One of the keys to succeeding in information product creation is to break the process up into discrete steps. This frequently isn’t an instinctive reaction for the typical information marketer. Especially on the internet where small sized learning products are the norm.

However, it is extremely important to your ultimate success. In fact, I would go so far as to say that if you don’t do this you probably won’t succeed… even when you are starting out let alone as you move forward.

Your product creation system should do this for you if only to help you to understand the overall task.

But why?

In this article, I’m going to ignore chunking and focus on the practical aspects. That’s not to say that chunking isn’t important. It is. It’s important to understanding and to learning the process. But while you can use the same chunks as you move forward, long term your focus needs to be on the operation of the system not the understanding of it. Unless of course you are constantly training new people!

So why is chunking important to long term use of the product creation process? (Yes, I know systems design uses a different term for this process but I’m not teaching you systems design. So I’m going to use the word learning content designers use.)

The first reason that having individual discrete tasks is important is one of schedule estimation. Frequently it is very difficult to estimate how long the total task of creating a product will take. After all, the size and type of the products matters as does the number of products in your product funnel. And those are just the most obvious elements. However, estimating a discrete task is often much easier. The total can then be estimated as the total of the discrete tasks.

Secondly, scheduling a large task can be problematic. However, by segmenting the task into a number of discrete tasks, you gain a much greater flexibility in scheduling. Not only that but as your business begins to add people you are able to schedule multiple people to the product creation.

Finally, segmenting a large task into smaller discrete tasks allows you to have much better control over the product creation. This affects two different areas — status and quality.

By segmenting your process into discrete tasks you are able to schedule and record the progress at much more detailed level. As a result you are more in control of the status of the product creation. You know what everyone is doing. When they should complete it. And how much it should cost. You also know exactly what has been done.

You also improve your overall quality. Instead of waiting until everything is done you can check quality as you go. This allows you to immediate react to low quality products without absorbing their costs. This means that you have less rework and your rework costs less. And if the product is not going to meet its quality requirement you will know about it in time to stop the development, change the requirement or fix the product.

Although there are glimmers of light with regards to the economic conditions that have caused financial hardship for so many, there still exists the need for most people to ‘make more money’ and find a way to do it while already holding down at least one full time job. Working in some existing corporate structure in the capacity of management, labor, or skilled trade, and balancing the demands of family, community, and life in general, the demand for earning more money is great but resources are few and far between when it comes to increasing one’s personal wealth. Let’s be honest, most individuals do not work a second, or third job, unless it depends on their survival, because the 24 hours in a day are packed with existing work and family demands, but far too many folks lie on the brink of losing their homes, deteriorating health, and emotional frustration due to the rising cost of living, and the decreased capability of their buying power, or plain cash in general.I submit that one of the best ways to add additional capital and income for anyone who is employed by any kind of corporate structure is to start and build a home based business. There are three key reasons why a home based business is more important than ever before and why you need to start one soon, or revive the one that is collecting dust:· Plan B: As long as you are employed by someone else, for all practical purposes you are employed as long as your services are deemed valuable; meaning you are helping to make money for the company or are perceived as adding value in some sort of way. The minute that you are ‘perceived’ as not contributing to the bottom line by whatever definition is given, you become expendable. This does not have to happen in a one off manner, but we have all heard about entire divisions, or even companies being terminated because they did not fit with the ‘strategic direction’ in which the company was moving. Regardless of loyalty, seniority, or even contribution, the economic conditions of this decade have been relentless in delivering pink slips to both knowing and unknowing individuals. Through May of 2012 there had been 6769 mass layoffs in the US (reported by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics). The definition of a mass layoff is when 50 people or more file unemployment due to efforts taken by an employer.On the flip side, sometimes peace of mind and your mental state are the driving forces to create separation from a toxic work environment. Keeping one’s sanity and emotional well-being intact may necessitate the separation from an employer. Passive or active separation is not the point; the point is that loss of income and in some cases benefits can be a gut wrenching experience that can only be made better by the replacement of lost income. Knowing that there is an alternative stream of income, like a home based business, that can be leveraged when a ‘traditional’ job goes away is the kind of peace of mind that truly is ‘priceless’.· Doing more with less is not sustainable: The days of surplus and bigger is better are over for many. Although we are forced in our corporate work environments to ‘do more with less’ translating that to home makes for additional stress and a feeling like we live to work, instead of living to do the kind of work we want. Inflation has decreased somewhat over the last year, but anyone who has gone grocery shopping, car shopping, or just to the movies can tell you that everything costs more money. Educational costs are up, medical costs are up, and it just seems as though it takes more money to do everything in life. Because employers can and have held salaries flat and in some cases decreased wages, the need for additional sources of revenue are great in order to make ends meet. Time is our greatest resource. It cannot be controlled, at least not today and the decisions that we make with the time that we have, has a direct correlation to our quality of life. Home based businesses give individuals the greatest degree of flexibility when it comes to earning additional revenue because of the flexibility to work the business around existing work and family demands. There is no sign of relief or regression when it comes to the cost of living; therefore increasing the household capacity for revenue is a responsibility that everyone must make. Managing the cost side of the equation is just as important, but you can only cut but so much. Unfortunately, even the best managed 401K, IRA, pension, savings program, investments, and Social Security (if it is around) may not be enough in and of itself to sustain you in old age (especially if a major illness occurs). A home based business can provide the necessary income, and in many cases a residual income that can mean the difference between living the good life in retirement and having to work the rest of your life.· The tax benefits cannot be ignored: It has been said that keeping more of the money that you make in your pocket is one of the most important keys to achieving financial success. To that end, far too many people do not take advantage of the tax benefits that a home based business can afford, thereby saving thousands of dollars each year on their tax bills. Deductions such as writing off mileage expense, writing off the cost of maintaining a home office, employing one’s children and/or spouse, buying new equipment, and setting up a self-employed retirement fund, just to name a few, are all potential money saving exemptions that a home based business could afford you come tax time. Major corporations spend millions, even billions of dollars each year retaining the best tax talent and resources to preserve as much of their earnings as possible, why not you? If done right with the proper advice and counsel, perfectly legal means can be taken each year to keep more of your hard earned money in your pocket. Mobile software used on your smart phone can make the process of tracking tax deductions very easy and efficient, not to mention making the tax filing experience a lot less painful. Taxes are inevitable, but leveraging a home based business can preserve your wealth and create a legitimate way to aid your financial freedom.Ultimately, having a corporate gig and a home based business is the best of both worlds, or at least until your home based business becomes successful enough that you can do it full time. You do have to be smart though with regards to drawing the line between your corporate work and your home based business. While on the clock and utilizing corporate assets, refrain from conducting work for your home based business and vice versa. There are way too many tools and resources to stay productive with your home based business during your corporate work hours to jeopardize a corporate gig and benefits by doing something stupid. Auto responders, virtual assistants, hands free devices leveraged during commute times, can give your home based business the look and feel of being full-time when you are not. The key to burning the candle at both ends is to give yourself options so that you can make decisions on your own time frame when you want. Empower yourself today with a home based business so that you can have financial freedom tomorrow to live the life you want and deserve.

