WordPress Development is one of the hottest fields in the world of design today. As more people realize the power that WordPress can bring to their website, you can expect more people to look for premium themes and custom theme developers. So if you are already technical enough to pick up WordPress design, now’s the time to get hone your skills and join thousands of others who are using their skills to make a living designing WordPress themes and plugins. As someone who has been in the technical world for a decade, I can tell you that a lot of technical folks don’t know how to market themselves and their products effectively. I have a few friends who design killer applications but don’t know how to monetize their work and get people to buy from them.That could be troubling if you are hoping to quit your day job and go into a business venture all by yourself.
In reality, selling your own product is not that different from selling other people’s products. You need to understand who your audience will be and try to address its needs and demonstrate why people should pick up your WordPress work. It’s one thing to say, “my work is great, please buy!” It’s another thing to carefully hit on the needs and wants of your audience and show them what your work is all about.
I have been studying the top WordPress developers for years now. The WordPress elite not only know how to market their products, they know how to maximize their profits and get more done without slaving themselves 24/7. You can always try to work harder, but there are a limited number of hours in each day, and there is so much sales you can make by yourself. By using a well-rounded strategy, you can not only use others to make sales for you, you can free up enough time to create even more products.
How To Promote Your WordPress Product
Here are a few steps that you need to take to promote your product more effectively and build a viable WordPress business;
- Listen: these days you shouldn’t have trouble listening to what your prospects want in a WordPress theme. Sites such as Twitter, BlogPulse, AllTop, and even Facebook allow you to find out what matters to your potential customers, and how you can design your landing pages to grab their attention.
- Clarity: be clear about what you are offering. Make sure you let people know about how they can use your themes, and what are their rights. Be sure to let people know how buying a multiple-site license can save them money in the long term.
- Landing Page: just having a portfolio page for your WordPress products is not enough. You need to design a landing page for each and every WordPress theme that you develop. Don’t forget that your landing page should hit on those important points that would make your prospects click on the “Buy” button. Keep things simple and structured. And don’t forget to product your readers with a way to demo your theme and even provide them with a video sneak peek.
- Call to Action: when it comes to making sales, you need to make sure you have the right call to action in place for your visitors to take action more easily. Do yourself a favor and add a “Buy now” button to your pages. Don’t just link to it.
- Testing: you should test every aspect of your landing page to figure out what works the best. A/B testing is not rocket science. It’s easy to do and helps you increase your conversions over time.
- Promotions: everybody likes a bargain. We all love saving money on our purchases. So if you have multiple themes and want to make more sales, throw a 2 for 1 theme promotion. Think outside the box.
- Affiliate Program: don’t underestimate the power of having an affiliate program to push your product. Top affiliates are highly capable marketers, and they can help you make more sales without you having to pay them anything up front. Sure, these commission checks cut into your profits, but you end up making more sales and more money in the process.
- Giveaways: you can always use giveaways to spread the word around your brand on social media sites and get more people to visit your online portfolio. You’d be surprised how many eyeballs you can get to your site by giving away an iPhone.
- Forums: you’d be surprised how many people look at how you support your existing customers before purchasing anything form you. Having a forum in place for each product not only makes it easier to address your customers’ needs, but it gives your prospects the impression that you do provide post-sale support.
- Social Media: a no brainer, but you should take time to register a Facebook page for your products and be involved on Twitter. You can get more out of these sites by providing exclusive deals and so on.
- Freebies: I don’t know a single top WordPress developer that doesn’t offer a free product. Free products can go viral easily and drive back more visitors to your website, so you end up making more in the long run.
- Memberships: WordPress memberships sell awfully well. People don’t mind paying less up-front to become a part of a membership site that provides them with value on a consistent basis. The good thing about membership sites is that you get to collect fees on a monthly basis so you can focus more on providing value.
Simple, isn’t it? I will discuss specific case studies in future posts to demonstrate how top developers are making a living selling WordPress products. If you have got the talent, there is no reason you shouldn’t go for it. Stay tuned for more…