shipping to worry about, too!
You can use a fulfilment company like Kunaki for your DVDs. too! To give you an idea,
Kunaki advertises their price for physical DVD or CD creation at $1.75 per unit, at time of
writing. No contracts, no minimum orders, and even a UPC bar code included.
And there’s nothing like the status of being an offline, published author. You can even
order a batch of your own books for yourself, and use them for offline publicity, such as
getting press releases in your local paper, and setting up book signings!
Best of all – you can sell your books on Amazon.com too.
And don’t forget to include links back to your 'web only' bonuses for customers, where
you reward them by allowing them to sign up in order to download more goodies.
So not only will you be making physical sales – you’ll be building your targeted traffic,
too!
Now, if you’re ready for more ideas, let’s move on to Number 3…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
The Interview Bonanza
You rarely hear of this method among the myriad of “write a report”
material on the net – but the truth is, this is the quickest, easiest and most
lucrative method of coming up with an instant product you could ever wish for!
Not only is does it never take more than an hour to create (in fact, a lot of people prefer
20 minutes to half-an-hour) – you’ll end up with a high value audio product you can sell
for an equally high price!
“What’s the catch”, you say?
Well, interviews work best if you interview an expert.
But the good news is… getting one to agree to be interviewed isn’t as hard to achieve as
you might think!
And if you learn a few tricks, you probably won’t even have to pay them to appear on
your interview.
Just follow these simple steps…
1: Get Everything “Ready to Roll”
There’s a simple reason for putting this particular cart (setting up your interview
equipment) before the horse (contacting someone to interview.) The more of a true
expert your subject is, the more likely he or she is to have an already full schedule.
Setting everything up to go at the drop of a hat means you can squeeze them in on the
spot, in the event they answer your interview request with: “Well, right now is all the
time I have – tomorrow I’m off to Florida.”
(And web radio hosts will tell you that happens more often than you might think!)
Besides, once your interview set up is complete (and tested), it’s ready for every
interview – and every opportunity.
How do you record an interview over the phone?
Your best bet is Skype – a free program you install on your computer.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Skype allows you to contact people – by phone or by instant messaging – at one click of
your mouse, as long as they are signed up with Skype too. Long distance calls between
two people are free, if both are signed up on Skype – but if your subject is not, you can
purchase Skype credits, and cover the cost yourself.
How do you use Skype in an interview? You speak to your subject via Skype and your
computer, using your headset and microphone.
Open your Skype program and dial them at the prearranged time, if you’ve added them
to your contacts: Or visit their website and click on their Skype phone number. If you
have the Skype Firefox extension on your Firefox browser, the Skype phone number
instant link will be displayed to all people on Skype, even though the average site visitor
won’t see anything more than an ordinary text phone number.
1: Test Your Equipment First!
For your headset and microphone, make sure you buy a chat-compatible unit with a
USB connection (at least 100mHz. strength) and adjustable microphone. You can find
fairly inexpensive models at your local Office Supply or Multimedia store – but be
warned: If you’re paying less than $40 for your headset, the quality you’re looking for is
probably not there. (You can also order Skype-specific headphones via Skype.)
You’ll also need recording software. The best one I’ve found is Total Recorder. There is a
free trial you can sign up for, first, to make sure it’s compatible with your computer. And
at a mere $17.95 for the standard edition at time of writing, it’s a no-brainer. (I
recommend the Pro edition, currently priced at $35.95. Yes, it has a free trial too.)
Get Skype and Total Recorder completely set up first. Then have a friend or relative call
you for a 3-minute “trial run” interview, to make sure there are no glitches. You do not
want to find out that your mic isn’t working just as you’re starting to interview your
guest.
Make sure all your settings are correct, and that you’re not having problems with
volume, or accidentally making explosive breathing sounds into a wrongly-positioned
microphone.
When you feel confident everything’s as good as you can get it, and your headphone mic
is set at the correct distance for you, test it again, then telephone your actual interview
subject at the pre-arranged time. (Do a test with your actual interview subject too!)
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Editing Your Audio
Audacity is one last piece of open source, free software you will want to download. It’s an
audio editor, and will help you edit out any glitches, mundane bits, or personal
comments at the beginning or end of the interview.
You can also download free public domain music excerpts to play at the beginning and
end of your interview, if you like that idea.
PartnersInRhyme has a great variety of not only free music clips, but sound effects, too. You
can also Google “free public domain sound clips” to find specialized ones suited to your
interview theme.
No matter whose music you use, however, check the licensing information. Even if it says
“public domain” (and especially if it says “royalty free”) you’ll need to ensure you are
allowed to use it for money-making purposes.
(Remember: “royalty free” does not mean “free”: It just means you don’t have to pay
royalties every time your clip is aired.)
2: Contact people you would like to interview
Your best bet is to contact no more than 3 possible subjects at a time.
Before you choose a guest, put some serious thought into which experts will help you
the most in providing your subscribers with valuable interview material they’ll be eager
to pay for.
You can take one guest, and break an hour-long interview into anywhere from 5 – 15
minute segments, in order to create a paid e-course… or you can interview several
guests in your narrow niche area, to create a really high-value series.
“Where do you find experts?”
Book authors are often pleased to be interviewed – particularly if you allow them to
promote their book. Look for authors with upcoming releases, or those with a book just
out. (Amazon is a good place to look – and you can also see how popular their material
is.)
Forums are another great place to uncover experts. Even if the world at large isn’t
aware of your guest’s existence, forum members they’ve guested on – or run – are builtAndy
Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
in fans. You’ll be able to see how eagerly the other forum members depend on them for
advice and input. It stands to reason that an authority figure like this expert could be a
valuable score for you.
Check out top blogs and websites in your chosen niche subject too.
One last place to dig: About.com. They pay expert guides to be responsible for each area
and sub-niche. Pick the one you want, and approach them. It really is as simple as that!
Before you contact any potential guest, however, do take time to read their blogs,
websites and even books. Even experts are flattered – when they realize you’re an expert
on their work. And it will not only help you better “connect” with your expert, but add
depth and relevancy to your interview – as well as making you feel more confident!
“What Do I Pay Them?”
There’s no hard and fast rule for this. Often, if you’ve approached your expert properly
and made a connection, they’ll be willing to do the interview merely for the chance to
promote their new book or product.
