A Quick Plan to Sell Recipes Online
Are you a great cook? Do you have a plethora of recipes to sell? Here’s a quick plan to sell recipes online.
There’s no such thing as a free lunch, right? Well, there might be especially if you want to sell recipes online. Even though you might be the next Barefoot Contessa, Nigella Lawson, or Bobby Flay, chances are you aren’t quite there yet. You can still sell your recipes online, you just need to finagle the industry a little first.
One plan to sell cookbooks and recipes is to actually give recipes away for free online. Wondering how this will end up helping you sell recipes in the long run? Let us explain.
As a cook hoping to sell a recipe eBook or simply sell recipes individually online, you probably already know that the Internet is chock full of recipes. There are tons of websites out there hosting recipes; just think of Food Network, Epicurious, and All Recipes. But believe it or not, there is a way to sell a recipe online and still make a profit.
Offering Free Recipes Translates to Selling Recipes Online
Most people who want to cook will eventually look up a recipe online. In fact, according to a couple of studies, more than 45 million people in the United States alone search the Internet each month for a recipe. That means you need to have recipes to sell at the ready! But there’s a catch if you really want to sell recipes.
At first, you may just have to offer your recipes for free. Curious as to how offering free recipes will end up helping you sell recipes in the long run? Well, the idea behind offering a recipe for free is the same as offering a free sample. Often, free samples lead to sales. So, a free recipe can help you sell recipes eventually.
But, this idea is not without its critics. Right now, the Internet is really shaking up the publishing industry. Many authors question whether giving content away for free really boosts the bottom line or diminishes sales. While it may make sense to offer a chapter of a novel for free to influence a future sale, how can this help a chef wanting to sell recipes?
Remember, many recipes can stand alone – a chapter of a novel usually cannot. So, how would offering your recipes for free help sell recipes later? Cookbook publishers seem to think that offering a free recipe to customers will only whet their appetites and thus lead to selling recipes more easily afterward. Just think – if someone uses your free recipe and loves it, why wouldn’t they want to buy your other recipes or cookbook? It’s a win-win situation.
Getting Started Selling Recipes Online
If you want to sell a recipe eBook or individual recipes online, you do need to keep a few things in mind. Remember, offering free samples of your recipes can help you sell recipes in the long run, but there are some logistics you need to be aware of. Selling recipes is a lot like publishing a book. You need to consider the legalities to protect your work.
Research the Food Industry
As a food writer or chef, you probably already know a little bit about the food industry. Additional research can actually help you sell more recipes. Remember, the Internet is your friend. Read blogs, books, and articles written by other chefs about the trials and tribulations of selling recipes. This will help you be a little more mentally prepared for what is in store.
Selling Recipes Means Speaking with an Attorney
If you don’t want someone to steal your recipe and claim it as their own, you need to consult an attorney before selling recipes. Your attorney can assist with the legal protection of your recipe and perhaps even figure out a licensing plan with the publishing company, should you choose to use one to sell recipes. An attorney can also help you file for copyright protection. Just remember, hiring an attorney is not a required part of selling recipes. It is, however, advisable, if you want legal protection.
Options for Selling Recipes
There are many different options for selling recipes online. There are some people that have used online classified ads to sell recipes. In most cases, the chefs that have experienced the most success usually compile a collection of several recipes for sale. The compilation usually features a common technique, appliance, or ingredient. So, when selling recipes in this manner, it is good to have a theme.
Another way you might want to sell your recipe is to sell the ingredients packaged as a mix or kit. Just think of those small country craft malls that have homemade applesauce and muffin mix. That’s the idea! If you have a recipe that has readily packaged ingredients, this might be a good method of selling recipes for you. This way, you can sell the tangible product in a storefront and also offer it online, ready for shipment.
If you have a collection of recipes, you may consider selling a recipe eBook. This way, you can sell several recipes at once and your book can have a theme or back-story to it. When you sell a recipe eBook, you may want to consider what we mentioned earlier about offering a free recipe sample. This way, you get your readers hooked.
Where to Sell Your Recipes
If you are the type of chef that wants to sell your recipes without the help of a publishing company, you do have options. Perhaps you will feature some of your recipes for free on your blog or website with links to downloadable files available for purchases. However, if you need a little help selling recipes on your own, you could also get your digital files listed in an online marketplace such as PayLoadz. With PayLoadz, you will be able to list your recipes for sale for free in the marketplace and connect with many potential customers. PayLoadz offers a variety of tools to help people like you list their products, track their sales, and market their products.
Selling recipes with PayLoadz is easy, secure, and free. So, what’s stopping you? Sign up now and watch your customer base grow exponentially.
