Selling digital products is a fantastic way for small business owners to generate passive income, and Canva makes the design process easy and accessible. Whether you want to create planners, templates, eBooks, or social media graphics, here’s a step-by-step guide to getting started.
Choose Your Digital Product
Start by deciding what type of digital product you want to create. Popular options include:
– Social media templates
– Printable planners and workbooks
– eBooks and guides
– Digital stickers and journals
– Business branding kits
Choose something that aligns with your expertise and solves a problem for your target audience.
Design Your Product in Canva
Canva offers many templates to help you create professional-looking designs. However, you do need to ensure that you are not using and selling an existing creators template as is. By all means, use existing templates for ideas and inspiration but create your own from scratch.
Keep these tips in mind:
– Stick to a consistent colour scheme and fonts.
– Use high-quality elements and graphics (stick to free elements)
– Ensure your designs are easy to edit (share a link directing buyers back to Canva).
– Include clear instructions if necessary.
Save and Export Correctly
For best results:
– PDF Print for planners, workbooks, and eBooks.
– PNG or JPEG for digital stickers and graphics.
– PDF Standard if the file needs to be editable.
– If selling editable templates, share them via a Canva template link (Update: this is now a Canva Pro feature from March 2025)
Set Up Your Online Store
You need a platform to sell your products. There are many options available including:
– Etsy – Great for selling printables and templates.
– Gumroad – Simple and beginner-friendly for digital downloads.
– Shopify – Best for building your own branded store.
– Payhip – A free option that handles VAT for digital products.
– Your own website – Gives you full control over pricing and branding.
Do your research and remember to check for all the fees involved.
Promote Your Digital Products
Marketing is key to making sales, here are some useful strategies:
– Showcase your products on social media.
– Create Pinterest pins linking to your store.
– Offer a freebie to grow your email list.
– Share testimonials and user-generated content.
– Run limited-time offers to encourage purchases.
Keep Improving and Expanding
As you start making sales, listen to customer feedback and refine your products. Expanding your range or offering bundles can help boost revenue over time.