Offline guests who don’t have a website are not likely to be interested in web exposure,
so you may have better luck asking them: “What is your usual fee for agreeing to an
interview?” If you’re lucky, the amount won’t be sky-high out of the ballpark.
If your expert is someone from a related area of your niche market, the best thing you
could offer them might be 100% commission, or Resale rights to the final product, which
would allow them to offer it as a special to their own list (and that’s good for you too!)
If you follow this route, however, do make sure you put an affiliate link within the
product – their list members signing up for your list is the most valuable benefit you
could reap, if you’re fairly new to internet marketing!
And don’t fret about the possibility of rejection. Yes, you’ll have rejections – but most
likely your personality will be the last factor in their refusal. (The most common reason
for refusing is tight or conflicting scheduling.)
All you need is one expert to agree to that first interview. And you’ll quickly find out,
once you’ve got one interview up and running, more will follow – you will have
established your interview credibility (particularly if you’ve made your subject sound (a)
good (b) happy to be interviewed.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
3: Have Your Questions Ready
Choose the best of both worlds, when conducting an interview:
o Have your questions ready – they will provide your “skeleton”, your armature, for
the interview.
o Be prepared to “go with the flow”. If your subject is revealing some fascinating
new insight into what makes them tick – details you know your niche would love!
– abandon a few of your more standard questions, and encourage this detour.
Remember, your questions are just a loose structure to fall back on, in case your
guest turns out to be unexpectedly wooden.
o Make sure the majority of your questions focus on one topic of value to your
niche segment
o Make sure you’ve included “open-ended” questions that invite more than a one
word answer. Example: “Where do you see yourself ten years from now?” is an
open-ended question. “Do you like Google?” is closed – it invites a “yes” or “no”
answer. And if that’s all you get, the silence is going to hang heavier than a lead
balloon, if you’re not ready to recover with a nice, fat, open-ended “What do you
see as Google’s biggest mistake, this past year?”
o Do send your subject a .PDF of the basic questions he or she can expect to be
asked. Most people will appreciate it, and feel relaxed enough to provide a good
interview, without awkward pauses, by the time you get around to the big night
(or day.)
o Don’t be afraid to gently bring the interview back on topic, if the subject has gone
off on some tangent that is going to bore your niche segment to tears or disrupt
the cohesion of your topic.
4: The Actual Interview
So you’ve arranged a time and done a test call with your subject, to make sure your
equipment is compatible from their end, as well as yours.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Start recording the moment you place the call. You can easily edit out any preliminary
hellos or uncertainties.
Besides, if you don’t, you run the risk of forgetting to actually press the record button,
once you begin interviewing them. That would be heartbreaking, after all your hard
work – as well as embarrassing. (I know a really famous internet marketer who
interviewed a fellow professional for an hour – and completely forgot to record the
interview. She passed it off to her subscribers as “equipment failure” without blinking
an eyelash. However, she could get away with that – it was such a rare mistake, no one
even questioned it. In fact, I would have taken it at face value myself, had she not ‘fessed
up to me, out of the blue.)
Don’t be afraid to chat a little before you begin the actual interview. It helps establish a
more natural connection between you both.
When you’re both comfortable, let them know you’re about to proceed, confirm once
again that they are fine with you turning it into a product.
Above all, relax – enjoy the interview, and your guest (and listeners will enjoy it too!)
“But what if I’m really too nervous?”
I’m tempted to say “Getoverit. You’re an entrepreneur, already. Entrepreneurs are
supposed to be risk-takers!” – but I won’t. We all have our bugbears and phobias. Just
make sure yours really is that – a genuine phobia, and not just a perfectly normal whack
of natural stage fright – before you look for an alternative, or give up on the audio
interview idea altogether.
If you are genuinely phobic, or there’s some other reason you can’t conduct the
interview yourself (like, you broke your jaw and your mouth is wired shut), you can hire
someone else in your niche market – perhaps a local web radio host – or someone who
specializes in audio interviews from Guru.com or Elance – to do it for you. (A hidden
advantage with this is that some of these professionals have superior audio equipment
they will use. If you approach them – ask!)
Three last words, however, before you go this route:
o Be sure your guest knows you’re using a “stand in” interviewer
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
o Try, try, TRY to do it yourself. It’s one of the best ways to let your target audience
get to know you. There is an immediacy and intimacy to spoken interaction that
all the best writing in the world cannot replace.
o Have a glass of water handy (but not near any audio equipment!) There’s nothing
worse than suddenly developing a dry throat or tickle in the middle of a good
interview.
5: Editing Your Interview
Editing makes all the difference between a professional, polished interview and a “home
recording”, so do using your Audacity software to edit the interview.
A. Listen carefully to the recording, after the interview. (2 or 3 times is best, if you
can handle that. I find I’ll often notice things I need to edit on the third time
round that I won’t catch on the first run-through.
B. Edit out long silences, awkward segues, introductory conversation, the bit where
you double-check with your subject that it’s okay to sell the interview, or outside
noises. This is a simple, drag-and-delete process, in Audacity.
C. Keep a back up of the original tape. This is to guard against the unlikely event
you ever have to prove anything.
6: Transcription, Anyone?
More people than you think are either on dialup – or just don’t like multimedia
interviews. Spending a few cents extra to provide a .PDF transcription to your
subscribers gives an extra (and often much-appreciated) source of added value.
(It also allows you to charge slightly more!)
Again, you can hire someone from Guru.com or Elance to transcribe it – or avail yourself
of the services of one of the many Virtual Assistants on the net who specialize in
transcription.
You can also use Skype’s Pamela service, or an actual transcription service such as
CastingWords.com - but these two options will definitely be more expensive than hiring a
VA or freelancer.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Whoever does it, let them know you want it to stick pretty close to verbatim – but that
you do want the “uh… well… um..” and “Oh crap I dropped my mic” type comments
deleted. Otherwise, you are likely to spend another hour or two you don’t have
manually deleting these yourself. (When dealing with new service providers, as my own
VA famously once said: “When in doubt, spell it out.”)
The last step: Include a short .PDF file containing a brief summary of the audio file’s
content, as well as any links included in your chat.
And there you go. One of the easiest products you’ll ever create (once you’ve got the
hang of Skype and Audacity.)
Movin’ on…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Teleseminars Are Not So Hard
After you’ve given a few telephone interviews, you’ll probably find they’re
a complete yawn (apart from a few moments of nerves, right before you
begin.)
