5 Best Platforms To Sell Digital Products For Beginners
Summary
TLDRThis video breaks down the top platforms for selling digital products, discussing the pros and cons of each. It compares options like Shopify, Hostinger, Gumroad, Stand Store, Podia, and warns against using Etsy. Shopify offers the most customization but can be expensive, while Hostinger is more affordable but limited in features. Gumroad and Stand Store are recommended for new sellers, while Podia is best for selling courses. The video emphasizes the importance of having a custom domain and controlling your business through your own website for long-term sustainability.
Takeaways
- 💰 The choice of platform to sell digital products can significantly impact earnings, potentially differing by thousands of dollars.
- 🏪 Shopify is recommended for those seeking maximum control, fewer fees, strong branding, and a professional look for their digital products.
- 🌐 Hostinger is suggested for budget-conscious sellers who want a website without high costs, starting at just $3.99 per month.
- 🚫 Avoid platforms that limit scalability and earning potential for long-term sustainable businesses.
- 🛍️ Custom domains are crucial for professionalism and can boost visibility and sales, with .store domains being particularly beneficial for e-commerce.
- 📈 Gumroad is user-friendly for both buyers and sellers, suitable for those not concerned about extensive branding or customization.
- 💬 St store is ideal for creators and influencers looking to sell products easily through social media platforms.
- 📦 Podia is an all-in-one platform for selling various types of digital products and is particularly strong for courses and memberships.
- 📉 Etsy is advised against due to its fees, risk of shop closures without notice, and competitive pricing pressures that can devalue products.
- 🔗 Marketing is key to selling digital products, and using the right platform can facilitate effective marketing strategies.
Q & A
What are the two platforms recommended for hosting your digital products if you want maximum control and branding?
-The two recommended platforms for maximum control, branding, and scalability are Shopify and Hostinger. Shopify is great for its extensive features and customization options, while Hostinger offers a more affordable option with fewer customization capabilities.
What are the main benefits of using Shopify for selling digital products?
-Shopify provides extensive customization options, a drag-and-drop interface, strong SEO and analytics features, and the ability to scale easily. It is ideal for sellers looking to build a highly professional e-commerce presence and may eventually want to expand into physical product sales.
What are the drawbacks of using Shopify for digital products?
-Shopify can be pricey, starting at $39 per month. Additionally, to sell digital products, a separate app may be required, which adds to the cost. This makes it less ideal for those on a tight budget or just starting out.
How does Hostinger compare to Shopify in terms of features and cost?
-Hostinger is significantly more affordable, starting at $3.99 per month, and includes features like a free email and domain. However, it is less customizable and cannot handle complex digital products like zip files, limiting its functionality compared to Shopify.
What type of sellers would benefit the most from using Hostinger?
-Hostinger is best suited for budget-conscious sellers who want a custom website with basic e-commerce functionalities and who do not need complex product options. It's a good fit for beginners looking to build an online presence affordably.
What are the main advantages and disadvantages of using Gumroad?
-Gumroad is simple to use, requires no upfront costs, and supports various digital product types. It also has built-in content protection features. However, it charges a flat 10% transaction fee, has minimal customization options, and may not be suitable for long-term branding needs.
Who should consider using Stand Store as their platform for digital products?
-Stand Store is ideal for content creators and influencers who focus on social media and want a user-friendly platform to sell simple digital products or services, such as coaching or memberships. It's also suitable for beginners looking for a low-maintenance option to get started.
What makes Podia a good choice for selling digital products?
-Podia is an all-in-one platform that supports memberships, courses, and various other digital products. It offers features like custom domains, direct messaging with customers, and no transaction fees. It's designed for sellers looking to build a digital product business or 'empire' and want to offer diverse product types.
What are some of the cons associated with Podia?
-Podia's pricing can be inconsistent, with changes in features and fees over time. It also has limited customization options compared to Shopify and can be inconvenient for non-course products due to the need for customer account creation.
Why is Etsy considered a risky platform for selling digital products?
-Etsy has multiple fees, lacks custom branding options, and is known for shutting down stores without notice, risking income loss for sellers. Additionally, Etsy’s focus on lower prices can lead to a 'race to the bottom,' making it hard for new sellers to compete and build a sustainable business.
