[00:00:00] Rene: Hey friends. Today we're going to talk about sales platforms. Where to sell this digital product that you are creating. And how to find the best sales platform for you. I will give you questions to ask and things to look for in a sales platform. And I'll share several platforms at the end of the show and talk about the pros and cons of each. 

[00:00:22] Hey everyone. Welcome to Your First Digital Product, a show that helps maxed-out service providers create their first digital product so they can gain an additional income stream, grow their impact without increasing one-on-one work and experience more time freedom. On the show, I talk to business owners who have launched digital products and dig deep into how you can create, launch, and market your first digital product. I'm your host, Rene Morozowich. Let's go. 

[00:00:50] So the first thing that you should look at before you dive into any comparisons or looking at any new platforms, is to think about what you're already using. You may have existing software that you can use to sell your products. So you might not necessarily need to find something new and pay for it and learn it. 

[00:01:13] So things like your email marketing platform might offer a way to sell your products. If you're using Stripe or PayPal, sometimes there's some very easy integrations that you can use to sell and deliver a product. Maybe your website functionality. Your website already offers a way to sell products. So think about what you're already using, look around and see if there is something. 

[00:01:38] Do you like it? Are you comfortable with it? And will you continue to use it? So I always recommend looking at what you're already using instead of diving into something new and again, paying for it and taking the time to learn it. So that's the first thing that I have to say about sales platforms. Okay. 

[00:01:56] Now, if there is nothing there, or maybe you're [00:02:00] really not happy with your, let's say email marketing platform or something like that. And you really do want to look at a new sales platform. Here are a few things that you can look at to compare different platforms. So the first thing is features. You want to look at the types of products that you're able to sell with this platform. 

[00:02:20] So courses, eBooks, other types of files, workbooks, anything like that. Are you able to use this platform to sell the type of product that you want to sell? Also types of access. Are you able to offer the access that you want to? So that could be one time access, lifetime access, even free products. 

[00:02:43] So look at the specific software platform and determine if you are able to use it, to do what you want to do with it. Does it have the features you need? Also think about your future goals and growth. So will it support the things that you want to do now and will it support the things you want to do in the future? 

[00:03:02] So let's say you want to offer a low cost workbook now, but you do have the intention of creating a course later. Sometimes it is worth it to pick a platform that can do both instead of later on either having to move platforms or to find another platform just for your courses. So I would think about features. The next thing I would think about is compatibility. 

[00:03:28] It should integrate seamlessly and easily with other platforms you're already using. So your website, social media, your payment processors, your email marketing software. The platform that you choose to sell your products should integrate with those platforms. So, for example, after you sell your product, it is very common to want to add people to your email list. So, if it is difficult for you to add that person to your email list, I would maybe think about a different sales [00:04:00] platform. 

[00:04:00] You want to make it easy on yourself that all of your systems work together well. The next thing I would look at is ease of use. It should be easy for you on the back end to create the product and market the product, create coupons, whatever it is you want to do. And it should also be easy for the user on the front end. 

[00:04:20] So the sales process, the checkout process, the delivery process, it should be easy and intuitive. Any point of friction either for you or for the user, people are going to bail. You might have to experiment, and we're going to talk a little bit later about experimentation as well. 

[00:04:36] So it should be easy for you to create the product on the back end and it should be easy for your user and your potential customer to purchase the product on the front end. Now really quick. If you need help finding the right sales platform for you, I'm offering some free 30 minute strategy calls. We'll jump on a call and we will look at what you're already using. 

[00:04:57] Look at your goals and figure out what might be the best platform for you. You can go to yfdp.show/strategy and the link will also be in the show notes. Excellent. Okay. So the next thing I want to talk about is cost. Now, different platforms work different ways. Some platforms you pay all upfront. 

[00:05:17] So for example, ThriveCart you pay for it one time upfront. It's a big chunk of money, but then you don't have to pay again. Other platforms, maybe you pay monthly. And other platforms still, they take a percentage of your sales. So you are not paying anything upfront or monthly, but they take a little bit of every sale that you have. 

[00:05:38] So I would think about which model might work best for you. And also that total cost. So I talked very early on about the first failed mini course that I did, and I had software to sell the product and I had my email marketing platform already. So I had both of those in place. However, I didn't have anything to connect the two [00:06:00] and I ended up spending a ton of money to connect the two. So think about the total cost of doing everything that you want to do, not just the sales platform in a vacuum. Also how many sales do you have to have to break even on the cost of the sales platform. 

