How to Create Printable to Sell Online

This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click and buy, I may receive a small commission (at zero cost to you). Please see my full disclosure policy for details.

Love this article? Spread the word!

You want to make money blogging. But, more than that, you want to make passive income.  One of the easiest ways to make money on your blog is to create digital printables you can sell.

The truth is that the simplest way to make more money blogging is by creating printables you can sell.  These digital downloads solve many reader issues and are an easy way to increase your blogging income.

What is a digital product?

It is just what it sounds like.  A digital product, also called a printable, is something a customer purchases and can instantly download, print and use. They can be all sorts of products, including:

• Inspirational Sayings
• Checklists
• Calendars
• Planners
• Trackers
• Templates
• Books
• Workbooks
• Worksheets
• Lesson Plans
• ……and more!

If it can be downloaded and printed – it is printable!

You can find several offerings of printables in my shop — blogging checklist and niche planning guide. These printables were created to answer reader questions and concerns.

Simply put, printables that are successful fulfill a need for your customer.

Why should you sell printables?

Printable products are one of the easiest ways to make passive income. You create the form, upload, price, and then market it. When readers find what they are looking for, they buy, download and hit the print button.

There is no inventory to maintain.  There is little (to no) overhead at all.  It is truly the easiest way to make money that anyone can do.

And, if you are a blogger, it makes even more sense to sell these digital products.  Why?

If you offer a reader a free item to sign up to be on your list, you’ve already offered a printable.  You can take a simple idea and expand it, therefore offering a product people will pay you to purchase.

How much can you make from printables?

The truth is …. it depends.

There are some sellers who make as little as $25 a week and others who make thousands every single month selling their printables.

The reason it varies is that it depends on not only what you sell but where and how you sell it. It also depends on the time of the year.

For example, if you create printables for homeschoolers, you may see an increase in income in September and October. Or, if your product is a holiday planner, you will sell those in November and December (and not in May).

That is why the goal is to create evergreen products — or those that are helpful all year long. And, if you do offer seasonal items, ensure you have several products available to keep a continuous income stream flowing.

What printable will sell?

That, my friend, is the million-dollar question!  The truth is that you want to find a product to sell to your list that makes sense and solves a reader’s problem.

For example, my site is about blogging education. A budget binder may be a great product idea that people want, but does it make sense for my reader? No. It doesn’t.

However, what my readers would want is a blogging budget. It will help them plan and track finances for their blogging business. That does fit.

Don’t spin your wheels brainstorming ideas when one may be staring you right in the face.

How do you make a printable that you can sell?

There are many platforms you can use to create digital products.  You can use:

• Canva
• PicMonkey
• Google Sheets / Docs/ Slides
• PhotoShop
• Illustrator
• InDesign

Any of these platforms will work well to help you create the perfect printable. Your success or failure will not hinge on where the form is created but rather how the form looks and functions.

When designing a printable, keep the following in mind:

• Triple check for typos (nobody likes to pay for something with errors)
• Make sure it is original (don’t copy someone else’s idea)
• Save it as a PDF format
• It solves a problem for the reader
• Ensure it downloads easily
• It has color and interest to make it stand out

You may also want to get new fonts or elements to add to your product. The reason you may need to get font is that the free one you love may not be available for commercial use.

Where do you find fonts or elements you can use? There are a few options available:

• Creative Market
• Da Font
• Google Fonts
• Canva Pro (pro users can use both fonts and elements)

Even if you find one you love, check the terms to ensure you can use it on the printable you plan to sell.

Your printable needs to function above all else. It needs to deliver on its promises, or your customers will be left with a sour taste in their mouths.

Learn more about Creating Printables You Can Sell.

Selling printables on Etsy

The most popular place to sell your digital download is Etsy.

Why?

Because it has a huge reach and potential for helping you find the perfect customer (without worrying about paying for ads or having a huge email list). In 2021 the platform had more than 93 million users!!

However, using Etsy the right way takes more than creating a store and uploading printables. You need to know how to properly market your products so they can be found in a sea of competing products.

If you want to take your printables business seriously, you will want to take the time to research the platform and how to use it. It is also smart to invest in a course and follow people who have proven that they know what they are doing – and will show you how to do the same.

Where to sell printables online (besides Etsy)

There are many options available for selling your printables.  The method you select will be based upon your level of knowledge, desire for the look you want, and your budget. Three of them include Plugins on your site, a storefront that connects to your site, or a third-party provider.

Plugin on your site

Most bloggers lean towards using plugins to create a store where they can sell their products.  It sounds great, but the truth is that plugins are not the best solution.

Sometimes they require multiple plugin add-ons to function properly, which can, in turn, slow down your site. Plugins can also potentially lead to more vulnerabilities when it comes to security.

That does not mean you should not use them. It means you need to make sure you know how to use them properly.  That means:

• Research that the plugin has no current security flaws
• How it connects for payment
• Use a secondary or sub-domain (do not host it on your site)
• It is compatible with your theme and other site plugins

If you want to use a plugin, the two most popular options are WooCommerce and Easy Digital Downloads.  Both work very well and might be exactly what to need to use on your site.

Connected Storefront

Another option for selling digital products is using an external storefront, such as Shopify.  The way it works is rather simple.  You use their platform to create a store that looks and functions the way that you want.

Nothing is hosted on your site. No plugins. No connections.

Instead, you link to the storefront directly from the menu on your site.  When the reader clicks to shop, they will see the store.  They think they are still on your site, but they aren’t.

The reader shops as usual and can easily navigate back to your site once they finish checking out.

Third-party providers

You may also want to use a third-party provider. One example resource many use to sell printables is Etsy.  These sites host everything on their site – with zero connection to yours.

Rather than setting up a domain, you sign up with them. You will pay the necessary monthly fees, and they provide you with links to use on your site.

Those links are embedded into your blog posts, landing pages, and other places on your site. When the reader clicks to buy, they are directed to the third-party app to finalize their purchase.

The most popular third-party providers are SendOwl and Gumroad.   Before you sign up, make certain you read the terms and conditions so you know the monthly and processing fees each will charge.

How much should you charge for printable?

Pricing is a pain point for many.  After all, you do not want it to be undervalued, but at the same time,  you don’t want to price it too high.

The truth is that pricing will require testing and retesting. You will eventually find the sweet spot for pricing that allows you to make what you are worth, but that won’t turn off customers from buying.

Some find $2 works and others $15. They researched and learned what to price printables at for their reader.

Some bloggers make more 5-figures and more by selling digital downloads!  That may not be the case, but you can grow your store to a massive following over time and bring in consistent passive income month after month.

Creating a product is only one step. You will need to continue marketing it in different ways, so the right customers find and buy whatever you are selling.

Love this article? Spread the word!