Or you may even be like me, and discover that you absolutely and unexpectedly love the
spoken word as your natural medium!
If either of these is true, you’ll probably be chomping at the bit to tackle teleseminars.
I know when I was first starting out in internet marketing, I was too embarrassed to ask:
“What is a teleseminar, anyway?”
It’s basically a telephone conference call, where your subscribers listen in (after being
given a password.) Sometimes all microphones except yours (and your special guest’s, if
you have one) are automatically muted until someone activates theirs (hopefully at your
invitation.)
Sometimes, if the teleseminar is 100% telephone based (which many are, though
recordings are usually made available later over the web) you need to tell everyone
when you are muting the phones; and (once you unmute them for the Q&A session)
how to un-mute them.
The best way to get everyone at ease: Chat with your callers before the official recording
begins (they’ll be landing in the room early.) Then let them know you are going to mute
the phones for your interview, but there’ll be a question and answer period afterwards,
where they’ll be able to mute and unmute at will. (Don’t give them the simple 3-digit
code to do this till right before the Q & A session!)
Who do you interview? That depends. You might want to just give the teleseminar all by
yourself, skipping the interview format (especially if you’re good at storytelling or public
speaking, or you have a unique skill few other marketers possess.)
Make your teleseminar 45 minutes to an hour of focused, high value information on a
subject they really want to learn – something you can speak about with authority.
Or you can interview an expert special guest over the phone lines, while your callers
listen in. When you unmute the lines for the Q&A session, sit back and allow yourself
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
the luxury of listening to your special guest answering audience questions. (Make sure
you’ve both agreed on this, first!)
“Plant” a colleague or two in the “audience”, if its your first teleseminar. Have them
ready with an intelligent question or two, in case there’s a Deathly Silence when you
open the phone lines. But prompt them to wait for a certain number of seconds before
jumping in – unsolicited questions are always more valuable and entertaining than
“planted” ones.
What Can You Use A Teleseminar For?
o Pre-selling your audience on a membership site or other new product. By the
time the call is ending, if you’ve done a professional, honest job and given them
information of genuine value, they’ll be loyal fans who totally trust what you say
(and with good reason!)
o Make your offer exclusive! “As registered members of this call, only you get this
special pre-offer at a third of the cost it will be after its official launch…”
o If you don’t have anything yet to sell, or you’re not comfortable with that idea,
don’t worry – you can please your callers and establish yourself as an expert by
generously giving them really valuable information, totally free. You’ll still make a
profit when you turn it into your paid product!
Teleseminars can be more powerful than a straight recorded interview for 2 reasons:
1) You get real participation by your target group, who give you valuable, on-thespot
feedback about your subject. They may tell you what they need, what
they’re having problems with or just tell you why your products or words work for
them – and there’s nothing stronger than a live, totally enthusiastic testimonial!
2) The personal connection you’ve made by speaking to them and allowing them
input feels very “one-on-one” and builds trust quickly – particularly if you’ve
encouraged them to introduce themselves, and made a little small talk with your
callers before the official recording got started.
“How do I actually set this up?”
Running a teleseminar is a little more technically challenging than recording a call with
Skype. But don’t get into a knot – it just means different software or software services.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
For a smaller teleseminar (which yours is most likely going to be, at the beginning) you
might try FreeConferenceCall.com. Be aware, however – the reason it’s free is because your
callers pay for the call, when they dial in.
Especially good news for you: FreeConferenceCall.com records the entire event in
.WAV format – its part of their service.
You can easily convert your .WAV files to .MP3.
If you have a large list, and over 100 people, you may wish to use a paid service like
NCconnects.com.
It doesn’t matter which service you choose, however: Both will give you a phone
number you can give out and publicize as the number to dial in. Let those who sign up
know:
o The time and your time zone – remind them they will need to convert the time,
if they’re in another zone. Perhaps even give them a link to a free time zone
converter page.
o Any password or pin code they will need to access your conference
o Remind them of your event at regular intervals before the call takes place – as
well as sending a final email an absolute minimum of one hour before the call.
o Remind people on your social networks. Keep Tweeting about it on Twitter right
till you begin the interview. “I’m just starting my teleseminar on podcasting. You
can still get in: http://www.mybit.lylink”...
Landing A Special Guest
Hooking a guest for a teleseminar may be more of a challenge than landing one for a
pre-recorded audio interview. For one thing, your teleseminar is not going to be prerecorded
– it’s going to be live, with a Q&A session.
People most comfortable with guesting on live teleseminars will most likely be
experienced top marketers. A possible drawback: They’ll also expect compensation that
may be more than you can afford, at this stage. Their time truly is valuable.
But don’t give up on the idea, if you’re ready to do a teleseminar: Either be your own
“expert” – or just keep asking around till you find someone who is willing to work with
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
you (especially if you allow them Resale rights or a full 100% commission on the
proceeds.)
Getting People To Sign Up
It’s better to choose the teleseminar option (rather than a straight, pre-recorded
interview) if you already have an established list – you’re much more likely to have
takers eager to hear what you have to say.
But don’t forget – even if only 5 people sign up, the people who buy your recording
won’t know that. I can guarantee they will literally be picturing a lecture hall packed
with people as they listen – and even if there are only one or two questions afterwards,
they’ll either assume people were as shy as they were, or they’ll think you covered the
subject so well, there really weren’t too many questions to ask!
If you do have a smaller list, you can easily drive people to your teleseminar landing page
through your normal channels: your blog, social networking, word of mouth on forums –
and don’t forget Twitter.
If traffic is really going to be a problem, consider investing for a short time in a Pay Per
Click ad; or placing a banner ad on a hot site your target niche members actively
frequent.
You can send the people who do sign up all the juicy details via email, using your
autoresponder. (If you use a paid teleseminar service, they will also likely have their
own version of sign up and contact methods for you to use.)
The only real down side to hosting a teleseminar with only a small audience: you may
find yourself paying for more service than you needed, after all.
But then again – you’ll have your paid product at the end of it, to help you recoup your
finances!
And do send regular reminders – they’re the most crucial part of getting the people who
signed up to actually attend.
And You’re LIVE…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
As with your pre-recorded telephone interview, do test your teleseminar service first!
You don’t want to be hitting the wrong button or discovering you don’t know how
something works, when you’re live on the air!
You also don’t want to embarrass your special guest by appearing unprepared and
unprofessional. That could backfire on your reputation quite nastily!
