How to Create Your Digital Product in a Weekend
How I went from struggling newsletter writer to generating $5,400/month with simple digital products
Last week, a frustrated Substack writer sent me a message that hit home:
"I'm three months into my Substack journey. Writing consistently, growing slowly, but barely making anything. At $5 per month, I need thousands of paid subscribers just to replace my income. I'm starting to wonder if this is worth it?"
Hmm…I thought the exact same thing.
Here’s what I’ve noticed: There are so many talented writers. However, many writers stay broke. They’d love to learn how to monetize their writing, but they like to focus on their work. Not promotion.
That’s where this post will help. I’m going to show you how to start monetizing your writing from Day 1.
The Paid Subscription Trap
I felt this in my bones because it was exactly where I started. After months of writing, I had around 100 subscribers (mostly family and friends), 2 paid subscribers (thanks Mom and Dad), and a measly $10 in monthly recurring revenue. Most importantly, I had a growing sense of dread that I'd chosen the wrong path.
Everyone says the same thing: "Put your best content behind a paywall. Eventually, people will pay."
But here's the brutal truth about paid subscriptions: To make $10,000 a month at $5 per subscriber, you need 2,000 paid subscribers. With typical conversion rates, that means building a free subscriber base of 20,000-40,000 first. Yikes.
That could take years. And honestly, in today's world of subscription fatigue, it's getting harder every day. People are overwhelmed with subscription requests. The last thing they want is another monthly payment.
The Counter-Intuitive Discovery
Instead of waiting to build a massive subscriber base, I tried something different. I spent one weekend creating a simple recorded class that solved my readers' biggest problem. Just one specific solution to one specific pain point.
The results surprised me. At $37, that simple product sold 43 units in its first two weeks, generating $1,591 in revenue. More than I would have made from paid subscriptions in months.
But here's where it gets interesting. That masterclass kept selling. While I slept. While I spent time with family. While I worked on other projects. I'd finally broken free from the "waiting game" of paid subscriptions. I woke up every morning to Stan Store notifications of sales.
Real Stories from Newsletter Writers
My client Maria runs a wellness newsletter with about 1000 subscribers. She kept getting questions about her diet plan. Instead of writing another post explaining it, she spent a weekend creating a template and recorded a quick walkthrough video. In her first month, she made $891 in sales - more than she would have made from paid subscriptions with ten times the subscribers.
Mark writes about productivity for his small but engaged audience. He noticed people kept asking about his Notion setup. His simple workspace template made $437 its first week. He didn't wait to build a massive audience first. He just solved a specific problem his current readers had.
Emma teaches email marketing. She was drowning in DMs about her outreach strategy. Her swipe file of templates now generates daily sales, all from an audience she built without putting her best content behind a paywall.
Make Your Product Simple
You don’t need a complicated source or long, detailed product. You simply need to identify one of your audience’s problems and then create it with a simple product. Think about “how can I solve this problem as efficiently as possible?”
Most people don’t have time to watch a 4-hour course. In fact, stats show only around 90% of people who buy a course ever actually finish it. However, people can read a 20-page eBook or listen to a 45-minute masterclass, if it will solve their problem.
A Weekend Action Plan You Can Use Right Now
I want to give you the exact blueprint I use to create a digital product in a weekend. This is the same simplified strategy I’m sharing in my upcoming Digital Product Masterclass. Feel free to use this plan starting this Friday:
Friday Evening: Problem Discovery
Open your newsletter analytics. Which posts got the most replies? What questions keep coming up? Write down every question you've received. You're looking for patterns - the same problems appearing in different ways.
Pay special attention to questions that start with "How do you..." or "What's your process for..." These are golden opportunities for templates or guides.
Saturday Morning: Solution Creation
Choose the most common problem you've identified. Open a fresh document and outline your solution. Remember, you're not writing a book - you're creating a practical solution someone can implement immediately.
If you're creating a template, start with your own system. What exact steps do you take? What tools do you use? Document your process as you go through it yourself.
For guides, write as if you're explaining it to a friend. What are the exact steps they need to take? What mistakes should they avoid?
Saturday Afternoon: Enhancement
Record a quick walkthrough video showing how to use your template or implement your guide. Don't worry about perfect production - your phone camera and screen recording software are enough. I like using Vimeo or Loom.
Add any necessary context or examples. What questions might someone have when using your solution? Address these proactively.
Sunday: Setup and Launch
Choose your platform (I recommend Gumroad or Stan Store for beginners - they’re either free or inexpensive and easy to use). Write your basic sales copy focusing on the specific problem you're solving and the transformation they can expect. Hint: ChatGPT is your friend here.
Set your price (I recommend starting between $27-47 for your first product), publish your page, and share it with your newsletter subscribers.
You’ll begin linking to this product on all of your Substack posts. Of course, there’s more to this process to make it work right, but this is a general guideline.
Common Objections I Hear
"But I'm not expert enough..."
Let me stop you right there. You don't need to be the world's leading expert. You just need to be a few steps ahead of the people you're helping. If you're writing a newsletter about something, you're already qualified to create products about it.
"What if nobody buys it?"
This is why we validate before creating. By looking at your most engaged posts and the questions people are already asking, you're building something you know people want. Since we’ve validated, it’s almost guaranteed someone will buy it.
"I don't have enough subscribers..."
One of my students started with just 89 subscribers. Her first product made over $400+ in its first month because she solved a specific problem those few subscribers had.
The Long-Term Impact
Last month, I generated $5,400 from digital products. But this isn't just about the money. It's about creating real impact instead of hoping people will subscribe monthly. Your income isn't tied to subscriber count or how much content you can produce monthly. You create once, sell infinitely.
Quick Win Exercise
Here's a 10-minute exercise you can do right now to discover your first digital product idea:
Open your inbox and find the last three questions someone has asked you (DMs, comments, or email replies).
For each question, write down what that person was struggling with BEFORE they asked you for help.
Now write down what success would look like for them AFTER solving this problem.
The gap between their BEFORE and AFTER state is your product opportunity.
For example:
One of my readers asked about my content creation system.
BEFORE: Posting randomly, no consistency, feeling overwhelmed
AFTER: Clear plan, knows exactly what to post, feeling confident
That gap became my content calendar template that sold 43 units its first two weeks.
Try this exercise now. You might be surprised how many product opportunities are hiding in plain sight.
People don't buy products - they buy the transformation from their BEFORE state to their AFTER state.
Ready to Create Your Product (the Easy Way)?
I’ve just opened up my Six-Figure Digital Product Masterclass where I’ll show you:
The complete Problem Goldmine framework
How to validate ideas before creating anything
My simple system for consistent sales
The exact tools I use (most are free)
But more importantly, you'll learn how to transform your newsletter from a subscription-dependent model into a thriving digital product business. This is the exact same simple system I’ve used to generate over $5K+ in sales last month alone.
You could start monetizing your newsletter from Day 1. I’ll show you how to validate, create, and set-up a digital product in a single weekend. Selling 2-3 products more than covers cost of the masterclass.
The door closes on this class by this weekend, so there’s still time to join (but it’s capped at 50 students max).
Want to join us? You can join us by clicking the button below and putting your information in. You’ll be added to our masterclass group and have instant access to a private community of other writers for support 👇
Remember: You don't need thousands of paid subscribers or complex systems. You just need to solve one specific problem really well.
How would you go about “Problem discovery” if you don’t have comments or DMs?
Would you look at the topics that are getting the highest open rates?
Would you email your most engaged readers with a simple question to gauge their biggest pain or challenge?
I only started 2 days ago and already I found this wonderful tip on how to procede in the future. Thanks.