My older lady friends! Be careful! If someone tells you they can show you how to make money and be your own boss with online product sales, be wary.
I mean, yeah. You can do it, but if you're headed to an online seminar to get you started on a life of financial independence, be careful.
I recently sat in on a seminar that advertised advice on how to sell a digital product. It was targeted for women over 50. As I looked at the faces in the Zoom meeting, I saw hope and exhaustion. It sounds glorious to think I can sell a digital product of my own making from the comfort of home; never to walk into a place of oppressive work again. Newbies, beware. No matter what anybody tells you, there's a LOT to selling anything online. For starters, the whole world is setting up shop, and without the skills and experience to get ahead of the worldwide rest, I'd say anyone telling you that you can sell online, if you just work your butt off for a year, is probably about to hang you over the cliff and suggest you pay THEM to pull you back to safety.
This seminar that I attended had some great nuggets, but early on my warning bell went off. Firstly, the presenter discouraged affiliate marketing (true, you gotta sell a lot through our special link to get any money) and drop shipping. She used the best reason anyone who's non-confrontational needs to hear. Users and customers will blame it on YOU when the product they purchase doesn't meet expectations. With that, the presenter said, “sell your own digital product.”
What?
She went on to use examples like:
- A preloaded spreadsheet with the formulas to manage your budget
- A downloadable list of what to pack when traveling overseas
- Anything that anyone is an expert in is for sale to those who need that advice
Firstly, I suspect the spreadsheet idea is a thing of the past; if not a foreign concept to many. Those rows and columns of cells are intimidating to much of the audience most 50+ year old women would have access to from the beginning.
Secondly, why would anyone pay to download what every travel blogger is offering for free… along with affiliate Amazon links to the neat little packing pods and travel panties they recommend?
However, there are are some creations that could offer income after 50. Digital books come to mind. Digital audio files could work for some. But honestly, don't expect to get rich without putting in some serious marketing work. And no matter what anyone tells you, it takes money to make money.
The presenter cautioned against paid advertising unless you're an expert. I'm no expert, but I'll be honest. I get most of my traffic from paid advertising. She suggested the “magazine” model where one would advertise in the periphery of products and subjects related to the downloadable item for sale. I kind of like this concept, but that's sort of the same thing as a paid advertising, isn't it? (Marketing pros, please weigh in on this blog!)
The best takeaway from this seminar is the holy truth. It takes a LOT of work and time to sell anything successfully online. I'd like to add that it starts with building an audience who believes in your product or offering. That alone can take years. Unless of course, you buy into what the presenter was selling… a turnkey “one page” that includes a sales proposition, features and benefits, a promise, and a pay button. Aaaaand, you can go a little further and and pay more for mentoring.
I just can't caution enough that this is not for everyone who wants to work from home. I encourage everyone to try everything they're curious about, but do not believe the hype. Even when that hype is laced with “the hard truths.” Usually, the hard truths are offered to boost the credibility of the presenter.
Here's my advice. Reach deep and honestly into your soul and ask yourself if you really have the ability to sell online products. Can you do the whole thing on your own? Be the creator, the webmaster, the marketer, the copywriter, the social media person, the customer service person, and the accountant? Then ask the honest question that goes like this, “Do you really have the motivation for it?” And if it all sounds like a foreign concept that requires a massive learning curve, can you deal with the extreme frustration of learning what it takes to do it?
I'm tired, too. I don't want to work for other people. I haven't had the kinds of experiences that build trust and faith in leaders in the workplace. But if I decide I have to do it, I will go back in before I buy some too good to be true hype that can potentially drain my resources before it ever makes a dime.
Please be careful, y'all.