As an introvert with an interest in making an income online, I have always gravitated towards methods that didn’t require much interaction on my end.
The first method that caught my attention was affiliate marketing. It seemed to be the ideal introvert online business. No product to create, no shipping or processing payments, and zero customer service.
Then I fell into the world of print-on-demand t-shirts. I designed my own shirts and created a Shopify store. I even managed to run some paid ads and made some sales.
However, both of those methods were a drain on my energy. I simply got burnt out.
No other online business attracted me so I had to ask myself what type of business I wanted.
What would work for me as an introvert?
Why I Sell Digital Information Products
Minimal interaction and automation. Those were two of the main things I wanted out of my online business. My other requirements included:
- Must be a digital product
- Ability to build an email list
- No coaching involved
- Can be faceless (if I want it to be)
I decided to create a digital information product in the form of a PDF file. I didn’t want to create a video course (not right away.)
A PDF was the answer. People have been selling information as eBooks forever. This is not a new business model.
But it was the solution I was looking for. A product that is easy to create and easy to deliver.
How I Create My Info Product PDFs
I start off with a niche. Who is my audience? What do I want to help them with?
It can be any topic and no, you do not need to be an expert in it. You just have to know something that can help your audience with whatever issue they are needing help with.
For example, maybe you have learned an easier way to meal prep for the week. Or maybe you’ve managed to pay off your credit card debt.
We all have some information that we can share to help others and you can type up that information and save it as a PDF file.
EBook Creation
I type up my info products in Google Docs and export as a PDF. It’s free to use and works just fine.
Then I create an eBook cover using Canva. Canva has a ton of pre-made book cover templates that you can customize.
You can use your book cover for marketing purposes.
It is really that simple and so far, it hasn’t cost anything to create your PDF.
Choosing a Sales Platform
You’ll need someplace to sell your PDF so you’ll require a sales platform.
You can check out my post titled Payhip vs Lemon Squeezy for choosing between two popular sales platforms.
If you go with either, you won’t have any monthly fees to sell your PDF. They both take a small percentage of each sale that you make.
So, you’ve spent zero dollars to create and sell your digital information product.
It truly is one of the lowest cost online businesses that you can start.
The Introvert Dream Business?
Selling PDF files is an introvert dream business for myself. Compared to other types of online businesses, it is the least draining for me.
For one thing, it is a solo-preneur business but unlike other types of online businesses, you only have to create your product once.
When I did print-on-demand t-shirts, I had to create new designs weekly to keep my inventory fresh.
Another benefit is that you are in control because you own the product you’ve created.
When I promoted other people’s products as an affiliate, I was at the mercy of the product owner.
I’ve experienced product owners that changed their product and affiliate program multiple times within the span of a year.
I would constantly have to change my marketing and it became so much of a hassle, I stopped promoting their product.
Some affiliate programs were closed and then there is the issue of commission payments. I’d have to wait 30 – 45 days to get paid.
It’s not like that when you own your product. You get your payments faster.
Here is a flowchart of how a simple PDF business works:
It begins by selling your PDF. Each time you make a sale, you new customers are added to your email list.
You then have their permission to continue communicating with them via email messages.
I recommend sending informational emails with a mix of marketing emails. Or you can recommend products in every email.
Recommend higher-ticket offers. These could be another product that you’ve created that aligns with the info in your PDF.
It could be a video course or a more in-depth guide that you sell for a higher price.
If you don’t want to create a higher-priced product, you can promote someone else’s product as an affiliate.
You can sell as many products as you want through your email messages.
Always provide value first, then recommend your other offers. Otherwise, some of your customers will get burnt out and unsubscribe from your email list.
How to Make Your First Sales
Making your first PDF sale is a matter of traffic. You can either pay for traffic with paid ads or you can use organic traffic.
Organic traffic doesn’t cost anything but your time. The advantage is that organic traffic is evergreen and can bring your traffic for years (sometimes.)
For example, this blog post you’re reading is a form of organic traffic. So are social medis posts, Pinterest pins, YouTube videos, and any other platform where you can freely post content.
Whatever traffic method you use, send that traffic to your landing page which can be your sales page for your PDF.
For this to work, you’ll need a marketing funnel. Marketing funnel (or sales funnel) software enables you to add your customers to an email databse.
From there, you can send marketing emails by scheduling them to send ahead of time (referred to as a autoresponder) or by sending your messages manually.
What’s Next?
Are you ready to create your own digital information product? With the right guidance, you can have your first product created and selling in one weekend or within a week if your time is limited.
You can get more in-depth information below: