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How to Create an E-Book and Sell It on Your Website

By on January 12, 2013

Create an E-BookAnyone can create an e-book. It just takes a little bit of effort and time but is well worth this investment. In fact selling eBooks has become a great way to earn passive income for me.

Myths About Creating Ebooks

  • People often avoid creating their own product to sell an e-book because they think it is a massive project to undertake. Unfortunately this means that they will never take action.
  • People often presume that their work would not be good enough to sell.
  • You need to make a perfect e-book to sell online and this can only be done by professionals.
  • Ebooks are old news now and no one buys them. (No way! This is just the beginning!)

How I Started Creating E-Book’s To Sell My Website

My first E books that I created were from articles that I had on my website already. For example I had an entire section on my website about formatting Windows XP. I gathered all of the content together and created an e-book, selling it for $3.95. At the end of all the articles on the website that where related to formatting Windows XP, I placed an offer to buy this e-book, therefore saving people time. The benefit was that if they purchased the e-book, they would have the information in their own hands all in one convenient package. Of course the other option was to go through all of the articles on my website and have the content for free. Therefore people were offered a free option or a paid option. But many people preferred the paid option as it saved them both time and stress.

Finding a Subject for Your Ebook

The most sought after e-book that I have is one that solves a problem or helps people avoid stress.

For example:

  • An e-book that shows how to use a program.
  • An e-book that shows how to build a website.
  • An e-book on how to make money online.
  • An e-book on how to start a broken computer.

These are just examples of E books I might like to write in my niche. All you have to do is think about what people want. You can examine your best content on your website to see which area you should be writing your e-book about. As stated earlier, I found that my formatting Windows XP section on my website was extremely popular, therefore I created a product from this. All of the examples above either save people money, time, or stress.

How to Create the Content for My E-book?

Content You Already Have

Well I entered part of this question above. You have the fantastic original content right in front of your face on your website. Your content is an asset and should be used in many ways, not just one. If you have website visitors and people commenting on your articles then you must have some decent content to use for your new e-book. Gather highly related articles and package them into PDF files. You do not even need to create an e-book cover, but of course it would make your e-book look professional.

PLR is Cool

Another place to find content is to join a PLR website. This is a website that supplies content for a living. For example I am a member of Master Resell Rights and I have PLR articles, programs, themes, e-book’s, and many more types of content available at my fingertips. I do not directly use this content, but I use it for ideas and a base to start from. Just say I wanted to write an e-book about using Google Plus. I would download three or four different PLR reports from the member’s area and compare and collate these reports into one. Then I would rewrite and add fantastic content and images to the report. This will add my personal touch. Let me tell you why I am still a member of this website and pay 19.95 per month.MRR Membership

  1. I learn crazy tips and tricks from all the content.
  2. I need the ideas to keep my content production flowing.
  3. It is a bargain! The best money I have EVER spent!
  4. PLR saves me time by cutting my researching time down by 50%.
  5. I get free WP Plugins, software, graphics, themes, and more.

Outsource It

If you are stuck for content ideas and you do not have content on an already established website, no problem, just outsource the project. That sounds extremely easy, but to be entirely honest with you, outsourcing is not easy. I have been outsourcing projects for more than five years now and it has taken me this long to find my own great writers that I can really rely on. Trust me; I have had some bad ones! I have had people that have stated that they are experts in particular topics and definitely were not. I have had people send me scraped content and sometimes even directly from my own websites. (That one was not amusing!) Anyway I am not saying that you should not try outsourcing, I just think that you should be very careful and be prepared to waste a bit of money.

The main outsourcing sites are Odesk and Elance but it does not matter which one you choose as there are good and bad contractors on all sites.

How to Organize and Format E-Book Content

Organizing your e-book with an easy to read structure is very important. Think about what you should be talking about in a logical order. Obviously you cannot talk about building a website until you have somewhere to host a website. Also you cannot build a website until you choose a content management system. All of these steps go into a certain order and you must think about this when writing E books.

Here are some quick tips on how to format your e-book:

  • Use MS Word. Keep it simple. Save as a PDF file type.
  • Add Headings and Subheadings ( I use H1 and H2)
  • Make a TOC (table of contents) or I have a free Word 2007 eBook.
  • Large font (12-14)
  • Chapters = H1 Subheadings = H2

We can use my free Ebook about How to Build a WordPress Website to see the format I use.

