How to Sell digital Printables Online
Looking to turn your design skills into passive income? Selling printables online is the answer.
With Sellfy, you can set up your store quickly and easily, and protect your work with PDF stamping, limit downloads, and use built-in email marketing to boost sales. Start monetizing your designs effortlessly with Sellfy today.
Are you ready to jumpstart your online business? Let’s go through the basics of how to sell printables!
What are printables?
Digital printables, also known as digital downloads, are documents created with the intention of being printed out and solving a problem. For example, one can look for a workout plan that would solve their problem of being disorganized with their workout schedule.
Many creators offer templates that buyers can personalize on their own. Think invitations, event materials, or anything where someone wants to drop in their own text, photos, or graphics. Templates make that process simple, fast, and way more valuable for the customer.
Example
Water Jug Fitness is a popular fitness instructor who helps his YouTube audience get started on their fitness journey. But apart from that, he’s making some extra income by selling printable meal plans on his Sellfy store.
How to make printables?
You already know what a printable is and how many types of them are out there, now we can go over creating your own digital goods!
Making a printable is easy, and you can do that in four steps. Let’s go over them one by one.
1. Decide on your niche market
A niche market is a part of a larger market with its own specific needs. For example, the market for planners is huge, but there are niche markets for houseplant planners and keto meal planners, which include different types of content and visuals specific to consumer interests.
Choose your own niche for printables, as it’ll be easier to market your digital products for a narrowed-down audience. Plus, it’ll be more effortless for you to make more printables related to your niche. For example, if you focus on keto health nuts, you can make a keto diet menu planner, a list of keto-friendly snacks, a weight loss tracker, and more.
2. Design your digital printables
Mind the size of the printables you’re creating. For example, if you’re designing a planner, consider the variety of sizes to fit the most common planners. Another thing to note: the quality and colors of your digital file. If you create something that needs to be printed in high resolution or requires a lot of color ink to print, you could have a harder time selling your goods.
Tools for creating printables depend on what you plan to create. Here are free tools that work for most types of printables:
- Word processors: Google Docs, Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer. Good for monograms, labels, and banners.
- Spreadsheets: Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice Calc. Good for checklists and other printables with content in rows or columns, like calendars and planners.
- Graphic design software — Krita, Canva Pro, Vectr. Suitable for prints, stickers, and coloring pages.
- Desktop design software —Adobe Illustrator, Photopea, Inkspace. Good for more complicated designs and intricate formatting.
When exporting your printables, stick to the .pdf file format. It’s easier to print and ensures no one can make changes to your product.
3. Test-print your printables
I’ve learned this the hard way, so trust me when I say that you have to test your printables before you list them for sale.
Check if your printable appears correctly on the printed page and looks nice. If you’re crafting a printable that needs cutting or hole punching, make sure you’ve left enough space for them. Nobody wants to ruin the design just because it needs adjustments.
How to sell printables online
Essentially, there are three places where you can sell printables. You can sell them on your own online store created on an eCommerce platform, embed a shopping cart of product widgets into an existing website or blog, or a marketplace like Etsy.
1. Sell printables from your own store
To create an online store for your printable products, first, you have to choose an e-commerce platform. Next, set up a store, create your listings with optimized titles and descriptions, and set prices. Finally, market your store through social media, particularly Pinterest, and email marketing to drive traffic and sales.
Step 1. Choose an e-commerce platform.
To sell downloadable printables, you’ll need an e-сommerce platform that supports selling digital products, without extra plugins or third-party tools. I found Sellfy to be perfect for selling downloads like printables, as you can launch a full storefront in minutes without any coding or tech skills.
Step 2. Set up and customize your store.
Use the Store Customizer or one of Sellfy’s pre-made themes to make your shop look professional. Add your logo, colors, and copy to make it feel like your brand.
Step 3. Upload your printable products
Sellfy supports files up to 10 GB with unlimited bandwidth, so you can sell as many printables as you need. Just upload the file, add product images, set the price, write a description, and hit publish.
Step 4. Set up payment methods.
Before you can accept payments, connect your processors. Sellfy integrates with PayPal and Stripe, which cover most buyers worldwide.
2. Embed printable products into an existing website
If you already have a website or blog, you can skip building a new store and simply add e-commerce features to it. Luckily, adding online store elements to your website becomes simple once you use tools that handle the heavy work for you.
