I recently launched my 1st digital product.

It received 20 × 5 star reviews.

This has boosted my writing in so many ways.

I wanted to share these with you. As it’ll help you understand what you could gain from creating a product.

I produced an email course dissecting my best 10 tweets. But you can create templates, videos, ebooks. This used to be difficult. But all the barriers have gone now.

It costs nothing. You don’t need permission.

Anyone with good content can do it.

The money won’t be huge at first.

But the benefits are.

7 gains from my first digital product

1. Credibility with bigger creators

Writers who have made a product are seen differently.

Creating online is like playing a video game. You upgrade to the next level by completing key tasks. You enter the next level when you have a product.

To progress you need the support of creators who are ahead. Building a digital product is an effective way to get on their radar.

I received positive comments from writers with a large following.

2. Stronger connections with your peers

I was startled by how intrigued others were by my product launch.

Loads of people shared it and sent me messages of support. This has strengthened my relationships. Humans are made for relationships and creating online is a tough road. Finding sources of support is invaluable if you want to last.

I’ve got more people to turn to for advice. And new supporters who will promote my future products.

3. Future asset to sell or giveaway

It took a lot of effort to write my email course.

But now it’s done it gives me possibilities.

• I can leave it on Gumroad for sale

• I can add it as a bonus to future products

• I can send it free to coaching clients as a special gift

• I can offer it as an incentive to sign up for my newsletter

Create once reuse many times.

4. Self-belief boost

I kept putting off creating this product.

I lacked confidence and was unsure I could do it. But now my self-belief is sky-high. Action always has this effect.

I’ve written 104 articles on Medium in 6 months. That’s 80,000 words. My brain is now exploding with ideas about how to use this content. Ebooks, courses and notion frameworks are all possible.

Self-belief has opened the idea floodgates.

Every step of progress fuels your confidence.

5. Valuable new skills

I learned so much from this process:

• The technical aspects of email courses

• What other products people want

• How to build a landing page

• How to use copywriting

The truth is I made loads of mistakes too. But it’s better to make these on a small launch rather than waiting until you are big!

You learn by doing. You can read all the advice. But you only really learn by doing.

I now have other creators asking me for advice on how to create a course and launch a product. I think I am a beginner (& I am). But I am one step ahead of someone who hasn’t built a product.

If the only outcome is raising your skill levels — it’s worth doing.

6. Newsletter subscribers

Building a strong email list is central if you want to make money.

By signing up for this product people were added to my email list. Hey presto. 40 new subs & 50% growth. More importantly they’ve all stayed.

This is a huge gain.

7. X growth

I launched my product on X to generate traffic and gain followers. It was a very popular post.

I gained an extra 50 followers, a 10% gain.

You don’t need to wait to create your first digital product.

You can start now.

If you’ve made any progress online you have knowledge that can be turned into a digital product. If this is your 2nd day writing online. You can help people on day 1.

A digital product will give you so much.

Give it a go and good things will happen.

Feel free to reply with any digital product questions. I’m no expert but will help where I can.

See you next week,

Derek

What I’ve been reading…10X by Dan Sullivan

because I want to learn how to do more with less!