Brand Your Ebook

Branding your e-book is very important, just like branding your website or your business. There is no point creating an e-book if you have not branded it with your particular logos, URL, and contact details. Here are some quick tips for branding your e-book:

  • Add Social networking buttons to your book. I have a free ebook you can download that shows how to do this.
  • Add your logo.
  • Make an ebook cover or buy one from Fiverr.
  • Add a footer message/copyright.
  • Link to another goal at the end.

Where to store your PDF

Setup Payment Processing For Your E-Book

Nowadays you have many options when it comes to payment processing for your e-book. If you have a website you can simply create a PayPal buy it now button for people to directly pay you for your e-book. This method involves you uploading your PDF file to your server so the buyer can download the book when paid for.

  • Create a Paypal Button (fees deducted at each sale, cheapest way)
  • Signup with E-junkie ($5 a month, I haven’t tried this)
  • Jv Zoo (The new kid on the block, great features, second cheapest)
  • Clickbank ($50 setup fee then fees deducted on sales)

Create a Base Sales Page

Create a sales page for the Ebook. This can be on your website or on another domain altogether. I have made complete mini sites dedicated to ebooks, I have sold ebooks from larger websites and I have just simply given them away. All of these methods still require a sales page as you need somewhere for your book to live. As for the sales copy, do not worry too much, just tell the truth. show people the clear benefits to buying or downloading your book and do not ramble on too much. The best way is to make a sales page and then tweak it gradually so you can learn what works. Never make big changes. only small ones, so if something improves you will know exactly why.

Create a Thank You Page

After purchasing your Ebook you now know that the person landing on the thank you page is a “buyer”. So this page is important and should be tested and tweaked to reach more goals. Do not just end the process there.

Setup Auto Delivery or Download

There are a few ways to do this. For example, if you are using a E-Junkie you can upload it to their servers for auto delivery. However if you are going it alone and using a Paypal buy it now button, there are a few more steps involved. If you are uploading your Ebook to your server, you need to take some precautions to secure your download. For example you can no index and nofollow your download page. These are SEO options in my WordPress theme but if you do not have Thesis then you can manually nofollow and noindex a page through your robot.txt file.

Promote Your Book

Of course you want to promote your Ebook just like you should promote each new blog post, the difference is you should not stop.

  • Give it a prominent position on your website.
  • Guest Post about it often.
  • Give a teaser away.
  • Give copies away to influential people in your industry and ask for a testimonial. Post these testimonials on your sales page.

Take it Further

I am not writing an eBook here you know so I will give you some quick tips to promote your eBook further.

  • Publish a sample on document sharing sites. You can get this done for $5 on Fiverr.com.
  • Upload to Amazon as a Kindle Book. If you want to take advantage of the free promotion method you must publish exclusively to Amazon first.
  • Try some viral marketing strategies, especially if your book is for free.

If you think your not ready to create an Ebook or you are not good enough, think again? All steps to earning a decent income online involve action taking steps. Just go out and take action and forget those stupid excuses NOW!

About mitz

My name is Milica Pantic but everyone calls me Mitz. I am addicted to internet marketing and making money online. Who wouldn't want to live that life? I started out with one website as a hobby and now have over 20. Building websites and making money online is not that hard. You have to actually take action to make money...that is the biggest hurdle! :)

63 Comments

  1. Pingback: Quickly Building Blogs That Make Money - Web SEO Tips

  2. shane watson

    January 27, 2013 at 1:01 pm

    i am in need of a writeup regarding E-Book creation and i have found your blog which provides complete detail plan of writing and selling Cheers
    shane watson recently posted..banner2

    Reply

  3. Kundan

    January 26, 2013 at 5:20 am

    Great tips for creating an e-book to sell on website. very informative post thanks for sharing.

    Reply

  4. Sagar nandwani

    January 24, 2013 at 11:08 am

    i was looking for this from a long type and today found here creating e-books can help us very much as i will help us in building links with people all around the globe……

    Reply

  5. Gel Maine

    January 24, 2013 at 1:25 am

    Hi there mitz,
    Ebook can help you build relationship as well as knowledge by compiling what you know in a certain topic that could possibly help them. Nowadays, most bloggers offers Ebook to build relationship with their readers. This is also a great way to get genuine traffic to your website.

    Thank you for your post :D
    Gel Maine recently posted..What Makes Filipino the Best SEO Virtual Assistants?

    Reply

  6. mohit

    January 23, 2013 at 11:05 am

    I agree with you,we will give it for free only when we are looking to build a E-mail list for our further goals.

    Reply

  7. Jean

    January 21, 2013 at 11:01 am

    Wow, so much interesting information! I guess I will never ba able to finish a book that could bei published as E-Book, but I like the though anyway.

