The Entrepreneur Forum | Financial Freedom | Starting a Business | Motivation | Money | Success

Welcome to the only entrepreneur forum dedicated to building life-changing wealth.

Build a Fastlane business. Earn real financial freedom. Join free.

Join over 80,000 entrepreneurs who have rejected the paradigm of mediocrity and said "NO!" to underpaid jobs, ascetic frugality, and suffocating savings rituals— learn how to build a Fastlane business that pays both freedom and lifestyle affluence.

Free registration at the forum removes this block.

How to Create a $2k+/mo Passive Income Website in 30 Days (or Less)

Musaab1997

PARKED
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
0% - New User
May 13, 2023
1
0
Amazing thread. Thank you for all the info.
I do have a question, do you replicate the template of the digital product you find? for example, the digital product you found on etsy, did you purchase it and replicate what is being sold then created your own and sold it? or was this something similar to drop shipping? as an you purchased it then sold the pdf to your customers without changing anything?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

adnanazmi

Bronze Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
100%
Jan 22, 2023
113
113
22
Colombo, Sri Lana
Amazing thread. Thank you for all the info.
I do have a question, do you replicate the template of the digital product you find? for example, the digital product you found on etsy, did you purchase it and replicate what is being sold then created your own and sold it? or was this something similar to drop shipping? as an you purchased it then sold the pdf to your customers without changing anything?
It is possible. But I think he made his own. He may have used information from other places. He was saying is what is important is to have a USP and position the same product in a unique way that works.
 

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
Is there a point where you think about selling the site itself?

With 50% margins and 40x MRR multiplier, it's possibly worth $75K+. ;-)
Maybe for the right product. I'm not against it.

Amazing thread. Thank you for all the info.
I do have a question, do you replicate the template of the digital product you find? for example, the digital product you found on etsy, did you purchase it and replicate what is being sold then created your own and sold it? or was this something similar to drop shipping? as an you purchased it then sold the pdf to your customers without changing anything?
Pretty sure I've already answered this several times in this thread.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

traoul6

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
50%
Jun 3, 2019
4
2
I set up a new passive income site yesterday. Here's what that looked like:
  • Product is a downloadable PDF document
  • $9.97 for the domain
  • $5/day in ad spend
  • 8 hours or so in time invested
I built the whole thing yesterday and launched with Google ads yesterday too.

Earned my first sale overnight.

I made this one simpler than my other site.

It's one page.

That one page has 4 CTAs that all lead to a ThriveCart checkout page.

The page has good copy, basic credibility markers like credit card logos, images, solid branding...

After purchase, the customer instantly receives the product.

Finally, they reach a thank you page.

That's the entire funnel.

No email opt-in. No lengthy site history. Not attached to my name.

For this site I'm testing price points under $9 to see if I can move higher sales volume faster with ads + a price so low anyone can afford it.

Ideally, I'll find a price that people will pay all around the world so I can expand my advertising worldwide instead of targeting the US. That will help keep costs down.
Hi Lex

Thanks for sharing your experiences. It was the last little bit of inspiration I needed for me to take action.

Since 3 weeks I am trying to replicate your process. It is a little bit difficult for me because I have never sold anything on the internet. But as you said: If I am not a pussy, I should be able to replicate it. That last sentence is what keeps me motivated every day.

So here is my question to you. How do you manage to create a digital product in just a single day? I mean, I have been writing my eBook for 3 weeks and I am not finished yet. Could you please give us a few more details on how you are able to do it in such a short time?

And one last question: Do you have any experience working with systeme.io? I discovered them after wrestling a bit with Thrives. They seem to have everything I need in one place. Also, they offer a free package for beginners.

Keep it up, man!
 

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
Hi Lex

Thanks for sharing your experiences. It was the last little bit of inspiration I needed for me to take action.

Since 3 weeks I am trying to replicate your process. It is a little bit difficult for me because I have never sold anything on the internet. But as you said: If I am not a pussy, I should be able to replicate it. That last sentence is what keeps me motivated every day.

So here is my question to you. How do you manage to create a digital product in just a single day? I mean, I have been writing my eBook for 3 weeks and I am not finished yet. Could you please give us a few more details on how you are able to do it in such a short time?

And one last question: Do you have any experience working with systeme.io? I discovered them after wrestling a bit with Thrives. They seem to have everything I need in one place. Also, they offer a free package for beginners.