But don’t panic – Instead, rely on thorough preparation, and pre-testing.
Remember the “dummy run” with a couple of friends or relatives. Make sure you run
your 10 minute mini session just like the real thing: muting the lines, opening them up
again, allowing your “guest” access in the correct manner. Not every service does this
the same way: With some teleseminar services, there’s an actual “co-host” number your
special guest uses; with others, you simply unmute your special guest when she enters
the “room”.
Teleseminar Tips
o Have water available in case your throat gets dry.
o If you’re your own “guest”, don’t read verbatim from a script – it will sound
lifeless and dull. By all means use an outline, or flash cards hitting the high points
you’re going to cover, so you can use them as cues – but imagine yourself
speaking directly to just one person – perhaps that nice lady who was so cheery
when she gave her name and greeting, on entering the “room”.
o Treat your callers as if they are paying good money for the call – even if it’s totally
free. Remember, they took time off other important tasks just to check out
what you have to say. Honor this by imparting clear, relevant information they
can really use.
o Remember to tell people at the beginning of your call when and how long the
phone lines will be muted – and when you’ll be opening them up. Do not tell
people how to unmute the phone until it’s time – you don’t want your show
sabotaged by that one egotist who thinks he should harangue or question you or
your guest mid-interview, interrupting the flow
o Do remember you can edit your teleseminar recording, just as you can a prerecorded
interview. This means if you get a questioner who is long winded or
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
irrelevant, you can choose to eliminate that portion, if you feel it really weakens
the interview or embarrasses your guest. (If your guest is squirming, chances are
your callers will be too – so you’ll be doing them a favor by removing it.)
o Be prepared for people asking questions that are really not appropriate: Things
like, “Can you walk me through all the steps to setting up a WordPress blog?” in
the middle of a call exclusively about copywriting. Or asking questions that have
already been answered. You can take the sting out of shutting them down by
prefacing your reply with a positive comment: “That’s a good question, Ed, but
we don’t have time to cover that in our copywriting teleseminar today. Perhaps
we can cover it in a future Wordpress seminar. Thank you for that idea. Anyone
else have a copywriting question I can answer?”
Above all, be gracious. If you treat each caller as a valuable guest – which indeed, each
one is – chances are, everyone will enjoy the call as much as you will!
And your enthusiasm (and theirs) will show up on your paid product.
But perhaps you are more comfortable with “visuals”. If so, let’s look at our next method
of creating your product…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
How To Create A Video
People who are comfortable with pre-recorded interviews will often freeze
up and balk at the idea of doing a video… when the truth is, videos are usually even
easier – and quicker – to create than audio.
There is a visual, as well as audio, component to this type of product, so videos are
traditionally seen as higher value than audio files, which means you can charge more
money. Especially if you break them down, as suggested earlier, into “segments”, and
market them as a series.
If you are really uncomfortable with appearing on video, consider screen capture videos.
What are they? Well, if you’ve ever gone through a video series on “how to” do
anything, and you’re seeing it happen as if you’re doing it on your own computer screen,
you’ve been watching screen captures.
Before you go running to learn about screen captures, however, try taking some very
short videos of yourself – doing nothing at all, talking about what you’re making for
dinner, explaining why you hate potted plants or love pierogies – on your digital camera.
View them.
If you’re like most people, you’ll cringe when you first play them back. You won’t have
realized those wrinkles move and magically grow deeper! Your voice will sound tinny
and “thin”. You’ll think you have goofy teeth, or you’ll hate the way the camera angle
makes your nose look like an over-ripe banana – all these are normal reactions, when
viewing yourself for the first time. We have a mental image of ourselves based on the
“still” poses we see in the mirror (and what we looked like at a younger age!) The reality
of how we really appear when we’re animated can be an unexpected jolt.
But get over It already. Carry your camera around. Make your 30 second video clips of
yourself at your most mundane and boring. View them on the spot, right there on the
camera. Delete each one (with a sigh of relief) as soon as you’ve finished viewing it.
And you can do all this in private, when no one’s around.
I’ll tell you what will happen, unless you’re morbidly insecure for some reason: Sooner
than you’d have thought, you’ll view one of these silly little video clips, and you won’t
feel like deleting it at all!
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
In fact, you may even find yourself quite liking it!
Congratulations. You’ve made friends with yourself at last. Suzi, meet Suzi… Craig,
meet Craig... ☺
The truth is, your friends enjoy your company – and they don’t care if you’re not
Hollywood-thin or 19 years old. And they know perfectly well about your bald spot, or
that mole on your upper lip.
People are looking for solid market knowledge – and tips they can use. Methods they
can learn. Things that will help them make money – as well as making their life easier.
That’s what they’re watching you for: Not so they can condemn the shape of your nose.
“Why are you insisting I get comfortable with the camera… when I’m planning just to
use screenshots?”
It’s that personal connection thing again, of course…
The truth is, while you’re busy worrying about appearing on video, your viewers may
have taken a mild dislike to you already just from your still photo, based on silly
superficial details like your hairstyle, your weight, an expression they’re perceiving as
arrogant and supercilious (gee… you thought it was Authoritative and Calm!)
Or perhaps they think you look like an “oily used car salesman”, as one friend once told
me, when looking at what I thought was the best photo ever taken of me grinning at the
camera. (“You mean I don’t look natural and relaxed?”)
Video is able to “set the record straight”. I’ll go one further: No matter what actual
physical deformity you could possibly have, the only one likely to be concerned about it
(after the first few “adjustment” seconds) is you.
The true secret of video is… if you can get to the point where you’re comfortable with
being on screen, everyone else will be comfortable too.
Marketers have mentioned, again and again, how much better their “screen capture”
videos convert, if they appear live and in person at least at the beginning and end of the
video.
So if you’re able to push yourself out of your “envelope” of safety a little, the rewards of
appearing on video can be well worth your initial reservations.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
“What if I really can’t appear?”
Well, no point making you do something you’re genuinely, pathologically uncomfortable
with.
In that case… screen shots only, it must be.
And as with the audio transcript – you can hire someone to make the video for you. Be
aware, however, that this option is usually expensive. And your surrogate won’t put the
passion and enthusiasm into it that you will.
“What equipment do I need?”
Good question. For a free option, consider CamStudio. Its drawbacks? Larger files to
upload – which may put some viewers off, especially if they’re on dial up. It also offers
less editing options. It’s not a bad program to start off with, however.