    Reply

  8. Calra

    January 21, 2013 at 9:07 am

    Creating an E-book is a best way to promote your works, nowadays. Your guide will be really helpful especially to newbies. Some people who create their own ebook give a numbe rof free downloads for trials, then if it reached the certain number, they sell it for a reasonable price. I think it’s one way to promote your ebook.

    Reply

  9. Mark Morphew

    January 21, 2013 at 6:49 am

    Hey Mitz – Great article!

    I’ve been working on an eBook on and off now for months and can never find the time to finish it – trying to build the structure of the book is what I find the hardest.
    You have mentioned some great ideas and tips that I will definitely implement whilst finishing off my eBook.

    Mark
    Mark Morphew recently posted..Ted (Two-Disc Combo Pack: Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy + UltraViolet)

    Reply

  10. Birkk

    January 19, 2013 at 11:02 pm

    Thanks for your article. Who don’t want to see his/her ebook on internet… That’s also one of my dreams.
    Birkk recently posted..Kış Konulu 10 Harika Windows 8 Tema

    Reply

  11. Soren Sjogren

    January 18, 2013 at 8:32 pm

    Working on a Mac I would advise against using MS word when converting to PDFs. The problem is that hyperlinks will not be clickable when converting. I still create content in MS Word (I have worked with for years now) but I have bought pages to save the content as a pdf with clickable links. Pages also allows you to save as e-pub.
    Soren Sjogren recently posted..Skideballen som ledelsesværktøj

    Reply

  12. Emilia

    January 17, 2013 at 11:40 am

    I though it is a bit impossible to create my own ebook that can be sold, but thanks to you, I think I’m more confident to start making it happen. Thanks!!

    Reply

  13. Veronica

    January 17, 2013 at 10:40 am

    I definitely dream of having my own made ebook to be sold with everyone. Your post is like a rea

    Reply

  14. Werry Adnan

    January 17, 2013 at 2:03 am

    Create an e book is great way to make money online. I want to learn about how to create e book and now i have found the best tips in this post. This posting is very complete, now i’m ready to create my own e book. Thanks mitz for share this great information
    Werry Adnan recently posted..Gratis E Book Peninggi Badan

    Reply

  15. Julia Spencer

    January 16, 2013 at 7:31 pm

    After writing a book, most attention should be certainly paid to its promotion. Because until people will find out about it, success won’t be achieved and benefits or profits won’t be got

    Julia Spencer’s recent post.. Facebook Portfolio Page: Excellent Way to Promote Your Art Works

    Reply

  16. Tushar

    January 16, 2013 at 12:52 pm

    There are some automated tools online for free. Use it to make an e-book out of your blog and get an nice cover and designs for your e-book.
    Tushar recently posted..Which things you should consider while buying Netbook

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 16, 2013 at 10:13 pm

      I like to keep control over the contents of the book and jazz it up a little bit. But I guess you could use that tool and then customize it after. Great idea!

      Reply

  17. Computer Tech Support

    January 16, 2013 at 7:21 am

    Every one on internet searches for quality content. Its very unfortunate with most of the websites published posts that are boring and out of context articles, just to show that new material is being published. Contrary to that immoral practice, this article is a well-written article.

    Reply

  18. Rajesh

    January 16, 2013 at 6:09 am

    Awesome post. I’d like to mention Lyx which is a great, free open source editor. It’s amazing at exporting to all kinds of formats including HTML and PDF and perfect for writing ebooks if you like a more technical word processor than Word. It fits in nicely with Calibre which can convert from HTML to all kinds of ebook formats.
    Rajesh recently posted..Basic Tips for Your Cairns Fishing Trip

    Reply

    • Mitz

      January 16, 2013 at 11:16 am

      Great tips thanks Rajesh! I must try that. Was that program renamed recently?

      Reply

  19. Jasmine

    January 16, 2013 at 2:57 am

    Wow, this is a great guide for people wanting to create ebooks. I am sure many beginners will find this guide really useful.

    I have also created a few ebooks, and one of them is on my web hosting site 100webhosting.com. I know that I can’t place a direct link here, but you can easily search for it on my website. Since I am still new to this, if you have a minute or two, perhaps you can take a look at my ebook and give me a few pointers on how to improve it?