Keep it up, man!

Depends on the digital product I'm creating.

If I wanted to create a stock photo modeling package for men's black t-shirts I'd need a black t-shirt and a camera.

I'd ask Chat GPT about common modeling poses or look them up on Amazon. Once I had photos, I'd go to Canva and remove the background with their background removal tool, replacing it with a white background. Next, I'd upload the photos to a file on Dropbox. At this point, the product is ready for sale.

Now that the product is created, I'd make a checkout page in 5 minutes on ThriveCart that provides instant access to the Dropbox file after payment, set up a one-page website with the sections I mentioned a few posts back, and start running Google ads to people who need male-modeled black t-shirt stock photos that they can add their t-shirt designs over. I would also post my photo package for sale on other sites like Etsy and run ads there.

Once I had proof of concept, I'd take more modeling photos in different shirt styles and colors, and then expand into other articles of clothing.

I have no experience with system.io. I use what works and stick to it.
 

traoul6

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
50%
Jun 3, 2019
4
2
Depends on the digital product I'm creating.

If I wanted to create a stock photo modeling package for men's black t-shirts I'd need a black t-shirt and a camera.

I'd ask Chat GPT about common modeling poses or look them up on Amazon. Once I had photos, I'd go to Canva and remove the background with their background removal tool, replacing it with a white background. Next, I'd upload the photos to a file on Dropbox. At this point, the product is ready for sale.

Now that the product is created, I'd make a checkout page in 5 minutes on ThriveCart that provides instant access to the Dropbox file after payment, set up a one-page website with the sections I mentioned a few posts back, and start running Google ads to people who need male-modeled black t-shirt stock photos that they can add their t-shirt designs over. I would also post my photo package for sale on other sites like Etsy and run ads there.

Once I had proof of concept, I'd take more modeling photos in different shirt styles and colors, and then expand into other articles of clothing.

I have no experience with system.io. I use what works and stick to it.
Thanks for the quick answer. I need some time to absorb it.
I'll also have to take another look at your previous posts before moving forward.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Keushei

Serial Entrepeneur
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
143%
Dec 31, 2022
61
87
United kingdom
I set up a new passive income site yesterday. Here's what that looked like:
  • Product is a downloadable PDF document
  • $9.97 for the domain
  • $5/day in ad spend
  • 8 hours or so in time invested
I built the whole thing yesterday and launched with Google ads yesterday too.

Earned my first sale overnight.

I made this one simpler than my other site.

It's one page.

That one page has 4 CTAs that all lead to a ThriveCart checkout page.

The page has good copy, basic credibility markers like credit card logos, images, solid branding...

After purchase, the customer instantly receives the product.

Finally, they reach a thank you page.

That's the entire funnel.

No email opt-in. No lengthy site history. Not attached to my name.

For this site I'm testing price points under $9 to see if I can move higher sales volume faster with ads + a price so low anyone can afford it.

Ideally, I'll find a price that people will pay all around the world so I can expand my advertising worldwide instead of targeting the US. That will help keep costs down.
Wow Congrats! I've spent about 45 on ads and nothing. Paying about 80p per click. How are you spending a 5er and getting sales? I literally get about 10 clicks a day on a 10er spend.

Also at what point to you bin it off. Like by the sounds of it you start getting sales regardless and then just improve.. have you ever had it where you get 0 sales?

Like would you spend a couple of hundred on ads just to test.. and if it doesnt work move on?

UPDATE: After a site revamp, I ran ads for a few hours, changed my pricing and made my first sale. Pretty happy.
 
Last edited:

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
Wow Congrats! I've spent about 45 on ads and nothing. Paying about 80p per click. How are you spending a 5er and getting sales? I literally get about 10 clicks a day on a 10er spend.

Also at what point to you bin it off. Like by the sounds of it you start getting sales regardless and then just improve.. have you ever had it where you get 0 sales?

Like would you spend a couple of hundred on ads just to test.. and if it doesnt work move on?
I spent a bit over $100 on one of the other sites I started in this thread with 0 sales before I got rid of the website and moved on.

