Why You Should Create a Blog Ebook

Have you ever scrolled through the sidebar of a blog and seen an advert for their ebook? More and more bloggers are turning to ebooks to take their blog to the next level, but is creating one right for you?

Why does my blog need an ebook?

You can simply allow readers to download an ebook for free from a page on your blog, but this doesn’t really benefit you more than writing it as a series of blog posts would. Instead, think about what you can ask from your readers that they wouldn’t give you in exchange for just a blog post, such as:

• Money – you can charge users to download your ebook, adding another revenue stream to your blog monetisation strategy
• A newsletter sign-up – you can incentivise readers to subscribe to your newsletter by sending them a free ebook when they do

If you’ve never published an ebook before, it may be best to start out with the second option and think of it as a learning curve – once you’ve figured out the best ways to promote it, you’ll be in a better position to launch a paid-for ebook that receives lots of purchases rather than just tumbleweed!

 

 

What should I write my blog ebook about?

There are two different routes you can go down when choosing an eBook topic – write for your existing readers, or write for other bloggers.

Ebooks for your readers

An ebook for your readers is simply an extension of what you normally blog about, e.g. parenting advice if you’re a parenting blogger. It can be easier to promote as you’ve already got an audience that visits your blog looking for this type of information.

To come up with a good topic, think about what you’re most expert in and have a lot to say about, and use your most popular blog posts as a guide to the topics that your readers are most interested in. If there’s an overlap, voilà, your first ebook’s theme! Above all, your ebook should be useful, so consider what question you can answer or what you can teach your readers with it. Try to find a balance between a topic that’s too broad and one that’s too specific.

For example, if you’re a beauty blogger there’s probably not enough you can say about perfecting winged eyeliner to write a whole ebook on just that, whilst an ‘ultimate guide to doing your makeup’ would either take far too long to write or miss out too much crucial information. However, an ebook teaching beginner eye makeup, discussing essential products and with tutorials for 10 popular day and night looks, could be just the thing.

Ebooks for other bloggers

Whether they’re writing about food, fashion or fitness, there’s one that that all successful bloggers have in common – they’re experts in blogging! From learning what goes into designing a great blog site, to figuring out how to build a loyal audience on Instagram, all bloggers have some expertise that could help newer bloggers to grow and improve.

Think about what you’re most proud of in relation to your blog. Perhaps you have a huge Pinterest following, or maybe you make a good income from affiliate marketing. It’s not all about the numbers though – if you’re brimming with advice on creating beautiful flat-lays for Instagram, that’s something bloggers will want to know about too!

 

That’s it for today, but we’ll be back next week with a Part 2 where we cover how to write, design and promote an ebook. In the meantime, have a think about which topics could work for you and your blog.

If you have any other ebook questions you’d like us to answer in the next article, leave them in the comments section below.