    Thanks, Mitz.
    Jasmine recently posted..Host a Giveaway to Get More Readers (dofollow)

    Reply

    • Mitz

      January 16, 2013 at 11:19 am

      Yes I can look at your ebook. Just leave a link here, you are welcome to if you like. Otherwise just point me in the right direction. :)

      Reply

  20. Owen

    January 15, 2013 at 8:44 pm

    I’m relatively new to creating ebooks and this will definitely help me get started. Call me old fashion, but I just feel that if I put all my goodies into an ebook, users will take my information and probably never need to come back to my site again. Anyhow, my goal this year is to give it a shot and see how it goes. thanks mitz.
    Owen recently posted..How to become a Private Investigator?

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 16, 2013 at 12:41 am

      Most people I have given books to are very grateful and wait for more info from me. They also appreciate my gifts by buying stuff through my affiliate links when they are ready to buy. Who really cares about the ones that take the info and never return? They are not your customers.

      Reply

  21. zahid

    January 15, 2013 at 4:26 pm

    Great post. This will help also to get more out of it. E-book selling is not only a great business but it will also help to bring tons of traffic on a site/ blog.
    Nice!
    zahid recently posted..Zombies in Central Park

    Reply

  22. Shubhashish Shukla

    January 15, 2013 at 12:57 pm

    It would be a lot better to give it free of cost. I am planning to create one. But I am waiting to get a lot of free time. To make it a lot better.
    Shubhashish Shukla recently posted..How to insert your logo in your RSS feeds

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 16, 2013 at 12:49 am

      It is not always better to give it away free. It really depends on your goals and what type of info you have in the book.

      Reply

  23. Raplus

    January 15, 2013 at 12:33 pm

    I have a problem. Paypal does not fully support to my county. So is there any solution for me (Setup Payment Processing) ?
    Raplus recently posted..Why Should You Use a Premium WordPress Theme

    Reply

  24. KevinR

    January 15, 2013 at 12:33 pm

    The thing about eBooks is that they need to have something of substance in them. Something that the audience would want, valuable information. Most of the eBooks I’ve come across, esepcially those in the IM industry (‘how to increase traffic’, ‘get more visitors on your blog’, etc) are usually borderline garbage, and pretty much consist of rehashed information that is already a Google search away. Rarely do you actually come across eBooks that have valuable information and concrete takeaways in them.
    But this was an outstanding read, Mitz!
    KevinR recently posted..A Checklist of Things to Do Before Publishing a Post

    Reply

  25. Bbex

    January 15, 2013 at 6:45 am

    As far as I know, selling e-books is preferred by many Internet Marketers in making money. But this is the first time that I read about using PLR as content source so I may try your strategy one of these days. Giving out e-books is also a great way to build your brand and reputation. Besides selling it on your website, you could also post your e-book to Clickbank or maybe Amazon.

    Reply

  26. Lisha

    January 15, 2013 at 6:16 am

    Great Information. I’m just starting my first e-book and these are invaluable tips.
    I’m trying to figure out the best way to catalog these tips in a way that I can easily reference them at a later time.
    Thanks
    Lisha recently posted..drybook will add Texas based 30+ fans or likes within 24 hours for $5

    Reply

  27. Jacqueline

    January 14, 2013 at 8:36 pm

    I am a relatively new follower of yours, Mitz, and I have used information from your site for every step I have taken to create my soon-to-be-famous-and-very-lucrative WordPress website. I just started creating my first ebook so your article couldn’t be more timely.

    Reply

    • Mitz

      January 15, 2013 at 2:09 am

      Great that you have a path to success all planned! Even starting an Ebook too! You are definitely an action taker!

      Reply

  28. Osho Garg

    January 14, 2013 at 2:43 pm

    now a days, E-book plays a vital role for bloggers. You need to make it in order to bring your popularity as well as spread your knowledge. Thanks for tips

    Reply

  29. sara

    January 14, 2013 at 1:16 pm

    i wrote a lot tutorials and other stuff.. this seems to be a godd method to sell them ;) thx for sharing. great post!!:)

    Reply

  30. Pankaj

    January 14, 2013 at 9:16 am

    Really nice article, I too was thinking that creating an eBook is quite tough and only professionals can do it. But after reading your post one can say that having your own eBook is not as difficult as we feel.

    Reply

  31. Jules

    January 14, 2013 at 7:55 am

    Ebook can help your business credibility. It builds great relationship between you and your prospects.

    Reply

  32. Jason

    January 14, 2013 at 5:49 am

    Yes, indeed people create e-books out of their blogs or sometimes the best articles they written. Like you said, can get the help of a designer who could help us to design front covers for the book.

    Reply

  33. Maja

    January 13, 2013 at 5:37 pm

    I am learning a lot from internet since last five years but still do not know how to manage my all knowledge in the form of ebook.You have really guided me in this regard.

    Reply

  34. orjiakor

    January 13, 2013 at 5:02 pm

    This is a good tutorial, am planning to create E-book about blogging.

    But can you please permit me to sell any of your ebooks on my blog.

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 14, 2013 at 4:29 am

      You can give my free ebooks to your audience for free. I do not have ebooks for sale in this niche. I will soon though. :)

      Reply

  35. Tina

    January 13, 2013 at 4:23 pm

    This is such a cool article…You´ve given me confidence to follow my dream. I´ve always wanted to be a writer but I have no idea how to achieve this goal in my life. But with your advices I try to sell e book and when everything will go well I´m going to offer my book to publishers! Thank you for your valuable post and wish me luck :)

    Reply

  36. john

    January 13, 2013 at 12:34 pm

    This is what i call an encouraging article for all bloggers whether they are budding or successful.I really want this help, because i am going to write my e-book.

    Reply

  37. qadar

    January 13, 2013 at 12:29 pm

    Thanks for the article. Really looking forward to create my first ebook and sell it.

    Reply

  38. candice michelle

    January 13, 2013 at 11:50 am

    You’ve done an amazing job. I am so glad that, I decided to share it with us. Thanks for your efforts.

    Reply

  39. Sanjay

    January 13, 2013 at 7:00 am

    I think for websites that are really new, they can always go for PLR sites. For authority sites, content alone on that website is a good source. You can also use Indesign to create your ebook, more flexibility and design wise.

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 14, 2013 at 11:27 am

      yes straight plr is good for new sites but plr is also good to help you start your own ebook..

      Reply

  40. Steven Jude

    January 12, 2013 at 11:44 pm

    A fast way to create ebooks is to use private label rights articles. Nice article Mitz on how to create ebooks fast.
    Steven Jude recently posted..Keywords In Page Title For SEO + Time Management: The Key To A Stress-Free Life

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 14, 2013 at 11:17 am

      yes using PLR content can really give you a good start to your book. Otherwise some people will never actually start a book.

      Reply

  41. rahul

    January 12, 2013 at 3:30 pm

    i wanted to create a e-book and your post would help me a lott in this.thnxxxx
    rahul recently posted..Blogging Goals of 2013 to Make More Money

    Reply

  42. Sean Nicholson

    January 12, 2013 at 3:14 pm

    Great info, Mitz! I love the tip on using Fiverr to publish a preview our excerpt on a variety of different sites. Letting people preview a sample is a great way to let people see if the book meets their needs before buying, and the sharing only cost $5.

    Cheers!

    –Sean
    Sean Nicholson recently posted..[COMIC] Who Is Running Your Social Media Channels? Is It Your Intern?

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 14, 2013 at 11:09 am

      yes you can get the sample published to doc sites for $5. Also you can get a cover made.

      Reply

  43. Andy

    January 12, 2013 at 12:36 pm

    A great post. Keep posting such articles. Thank you. There is so much to learn from this blog and its administrator. I would like to order an E-book from you. Can I know the process to do this?

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 14, 2013 at 11:02 am

      I only have free ebooks here, some available in this article.

      Reply

  44. Rahul Kashyap

    January 12, 2013 at 9:31 am

    It is Awesome informative and valuable post. But I have entertainment blog. can i use this type strategy on my blog. Can i create ebook for my blog.
    Rahul Kashyap recently posted..Seven Psychopaths (2012)

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 14, 2013 at 10:59 am

      Yes of course you can.. It depends on what your audience likes..
      What about a book about the top 10 movies of all time or movies from 2012..then also suggest some places to join to watch movies and maybe make money from this.

      Reply

  45. Gautam

    January 12, 2013 at 8:09 am

    I have Heard many making money and Getting more and more subscribers by making An Ebbok and selling or Giving it on their site.. and i got your article interesting and good too… i will surely try this…
    Gautam recently posted..Top 10 Sites In The World

    Reply

  46. Melissa

    January 12, 2013 at 4:22 am

    Hi Mitz,

    Your ebook is nice in simple design. But your naming would be more pretty if you use hyphen or underscore instead of “space”. Now it showing “Building%20a%20Website.pdf” in the browser.

    Thanks
    Melissa recently posted..The waterproof phone Sony Xperia Z at CES 2013 make visitor Excited

    Reply

    • mitz

      January 13, 2013 at 2:58 am

      Yes I know what you mean!!! I have just left this as is for a few years now as there are links all over the internet..
      mitz recently posted..The Top 10 SEO Blogging Tips (dofollow)

      Reply

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