You read the last lesson, right?
If not, you should. Because we covered why travel bloggers should create their own products (if you want to make money, build relationships with your readers and afford your next plane ticket).
So if you haven’t already, read the last lesson before tackling this one.
Ready?
In this lesson, we’ll look at how to create your own travel product. It’s super easy to do and shouldn’t take more than a week.
What format should you use?
eBooks? Audio? Video?
Let’s look at the pros and cons of each:
eBooks
eBooks are a low-tech, easy option to create products. They’re great for free giveaways (ask other bloggers to share with their subscribers) and lower-priced products. eBooks are easy to update, which makes them ideal for products which require frequent changes.
The problem with eBooks are two-fold: they take a lot of time (unless you’ve got this) to produce and they’re consumed quickly.
eBooks take time to produce… and are consumed quickly.
This can be a bad thing - someone can open your eBook, skim it and never look at it again. This is why eBooks work well with lower priced products.
Tools for eBooks:
e-Junkie: Delivers your eBook automatically for as little as $5/month. I’ve used them for years.
Paypal: I hate Paypal. I really do. But they make it very easy to accept payments, and integrates with e-Junkie.
Audio
Audio works really well for interviews. Call someone via Skype, record it and BAM! Instant product.
Audio interviews have three huge advantages.
- They are stupidly simple to create.
- They have a higher perceived value than eBooks (which means you can charge more).
- They help build relationships
It’s the third point which is most powerful.
Interviews build relationships with influential people in your market. It lets you approach top bloggers with something valuable. Instead of “Hey, could you link to my site?” you can say “I’d love to interview you on my blog, which will introduce you to my audience.”
Ask yourself: which is more likely to get their attention?
Interviews also build relationships with your readers. When readers hear your voice, it builds rapport. When readers hear you talking with top travel bloggers, it builds YOUR credibility by association.
The problem with audio is that it’s difficult to create standalone products. People listen to interviews while doing something else… so you’ve only got half their attention. Therefore, either give the audio away or lump with other mediums like eBooks or videos.
Tools for audio:
Pamela for Skype: Lets you easily record Skype interviews.
Camtasia: Really used for video and screen casts, but it works great for interviews, too.
Mobile Apps/Software
Mobile apps and software are difficult for most travel bloggers to create on their own. This, of course, makes them incredibly valuable. Imagine creating a plugin for travel blogs - people would pay good money for something which makes their life easier.
One idea is to partner with developers, where they create the software/app and you market it on your travel blog. This way it costs you nothing up front, and the developer gets a recurring income from sales. The trick is finding a developer you know, like and trust… and one who understands the power of partnerships.
Tools:
Hire developers: Coroflot, Crowdspring, eLance
Learn the process of app development: Smashing Magazine article
Video
I truly believe video makes for the best products. They’re relatively easy to make (once you have the tools/experience), work really well as tutorials and have a higher perceived value than audio or eBooks.
Video is also consumed slower. People can speed read your eBook (and forget about it) but they have to watch the entire video. This means you have their FULL attention, the information is more likely to stick and they’ll take ACTION on what you’re teaching them.
However, bad video can kill your product. So you’ve got to do it right.
Tools for video:
YouTube: Lets you host videos for free. Make sure you set your videos to private (especially if you’re charging for them!)
Wistia: A high-end video hosting company. Lets you easily create videos with customized features. Plans run from $29 - $99 a month (a great solution once you start making money with it).
What’s Next?
Up until now, you’ve received lessons in text format only. The next lesson will be in video format and explains how you can create eBooks, audio and video products.
Plus, I’m releasing an exclusive training series for Travel Blogging 101 subscribers (that’s you). I spent the last two weeks putting everything together and I’m sure it will help you make more money as a travel blogger.
More on that in the next lesson.
To your successful travel blog,
Adam Costa
Editor in Chief, Travel Blogger Academy
P.S. This is part of a 24 part course on travel blogging. If you haven’t already, sign up for it now.
About adamcosta
Videos do not work with me:
1.They take too much of my valuable time, I have to spent that hour or so, whether it is good or not. As a result I neither download, order, buy them or watch them online. Lost customer!
2. To learn and remember I have to see=read things, in my pace and as often as I want. If I have to watch s**t (like long indrotuctions) before I get to the point… I just do not do it.
The only exception are instructions, which I may watch. Other than that - you have your information written or I ask somebody else.
I started to dabble in Podcasts as a way to diversify my content. I thought it would be easy to create audio from my written word, but it’s actually a lot of work! I’ve also created a few short videos which were easy enough to create, and they’re getting traffic on youtube and diverting traffic to my website.
But I’m most comfortable with print. People still love something they can hold in their hands and read. I created a series of quick reference travel guides, and used the mailing list I captured to market my Travel Guide ebooks. For now the free guides are also available on my website, but I give an option to sign up to be notified of new ones. I’ve been contemplating hiding all the free content behind a squeeze page and not giving general access to it without an email sign up, to try and increase my mailing list.
You have your 24 part course out in the open - would be interested to learn why you have you chosen that approach rather than a squeeze page?
thanks, Jay