Can I make money selling without physical products?

[cbrown218]

Can I still earn money by selling stuff without using products?

[Victoria]

Hi, @cbrown218.

Thanks for sharing your question!

What are you interested in selling?

If you're looking to create your own online store without using physical products, then there are a few options you can explore.

• Selling digital products
• Affiliate marketing
• Dropshipping
• Print on demand

Digital products:

You can look into selling digital products like ebooks, courses, music, etc. on your store. If you're selling a digital product or service instead of a physical product in your store, you can indicate it by unchecking the shipping checkbox when adding the product. For digital products, you'll need to use an app that can provide a download link to your customers. I recommend checking out the Shopify App store for digital download app options.

Affiliate marketing:

Another option is promoting other people's products on your store and earning a commission for every sale. You can sign up for an affiliate program and get a unique affiliate link that you can use to promote the products. Check out our blog resource on How to create a successful affiliate program to learn more.

Dropshipping:

Dropshipping is another avenue to explore. Dropshipping is a business model that allows you to sell products manufactured, warehoused, and shipped by a third-party drop shipper and doesn't require you to hold inventory. To learn more about dropshipping to see if it suits your business needs, take a look at our Shopify Blog resource.

Lastly, print on demand. You can use a print-on-demand service to create custom products like t-shirts, mugs, phone cases, etc. You can list these products on your store and when a customer places an order, the print-on-demand service will print and ship the product to the customer. 

Let us know if you have any questions about the resources/tips shared above. I'd love to learn more about what you're looking to sell. 

[cbrown218]

I want to set up a business on Shopify where customers can send you recipes and pay you based on how the dish looks and tastes without using any products hoping I can still get payed. How do I do that?

[Victoria]

Thanks for your reply, @cbrown218.

To confirm I understand correctly, you'd like to create a business where customers can send you recipes, and pay you for the quality of the dish without using products.

If you're able to provide more information on the following, it can help us better serve you:

• Could you advise who will be making the dish, is it the customer or yourself?
• How will the business operate?
• What is the end goal? Will the recipes that are sent to you by customers be displayed on your website?
• Will the dishes be made to order?

I look forward to hearing back and learning more.

[cbrown218]

To answer your question  ms.victoria:I will be making the food and giving them to the customers, and before I get payed I just need them to the dishes will be made for both pickup and delivery but I want them to me any recipe they can think of, from any country, appetizer, entrée, or dessert, I would be happy to make any of them. But I can only do one at a time and sometimes multitasking, and even though I'm only a cook,not a chef I'm still willing to take a chance. And yes the recipe will be displayed on my website.

[Victoria · Accepted solution]

Ah okay, thank you for providing a bit more context @cbrown218.

I would first recommend researching food laws such as ensuring food safety, protecting consumer rights, compliance with regulations, label requirements and supporting sustainability. Researching food laws is crucial when selling food products online because it ensures that you comply with the legal requirements and regulations set by the government. 

We have a helpful guide on our Shopify Blog called How to sell food online that can help you set up your food business. 

You mentioned that you're looking to set up pickup and delivery for your food orders. When using local delivery, you'll want to determine where you're delivering from, your delivery zone, setting a delivery fee etc. Check out our full list of couriers and local delivery services if you're interested. You can also explore our resource on setting up pickup and local delivery options on your store. 

When it comes to customers submitting recipes, you'll want to determine how will customers be able to place an order on your store and will also need to look into a third-party app so customers are able to upload/submit the recipe to you. You can search the Shopify App Store under Custom file upload to explore those options. 

I hope this helps!

[ConvertMateSEO]

There are many ways to make money without selling physical items. However, drop servicing and selling digital downloads are the two best options. Create your templates, fonts, plugins, addons, designs, and other digital downloads to start making money.