Paid screenshot capture software such as Camtasia (the industry standard) can be a real
bite to swallow for new marketers, at $300 and up. However, you can sometimes find
older versions advertised on eBay for considerably less. (There’s also a 30 day trial, so if
you’re really strapped for cash, wait until you’re ready to shoot before you download the
trial – you should be able to make your entire video series before the trial runs out. Then
you will be able to purchase Camtasia with your profits!)
You can use your Skype headset, at a pinch, for a microphone.
Another option, if you need to record live physical actions – for example, you want to
create a video of you showing people how turn a French seam on a Janome sewing
machine, Camtasia won’t do the job at all. A simple Flip camera will do a decent job of
video recording, and at about $160, it can be a viable option for newer marketers.
If you can afford a little more, the buzz is that Kodak is about to launch the Hi8 HD. The
big advantage here is its external microphone socket – something your simple Flip phone
lacks.
It also will have a USB attachment, so you can download your video right onto your
computer.
Webcams, you say? Yes, that will work – but only if you want to do the “talking head”
thing, and have it capturing you sitting at your computer.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
“What subjects can I make videos about?”
The answer? Anything you think your niche market will value!
It’s true, however, that some things lend themselves better to a video format:
o Web design tutorials
o Blog setup tutorials
o Software tutorials
o “How to” [anything you like!]
In other words, “tutorials” top the list. Video record anything that’s better explained by
showing, rather than telling.
You can also use “slides” (still photographs, drawn diagrams, pie charts, Power Point
presentations, etc.) to help reinforce what you’re talking about on your video. You can
point to areas of the screen you’re working with, rather than saying: “Now put slot A into
the little groove about two-thirds down the left side of your screen, over a bit towards
the middle…”
Best of all, people can refer to your video again and again, until they’ve really got the
hang of how to do what they need to do.
The Nitty-Gritty, Please?
First, decide whether you’re going to produce a series, or one longer, complete video.
Keep your invisible dialup members in mind, before blithely deciding to make that
199mb. video.
If you’re doing a series, decide which single topic each video is going to cover. (But
remember, even though each leads to the next, each should also feel complete.)
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Write a “skeleton” outline for each video – just as you would if you were writing a
special report. It will look something like this:
o “Welcome from me
o Brief description of what this module will cover
o Any fact my viewer needs to know before I get down to the instruction part
o Showing my viewer how to perform one section or task
o Telling my viewer that module has concluded, and what he’s going to find in the
next one
o Remember to close mouth and freeze for the camera at the end”
Repeat this for every video module – and please, for heaven’s sakes, even if you are
initially forced to save your video with a file name like as44-dfwer1394s344-bHx-
Qqwety91x.wmv – do rename it to something instantly recognizable and descriptive
that will instantly tell your viewer which module he’s looking at. For example:
“blogsetup-plugins.wmv”.
When your viewer goes back to relearn that one particular point he’s had trouble with,
and discovers he can instantly put his hand on the right video file, without having to go
through all ten of your modules, he’s going to be very pleased indeed!
In fact, he’s going to remember that. (How many hundreds of .PDFs and video files do
you have on your hard drive with file names like: as44-dfwer1394s344-bHx-
Qqwety91x.wmv? That’s a sure-fire way to make sure your viewer will never find them
again – even if he wants to!)
If you’re having trouble visualizing your future video, access some of your favorite videos
– ones created by others – and play them. Make notes. There’s nothing wrong with
copying general structure, when you’re first starting video production.
Get your tripod, if you’re using one (highly recommended), set up your camera or have
your “cameraman” ready to go – and start shooting!
Whatever you use, however – make sure it records sound too!
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Some Tips…
o Do remember to run a sound check first. Record a 20 second clip, to make sure
your sound is acceptable and actually working!
o Have your notes in order, out of sight of the camera, but where you can glance at
them. That way , if you freeze up, you can “cue” yourself and just keep talking.
But do try not to refer to your notes unless you absolutely have to – it can make
your video seem stilted and mundane.
Creating Screenshots and “Slides”
You’ll most likely simply edit your video in Windows Moviemaker, the free program that
came with your PC. It actually works very well for video editing – you’re able to drag and
drop slides, alter the start point of video tracks, add effects and slow or speed up each
slide. (Save your work often – Moviemaker can be “glitchy” at times.)
But how do you actually create slides?
First, decide what job these slides have to do. If you really need screenshots, use your
Camtasia.
But what if you just want to get a point across, or show a diagram?
You can use a still photo (make sure you own the rights or have licensed the shot
correctly!) For example, if you were talking about meditation, you could show peaceful
shots from nature, with soothing background music added in.
You can create pie charts and show them as you’re talking. Create your screen shots
afterwards as well, if you see a spot on your edited tape a new diagram would enhance.
Don’t write an essay, if you’re including writing on your slides: just the most crucial
points for that one small segment: “No more than 3 points” is a good rule. You want
people to “scan-and-cue” as you’re talking – not struggle to read paragraphs, losing track
of your voice.
If you are giving out URL’s, do display your URLS in a screen shot at the same time as
you are speaking the address. This is far easier for your viewers than having them
wonder: “Did he say `digimons’ or `digimoms’?”
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
If you have your own logo, brand your videos with it. Have a tiny version of the logo
inserted in the same spot on every slide, as well as your URL at the bottom. (You never
know when people are going to give your videos out to others – or claim your videos as
their own work – especially if you personally don’t appear in them!)
The mechanics of recording your video are much the same as doing an audio interview.
The same interview rules apply, water glass and all. You can choose to edit out mistakes
later, but another trick is recording in small chunks (particularly if you’re just recording
yourself, and you feel nervous.) I find small chunks are easier to edit than one large
video – but it’s all about whatever works for you the best.
Do make a couple of test videos first, and see which style you prefer.
(And remember – you can always just pause the recording.)