[00:06:18] If you are paying upfront or monthly, I would just kind of keep that in the back of your mind. 

[00:06:24] Also let's look at the future. Can you easily export, if you decide to change platforms, can you export your customers? Can you export your products? 

[00:06:35] If you're offering lifetime access to a product and you decide to change platforms, what kind of work do you need to do to be able to get those old customers in the new platform? So think about the future as well. Another thing to consider is support. Is it easy to find support? Is it easy to get support? 

[00:06:55] Do a lot of people know this platform? Also, is there a good documentation? There's nothing more frustrating than going into a software platform and trying to do something, not being able to figure it out. There's no documentation about it and support won't get back to you. So think about, and look at the support that you will get if you choose any certain platform. 

[00:07:17] Now let's talk about a couple different types of platforms that are out there. And this might just give you some ideas on where to look or really distinct to look at. So there are email marketing platforms like ConvertKit Commerce, MailerLite and Mailchimp all allow you to sell products right within your email marketing software. 

[00:07:37] So if you've never sold a product before. And you're using one of those email marketing platforms. I think that is great to just take a look at, just kind of dive into and see if that's something that would work for you. There are percentage-based platforms like Creative Market, Etsy, Gumroad, Lemon Squeezy, or Send Owl. These don't cost anything [00:08:00] upfront. However you pay a portion of sales and in some cases, a portion to list the product. 

[00:08:06] So on Etsy, you pay a small fee to list the product. The product is up for a certain amount of time. And then you pay a portion on the sales. Where something like Gumroad or Lemon Squeezy, you're just paying a portion of the sales. So those are percentage based platforms, no upfront costs. There are monthly payment based platforms like your Podia, your Sellfy, Sam Cart, Shopify and ones that you think of as like course software. 

[00:08:35] So your Thinkific, your Kajabi and your Teachable. So platforms like that will often allow you to sell just regular standard digital products or templates or workbooks, things like that. And they have functionality to sell your courses and whatnot later. And those are typically monthly payment based platforms. There are hybrid platforms. 

[00:08:58] So they offer both percentage based and monthly payments one or the other. Like PayHip. PayHip is super interesting. There's a free plan. You don't pay anything monthly. You can sell certain products and they take a percentage, but then you can move on to a monthly payment instead if you're selling a lot and you like it and you want to stay there. 

[00:09:18] So PayHip is an example of that. I mentioned one time payment based platforms like ThriveCart. ThriveCart is a nice big chunk of money upfront, but you don't pay anything ongoing. So that is an option as well. You could also look at your specific payment processors, like Square Online, Stripe Checkout, or Stripe Payment Links. 

[00:09:40] Now I'm not sure about Square, but I think with Stripe, you would be able to take the payment, but you would also need to figure out how to deliver the product. So connecting it maybe to your email marketing software. Inherently or with another platform like Zapier, if you're already using that and then maybe deliver the product through there. 

[00:09:59] So [00:10:00] there are some options like that if you don't want to go with a specific platform. If you're using WordPress, my background is in WordPress. I talk a lot about WordPress. You could use a plugin like WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads. Another guest on the show mentioned WP Express Checkout, or just a simple little form like Gravity Forms connected to your payment processor. 

[00:10:21] But again, you would have to worry about actually delivering that product at the end. So there are tons and tons and tons and tons of platforms, even platforms that I have not mentioned here. These are just a couple examples. You probably will have to experiment. You won't know some of these things until you start using them. When I have worked with clients, we have often a tried a number of platforms to find the one that worked for them. The same platform does not work for everyone. Everyone has different goals, different products, different industries. So take a little bit of time to try to find the one that works for you. Cost, features and so on and something that will last you a long time. 

[00:11:03] I have a YouTube live and a blog post looking at Lemon Squeezy. 

[00:11:06] If you want to check that out, I'll put the link in the show notes. And also I've been using Gumroad kind of as a test experiment and I'll be doing a YouTube live and blog post in the coming months on that. Now, if there is a platform that you're curious about that you want me to dive into, or you just want to tell me, oh, Hey Rene, I use this and I love it. 

[00:11:26] Send me a message at yfdp.show/share or through my contact form on the website. I would love to hear from you. And also if you're telling me about a platform you love, tell me why you love it. And show me an example. I would love to see it. 

[00:11:38] Hey, thanks for listening. I'd love to continue the conversation in your inbox. Email SUBSCRIBE to hey at yfdp.show or sign up in the show notes to get bimonthly emails about how you can create, launch, and market your first digital product. Can't wait to see you there.