Writing ebooks for profit: can you make money?

I’ve received several interesting questions this week about making money with ebooks, so here are my responses. I hope they help you if you’re writing an ebook.

Q: How long should my ebook be?

A: As long as you need to cover your chosen topic. Here’s a big tip: an ebook is tightly focused. People want the answer to ONE question; you’re not covering everything you know (or can research) about a topic.

For example, on the digital downloads site ClickBank, an ebook on humming birds made $500,000 in one year. An Ebook On Birds Made $500,000?! The Bob Dunlap Interview | Mixergy – Online Business Tips from Successful Entrepreneurs reports:

“Go one niche deeper

Many of the people I interviewed on Mixergy have told you to find a niche–target bird-lovers, for example. Bob says go one niche deeper–target humminbird-lovers. ClickBank has found that getting more precisely will help you increase sales. So, instead of selling products that help your customers get fit, for example, show them how to get tighter abs.”

The humming birds ebook isn’t a one-off. A top-selling weight loss product has made millions online. So the profits are there, IF you target narrowly, and stop thinking of an ebook you’re selling as a print book.

People keep print books for years — for decades. They buy ebooks because they have a specific need.

I’ve seen ebooks advertised as “277 pages” — who cares? The page number is not a sales point. You’ll put off many more people than will buy.

So err on the side of brevity: target very narrowly.

Q: How do I sell my ebook?

A: You market it. There are endless ways you can market ebooks. If you’re a savvy marketer, you’ll start marketing before you write; as soon as you get an idea.

Q: I wrote an ebook about _______. I’ve tried advertising it at ____, and _____, and _____, but I haven’t made any sales.

(Several people asked similar “why isn’t it selling?” questions. I can’t give away the topics; it makes the products too easy to identify.)

A: You’ve chosen a topic on which people don’t buy info products.

As soon as you get an idea, check out whether other people are selling ebooks on this topic (this is good). Also check whether there are forums online for people interested in the area — if there’s no conversation online about that topic, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to sell an ebook on it.

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