As for how I'm spending what I spend and getting sales, I'm targeting a niche that wants my product, and communicating its value as clearly as possible. Beyond that, your guess is as good as mine. I use everything in my background and experience to help me do that.
 

adnanazmi

Bronze Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
100%
Jan 22, 2023
113
113
22
Colombo, Sri Lana
I spent a bit over $100 on one of the other sites I started in this thread with 0 sales before I got rid of the website and moved on.

As for how I'm spending what I spend and getting sales, I'm targeting a niche that wants my product, and communicating its value as clearly as possible. Beyond that, your guess is as good as mine. I use everything in my background and experience to help me do that.
@Lex DeVille what if you made an affiliate link option and emailed small to mid social media pages in the niche you are targeting. What do you think about that idea? Maybe 25% of the commission for a $9 product? or something? Would you basically make much more sales if promoted right? Would you test this?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
@Lex DeVille what if you made an affiliate link option and emailed small to mid social media pages in the niche you are targeting. What do you think about that idea? Maybe 25% of the commission for a $9 product? or something? Would you basically make much more sales if promoted right? Would you test this?
Might be worth testing to grow your email list. Or you might throw away money on social ads that send almost no one to your website. Ultimately, I don't want to deal with third parties or rely on influencers for business and I also don't want to spend too much time trying to get any one site profitable. If I can't get it profitable within $300 of running ads, I'll move on and test another idea.
 

Two Dog

Silver Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
142%
Feb 15, 2022
436
620
But why sell a near perfect passive income machine?
Endless reasons aka "all the usual reasons" any business gets sold.

Boredom. Shrinking market. Low profits. Interested in another opportunity. Change of life. Need money. Mind space.

IRL, there are *very* few passive income machines since every business requires attention and ongoing improvements to continue generating sales. Imagine something as silly as having a legacy business website hosted on MySpace with an @aol.com email address. The market and its demand are constantly changing. About the only exceptions are things like royalties, patents, dividends, insurance settlements, etc. which aren't really businesses at all since they don't buy / sell anything or directly serve a market.
 

naz10101

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
89%
May 21, 2023
9
8
Hey mate,

Good Stuff! What's your cost per conversion on Google?

I've always thought Google Ads would generally cut into the margins for digital products as the cost per click is quite high (it could just simply be my research was too brief) or things have changed since i last looked into this stuff
 

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
Hey mate,

Good Stuff! What's your cost per conversion on Google?

I've always thought Google Ads would generally cut into the margins for digital products as the cost per click is quite high (it could just simply be my research was too brief) or things have changed since i last looked into this stuff
It changes from month to month. If it weren't profitable, I wouldn't continue using it. Who cares if it is high. If you spend $20,000 and earn $22,000 then you have a $2,000/mo passive income. I think people worry too much about the spend when the focus should be on creating a valuable product that people actually want to buy.
 

Captain Hoodie

New Contributor
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
95%
Aug 17, 2017
20
19
Canada
I thought I'd give this a try as I have a very little bit of experience with some of the tools used to create and sell digital products but I've always wanted to help people with digital tools.

So I started my search for a product before I even finished reading the first page of this thread.

From some of the products mentioned in here, doing some research on etsy and using my google ads account to look for search terms and their volumes I found the product I would take a shot at. It's a template that is very useful.

I had someone create a template for me based on my research. It would take me forever to learn and create the product I wanted. I also really wanted to get this store up and running ASAP. So I contracted out to an expert to create it for me.

Google ads and shopify I can navigate well enough to create my own store and ads sufficiently enough, so I handled that.

My research consisted of: looking at the monthly search volume on google keyword research tool, looking at the sales on etsy of similar products.

That was pretty much it.

Within the first week I had a shopify store up and a final product being created. A few days after that I had a google ads campaign and ads group with my one ad and many keywords ready to go.

Fast forward a few days and I decided to take a simplified, unfinished, mock version of my template and load it up on my shopify store page. I then fired up my ads and switched my store to live.

I had my 1 product priced at $30 to start and about a week in I lowered the price to $20.

I gathered some info from running my google ads from May 1st - May 20th.

In this time I managed to sell 1 product which was promptly returned and fully refunded. (The customer claimed it was too complex to use. WOMP WOMP) Never the less, this is good to know.

I have paused my ads for now as I think what I should do next.

I'm not sure if I should abandon this product and move quickly to the next idea.

My initial offering was for a rough draft, albeit working version of my final product. My final product is done now and I will be uploading to my store and creating and etsy account to try and sell it on. Then I will probably fire my ads back up.