If you tried to think of people involved in product creation, who would come to mind? You may think of Edison, Franklin, or maybe Henry Ford. Would you ever think of yourself as someone who can create a quality product? Product creation is actually relatively easy and product launching is not that tough either! If you follow a few easy to understand steps, you could be starting the product creation and product launching process sooner than you think.

The first step in creating your information product is to know and understand your market. This can be very time-consuming, especially if you are unsure of what to do or where to look to know your market. Studying your niche market and understanding the buzz words and buying patterns can ease the process dramatically. Personally, I would recommend networking with someone who has had success in the niche market you are considering and learn from their results. If they are into product creation and not very business savvy expect some hesitation. If they only sell products and have nothing to do with product launching or product creation you may your first affiliate (sales person)! Something else you can use to find hot trends is with the Google Trends tool.

The second step is the product creation process. Take your niche market and brainstorm ideas and topics relating to it. There are a lot of product launching contests going on recently relating to a newly created internet marketing tool. There are so many aspects to the mentioned niche that literally, and unfortunately, anything can be considered an Internet Marketing tool. The reason that anyone can basically create an Internet Marketing tool is because of something called Private Label Rights products.

What I use private label rights products for, and highly recommend them in this specific manner, is to cure writer’s block especially when it is lingering. Many people base their entire product creation and product launching on a private label rights product. This is where you can start to shine and build a strong brand for yourself. If you set goals for yourself, short-term goals to be exact, you can see your product creation come into being much faster and there is a good chance with less revision needed. If you keep hitting time restraint road blocks; however there is nothing wrong with a slow and steady approach, you can consider outsourcing portions of your project. Outsourcing can be an extremely huge benefit or just as great of a disaster.

You can find someone to outsource work to at a freelance site such as Guru.com or eLance.com. When reviewing proposals it is almost mandatory you perform a background check on them as you are in essence hiring them. Doing a background check on freelancers is as easy as asking for samples of their work and reviewing feedback on the freelance site from previous customers. Depending on the size and requirements of your project this can add up to a decent sized investment, so caution is very important. One tip I always recommend to people looking to hire an individual is to ask them what they can provide you that no one else can. This simple question gives them a chance to “toot their own horn” and acknowledge where they feel most competent as far as their skill set.

The final portion of the product creation and product launching formula is the launch. This can literally make or break the effort, time, and maybe (if you invested) money you put in to your project. There are numerous aspects to product launching and although their relevance is debated in terms to their effect, experts agree all must be followed. The person in your field who you asked for product advice from can help you substantially if you have kept in touch. If not, the first thing you need to do is to create a visually appealing website with flawless design work.

I also mentioned outsourcing before, this is one aspect of product launching I have little strength in and I always outsource this portion. The website does not have to be large however the content (ad copy in Internet Marketing) must be stellar and as perfect as possible. This is where advertising knowledge or experience is beneficial. When the site is set up you now put a lead capture form on your website.

I put two lead capture pages on all products I create on the internet and is one of the best methods of getting a solid start when you are in the product launching stage. When you gain information from a prospect or someone looking to get paid for referring sales you are able to provide them updates or specials. Many people abuse their prospect or affiliate lists by in turn emailing them with a new product daily and I find the recommendations to be totally unrelated to their original need, problem, or interest.

Another stage in the product launching stage is creating a free report or demo version of your product to entice the product to sign up to your email list. Using proper follow up with this can help generate numerous sales for you. One thing you need to ensure is that your free product completely relates to your main product that you are looking to sell.

You are now ready to advertise your product launching to customers as well as the opportunity to sell for affiliates. This is the single aspect that many product creations and launches fail on. It is actually not entirely difficult. One thing you can do is write articles (and a good amount of them) on topics relating to your product. I am a huge advocate of giving a solution in forums. When you join a forum you are normally offered the opportunity to create a signature. In your signature, you should enter the link to your opt-in or lead capture page. When you respond to posts, you are advertising your opportunity.

It is not impossible to create a product and it does not have to take a long time. You need to setup a plan and stick to it. If you get stuck, look at similar and successful products to your own and try and see how they did it. When you sit down and brainstorm you will be surprised with what you can imagine.