This is a question you may have come across a couple of times on the internet.
You may have heard it been used sparingly on social media or while reading a blog post off a website.
Information products are not physical products.
It's been around us since the very beginning of time but the internet seem to have taken information products to a whole new level.
People often get confused by the term "Information Product" but not to worry, in this article, i'll tell you all you need to know about information products and if you should consider creating one.
What is an information product?
There are several definitions of what an information product is. A quick Google search can yield millions of results but let's make it simple enough.
At heart, an information product is simply a piece of valuable information packaged together to form a product that offers useful information to a consumer.
They mostly take the form of videos, ebooks, audiobooks or podcasts and can be accessed easily over the internet but that is not all, they can also be accessed via physical channels like CDs and print formats such as books and magazines.
While physical channels are also information products, in this article, i will focus solely on products that can be distributed through the internet.
What makes a good information product?
Let us take a moment and look at this question thoroughly.
Why? Because this may be the most important piece of advice you should take away from this article.
Like i previously mentioned, information products provide valuable information packaged together to form a product.
But good information products helps people solve everyday problems and become better in their respective lives.
You will be amazed how many people are looking for information products to help them loose weight, write a wining resume, find a spouse and even learn to cook their favourite meals.
Information product solve problems.
If you've ever sat down over coffee with a friend and had a lengthy conversation about choosing the right career path or finding the right spouse, that is a valuable, problem-solving information right there.
Here are a few guideline to making a good information product;
- Information products MUST solve problems
- Offer immense value to the consumer
- Provides practical steps that yield great results
- Well researched and simplified for easy consumption
- Follows the KISS principle (Keep it simply simple)
- Easily accessible to the consumer (videos, ebooks, podcast or audiobooks)
- Well organised
One general misconception on disseminating information that I've battled with over the year was thinking that if it wasn't hard and complex to solve, it wasn't any good.
How wrong I was.
The average person on the street isn't looking to solve the worlds problems. They're mostly concerned about how to solve their personal problems.
And that is why information products that solve problems do so well.
How do I get information product ideas?
If you've decided that information products is right for you and you'd like to start a career creating and selling information products, here is a quick guide on how to find the right idea.
Ideas are all around you but choosing the right idea involves looking inwards and focusing on what you are most passionate about.
It is easier to teach people about things you're passionate or knowledgeable about than spending countless hours doing research on topics you have little or no idea about.
Looking inward will help you find the right idea quickly and easily.
But it doesn't end there.
You also need to understand the language of your potential consumer while searching for your information. This can be how they search on Google or ask family and friends on a dinner table for a solution.
This will help you understand the exact problem your consumer is trying to solve and provide you with the right ideas.
A simple case study
I recently visited my hair stylist to get my hair done and we had a long conversation on how she could spice up her Instagram profile to attract more customers.
She was worried about the low engagements she was getting on Instagram and wanted to improve on it so we both went through her Instagram page together and here is what I discovered.
She had a nice Instagram page, beautifully laid out with professional pictures of various hairstyles in different colours and length.
It was beautiful but it lacked something special.
While a lot consumers engaged with her post because of how beautiful the hair looks, people had real problems like;
- How do I make this hairstyle I love so much last a little longer?
- How to I keep my hair looking like new?
- How do I prevent dandruff while wearing wigs or hair extensions?
- What hair products are good for weaves?
These are real problems that women face on a daily basis.
And while most hairstylist like my friend Deola thinks that every woman knows how to care for her hair and bother not to talk about it, I made it clear to her that most people don't and that is great information product she can use to attract the right customers through social media.
It was an easy advice with profound results.
Shortly after our conversation, she started to focus on providing valuable tips on instagram to help women properly take care of their hair.
This was easy for her to implement as part of her social media marketing strategy cos she is very passionate and knowledgeable about women hair and haircare products.
So what are the simple steps you can implement today to find the right information product idea for your niche.
- Start from within by focusing on areas you are passionate and knowledgeable about.
- Do a quick research on Google to understand the language of your ideal consumer.
- Run your ideas through family and friends to understand if your information will provide a solution to your consumer.
How do you package your information product?
Having decided on what information product you'd like to sell to your consumer, the next step is to decide how best to package your information.
If you have been following along, you should be familiar with the available channels of packaging your information products.
These are videos, ebooks, audiobooks and podcast.
Packaging your information in any of the formats mentioned above depends on what topic your information product covers.
They all have their pros and cons so let us look at a few.
Videos
Pros:
- Generally more visually engaging and interactive for the consumer
- Easy to understand and follow
- Large audience size
Cons:
- High cost of production and equipments
- Large file size may limit sharing across social media
- High bandwidth consumption
Ebooks
Pros:
- Low cost of production and bandwidth
- Easy to share via email and social media platforms
- Best for information products that provides practical steps to solve problems
Cons:
- Not as engaging as videos
- Involves quite a lot of reading which most consumers may frown at
Audiobooks and Podcasts
Pros:
- Low cost of production when compared to videos
- Best for narrative information products
- Minimal file size and bandwidth cost (can also get excessively large)
- Easy to share via social media
Cons:
- Lacks any visual guidance or reference
- Not as engaging as videos
When deciding which format is best for your information product, always consider your consumer challenges in accessing your product.
Choosing the wrong format can slow down the distribution of your information product which can also hurt sales if it is a paid information product.
Is creating information products right for you?
This brings us to the concluding part of this article. Most people i've met over the years are either confused about information products or not sure of how they can earn a living selling information products.
If this is you then you're not alone.
We all live in a world where information is king. The more you know, the higher your chances of survival.
So most people spend quite a lot time searching for new information both online and offline, from friends, family, colleagues and spiritual leaders.
I believe the right question to ask yourself is this;
Do I have an information that will be of immense value to other people?
If your answer is "YES", then creating information products is right for you. Whether you choose to monetize it or not is entirely up to you.
Take the bold step today and start putting down your ideas.
It take practice and consistency to get it right.
If you choose to monetize your information products, then KoboCourse is a great online platform to host and sell your information products.
The best part is that KoboCourse is free to use without any monetary commitment so give it a shot today.
So there you have it.
Everything you need to know about information products and how to find the right ideas.
In a future post, I will be talking about how to put you information products together and prepare it for sales.
If you found this post helpful, please share with your family and friends on social media and leave a comment below.