I did also try to capture email addresses using a coupon code but was only able to get 1 signup out of 80 visitors.

I am also thinking of new products I could sell. I think it would have been better if I went into a niche with less competition and cheaper clicks. I also think the product should be one that is easily edited and sold to many different niches and people. Think about having a store with hundreds of versions of the same product with slight variations to each.
 

Attachments

  • Google ads Overview.jpg
    Google ads Overview.jpg
    34.8 KB · Views: 31

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
What specific products have you created on your websites?
I've already stated multiple times I sell step-by-step instructions to GFYS.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
I thought I'd give this a try as I have a very little bit of experience with some of the tools used to create and sell digital products but I've always wanted to help people with digital tools.

So I started my search for a product before I even finished reading the first page of this thread.

From some of the products mentioned in here, doing some research on etsy and using my google ads account to look for search terms and their volumes I found the product I would take a shot at. It's a template that is very useful.

I had someone create a template for me based on my research. It would take me forever to learn and create the product I wanted. I also really wanted to get this store up and running ASAP. So I contracted out to an expert to create it for me.

Google ads and shopify I can navigate well enough to create my own store and ads sufficiently enough, so I handled that.

My research consisted of: looking at the monthly search volume on google keyword research tool, looking at the sales on etsy of similar products.

That was pretty much it.

Within the first week I had a shopify store up and a final product being created. A few days after that I had a google ads campaign and ads group with my one ad and many keywords ready to go.

Fast forward a few days and I decided to take a simplified, unfinished, mock version of my template and load it up on my shopify store page. I then fired up my ads and switched my store to live.

I had my 1 product priced at $30 to start and about a week in I lowered the price to $20.

I gathered some info from running my google ads from May 1st - May 20th.

In this time I managed to sell 1 product which was promptly returned and fully refunded. (The customer claimed it was too complex to use. WOMP WOMP) Never the less, this is good to know.

I have paused my ads for now as I think what I should do next.

I'm not sure if I should abandon this product and move quickly to the next idea.

My initial offering was for a rough draft, albeit working version of my final product. My final product is done now and I will be uploading to my store and creating and etsy account to try and sell it on. Then I will probably fire my ads back up.

I did also try to capture email addresses using a coupon code but was only able to get 1 signup out of 80 visitors.

I am also thinking of new products I could sell. I think it would have been better if I went into a niche with less competition and cheaper clicks. I also think the product should be one that is easily edited and sold to many different niches and people. Think about having a store with hundreds of versions of the same product with slight variations to each.

If someone was willing to part with their cash, then there's probably something there and it just needs to be tweaked a bit to attract more people and move them to buy.

Ultimately, you can have the shittiest website on the planet and pretty terrible ads, and people will still buy the product if they can't get it anywhere else and if they feel like they really need it.
 

Crash Overhide

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
150%
Jan 13, 2017
6
9
41
Brazil
@Lex DeVille Thanks for this amazing thread. I've read through it all!

I'm curious about your thoughts on 1 site vs mutiple sites (or 1 product vs multiple products).

Initially, you set up several websites; more recently, you've "only" got two, with one of them (the first one), having multiple products that sell in the range ( think) of 1 to 3 digits.

From what you've been through in the past weeks, testing, experimenting, tweaking here and there, what do you think is more worthwhile: 1 site with multiple products (focused on the same "micro-niche"), or 2 to 3 sites, each with 1 product, and then, when testing the response to that product, expand the funnel to similar products?

Thanks for your time and for the great thread.
 

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
@Lex DeVille Thanks for this amazing thread. I've read through it all!

I'm curious about your thoughts on 1 site vs mutiple sites (or 1 product vs multiple products).

Initially, you set up several websites; more recently, you've "only" got two, with one of them (the first one), having multiple products that sell in the range ( think) of 1 to 3 digits.

From what you've been through in the past weeks, testing, experimenting, tweaking here and there, what do you think is more worthwhile: 1 site with multiple products (focused on the same "micro-niche"), or 2 to 3 sites, each with 1 product, and then, when testing the response to that product, expand the funnel to similar products?

Thanks for your time and for the great thread.
The first site is more profitable, but also more complex. That complexity didn't happen all at once. It got more complex over time as I added things. It's still almost entirely automated, so it's not a big deal to run more sites.