Tips Unique To Video
o If you yourself are planning to appear in your video, begin and end the shoot by
being quiet for a few seconds with your mouth closed, and a calm, pleasant
expression on your face – otherwise you run the risk of forever seeing your webpage-
embedded video frozen with your face caught in what will inevitably turn
out to be a `goofy’ expression. (And if you are talking too quickly, without
pausing, it will be harder to edit these moments in a manner that comes off as
“natural”, after the fact.)
o Even if you edit your file immediately after finishing, do put it aside and come
back to it the next day for another edit. Chances are huge you’ll find other flaws
or mistakes you want to remove.
o Don’t re-shoot and re-shoot in an effort to attain perfection. The more natural
you are, the more people will trust you – they’ll identify with you. Being too slick
can come off as artificial and insincere. As with your short report or PLR – do it in
one go, from beginning to end.
o Do make at least 3 versions, if that’s possible. Sometimes the first one will work
best – and sometimes the second or third really benefits from the “run through”.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
And knowing you’re going to do another couple of shoots can really help you
relax the first time.
Adding in sound clips is easy – in Windows Moviemaker, you just drag and drop. Once
inserted, you can slide the clip to the exact frame (visual point) you want your sound clip
to start. You can apply effects such as `fade in’, or `fade out’. You can use only part of the
sound clip. There’s a great deal of leeway this “basic” program allows you!
Once you’re done, you can embed your video (or just the first one in a series) on your
blog, for people to watch for free… or you can upload your videos to your shopping cart
or site in a .ZIP file, and sell them as products.
You can make them part of a membership site, and give people access once a month, or
once a week – whatever time frame you’ve determined works best for you.
And people have gotten to know the real “you”.
But let’s not stop there, with our product creation suggestions. There’s another
technique not many people take advantage of, at all…
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
List And Research Sales
Selling lists or research packed full of targeted information can really add a
unique twist to your business.
It always surprises me that more people don’t take advantage of this handy method of
product sales. The fact is, your average new marketer’s idea of “research” is looking
something up on Wikipedia (which a professional offline journalist wouldn’t be caught
dead doing!) If you’ve ever done this, it probably hasn’t taken you long to realize you
need more depth – and better-validated sources.
You can give people a taste of your list value by offering a small “freebie” list, such as “21
Powerful WordPress Plug Ins”.
Larger lists packed with meaty research or valuable resource links are actually not that
hard to generate – and you can offer your subscribers the true gift busy internet
marketers are always looking for – a way to save time.
If you are able to generate hot links or provide truly unique research, don’t be afraid to
offer these for sale also – or provide them as an incentive to join your paid membership
site.
Don’t forget to test the waters in places like the “Special Offers” section of your favorite
forum. Just make sure you target that list or research package to your niche market – or
to another market that can really use them.
When is a list long enough to sell?
When you’ve got over 100 links, that’s when to seriously consider compiling it into a
saleable form and adding it to your marketing products arsenal.
You can add exclusivity to your list by offering it only to the first 200 people (or whatever
number seems to work best for you.)
Don’t just confine your list and research products to your own subscribers: Market
research is a hot commodity for all aspects of business, garnering staggering price tags.
Just take a look at PCA Bookstore, to see for yourself! Research packages go for more than
$500!
What type of research packages can you offer? Here are just a few suggestions:
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
o Survey statistics (if you have a larger list, you can generate these yourself by
getting your members to participate in original surveys)
o Products with particularly lucrative affiliate programs (and the best payouts)
o Lists of forums for specific, targeted traffic
o “In depth” niche research (authors, products, “must-have” links, statistics
o “What’s Hot” (for specific niches)
o Top blogs in specific niches
o Top articles in specific niches (this is a great one to offer as a freebie lead capture
offer)
o Focused article directories
o Places to get valuable “freebies” (blog themes, scripts, avatars)
o Places to find free graphics and graphics software
o Lists of specialty providers (E.G.: drop shippers and wholesalers)
Finally, create a survey of your own – survey your list (and fellow forum members) to
find out what research they need.
Then go out and provide it!
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
The Hidden Advantages Of Resale
Rights
Everyone “sort of” knows what Resale rights are. And many people
ignore them, thinking them to be just another form of PLR.
If this describes you, you’re missing one of the easiest ways to create a unique product.
What exactly are “Resale rights?” Let’s get that out of the way, once and for all…
There are two kinds of Resale rights internet marketers commonly deal with: Resale
rights (RR) and Master Resale rights (MRR).
With Resale rights, you have the right to sell the item you’ve purchased to others – and
keep 100% of the profits.
With Master Resale rights, the above is also true: However, in addition, you in turn sell
the Resale rights to the product, along with the product.
Which brings us to another important point, when considering dealing in Resale rights of
any kinds: Always check the exact permissions granted in the license – not all rights are
given!
The major difference between a Resale rights product and PLR: You don’t receive access
to the original source files, with Resale rights. In fact, you’re absolutely not supposed to
customize the book in any way whatsoever.
The key to success in offering Resale rights – always offer only the best.
It is better to offer 10 top quality eBooks than have a list of 3,000 for sale.
In fact, if you do have a list of 3,000 for sale (especially if they’re for very low prices) you
run the risk of branding yourself as a “bargain basement clearing house”. You’ll be the
dollar store of book sellers.
The best tactic to take is to build a portfolio of top quality book offerings.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Your Own Product With Master Resale Rights
And then again, you can always offer your own eBook with Resale rights, or Master
Resale rights.
There are two valid reasons for considering this:
o Boosting your profit at launch time (offer Resale rights for a limited time only; or
for the first 50 customers)
o Promoting your site or services – the links in your Resale eBooks can bring in
many new subscribers.
“How Do I Find Quality Ebooks To Resell?”
One big clue: the best ones are usually only sold in limited quantities.
Good old WarriorForum Special Offers is a great (and often unique) source.
But basically… any site that doesn’t flood you with a list of 5,000 Resale rights books, all
at rock bottom prices, is liable to offer better quality.
Your best bet? Buy one, and check it out.
2 Things To Do If You Find A Great MRR Offer – But The Offer Is Closed
If you find a great MRR offer, but it’s sold out or closed, enter the book title, in quotes,
into Google’s search box.
You may find someone else who has purchased Master Resale rights who is still selling it.
Also, make sure you sign up to the list of the original creator – you’ll be first in line for his
or her next highly relevant product!
“Must Do” Tips
Let me stress again – don’t purchase any book with Master or Resale rights until you
have thoroughly checked out the licensing restrictions. For instance, you may be
planning to sell the book on eBay – only to discover that the author specifically prohibits
this in the license!
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
And do respect the suggested retail price of the eBook: slashing the value may not only
brand your product as “bargain basement” – or make people think it’s outdated – but
you will bring down the value of the book for the people you sell it to. Not a good idea, if
you want them to treat the book as a valuable “must-have” acquisition!