Outlines
💡 Choosing the Best Platform for Your Digital Products
This paragraph discusses the importance of selecting the right platform for selling digital products. It emphasizes how the choice can impact profitability, scalability, and control. The speaker introduces Shopify as a top recommendation for serious sellers due to its robust features like SEO, analytics, and customization. However, it mentions cons such as high fees and the need for additional apps, making Shopify ideal for those aiming for large-scale operations. The next alternative platform, Hostinger, offers lower costs and fewer fees, but lacks some of the advanced features and customization options of Shopify.
🌐 Benefits of Using a .Store Domain
This section focuses on the importance of having a custom domain for professional branding. It promotes .store domains as a specialized option for online stores, stating they help boost visibility on Google and increase click-through rates. The speaker highlights celebrities using .store domains and offers a promotional deal for purchasing one. While it emphasizes the value of having your own domain, it also introduces third-party platforms like Gumroad for those who prefer not to create a website.
⚖️ Evaluating Third-Party Platforms Like Gumroad and Stand Store
Here, the speaker provides an overview of third-party platforms like Gumroad and Stand Store for sellers who prefer not to build their own websites. Gumroad is praised for its simplicity, lack of upfront costs, and ability to handle multiple types of digital products, but criticized for high fees and limited customization. Stand Store is recommended for social media creators due to its user-friendly interface and automated delivery, but it has limitations in terms of customization and professional branding. These platforms are suitable for new sellers or influencers looking for quick, easy setup.
🏗️ Podia: A Versatile Platform for Digital Product Empires
This paragraph introduces Podia, an all-in-one platform ideal for those looking to build a large digital product business. The speaker appreciates its support for multiple product types, including courses, memberships, and consultations, as well as its lack of transaction fees and customization options. However, Podia’s frequent pricing changes and limited customization compared to Shopify are noted as drawbacks. It is best for sellers focused on courses and memberships, with the speaker expressing personal experience using the platform.
🚫 Why You Should Avoid Etsy for Digital Products
The speaker strongly advises against using Etsy for selling digital products, sharing personal negative experiences with the platform. Despite making significant sales, their shop was shut down without explanation, and attempts to resolve the issue were ignored. Other cons include multiple fees, lack of custom branding, and Etsy's tendency to promote more established sellers over newcomers. The speaker argues that while Etsy can be useful for some, the risk of losing an entire business outweighs the benefits, especially given the platform's low pricing competition and limited control over branding.
🎯 Marketing Your Digital Products
The final paragraph provides a segue into the next step after listing digital products: marketing. The speaker mentions they have created separate videos on marketing strategies, linking these resources for viewers. This brief mention encourages sellers to not only focus on the platforms for selling but also on how to drive traffic and increase sales through effective marketing techniques.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Digital products
💡Shopify
💡Hostinger
💡Custom domain
💡Gumroad
💡Stand Store
💡Podia
💡Etsy
💡Content protection
💡Scalability
Highlights
Selling digital products on the right platform can be the difference between making $0 and $10,000.
Shopify is the most feature-rich platform with robust back-end features such as SEO, analytics, and upselling.
Shopify is ideal for sellers who are serious and looking to scale their business to $10,000+ per month.
Hostinger offers a more affordable alternative to Shopify with plans starting at $3.99/month.
Hostinger includes features like an AI website builder and does not charge transaction fees, but has limited customization options.
Gumroad is simple and has no upfront cost, making it a great option for new sellers, though it charges a 10% transaction fee.
Stand Store is best for creators and influencers offering digital products or coaching services, with built-in features for easy digital product delivery.
Podia is an all-in-one platform ideal for selling courses, memberships, and consultations with no transaction fees.
Podia allows for custom domains and supports various digital product types, but its fees and features may change frequently.
Etsy, though a popular marketplace, has many cons, including unpredictable shop shutdowns and multiple fees.
Etsy promotes established sellers, leaving new sellers to bring in their own traffic to make initial sales.
Using your own website gives you full control over branding, pricing, and customer connections.