At this point, I think what makes the most sense is to try to find a product that can have many variations that all serve one niche. Build out your product line on one site so people have a lot of reasons to come back to buy again and again.

Once you get one profitable site, then you can work on a new niche and maybe a new product and do it again.

The latest site presents some challenges due to its simplicity. It's hard to get people to buy because there's a lack of credibility.

Right now, my ads are 1:1 for the new site (meaning for every $1 I spend I earn $1). In other words, I'm breaking even. So the next step from there is to build out my email marketing processes to get people to come back, and also build out more products so people have more reasons to come back and so the shop looks more legit.

So going forward, I'll look for niches where I can simplify the process to: Click, Buy, Done. But I'll also make sure the niche/product combo will be something where I can easily have many product variations without exponentially increasing my workload.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Crash Overhide

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
150%
Jan 13, 2017
6
9
41
Brazil
The first site is more profitable, but also more complex. That complexity didn't happen all at once. It got more complex over time as I added things. It's still almost entirely automated, so it's not a big deal to run more sites.

At this point, I think what makes the most sense is to try to find a product that can have many variations that all serve one niche. Build out your product line on one site so people have a lot of reasons to come back to buy again and again.

Once you get one profitable site, then you can work on a new niche and maybe a new product and do it again.

The latest site presents some challenges due to its simplicity. It's hard to get people to buy because there's a lack of credibility.

Right now, my ads are 1:1 for the new site (meaning for every $1 I spend I earn $1). In other words, I'm breaking even. So the next step from there is to build out my email marketing processes to get people to come back, and also build out more products so people have more reasons to come back and so the shop looks more legit.

So going forward, I'll look for niches where I can simplify the process to: Click, Buy, Done. But I'll also make sure the niche/product combo will be something where I can easily have many product variations without exponentially increasing my workload.
Thank u for your thougts and time. Keep going!
 

adnanazmi

Bronze Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
100%
Jan 22, 2023
113
113
22
Colombo, Sri Lana
Lex I found something pretty cool! I think you might find this interesting as well. Any idea what this tool is and how we can go about getting this feature? I am talking about the 'it looks like you're from Sri Lanka part'. I think it is PRETTY COOL! Had to share! @Lex DeVille

1684980652523.png
 

Cojo

Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
55%
May 29, 2021
154
85
I have decided on a digital product to make but when I search on it, I noticed no one is running google ads for it. Would it be a good idea to go forward with it?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,563
68,687
Ireland
I have decided on a digital product to make but when I search on it, I noticed no one is running google ads for it. Would it be a good idea to go forward with it?
How many people are searching for it?

What do the organic listings offer?

How much buyer intent is behind the search terms?



Maybe knock up a simple landing page and Google Ads campaign and get search volume, impressions, clicks, cpcs, etc?

Here's what you could learn on $5/day spend:

 

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
New Niche + Product
After some searching, I decided to launch another shop with a different product in a new niche. I'll share some details about this here, although I'm not in a rush.

The Product
  • It's a digital product.
  • It's available for free on YouTube.
  • Videos about it generate 5 and 6-figure view counts.
  • I didn't find anyone selling it on Etsy (came across it on YouTube)
  • Search volume for the main terms shows 12,000/mo up to 165,000/mo
  • Can be made for free in a day, but not easily and I won't do it that fast
  • Easily customized for different niche interests
  • Targets a major pain point for many people
The Customer
This is aimed at a broad group of people from all walks of life. I believe this will make it a much easier sell than my previous products. The product has a niche, but the audience does not, so the product can fit many different audience segments.

Bringing It To Market
  1. I'll sell through Etsy first (if they'll let me open a new account)
  2. For Etsy, I'll aim to launch with 30+ products and run ads from the start
  3. I'll put up a website for this and run Google Ads there
  4. I will probably run video ads in addition to search ads on Google
  5. This one will leverage social media since I think I can quickly attract an audience
Pricing Models
  • One-off products will range from $9.97 to $29.97 (I'll test price points after launch)
  • I will probably add a subscription model once I have enough products
  • Bundling products will be a valuable pricing option
Progress
I opened a new Etsy account, secured a domain, and created the first product.
 

Vasudev Soni

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
105%
Jul 31, 2022
194
203
22
Ghaziabad, IN
In November, I launched a digital product. In under 30 days, I generated over $2,000 in sales.