For example, Sellfy offers various ways to add e-commerce functionality to your website. You can choose to embed Buy Now buttons, single-product widgets, a full catalog embed, or even a shopping cart.
Example
Water Jug Fitness used Sellfy embed functionality to sell printables right from his website.
3. Sell printables on Etsy
I can give you ten reasons why it is better to sell printables from your own online store than relying on a marketplace like Etsy, but Etsy is still a great place to start. It helps you test products and find your audience, and it’s always smart not to keep all your eggs in one basket. Having both your own store and an Etsy shop is the best approach.
Selling printables on Etsy is very simple:
Step 1. Create an Etsy store
Sign up for an Etsy account and set up your shop by choosing a name, adding your logo, and filling out your shop details. It’s pretty straightforward as Etsy walks you through the setup, so even beginners can get started quickly.
Step 2. Create listings
Upload your printable files, add clear product photos, and write simple, but keyword-friendly descriptions. Make sure to choose the correct category and tags so buyers can easily find your products.
Step 3. Price your printables
Set competitive prices based on your niche, design quality, and what similar shops are charging. Keep in mind that Etsy charges 20¢ per listing, as well as a 6.5% transaction fee on purchases. Transaction fees can quickly “eat up” a significant amount of your profits, which is why it’s smart to diversify your sales channels.
Examples of best-selling printables
To create a bestseller, focus on evergreen rather than seasonal downloads.
For example:
Too many people need help planning different aspects of their lives, from creating to-do lists to organizing projects. A planner is a great example of an evergreen product that can match all purposes and personalities.
Another thing to note with printables is the demand for them. To check what kind of printables people are interested in, use Google Trends. Just type in the search keyword you want to explore, like printable or printables, and hit Enter. Scroll down to the Related queries block and see what people are searching for in relation to your search keyword.
Here’s what we got for the search keyword printables:
As you can see, coloring printables, kids printables, and 3D printables are the most searched. So if you’re looking to create a best-selling digital download, keep your eyes peeled for what people actually want to buy.
To guide you through the jungle of digital printables, here’s our list of the most common ones sold online:
1. Planner printables
- Calendars
- Meal planners
- Diet planners
- Workout planners
- Budget planners
- Cooking planners
- Marketing content planners
Example
We already talked about Water Jug Fitness, a popular fitness instructor who helps his audience with printable meal plans available in his Sellfy store.
2. Decor printables
- Quotes: inspirational, motivational, funny
- Artwork: nursery, bathroom, kitchen, living room
3. Coloring and crafting printables
- Coloring sheets/pages
- Mandalas
- Templates
The Posh Paper Lady, one of the most original and most informative paper crafting DIYs on YouTube, uses Sellfy to sell printable crafting materials to her audience.
4. Journals and notebooks
- Stickers
- Journals
- Workbooks
- Letter papers
5. Productivity & work printables
- Lesson plans
- Checklists: shopping, to-dos, goals, travel
- Project planners
- Worksheets
- Financial planners
- Spreadsheets
6. Event & party printables
- Decorations: Halloween, baby shower, birthday
- Invitations: wedding, themed party
- Seating cards
Example
Printable Treats uses Sellfy to sell anything from the Eiffel Tower to Christmas-themed printable clipart packs.
Use our list as a starting point for choosing the types of printables you’re interested in creating yourself.
FAQ
Can I make money selling printables?
Yes, selling printables can be a profitable business venture. Many people are willing to pay for well-designed and useful printables, such as planners, calendars, wall art, clip art, etc. With platforms like Sellfy, you can easily set up an online store and reach a wider audience, increasing your chances of generating passive income.
What is the best place to sell printables online?
Choosing the best place to sell digital prints depends on your needs. For example, marketplaces like Etsy provide a platform with an existing audience and simplicity. While e-commerce platforms like Sellfy allow you to build your own online store, and give you more control over branding, marketing, and customer experience.
What printables should you sell?
The best printables to sell are those that cater to a specific audience’s needs or interests. Consider popular categories like planners, calendars, budget trackers, and motivational quotes. You can also create niche-specific printables for hobbies, events, or special occasions. It’s essential to research your target market and offer printables that they would find valuable and helpful.
