Digital guides and ebooks publisher

Readers and learners in your topic area, plus small businesses or teachers who buy licenses for groups.

Direct sales of each title, bundles and a few paid memberships or updates. Selling on your own site keeps more of each sale than a retail platform.

• Writing or editing
• Basic web and email marketing
• Layout with simple design tools
• Understanding your readers

• Copyright, image licensing and fair use limits
• Sales tax on digital products varies by state, check where you must collect it
• Retail platform terms and fees, read them before you upload
• Making a living usually takes several titles, so plan for a slow start

Startup costs are typically around $200 to $2,000, depending on your website, design tools and whether you commission freelancers. With no print stock, you avoid the cost of print runs.

Monthly revenue is typically around $100 to $1,500, depending on how many titles you publish, your pricing and your marketing. Making a living usually takes several titles, so plan for a slow start.

Check copyright, image licensing and fair use limits for everything you publish. Also check how sales tax on digital products works in each state where you must collect it, and read retail platform terms and fees before you upload.