View attachment 47488
Four months later, the site had its first $2,000 week...

View attachment 47490

I've been documenting this progress in my Insider's thread here.

Now, I'm going to show you how to do it.

Here are some things to know:
  • The idea is not new or novel
  • There are no inventory costs
  • I created the product in a day and had it for sale in a month
  • The product is not attached to my name
  • The business is almost entirely automated
  • The business generates mostly passive income
  • Anyone from any country in the world could replicate this if you're not a pussy with a shitty attitude
So what is this thread for?
I decided to replicate the process across multiple websites to create a variety of new passive-income streams and you can try it for yourself if you want. Feel free to ask questions. I'll respond when I can.

What does the process look like so far?
I started on both ideas yesterday. I expect to put in 4-8 hours per day for around 30 days to get both launched. Then probably less than an hour per day for each site. Okay, here we go:

1.0 The Product
Both of the new websites will sell digital products. One site will sell one of the products from my first site but to a different niche. The second site will sell a product I have never tested before to a new audience.

1.1 Product Requirements
  • Must be a digital product (i.e. text, video, audio, illustrative, etc.)
  • Must be simple to create (i.e. I can create it in a day)
  • Must have proven sales (as indicated by other sellers in the market)
  • Must have an angle that will give me an edge over competitors
  • Must be something I can sell through my own website
  • Must not require ongoing support or complex systems
1.2 Examples of Potentially Good Digital Products
Short ebook, templates, guides, checklists, sound effects, music, vocal recordings, videos, digital illustrations, digital software, etc. Niching down is generally what makes any of these *good.*

1.3 Product Creation
I want products that can be created fast (like less than an hour). I got ideas from products sold on other sites like Envato, Etsy, Ebay, etc. I also used Google Adwords to check out search volume for keywords. For product creation, I used Canva (I pay for the $9/mo version) and Envato Elements (I pay for the $197/yr subscription).

2.0 Domain Name
Once I decided on products, I needed a domain name for the websites. I used Namecheap to run domain searches and Wordhippo to help brainstorm name ideas. I purchased the domains through Namecheap for $9 each (less for new accounts). Since I already have web hosting with ChemiCloud, I pointed the domains to ChemiCloud. You can buy domains on ChemiCloud, but it's not as cheap. I also set up SSL through ChemiCloud to secure the site's domains.

2.1 Domain Name Requirements
  • Three words or less
  • Has one or more of the keywords in the name
  • Flows well
  • Easy to read, remember, and repeat
  • Ends in .com
3.0 Website
In cPanel inside ChemiCloud, I added the two domains and set up support emails as support@domainname.com for each site. I forwarded both of these to my personal email (so I don't have to log into multiple emails every day). Then I installed Wordpress using their Wordpress Manager.

3.1 Basic Setup
With Wordpress installed, I visited the site's backend. Now I checked the "General" settings to confirm the URL showed "https" for security. I also checked the permalink settings to confirm they are set to "Post Name" for the blog. Next, I installed my core plugin stack:
  • Classic Wordpress Editor (I don't like Gutenberg)
  • Yoast SEO
  • Thrive Product Manager (which includes several plugins and my theme)
Thrive Product Manager comes from ThriveThemes. You could replicate my process without Thrive (and probably cheaper), but it's my preferred method since Thrive's products are built for marketers (and because I already pay for it).

3.2 Web Pages
Once my plugins were installed, I created all of the core pages:
  • Home Page
  • About Page
  • Contact Page
  • Terms Page
  • Privacy Page
  • Disclaimer Page
3.3 Thrive Themes Setup
With the pages in place, I launched Thrive Builder and installed their "Kwik" theme because I like it. It's wizard walks me through several important steps like adding my logo, page and blog structures, header and footer structures, menu, brand colors, and typography.

3.4 Logo Creation
I used a Canva logo template to create a logo for the first site, then I replicated the logo in the brand colors of the second site, and replaced the first site's name with the second site's name. Beyond that, the logos are identical. Took all of 10 seconds.

3.5 Core Content
For the Terms, Privacy, and Disclaimer pages I copy/paste from a similar website (in this case my own) and then replace their website's info with my own and change areas as needed to be relevant for my sites. For the About page, I stay as simple as possible and write one to two paragraphs about my site. For the home page, I create a main image area with a headline and a call to action leading into a button that goes to the shop page (shop page doesn't exist yet tho). The rest of the page can remain blank for now. You'll see why in the next section.