Custom domains like .store domains are recommended for online stores, offering more visibility and potential discounts.
Digital product sellers should consider long-term sustainability, avoiding platforms with high fees and low scalability.
For digital product businesses, platforms like Shopify and Podia are best for scaling, while Etsy is more suited for short-term or risk-taking sellers.
Transcripts
where you sell your digital product
could be the difference between you
making $0 and $10,000 in your digital
product business to help you make the
best decision I'll be breaking down the
top platforms for digital product
sellers I'll go over the pros and cons
of each platform and I'll give them a
rating based on these things right here
so you can choose what's best for you
according to your own needs at the end
I'll tell you which one you should
probably avoid if you want to build a
long-term sustainable business to be
honest the people who don't use these
next two platforms are going to struggle
more because they're going to make less
money and have less scalability so if
you want Max Control less fees more
branding more professionalism I suggest
you host your digital products on your
own website and these are the two that I
recommend the first one that I'm going
to recommend is Shopify now Shopify is
the OG in the e-commerce game it's going
to give you the most features not only
for just how your store looks but also
the back end like with SEO with
analytics with all your tracking and
your upsells and stuff this is like the
e-commerce giant Shopify has a lot of
Pros for example it's super drag and
drop so you usually don't have to do a
lot of coding or anything if you don't
want to Shopify is also going to have
the most customization options that
means that you know if you're someone
who's very particular you wanted to look
exactly how you wanted to look if you
will have like a luxury brand you want
it to look the most luxury well you have
the most customization option options
out of everything on this list and
Shopify is good because if you ever want
to venture into like selling physical
products or selling anything related to
e-commerce you already have your branded
site and it's very easy to make that
pivot even though this is industry
standard there are definitely cons for
example Shopify definitely can get
pricey plans do start at $39 per month
and if you're just getting started that
can be a lot also I find that Shopify
has a lot of things that you have to add
for example you have to add a separate
app in order to sell digital products
and I believe that's another fee that
you have to pay even if it's like $10 a
month or something it's still another
fee and like that can get really
annoying when the fees add up for that
reason Shopify is best for sellers who
are very serious and who know they want
to scale this to like you know 10 20
$30,000 a month or Beyond if you love
all of that about Shopify but you don't
like all those High fees then I would
recommend this next platform which is
hosting
now hostinger has e-commerce options it
has website options it has all of that
but it is a lot more affordable with
their plans starting at just $3.99 per
month like Shopify you're going to have
control over your branding your
customization and hostinger even has
like AI website builder tools so that
you're not spending so much time on the
setup as you would with something like
Shopify with hostinger you also don't
need any external apps or anything to
sell digital products you can just
literally like sign up and start listing
your digital products they also don't
have any transaction fees and you get a
free email and a free domain like those
options are really good to me but with
that affordable price you are going to
get some cons the main cons is that it
is not as pretty and as customizable as
something like Shopify so if you're very
particular on the look you might feel a
bit limited with hosting her at least
that's how I felt and one thing I
definitely don't like about hostinger is
that although you can sell digital
products they do limit some of the types
of digital products that you can sell so
for example you cannot sell zip files
zip files are just files that have a lot
of other different files inside of them
so say I want to sell an ebook some
templates and some trackers I put them
all into one file and I sell it as a zip
file you can't do that with hostinger
hostinger you can only upload one file
per product and I find that really
annoying
if you're just selling an ebook or
something like that's fine if you're
just selling one file that's fine but if
you have like a package of files that
you want to send to people it's really
annoying that you can only do one file
per product with those pros and cons
hostinger is best for people who are
budget conscious they want their own
website they know how important it is
but they don't want to spend a lot of
money on it then hostinger is definitely
for you whether you choose Shopify
hostinger or any of the other ones on
this list having a custom domain is
going to be so important because that is
what what makes you look very very
professional for your custom domain
there are a lot of different options you
can go with but I recommend going with a
DOT store domain this is because a do
store domain is made specifically for
online stores and actually help you sell
more for example in a 12-month study do
store domains were shown to get two
times more visibility on Google and 87%
more people chose to click on them
people like Mr be Shakira and even
Rihanna have do store domains because
they really are that good it makes sense
for an e-commerce business and do store
domains also get really good discounts
that other domains wouldn't get for
example on Elevate do store you get
$2,500 worth of discounts on business
tools compared to other domains they
only get $1600 worth of discounts dot
store domains are super affordable so I
got you guys a special deal you can get
your dot store domain for just 99 Cents
for your first year all you need to do
is click the link in my description and
enter code energy at checkout thanks so
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this video for people who are like I
don't want to set up my website I don't
want to do all that I just want to use a
thirdparty platform well I have some
options for you guys too don't worry
even though I recommend selling on your
own website because you do have more
control like these third party platforms
you know could decide that they don't
want you on on their platform anymore
right that's just a risk that you're
taking it is beneficial because you
don't have to be a designer or do any of
that you just upload your products and
keep it pushing first one I'll recommend
is gum road now Gum Road is really good
both as a buyer and as a seller this is
great great for people who they just
want to list it somewhere they don't
care about branding they don't care
about personal lasers they don't really
care about any of that the pros of
gumroad is that it's super simple to
upload literally a baby could probably
upload something to gumroad and you can
sell a bunch of different things so you
can sell videos you could sell audios
you could even have a membership and an
email list so even though it is a third-
party platform like you get so many
features that sometimes it feels like
you have your own website and you can
even connect a custom domain I believe
too so it's like you know it's pretty
good with gumroad you're not having any
upfront cost or any monthly fees so this
is a way that you can get started with
your digital product business without
spending a lot of money gumroad also
does have a built-in Marketplace similar
to places like Etsy or Amazon um but I
wouldn't really rely on that too much
because it's not that popular but at
least it's there and you know you can
get organic traffic if you wanted to a
lot of people ask like what about
copyright how do I know that my content
is safe well gumro does offer a lot of
content protection measures to protect
creators even though there's all that
good there's always cons one of the
biggest cons for me is that gumroad is
very pricey in its fees so it's going to
take a 10% flat fee it doesn't have any
other fees and it doesn't have like a
paid program that you can join to get
rid of that fee so you're always going
to have to be giving away 10% of your
income also there's like very little if
any customization so what you get with
gumroad that that's what your customer
sees and there's not much that you can
do about it gumroad is best for new
sellers who just want something low
maintenance and they want something very
quick easy and they don't want to pay
any money for it for people who know
that they're going to be marketing on
social media then St store could be an
option for you this is because stor is
specifically created for creators and
influencers to be able to get products
out there in a very easy and
userfriendly way the pros of St store is
that because it's built for creators you
can offer a variety of different
services so you can offer digital
products you can offer coaching Services
I believe you can even offer memberships
as well with st store it's going to be
one of the best like Linkin bios for
your social media I'm telling you I've
used it I bought from St store and it's
so intuitive and so easy and customers
are very familiar with St store as well
because it's literally everywhere I also
like sand store because of its automated
delivery with selling digital products
sometimes you do have problems with
customers actually receiving the order
and stuff like that but stor is very
very good at giving the things to the
customers without any hassles so that's
going to help you keep your business
very efficient like Gum Road St store
does have the con that there is limited
customization what you see is what you
get with stand store you can't even sell
complex digital products there it's for
very very simple things you can sell
courses um but I don't think that that
their course platform is that good so
paying $29.99 a month month like the
value doesn't really match what you're
paying in that sense and with stor you
can't even have a custom domain so you
always have to have like St stor SL
whatever I don't really think that's
cool for building a long-term business
but there's people who make so much
money on stand stor because it's very
easy customers know it and like it's
just yeah really simple for social media
if you know that you want to be a
Creator and you want to sell digital
products related to you know your
content creation and stuff then stand
store is a really good option for people
who just want to get up and running it
might be good to validate your idea on
something like stand store or gumroad or
whatever and then once you're like
actually ready to have your own website
you can also do that another platform
that's kind of like a cross between a
third-party platform and something like
Shopify is podia poda is actually the
software that I've used for years to
sell my digital products and I like it
because it's an Allin one platform so
you can have your membership you can
have your email list you can sell
courses you you can sell consultations
you can sell all types of digital
products like it really is for people
who like want a digital product Empire
you can have your custom domain you can
customize the website how you want it
there are no transaction fees either so
you get to keep more of your money and
you can sell as many digital products as
you want to sell so yeah it's really
good platform I do like it they do have
good support and you do have a lot of
options for example you can message
directly with people who have bought
your digital products in case they need
help like this is good for me because I
sell a course and so yeah they have a
lot of features that I do like but they
also have some that I don't like that
need to be mentioned before you go ahead
and choose this option one is that their
monthly fee is $39 a month well they do
have cheaper plans $0 a month $9 a month
and their cheap plans used to be really
good you could sell like as many things
as you want the transaction fees weren't
that high like it was super good but
with pod they change a lot of things
regarding the pricing and they change it
in my opinion frequently so even though
today you sign up and you're paying $30
a month and you're getting X Y and Z
features in two months they can change
it and be like okay wait those features
are actually not going to be there
anymore you need to upgrade to get those
features that's what happened to me
recently and it really made me want to
switch um but I think like they were
able to work with me and give me those
old features back so I was like okay
fine I'm not angry but I do find that
annoying because if I'm going to have a
digital product platform I don't want
the fees to keep changing and the
features to keep changing also with
podia it really is for courses you can
sell other digital products but I found
that um it's a bit inconvenient because
like you have to sign up you have to
create an account I want something where
like they just enter their email you
send them the product they don't have to
create a password and all that stuff
that's it's annoying because like if I
see the that I have to do all of that
I'm just not going to buy it right so
that could mean Less sales for me it's
really for people I think it's best for
people who are selling courses or video
products also with podia you do have
limited customization compared to
something like Shopify but you have more
customization compared something like St
store or gumroad so it's like a middle
ground overall podia is best for people
who want to sell courses or memberships
it's really a Powerhouse for that and
it's going to do it better than any of
the other ones on this list now I did
say I'd tell you which one I would
definitely definitely avoid and I think
you guys already know what I'm going to
say if you've been watching my channel
it is Etsy now I hate Etsy really I sold
on Etsy that's where I got my start
selling my ebooks um for $20 or
something like this and I made a lot of
sales there but with Etsy they have a
lot of different fees they have like I
think two or three different fees that
you have to pay as well as Etsy is
Infamous for shutting down shops without
giving any reason so after making about
$20,000 on Etsy they decided to shut
down my shop and they didn't give me any
way to get it back I would email them
over and over and I wouldn't hear
anything back I tried for literally 2
years to get my shot back and nothing
was ever done and so I lost my source of
income overnight also with Etsy I know
there is an inbuilt Marketplace but with
a lot of new sellers etsy's not going to
promote OTE most of new sellers they're
going to promote people who are like
tried and true on the platform and so
with Etsy you still do have to bring in
a lot of your own traffic and get those
you know at least first 10 15 sales
yourself before Etsy really starts
pushing you and so in my opinion if I
already have to bring in my own traffic
in the beginning I'd rather just keep
bringing in my traffic be able to sell
at a higher price because with Etsy
everybody's on a race to the bottom on
Etsy everybody's trying to sell other
things as cheap as possible that's
really the name of the game and so you
as a seller are kind of especially as a
new one are forced to have your prices a
bit lower unless you're selling to your
own people so for that reason I'd rather
have my own website be able to charge
the prices that I want to charge be able
to keep more money and not wake up with
the fear that my store is just going to
be gone and I don't have any way to get
it back Etsy is really great if you're
willing to take the risk but I
personally after trying twice am no
longer willing to take that risk also
with Etsy there is no custom branding so
you are just one seller in the midst of
others and a lot of people are just
going to be shopping around they don't
have any connection to your store
specifically and so you don't have a way
to build like a very legit professional
business if you're just in the local
marketplace right with these other
platforms you're able to have your own
storefront there's nobody else that your
customer can look at and compare to
prices or anything it's just a lot more
professional having your digital
products listed is one thing but
marketing them is another thing so I
made some marketing videos I'm going to
link them on the screen and in the
description and I will see you guys in
my marketing videos
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