The last word I would use to describe myself is “decisive,” but I still have a decision to make regarding my first digital product for sale.

After brainstorming five different digital product ideas, I narrowed them down to just three to choose from. Admittedly, three of the ideas I had were all different clip art ideas. This made narrowing down my ideas easier, as it was a matter of deciding which subject I liked best for a clip art bundle.

With my other clip art ideas thrown to the wayside- at least for now, I could potentially still return to them in the future-I was down to three digital product ideas that are still in the running to be made:

Even though it is niche, I am going with the Moo Deng-themed Clip Art pack. In the past, I have completed Moo Deng-themed projects and have thoroughly enjoyed creating them. These would all be hand-drawn graphics that I make digitally, different pictures of Moo Deng displaying various emotions and outfits. As well as images of fruit, hoses, and other Moo Deng-related imagery. This product would be the easiest to create, as it would require a total of 6-10 static images. It will also be fun to plan all the different little Moo Dengs to include in the pack.

If I were to create this clip art bundle, certain things I would want to keep in mind are the resolution and the use of 300 DPI (dots per inch), so the images can be resized without significant loss in quality.  I would also ensure that the Clip Art is all PNGs so they can have transparent backgrounds. These are also practices that I can apply to other digital art products.

My next digital product idea is a digital zine on Semiotics, Signification, and Personal Identity. Once again, this is a niche product idea, but it is a topic I am very passionate about. One concern I have with this zine idea is that to apply these topics effectively, I would need to reference the work of queer photographers who have explored the same subjects. While a clear reference to both photographers would solve this issue, something in my stomach still does not sit right with charging for this product. This might be something I develop and offer for free in the future, but for now, it remains a viable option as my first digital product to sell.

A notable thing I found helpful in creating a digital zine is a “How to” guide on how to make a zine, whether physical or digital. This is a simple step-by-step guide to help beginning zine creators. Since I have never created a zine before, this will be a valuable resource to use if I do make the Semiotics, Signification, and Personal Identity zine or any other zine.

My last digital product idea is the Fantasy Character Creator Bundle. This would likely be the most work to create, as it would involve many different parts that I would need to draw by hand. I want to have heads, torsos, arms, legs, eyes, noses, and mouths of various sizes. The buyer can edit the colors of the elements and change the size as well. They will be able to customize their character as they see fit. This product would require the buyer to have some knowledge of how to edit PNGs, but I think it would be safe to assume that people unfamiliar with digital software would not purchase this product unless they planned to learn.

One thing I researched for each product idea was the best practices for that specific product. This is how I discovered the 300 DPI trick, as well as the “How to” guide for zines. Unlike my other product ideas, there was no article specifically talking about this issue. What I did find is a Reddit conversation that discusses what makes a good character creator. While it does discuss multiple types of character creators, the original poster did have character toolkits in mind. This still provides feedback on exactly what customers may be looking for within a character creator, which can help in creating a successful product.

All three of these product ideas are feasible within the timeframe required for this 7-week experiment. A deciding factor in choosing a product is which exact item I would want to devote my time to first. Like my clip art ideas that have been set aside for now, nothing is stopping me from revisiting these ideas and creating them in the future.

Whichever product I build first, it will be the first in a long line of digital products I plan to make.

REFERENCES

Prado, L. (2021, May 27). A complete guide to Clipart – usage ideas and more!. TWG Designs. https://www.twgdesigns.com/blogs/blog/clipart-guide?srsltid=AfmBOoooirCQ83TRgc5gZRGaF-6bwY5tTLPacilYKjfW_Fh6RnOgIj0v

Staff, C. B. (2014, January 17). The beginner’s guide to making your own zines. https://www.creativebloq.com/print-design/make-your-own-zines-11410390  

Knowing, D. (2023). What makes a good character? [Online Forum Post]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedesign/comments/17mjhqh/what_makes_a_good_character_creator/