You did it….you put the work in, created a digital product, and built a shop to generate that passive income. Buuuuut there’s still just one problem…you don’t have anyone to sell it to. 

Without a huge following, your shop has little to no reach and sales seem impossible right? Not exactly! True, you need people to know you exist to make a sale, but you don’t have to have a huge following. 

Let’s do a deeper dive into what is actually needed to get your digital store off the ground and seen by potential customers. 

The importance of hype

How can you expect people to know your shop exists if you never talk about it? And I’m not just talking about when you launch — I’m talking about before you launch. 

It may seem a little old school, but sometimes the best way to generate hype doesn’t involve all the fancy bells and whistles. Sometimes you just need to literally talk about it to other people. 

The next time someone asks you, “So, what do you do for work?” don’t be timid. Share what you do and what you plan on launching with the world — at parties, events, any social setting. Don’t be scared to put yourself and your product out there by word of mouth!

Word of mouth is one of the best referral systems, and having your product spread through the grapevine can open big doors for you as you get started. And if that all happens before you launch, you’ll have generated interest to make that initial launch period successful. 

Listen to me: There’s nothing wrong with hyping yourself up and selling your product in real-time. I know it’s easier said than done, but you can’t be afraid of sounding “too salesy.” You’ve gotta put yourself out there for people to know about your product!

And don’t forget to talk about it online, too

Having virtual chats is a great place to promote your product shop, too. Just make sure you have a place to direct interested people when talking about your new biz/product. This is obviously when a social media presence comes in handy, so people can see your products, your brand, and how you’ve been showing up and puttin’ in the werk.

That way, they can hit follow and stay in the loop about your launches or products. It also helps you build a more organic audience. 

Focus on one platform when “building a following”

Do you feel like you need to build a following in all the places, all at once? That’s a one-way ticket to burnout. It’s better to find one platform where you think your niche/target audience will be most responsive and to focus on that, rather than trying to make an appearance on several of them because the strain can decrease the quality of said appearance. 

Instead, feel out which platform is easiest for you to communicate and form connections with your audience. Don’t be afraid to dedicate time and energy to building an audience on one specific platform; it can create relationships that will follow you across other apps if they build that trust! 

Remember: Building an audience is a long game.

Create better content

When selling a digital product and getting it out there to the public, you want to talk about it all night and day! 

But don’t just talk about the templates or products you’ve created. Talk about who they’re for, the problems they solve, and common things that come up for people who need your products.

For example, let’s say you’ve created contract templates (oh yeah, I did that). I’m not just talking about contracts — that would be a total snooze-fest. Instead, I’m talking about nightmare clients (and how to protect yourself against them with said contracts), forming partnerships and LLCs (which also need contracts), how to get paid (with contracts)… you get the idea.

Be consistent

Again, the key to building a following or even just selling to the audience you have requires you to be consistent. I’m not saying you have to show up on TikTok multiple times a day like I do. I’m just saying, whatever platforms you use, keep showing up. You might want to blog to boost your SEO, you might want to post a Reel every other day on Instagram, or you might want to write newsletters every week to your email list. Hell, you might want to do all of the above. Whatever you do, be consistent.

Build a shop that grows for you

Building a digital shop from the ground up is no easy feat! It can be overwhelming with all the criteria needed. But here’s the thing — you don’t need a big following to grow your digital product shop. You just need strategy!

It is not impossible to build a digital shop with little to no following, and Launch Your Shop Academy® can show you how! 

LYSA goes into the minute details that help small business owners get their shop up and running without all the overwhelm. I’ve built my platforms from the ground up with these strategies, and I’m confident you can too!

If you’re interested, meet me here!