We’re going to talk about creating fitness digital products today. But, first… a story.
Why Fitness Digital Products Are Valuable
I was sitting in the grocery store parking lot this past weekend waiting to pick up my ClickList order when I realized something. If you don’t know what ClickList is, basically we can order our groceries online. A Kroger employee will grab everything inside and then someone brings it to our car in the parking lot. We pay $4.95. That’s four dollars and ninety-five cents in order for all of this magic to happen so I can be spoiled and just sit in my car instead.
Even though it isn’t exactly passive because an employee is still having to walk around the store and grab my groceries, this service meets a need and adds convenience. Similarly, health and wellness professionals can create fitness digital products to meet customer needs while generating passive income.
The Four Stages of Creating a Fitness Info Product
There are four main stages of info product development: Research, Marketing, Development, and Launch. Let’s break each of these down.
Research: Understanding Your Audience’s Needs
This is the foundational step in creating any fitness digital product. Begin by engaging with your audience and clients to identify their specific needs.
Do they need a monthly meal plan, a macro calculator, a spreadsheet, or perhaps a six-week workout guide? You can schedule Zoom or Skype calls with them, or create a quick online survey. Doing both is also an option. The advantage of an online survey is that it requires less time from you and is easy to distribute via social media or email lists. (Check out another post I have if you need help building an audience first!)
Ensure your survey includes a mix of broad and specific questions. For example:
- Broad question: What is your biggest fitness or health challenge?
- Specific question: How much time do you have to work out each day?
Once you have an idea, validate it by confirming it’s truly what people want. Sometimes, despite thorough research, it’s essential to double-check your findings.
Revisit the same group and share the product name along with a detailed outline of its contents. Ask for their feedback. However, be aware that many people might say, “Oh, yes, I would totally buy this,” simply to avoid hurting your feelings. It’s not necessarily that they mean no—they might genuinely believe they would buy it at that moment.
In essence, directly asking, “Would you buy this?” isn’t always effective because most people will say yes. The only truly helpful feedback comes when someone explicitly states, “I wouldn’t buy this because it’s not what I need,” giving you valuable input to reconsider or refine your idea.
Marketing: Building Anticipation for Your Digital Product
To be honest, info product marketing and development should happen simultaneously. Start promoting your product early to build anticipation. You need to warm up your audience and pique their interest because a sudden, unannounced launch without any buildup is unlikely to yield the sales you want.
Talk about your info product on social media several times a week and encourage people to join your email list. Be sure to inform your existing email subscribers as well. The key is to segment your list—separating those who have expressed interest from the rest—so you can send a dedicated launch email sequence to build anticipation.
While a segmented approach is important, you should still send a general announcement email to your entire list on launch day. Even those who didn’t initially show interest may find it appealing at that point. This is also the time to seek out affiliate partners. Reach out to your business connections and past clients to see if they’d be willing to share your product.
If you’re a personal trainer, finding affiliates in the same field might be tricky, as they may hesitate to send their clients to you. Instead, connect with professionals in related fields, such as health coaches or dieticians. Some might be willing to promote your product during the buildup phase, while others may only be able to share it on launch day.
Make the process as seamless as possible for your affiliates. Provide them with pre-written social media captions, emails, and graphics for platforms like Instagram, Instagram Stories, and Facebook.
For affiliate management, you have several options:
- Favor-Based Sharing: Ask affiliates to share your product as a favor, without expecting a payout.
- Affiliate Platforms: Use services like Gumroad, which makes affiliate setup easy by simply entering an email and assigning a payout percentage.
- Advanced Options: Consider platforms like SendOwl, which offer more features but may require additional setup and fees. If you’re using WordPress, plugins like AffiliateWP, Affiliates Manager, or Ultimate Affiliate Pro are great choices.
If your product is a course rather than an ebook or guide, platforms like Teachable and Thinkific are highly recommended. Both offer free options and built-in affiliate management.
