Product Creation Part 4

Product packaging is an important but overlooked step. Sometimes a great e-book cover is all it takes to turn a poorly selling product into a super, profit-pulling monster.

Putting the Product Together:

PDF

There are two common formats for e-books: PDF and EXE. PDF is the more commonly used of the two. However, there is a lot more you can do with EXE files.

You can place multimedia, flash and other elements into EXE files. So, why don't people use them? There are two reasons: first, a lot of people online have been trained to be wary of executable files - using PDF is just a matter of making the customer feel safe. The second reason: Mac users. Mac users can't open Windows EXE files. PDF is the alternative that allows you to reach every user in the market.

Creating a PDF document is fairly easy. You can use a standard editor like MS Word. All you do after that is run the document through a converter to get your PDF file. There are several solutions on the market today:

http://www.clicktoconvert.com
http://www.fastpdf.com
http://www.pdf995.com
http://createpdf.adobe.com

Please note that some of these services are free and others require a one time fee or monthly subscription.

Graphics

You'll want some attractive graphics for your product. You should hire someone to create an e-book cover for you in addition to matching graphics for your sales page. Everything should flow and match up. You're creating a total package here from the product to the sales page.

Here are some of the services and tools I can recommend:

http://ecovers.info/
http://www.ebookgraphics.com/
http://ebookwow.com/
http://armandmoringenerator.com/

How Should I Format My Book?

The standard font size for the innards of most e-books is between 12 and 16 points. A little bit of strange ju-ju goes on in the PDF conversion process, so be forewarned that what you see on your screen in your text editor is not exactly what you'll get in the final pdf document.

You should design with readability in mind - paying special attention to those with visual disabilities and also to mitigating the eye strain that comes from reading long documents on a computer screen.

Make sure you have nice, bold headline for each section and include a table of contents at the beginning of the book.

One great way to make the inside of the book more attractive is to use a template for formatting.

Here are some great e-book templates for use in MS Word and other programs in the family of MS Office products:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/default.aspx
http://www.templatezone.com/microsoft-templates/officeready-pro.asp
http://www.fxstyle-templates.com/ (as part of a package)

You can and should use color, bold text, headlines and other elements to spice up your formatting. Remember that your product is a pure, visual presentation. Even after you've made the sale, your customer must be satisfied with the product. So, give them a great looking document.

An e-book with stellar design is not only easier to read, it carries an increased impression of value. The customer will be much more satisfied when you "wow' their eyes.