Here are my top picks for the best digital products to sell this year! Most of these ideas can be applied to bloggers or business owners of any niche. I have also included real-life digital product examples for each type of product.
1. E books
E books are one of the absolute best digital products to sell online.
If you’re a blogger or business owner in any niche, you can write an eBook. The eBooks that sell best are usually written in the form of a how-to guide and provide valuable information that solves a problem for your readers.
One example of an eBook is my own which is called Man-Up. It’s only about 50 pages long, but it’s packed with helpful and valuable information. It also took me less than a week to create and launch!
2. Swipe Files
A swipe file is just a short PDF document or template that contains a proven, effective formula for how to do something. If you have an area of expertise, you can sell a swipe file containing your secrets.
Great at email marketing? You could sell a swipe file of pre-written sales funnels. Do you have a knack for getting traffic to your website? Create a swipe file of your exact traffic strategy and sell it to others.
If you have expertise in an area that people are dying to master) then you can create a swipe file and profit from your knowledge and strategies.
The great thing about putting together a swipe file is how quick and easy it is. This is another digital product idea similar to an eBook that’s good for beginners.
3. Online Courses
Another great knowledge-based digital product to sell is online courses.
Many people believe that the only way to create a successful online course is to make it about something related to blogging, marketing, or making money online. While it’s true that there are plenty of courses out there on those topics, you can be successful with an online course in literally any niche!
You can sell an online course on just about any topic as long as you are providing value and teaching something useful to your audience.
Your online course can include written lessons, pre-recorded video lessons, worksheets, or a combination of all three. You can add other bonuses (like other digital products you have created, or access to a private Facebook group for students) to add more value to your online course.
Suzi, the creator of this course, has made six figures from selling online courses. And she has helped others to create successful courses on topics including language learning, arts and craft, parenting, and more!
4. Stock Photos
Have an eye for photography? Stock photos could be the digital product for you! All you need is a nice camera and decent photo editing software.
There’s a huge market right now for styled stock photography. Everyone from bloggers to business owners to social media managers are looking for the perfect photos to post on social media or use on their website.
You can sell your photos individually or in bundles, or create a subscription-based website for your customers. An example of this is Haute Stock which offers a monthly membership for access to pretty, feminine stock photos.
Choosing a specific niche can help you get your stock photo business out there. For example, if you run a lifestyle blog, you could sell lifestyle stock photos for other bloggers to use on their blog and social media.
5. Printables
Printables are a really fun digital product to sell! Basically, they are digital files you create for your customer to print out on their own and use. Here are just a few ideas of printables you can make and sell:
- Workbooks
- Planners
- Gift tags
- Art prints
- Lesson plans
- Stickers
Related: 49 Printable Ideas to Sell and Make Money
You can use software such as Adobe Illustrator or even the free beginner-friendly program Canva to design your printables.
Want to get started selling printables? Check out Printables by Number.
6. Templates
Templates are time-saving products that your customers can use to simplify a certain process, such as graphic design.
You can create and sell templates for a variety of uses: resumes, media kits, logos, and social media posts, just to name a few.
A great example of templates are these social media templates from Bluchic.
These particular templates are designed to be used with the graphic design program Canva, but you can create templates to be used with any program, such as Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, PowerPoint, etc.
I personally use templates to create graphics for Pinterest all the time!
7. WordPress Themes
If you are good with coding, consider selling WordPress themes! Most premium WordPress themes sell for Ksh5,000 to Ksh10,000 each. For best luck, you can design themes for a specific audience: for example, travel bloggers or wedding photographers.
One thing to keep in mind with WordPress themes is that you may have to make updates to your themes, or provide troubleshooting for your customers. This can mean some extra work compared to selling other types of digital products.
Also, it obviously requires more work and technical knowledge upfront!
8. Graphic Design Elements
Are you creative and do you enjoy working with programs such as Photoshop or Illustrator? If so, selling graphic design elements might be the digital product gig for you. Graphic design elements can be anything you create including fonts, textures, brushes, illustrations, icons, and more.
For example, Angie Makes sells a variety of graphic design elements such as floral patterns, clipart, and pretty feminine fonts. These elements can be used by bloggers or graphic designers for creating blog or social media graphics.
9. Membership Sites
Out of all the digital products to sell on this list, membership sites might require the most time and energy, but there’s a great potential for earning.
What exactly is a membership site? It’s a private area of a website or forum where members pay a monthly fee in order to have access. You can start a membership site for any niche: fitness, parenting, business, etc.
The reason this is the most intensive option on this list is because you will be responsible for building a community and producing new content at least monthly for your members. However, there’s a great opportunity to profit because you can earn a recurring revenue versus a one-off payment.
You can even create a paid Facebook group if you don’t want to deal with the technical aspect of setting up a membership site. Just remember that the key to a successful membership group is providing fresh, valuable content or training!
10. Workshops
Selling a video workshop is a great passive income digital product idea.
You can record a video teaching your audience how to do something (typically accompanied by a slide presentation) and then sell the recorded workshop.
With a workshop, you can launch it live, but then continue to sell the recorded session afterwards for a consistent source of passive income.
11. Newsletter
Starting a paid email newsletter is similar to a membership site, except it’s simpler and less time-intensive because you’re just sending an email!
You can use an email platform like ConvertKit to sell subscriptions to your paid newsletter and deliver the newsletters. You can offer exclusive content on either a weekly or monthly basis to your subscribers.
Paid newsletters are another form of recurring revenue, since members pay for access each month through a subscription instead of a one-off payment.
