Last time we started exploring the idea of creating an e-book to promote an online course. An e-book is supposed to offer valuable content to potential course buyers, enough to solve some of their problems and get them hooked, but also to increase their appetite for more — and that’s where the course steps in. Content is king, no matter its shape or form.
Read more: A guide to creating an e-book to promote your online course [Part 1]
Creating the content for an e-book is not as complicated as you might think, especially after you have gone through the first steps of the process – researching your topic, finding out what else is on the market, and coming up with a cover and the design for the different sections.
In terms of length, keep in mind you are not setting out to produce the next Forsyte Saga. You want it to be easy to download and read so you should aim somewhere between 25 and 35 pages long. Accessibility and readability are key since most users will prefer to get the content on their mobile devices.
To recap, these are the first three steps you need to take in your journey of e-book creation:
Now let’s mote on to the HOW TO part, from writing it to making the most of it:
The language you use should be simple and straightforward. Stay away from highly academic turns of phrase and complicated theories. People who like exhaustive treaties on various subjects (such as, I admit, myself) have library cards. E-books need to be brief, to the point, and for a very large audience.
Here are some best practices to abide by when writing:
Read more: Why it’s important to master call to actions when promoting your online course
Your e-book will obviously need an online ‘home’ – that can be either a webpage or a blog post. In order for people to download your e-book, they’ll have to find it first so you’ll want to drive as much traffic to this page as possible by:
Read more: 7 Must-have elements on a converting landing page [INFOGRAPHIC]
E-books are very popular right now so yours has the potential of reaching very far corners of the internet via shares and recommendations. It is, therefore, essential that it acts as a very efficient ambassador for your business.
In order to thoroughly brand your e-book you should:
Read more: 6 Personal branding tips for knowledge entrepreneurs
Even if you are giving it away for free in order to promote your other products, you need to treat your e-book in the same way. It may be at no charge but you are still selling it so branding is important as is the next, final step.
At this point, you have all else figured out – an awesome, branded design, relevant and engaging content, and an optimized opt-in page. It’s time for promotion.
Your already established social media profiles are a good start but if you want to reach a wider audience (and, trust me, you do) you should also harness the potential of:
These are the free versions of marketing your e-book. If you have a budget for paid adds use it to promote your course rather than pushing something that is meant to get visibility and leads.
Read more: Promoting your online course through online ads: What are your options?
Creating a highly engaging e-book is not such a difficult task if you follow these steps. It’s important to keep in mind that your objective is to ultimately get leads from the readers so design everything with them in mind. You need to prove you are an engaging instructor as well as an authority on the topic so they will be inclined to purchase your online course.