The final component of marketing your info product is your email sequence. Keep your product and brand top of mind over the weeks or months leading up to your launch. As people join your email list to stay updated, send them weekly emails that deliver value. For example, if you’re launching a workout guide, your emails could cover topics like the benefits of regular exercise or provide bonus exercises to keep your audience engaged.
You can automate this process by setting up an email sequence triggered when someone subscribes through a specific form. With your affiliates on board and marketing efforts in place, you’re well on your way to a successful launch.
Development: Creating the Fitness Info Product
Once your marketing is underway, it’s time to focus on product development. Start by organizing your content.
My book editor, Jodi, shared a helpful method when I was writing my book. Begin by writing everything down on a piece of paper without worrying about structure—it doesn’t even need to be in list form. It can be completely sporadic. Next, grab some highlighters or markers in different colors. Use one color to circle related items. For example, you might circle all warmup exercises in pink or all breakfast ideas in yellow.
This approach creates a semi-organized brain dump, helping you visualize your content without getting bogged down by order. If you’re new to writing or want extra guidance, I recommend the Hemingway app. This free tool allows you to paste your text and get suggestions on improving readability, such as breaking up long sentences or replacing complex words.
Another area where many people struggle during development—and my personal favorite—is designing the info product.
I use Adobe Creative Suite because it’s the industry standard, but it’s pricey and has a steep learning curve. For those who prefer a DIY approach, I highly recommend Canva. It’s a free tool with optional premium features, such as uploading custom fonts or saving brand colors.
Canva offers a wide range of templates, making it easy to create a cohesive and visually appealing info product. If you need help getting started, check out my YouTube channel, JessCreatives.video, where I have a playlist of Canva tutorials. As a general rule, stick to two or three fonts and two or three colors to maintain a clean, professional look.
Before launching your product, it’s essential to get feedback. I always have a few business friends review my info products, and I also offer early access to a couple of trusted clients to gather their input. This ensures that the product makes sense, flows well, and looks polished. You can follow a similar approach by seeking both design and content feedback.
Launch: Selling Your Digital Product
If you don’t have a website, Gumroad is an excellent platform for selling info products, as mentioned earlier. For those using Squarespace, it’s straightforward to set up a digital product and make it available on your site. WordPress users can leverage the Easy Digital Downloads plugin, which is also simple to install and use. On my YouTube channel, JessCreatives.video, you’ll find tutorials for setting up digital products on both Squarespace and WordPress. (There are even more platform options available.)
Once your info product is ready, upload it to your chosen platform and set a price. Share the product link with your affiliates or ambassadors. Additionally, promote it on all your social media channels and notify your email list. A highly effective strategy is to launch with an introductory price and increase it after a few days. For example, you could launch on a Wednesday at $29 and inform your audience that the price will rise to $49 by Friday, encouraging them to act quickly. You might also consider adding a tripwire offer.
To further boost your launch, consider running Facebook ads targeting your email list subscribers. You can upload your subscriber list directly to Facebook. Alternatively, if you have a Facebook pixel installed on your website, run ads targeting visitors who viewed your sales page but didn’t make a purchase. Contrary to popular belief, this approach doesn’t require a large budget to be effective.
Recap: Your Fitness Digital Product Roadmap
Your work doesn’t stop at launch. To maximize the success of your fitness digital product, continue nurturing your audience:
- Post-Launch Engagement: Keep sharing updates, testimonials, and tips related to your product on social media and through your email list. This helps maintain interest and can attract new buyers.
- Collect Feedback: Reach out to early buyers and ask for their feedback. Use this input to improve future versions or develop complementary products.
- Create Upsells or Bundles: Once your product gains traction, consider creating additional offerings, such as advanced versions or bundled packages, to provide more value to your customers.
By following this process and remaining committed to serving your audience, you can build a successful stream of passive income while helping people improve their health and wellness.
If you found this guide helpful, please share it on social media or leave a review. Feel free to reach out to me on Instagram @jesscreatives with any questions. Good luck with your info product creation!