3.6 Checkout System
One of my websites uses ThriveCart (costs $500 one-time). The other site uses WooCommerce plugin (free but pay for add-ons if you need them). Once WooCommerce was installed, I went through the wizard to setup all the basic stuff like payment methods and whatnot. Once ThriveCart and WooCommerce were set up, I created basic product pages and then I placed those products on the home page of my website as the content for that page (that's why I left it blank earlier). If you use WooCommerce, they will create a shop page for you. Otherwise, you can create a shop page now.

4.0 Email
Email plays a key role in the success of these businesses (particularly email automation). I use ActiveCampaign on the Plus version. ThriveThemes integrates well with ActiveCampaign, as does ThriveCart. There are other email services you can use that cost less or are free to start.

Next Steps?
All of the above was accomplished in one day.

Next, I'll finish WooCommerce setup, optimize the site for mobile viewers, set up a YouTube account for one site (because it will be a good traffic source), create about six products for one site, and around 50 for the other site. After that, I'll turn on Google Ads and see how much it costs to get someone to click on my website and buy the product.

Once all of that is finished, the last step left is to grow the email list, and refine and test everything (pricing, design, emails, etc.) to get people to buy faster with lower acquisition cost.

Growth & Scale?
Long-term, I can bring on freelancers to manage things like the website, products, and email. But one person can bring this to $4k - $10k/mo, maybe more, before hiring becomes necessary.

Ready?
I don't plan to post updates every day. There will be parts you have to figure out on your own. If you want to build a $4k+ per month passive-income that you control, then this thread should help.

Disclaimer: There's no coaching offer at the end of this. No course. Don't DM me for private questions about this. If your question can't be answered in this thread, then it can't be answered by me. Lastly, it's entirely possible that I may fail and you may too, so you need to not be a weenie to make this work for you.
This content is absolutely gold.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

naz10101

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
89%
May 21, 2023
9
8
G
New Niche + Product
After some searching, I decided to launch another shop with a different product in a new niche. I'll share some details about this here, although I'm not in a rush.

The Product
  • It's a digital product.
  • It's available for free on YouTube.
  • Videos about it generate 5 and 6-figure view counts.
  • I didn't find anyone selling it on Etsy (came across it on YouTube)
  • Search volume for the main terms shows 12,000/mo up to 165,000/mo
  • Can be made for free in a day, but not easily and I won't do it that fast
  • Easily customized for different niche interests
  • Targets a major pain point for many people
The Customer
This is aimed at a broad group of people from all walks of life. I believe this will make it a much easier sell than my previous products. The product has a niche, but the audience does not, so the product can fit many different audience segments.

Bringing It To Market
  1. I'll sell through Etsy first (if they'll let me open a new account)
  2. For Etsy, I'll aim to launch with 30+ products and run ads from the start
  3. I'll put up a website for this and run Google Ads there
  4. I will probably run video ads in addition to search ads on Google
  5. This one will leverage social media since I think I can quickly attract an audience
Pricing Models
  • One-off products will range from $9.97 to $29.97 (I'll test price points after launch)
  • I will probably add a subscription model once I have enough products
  • Bundling products will be a valuable pricing option
Progress
I opened a new Etsy account, secured a domain, and created the first product.
Best of luck, mate! Fingers crossed this one also does well!

Why have you decided to launch a new one?
 

Lex DeVille

Sweeping Shadows From Dreams
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
597%
Jan 14, 2013
5,349
31,921
Utah
G

Best of luck, mate! Fingers crossed this one also does well!

Why have you decided to launch a new one?

Because I think my main one reached the limit of its earning potential due to limitations of the niche. I believe it will likely continue to earn $4000 - $6000/mo on autopilot for the foreseeable future. I knew this going into it, so I think it's finally time to expand into a better product.
 

Post New Topic

Please SEARCH before posting.
Please select the BEST category.

Post new topic

Guest post submissions offered HERE.

New Topics

Fastlane Insiders

View the forum AD FREE.
Private, unindexed content
Detailed process/execution threads
Ideas needing execution, more!

Join Fastlane Insiders.

Top