“Can I Really Sell Resale Rights Books On eBay?”
If the license allows, this is yet another avenue of marketing for you. However, do
remember to check eBay’s own rules and regulations for any changes in their guidelines.
As of this writing, my information states you can sell Resale rights books as long as you
have converted them to a physical product – that is, they are on a CD or DVD to send
your customers. Use a service like Kunaki to fulfil this.
To Brand Or Not To Brand
One important point to consider, when purchase a Resale rights book to resell yourself,
or giving your own product some form of Resale rights: Whether or not to allow people
to brand the book with their own site logo and name.
There are pros and cons to both sides…
Not allowing purchasers to rebrand your product is good, inasmuch as it stops them
from editing it and possibly destroying the value (and your links.)
On the other hand, its potential appeal and value is lessened because it is exactly the
same book as everyone else receives – the promotional value for those hoping to sell it
is decidedly lower.
If you purchase Resale rights packages that come with a landing page or sales letter, do
carefully check the licensing to see what edits you are (or aren’t) allowed to make to the
sales pages too.
Hidden Gems
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Occasionally you’ll come across a “hidden gem”: A truly excellent book ripe with quality
material… that no one has yet discovered, because it’s suffering badly from poorly
written sales pages.
If you find one of these, snap it up! You can transform its sales potential with the
addition of appropriate sales page graphics, professional copy and better promotion!
(But again – check the license. If the license states that you can’t alter the sales page,
you’re out of luck.)
Of course, you can always just ask the product creator if you can design a new minisite,
or rewrite the sales letter. If you position it positively (I.E.: don’t say “your sales copy
stinks, bozo”) you may find the creator very open to some assistance in boosting its
value.
If you’re able to play with the sales pages and minisite, it will also strongly brand you
with that product as its “authority” site. People will prefer downloading it from you,
rather than from all the people slogging along with the poor quality, hardly readable
sales sites.
Also ask if you can customize or add sales page graphics.
That’s all you need to know, in order to decide whether or not you’d like to explore
Resale rights products further.
But we’re not quite finished with product ideas yet...
Your Secret Weapon: Repurposing
You wrote that eBook two years ago – but you were new to marketing,
and you didn’t have a list. You made 14 sales, which totally thrilled you at
the time: but now a good chunk of the information is outdated already, and it’s deader
than yesterday’s tuna sandwich. Besides which, you can see now that a few sections
were redundant, and it needed a better edit.
So what do you do – consign it to oblivion? Chalk it up as a “learning experience?”
Absolutely not! The truth is, it’s probably a goldmine you can delve in and “re-purpose”.
You’ve already done the hard work. Why create something from scratch – when you’ve
got all the bricks and mortar sitting right there in your wheelbarrow?
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
(Yes, you also can repurpose PLR – but not RR – products. Why can’t you do it with RR
products? Well, you’re going to have to rename the item you’re “repurposing”, as well
as give the content a “makeover”. That’s not allowed, with Resale rights.)
The traditional way to repurpose involves:
o Turning your old eBooks into blog posts
o Turning your old blog posts into new articles or a new eBook
o Turning your old ebooks and blog posts into videos or audio files
- You can see already, the possibilities are huge, once you get yourself into the
“repurposing” mind frame.
Let’s take an example: You created an eBook on “How To Set Up Your Wordpress Blog”.
Unfortunately, you didn’t realize that 3 other “How To Set Up Your Wordpress Blog”
books were being released at the same time – by marketers far more experienced than
you, some of whom paid for top quality professional writers.
Your poor little eBook, written with such sincerity and in such a helpful spirit, didn’t
stand a chance.
But recently, after attending a local offline networking business breakfast, you realized
how many local businesses in your area were still struggling with huge web design fees,
abysmal web design service – and on top of that, they don’t have a clue about how SEO
or web presence really works!
So you repurpose your straightforward little guide into a new eBook called: “Never Pay A
Web Designer Again: Small Business Web Solutions You Can Really Do Yourself!”
You market it to small business owners, and small business networking organizations.
You create a minisite for it, and provide a free sample chapter or two – just enough to
light up your prospective customers. In your sample chapters, you show them how easy
it is to create a great business website without knowing a word of HTML – after
introducing them to the dazzling concept of Search Engine Optimization – and how not
to spend any time on it at all (by allowing their new Wordpress blogs to do all the SEO
work for them.)
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
You show them how many middle men they can cut out, such as their:
o SEO Consultant
o Marketing Consultant
o Web Designer
o Graphics Designer
And since you wrote the guide for absolute newbies, the sample chapters look pretty
appealing to business people who haven’t a clue how to do more than buy their office
supplies on line!
Since offline business people often set greater store by
physical products than do internet marketers (it’s all about
“perceived value”), consider getting an order-fulfilment
company like CreateSpace.com, Kunaki or Lulu.com to create a set
of DVDs you can physically mail them. (Another reason
business people like DVDs: they can just hand off the set to a
staff member, and have that staff member become the
Resident Expert on Wordpress; or whatever system you’re
selling.)
You can repurpose any product, if you can find a new market
for it. In fact, you can create different versions of the same
product for specific and highly different niche groups!
A simple example (let’s take your basic Wordpress guide)…
o “How To Create The Perfect Law Firm Blog”
o “How To Create The Perfect Bookkeepers Blog”
HINT: If you add a few
videos and a printable
“Quick Reference Card”
(one-page .PDF of terms
for newbies) on the
side, you can offer them
an exclusive, limitedtime
upgrade to buy
your “ complete
system” – systems sell
better than single
products, if you appeal
to the right buyer.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
o “How To Create The Perfect Virtual Assistant’s Blog”
And so on…
(The other great thing about a series like that: it really solidifies your image as the allround
expert on the subject you’re selling!)
But what is the one common denominator all these products will need?
You guessed it: A strong sales letter...
Sales Letters That Sell
There’s a saying among older marketers that a product is only as good as its
sales letter. This is absolutely, 100% true.
You can sell a crappy product with a great sales letter… but you can’t sell a great
product with a crappy sales letter!
However, there’s a quick and easy way to stop yourself from turning your sales letter
creation into the next immovable 60-ft. wall between you and success. (You know: that
“wall” that stops all progress between you and your launch?)
