The ULTIMATE 2024 guide to earning passive income through creating + selling printables
Toying with the idea of adding printables to your business model to create passive income in your business? If so, you’re in the right place! In this post, we’re going to dive into the nitty-gritty of what printables are, examples of printables, how to price printables, where to sell printables, and then a detailed list of ideas for creating printables (so you can expand that passive income empire of yours!).
Okay….. so what exactly are “printables”?
You’ve probably heard the term “printables” before, but let’s get a quick definition down to make sure we’re on the same page before we dive into the nitty-gritty details of what this can look like for your business.
In a nutshell, printables are digital products (including artwork, graphics, pictures, etc.) that customers can purchase, download, and/or print at home (ironically, printables aren’t always printed and some people prefer to keep things 100% digital!).
In the past (at least for myself, ha!), the term “printables” this usually conjures up images of wall art (hey, I’ve purchase more than my fair share on Etsy over the years ;), in 2024, wall art actually only makes up a *tiny* portion of the printables niche-- there are so many other printable ideas out there that you probably haven’t even thought of!
Examples of printables:
Party printable example
Budgeting printable example
Daily planner printable example
What tools/programs can I use to create printables?
There are several online programs and tools that creative entrepreneurs can use to design and create printables for sale. Here are some of the most popular options (as well as my personal recomendations!):
[PERSONAL RECOMMENDATION!] Canva: Canva is a user-friendly graphic design platform that offers a variety of templates for printables. It's accessible to both beginners and experienced designers and allows for easy customization.
[PERSONAL RECOMMENDATION!] Adobe Creative Cloud (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop): Adobe's suite of design tools is widely used by professionals. InDesign is particularly well-suited for creating printable documents, while Illustrator and Photoshop offer robust features for graphic design and image editing.
PicMonkey: PicMonkey is an online photo editing and graphic design tool. It provides templates and a range of features to create visually appealing printables.
Microsoft Word or Google Docs: These word processing tools are often overlooked for design, but they can be quite versatile. You can create simple printables, such as checklists or templates, using the design features in Word or Docs.
Affinity Designer: Affinity Designer is a professional-grade vector graphics editor. It's a more affordable alternative to Adobe Illustrator and offers powerful tools for creating detailed and scalable printables.
Printful: If you're interested in selling physical products like posters, apparel, or stickers, Printful is a print-on-demand service that allows you to design and sell custom items without managing inventory.
Pixlr: Pixlr is a free online photo editing tool that's easy to use for basic design work. It's a good option for those who need simple printables.
Quick tip: Remember to check the licensing agreements and terms of use for any platform or software you choose to ensure that you have the right to sell the printables you create!
Where to sell printables
The sky’s the limit when it comes to where you can sell your printables online. That being said, here are some of the more popular options (as well as my personal recommendations!):
[PERSONAL RECOMMENDATION!] Etsy: Etsy is a well-known marketplace for handmade and digital products. You can set up a shop and sell your printables, such as planners, art prints, and more.
[PERSONAL RECOMMENDATION!] Creative Market: Creative Market is a marketplace for various digital products, including design assets and printables. You can set up a shop and reach a community of designers and creatives.
Squarespace: Not only can you host + design your main website using this drag-and-drop page editor, but you can also easily set up a shop to sell your digital printable products using the same domain (#winning!).
Redbubble: Redbubble is a platform that allows artists to upload their designs, which can be printed on various products. If your printables can be adapted to items like stickers, apparel, or home decor, Redbubble might be a good fit.
Teachers Pay Teachers: If your printables are educational in nature, Teachers Pay Teachers is a specialized platform for selling teaching resources and materials.
Gumroad: Gumroad is a platform that allows you to sell digital products, including printables. It's user-friendly and provides tools for marketing and selling directly to your audience.
Shopify: If you want to have more control over your storefront, Shopify is a popular e-commerce platform that allows you to set up your own online store and sell digital products, including printables.
Sellfy: Sellfy is an easy-to-use platform that enables you to sell digital products directly to your audience. It supports various file types, making it suitable for selling printables.
Printful: If you want to sell physical printables like posters, shirts, or mugs, Printful is a print-on-demand service that integrates with various e-commerce platforms, including Shopify and Etsy.
Remember to research each platform's policies, fees, and audience to find the one that best aligns with your goals and the nature of your printables.
Bottom line?
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter where you sell your printables so much as the fact that you have printables for sale *wink.* So pick the platform that feels the easiest for you to use and know that you can always change it up later!
How to price your printables
If you’ve poppped onto Etsy before and wondered how ANYONE is making any *real* money selling $.99 printables, you’re not wrong. And that is definitely NOT something you should do if you’re looking to make a big impact in your revenue.
Some things to consider when pricing your passive income printables:
Look at the competition
Do a quick rabbit-hole dive (aka market research) to understand the pricing landscape for similar printables in your niche— making sure to check out shops on the same platform AND on similar marketplaces. This will give you insights into the standard price range and help you position your products competitively.
