Digital goods, which also go by the names electronic goods, e-goods and downloadable products, are an integral part of e-commerce. Consumers are becoming accustomed to buying tangible goods on the internet, but egoods are making waves as well. These terms all refer to products that are stored, downloaded and used in an electronic format. Examples of such products include e-books, software, music files, digital images, e-tickets and html templates. These items can be retrieved by downloading a link either on the ecommerce web site itself or in an email.
The buying and selling of egoods are turning into a very profitable business with an enormous potential to grow even bigger in the years to come. People are getting accustomed to purchasing and using egoods and in many cases like it better than physical goods. There are some main differences between physical goods and e-goods. Not to say that electronic goods are better than tangible goods, but there are a few key advantages. Here are just a few to consider:
- No inventory
- No shipping
- Little to no startup cost
- Consumers get instant gratification
- Transaction is almost automatically completed
- Costs the same to sell one or thousands
If you are interested in starting an e-commerce business and have no money to invest then you should start to sell downloadable e-goods. If you already own an online store and want to give your customers more choices then sell some egoods with your regular products. There is such a wide variety of downloadable goods which makes including them into an existing e-commerce business very easy. An ecommerce solution which provides its clients the ability to sell downloadable e-goods needs to have some of these basic functions:
- Automatic product download
- Multiple file download for one product
- Custom download rules that give you the option to select # of clicks or # of days the link is valid for and also the option of identifying customer IP addresses for product downloads
- Shipping is optional
- Allows specification of product options and variables
- Simultaneous tangible goods and e-goods checkout
- Encrypted URL for added security
Just listing e-goods on your e-commerce site is not enough to really boost your sales revenue. You have to market your egoods much like you would your physical products. There are a number of ways to promote electronic goods online. One of the most effective methods is to start an affiliate program, which happens to be much simpler than starting an affiliate program for tangible products. One of the biggest marketplaces for egoods on the web is ClickBank, they feature primarily e-books and software. You will be able to access thousands of affiliates by becoming a member. Another effective technique is to search for product directories that feature the type of downloadable products that you sell and get listed there. There are a lot more creative methods to market your egoods, just try to think outside the box.
There are special tools that are needed to successfully sell downloadable e-goods online. It begins with using the right ecommerce solution. When you have the proper tools, you will be able to sell as many electronic goods to as many people as possible. Sell it on its own or alongside other products, the choice is yours.
What you need is a full service all-in-one hosting, design, and marketing software made specifically for e-commerce businesses. One that lets you set up your store in minutes, and provides powerful tools to help with not only selling digital goods, but also SEO, product marketing and mobile commerce. Check out the best possible e-commerce solutions available at http://www.makeanonlinestore.com and try them out yourself absolutely free, no credit card required!