There are plenty of basic copywriting courses, articles and eBooks on the net to help you
write your sales letter yourself. (Look for ones that provide you with templates.) In fact,
you might want to start out with the free copywriting eBook offered here at PLRCanada.
But if doing it yourself doesn’t turn your crank, consider hiring a copywriter.
If you think of the copywriter as the engine who is going to push your product over the
finish line – and into the biggest winner’s circle – you can see why this may be the best
bit of outsourcing you could choose to invest in!
How good a job your copywriter will do depends, however, on whether you pick a
quality copywriter. There are many copywriters out there – good, bad and better. And
not all of them charge the same price.
You can hire a copywriter for peanuts – or you can hire one whose sales letter prices are
up in the thousands. These latter copywriters are the sort who jump through hoops to
help their clients’ pages convert. They will set aside weeks on your project, tweaking and
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
testing right alongside you – but be warned: they’ll expect top professionalism from you
too. That means sophisticated tracking systems, professional design teams, etc. etc.
Let’s face it: That’s not where you’re at right now, if you’re reading this book. Hiring one
of the $10,000 a letter guys is about as far from reality as stepping on the moon for you.
But if you hire a “cheap” copywriter, are you throwing your money away?
Not always. Very often, a copywriter charges humbler rates because he or she is just
starting out in the business, and is not well known yet. (As one well-heeled copywriter
recently commented to me: “The difference between a $10,000 copywriter and a $10
one – nobody knows the ten-buck guy.”)
But there is also a great deal of truth in the old saying: “You get what you pay for.”
One way find a good copywriter: Decide on your budget (and I’ll warn you, if you expect
a quality sales letter for anything close to $10, you might as well sit down and start
writing yourself.) Then head on over to Guru.com and Elance to post your job.
Give your deadline, and as many details (without revealing sensitive product
information) as you can. (Browse through other copywriting job proposals to get a feel
for how the most effective ones are worded.)
Then sit back and wait for the offers.
I guarantee that the first rush will be from people who can barely spell. You’ll get letters
like: “Dear Mr. Belinda Smith, I am wanting to write your letter of sale I am experiencing
copywriter…”
These ones hit the garbage can, metaphorically speaking, before you’ve even finished
reading. (The spelling and grammar were the big, flashing giveaways, right?)
But on the other hand, you may find an absolute treasure! It might be a completely new
copywriter, or one from a country where $40 or $90 or even $10 goes a lot further than
in North America, who can afford to work for a reduced rate.
But be warned – their rates won’t stay there for long! Snap them up while you still can.
As soon as they get a couple of delighted testimonials under their belts, those rates will
(deservedly) climb to a level where they can make a well-deserved living.
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
Meanwhile, make the most of your bargain – and promote your new product so you can
afford their new rates, next time you need them!
When To Post Your Job On Elance
You might want to start posting your job before you’ve even finished your product. You
want to have enough time to pick and choose.
(Whatever you do, never, ever post a sales letter job at the last minute and expect
people to work through weekends, evenings, holidays or just even within a short time
frame. You’ll pay extra for any “rush jobs”!)
If you’re reading this, and you’re realizing that hiring copywriter just won’t work for you
(or you haven’t been able to find one within your budget), you may have no choice but
to do it yourself, after all.
In that case, find 2 or 3 sales letters that really make you want to buy (go back and look
at ones from the last few products you purchased!) and use them as your “skeleton”.
Don’t steal content, word for word; instead, look at what each section does.
Go through your product and write bullet points based on the benefit – not the features
– of each point. Write your bullet points first.
(What’s the difference between a benefit and a feature?
o “Increase your income by 25%” is a benefit
o “State of the art, streamlined, Platinum casing” is a feature.)
Use well-researched long-tailed keywords in your headline (and in your letter!) You can
create your all important headline – the “hook” that grabs people’s attention and makes
them start to read your letter – either before you’ve written the sales body, or after.
Again, once you start writing the actual sales copy, write straight through to the end.
Go through the copy again, correcting mistakes, and tweaking only the essentials.
Add in subheads, and emphasize particularly important bits of text. (You want to add
emphasis to points that will catch your reader’s eye as he or she skims down the page
– most people will never actually read all your scintillating copy. They’ll hit just enough
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
data to convince themselves – often all it takes is one bullet point. (“It will set up any
autoresponder for me, guaranteed? Wow, with my little-known autoresponder service
that I can’t find any tutorials for, I really need that!”)
And include a P.S., reminding them of your product’s biggest benefit.
What About The Design?
Lots of white space, sub heads and bullet points – just like blog posts. Yes, graphics can
help – but don’t use graphics that distract. (Your graphic designer is not a good source
of feedback on this: Artists always think graphics are the be-all and end-all – but that’s
absolutely not true for sales letters!)
You can choose to use a header graphic for your sales letter, or not – there are lots of
free, professionally designed header backgrounds you can download from places like
PLRCanada. (Just open the .PSD File in Adobe Photoshop, and insert your own
information.)
Better yet, invest in professional custom design, if you can possibly afford it.
But a better idea is to reserve your graphic design budget for your actual book eCover.
(And don’t forget, you can always reduce your graphic to a small size as well, to insert
into your sales letter!)
There are lots of free minisite templates on the web; and if not, hire a minisite designer
– there are many inexpensive ones on the web, so you don’t even need to post a job on
Elance, most of the time! (Why are they so inexpensive? They’re most likely
customizing an existing template.)
You will have chosen your product name back when you did your initial keyword
research. It may change a little as you get started writing, or ask for feedback from a
membership site or mastermind group. Once you’ve got the name solidified, however, it
is time to commission your design.
Hopefully, you can do this well ahead of your product launch deadline.
And at this point, you’re just about ready to go!
Andy Michaels Presents …….. “On The Double” Product Creation
At Ease Soldier – Dismissed!
And there you go! You’ve got every thing done. There’s nothing left now except your
product launch. So go on…
o Create a “buzz”
o Tweet about its upcoming Big Day
o Post about it on your blog
o Chat about it on Facebook or MSN
o See who you can get to promote it on their list
And remember – all of the product creation methods I’ve suggested get much easier,
once you’ve tried them out. You’ll soon be able to launch consistently high quality
products like the pros.
All it takes is a little practice. And these few simple tips! ☺
Warmly wishing you every success!
Quick….March…1…2….1…2
h t t p : / /www. a n d y -mi c h a e l s . c om