Note that there are no hard and fast rules that you *have* to price similarly (especially if people are offering lowball offers!)— this market research should be used simply as a foundation starting point for your pricing strategy
Determine your customer
Fact: You will be able to charge more $$$ for your printables if you are selling them to another business (or B2B, as it is commonly known). The reason? Business owners are used to investing in their businesses and happy to fork over money if the end product will ultimately save them more time/money/sanity in the long run (speaking from experience here, ha!).
You absolutely can sell to consumers as well, but keep in mind that your pricing strategy likely won’t be as top tier.
BUNDLE BUNDLE BUNDLE
My BEST strategy for pricing your printable products for success? OFFER BUNDLES!
Think of it this way— you can sell 10 individual clip art listings @ $3/each to 10 different people and earn $30. OR you can sell a BUNDLE of those 10 individual clip art listings for $30 to 1 PERSON and earn $30 from that single sale (trust me— it’s MUCH easier to make 1 sale than 10!)
Test and Iterate:
And finally, remember that NOTHING is permanent in business (NOTHING). You can always play around with your pricing until you find your “sweet spot.” Amazon is FAMOUS for this— I constantly keep an eye on my cart because the prices of certain items are influx almost DAILY— and it’s all from online vendors trying to find that magic pricing number that turns those browsers into paying customers
10 profitable printable ideas
Not sure what type of printable you could create to earn passive income? Trust me when I say that no matter how creative/not creative you feel, there IS a type of printable that can work with your business— so let’s get those creative juices flowing with some of the more profitable passive income ideas for printables:
Idea #1 - Planners and Organizers:
From daily planners to specialized organizers for fitness, meal planning, or budgeting, printable planners offer a wide range of tools to help individuals stay organized and on top of their goals.
Examples of planners + organizer printables:
Idea #2 - Clip Art + Digital Graphics
Clip art typically consists of pre-designed images, illustrations, or icons that users can easily incorporate into documents, presentations, websites, and more. Digital graphics encompass a broader range of visual elements, including custom illustrations, vector graphics, and other digital assets.
These printable resources save time AND effort by providing ready-made visuals, allowing customers to add flair to their creative projects without the need for advanced design skills (aka making life EASIER for them!)
Examples of clip art + digital graphics:
Ideal #3 - Digital Cut Files (SVG’s)
Digital cut files are digital design assets used with cutting machines like Cricut or Silhouette Cameo. These files typically come in formats such as SVG or DXF and contain vector-based designs that can be precisely cut from various materials like paper, vinyl, or fabric.
Examples of digital cut files (SVG’s):
Ideal #4 - Business Templates
Business template printables are ready-to-use document templates designed to streamline work for creative entrepreneurs. From invoices and business cards to resumes and marketing materials, these printables are all about saving other entrepreneurs time + energy so they don’t have to start from scratch!
Examples of business templates:
Idea #5 - Educational worksheets
Perfect for teachers, parents, or tutors, educational worksheets can be a convenient lifesaving tool for supplementing lessons, homework assignments, or assigning extra practice on specific concepts when needed.
If using bright colors and making tracing patterns aren’t your cup of tea, you can also explore options of creating educational worksheets for adults through corporate training programs or certifications— the sky’s truly the limit here!
Examples of educational worksheets:
Idea #6 - Wall Art
I mean, we HAD to go there eventually, right?! Wall art printables are like the OG of the printable industry. Simply create a cute design, export it in a bunch of different sizes, and watch the money roll in (okay, it’s not that easy, but still!).
While the market is a little saturated in the wall art category in general, niching down to a specific TYPE of wall art can still be a ridiculously profitable market to tap into.
Examples of wall art:
Idea #7 - Habit Trackers
Habit trackers are a seriously untapped market of the printables industry— and there is SO much potential for growth here.
These nifty tools come in the form of printable templates that help your customer visually monitor and stay accountable for a variety of daily/weekly/monthly habits. Whether it's hitting the gym, reading more, or staying hydrated, habit trackers provide a simple yet effective way for people to track progress, identify patterns, and celebrate small victories.
Examples of habit trackers:
Idea #8 - Coloring Pages
It may sound a bit juvenile initially, but here me out on this one! Coloring has become a HUGE market in recent years— with more and more adults turning to it as a theraputic activity for relaxing from the daily grind of life.
Not sure where to start? Online software programs like PicMonkey make creating these digital assets REALLY easy.
Examples of coloring pages:
Idea #9 - Wedding Stationary
If you’ve always dreamed of creating wedding invitations but have ZERO desire to print and ship the entire package (and deal with all of those stressed out brides!), digital wedding stationary printables are for you!
These digital assets include elegant invitations, RSVP cards, table settings, wedding signage, and SO many more. The best part? You’ll be able to cater to a more budget-friendly audience that wouldn’t be able to afford the $5/card printing cost otherwise— creating even more need for your designs in the marketplace!
Examples of wedding stationary:
Idea #10 - Sticker and Labels
A personal favorite here (my sticker collection is INSANE), stickers and labels are SO trendy right now because they offer an extremely inexpensive way for people to personalize everything in their lives (I mean, you’ve probably already got a water bottle at home right now covered with some of these babies!).
Beyond the fun designs of stickers for water bottles, creating labels for home organization is another market to tap into with this particular type of printable— and one that is in high demand!
Examples of stickers and labels:
