Selling Websites for Beginners

I Make Money Buying and Selling Websites—and You Can Too

The title of the blog says for beginners, and I mean it. I was one myself not long ago. I’m going to start out assuming you don’t know the first thing about how and where websites are bought and sold. I’m also betting you have little idea right now just how fun and lucrative website flipping can be. I know you at least have some interest in the subject though, or you wouldn’t be reading this. You’ve probably heard something about it and want to learn more. Perfect—that’s our starting point.

Success Online Begins and Ends With Motivation

Countless people set out to make money online and fail. Why? Well lots of reasons of course, but a whole bunch of them fall under the category of motivation. People start learning about the internet and money-making strategies, and the first thing they discover is that it’s hard. It’s slow. It’s tedious. Those are three strong incentives to quit, and most people do, before they ever generate enough momentum to keep themselves going.

For me at least, buying and selling business websites, blogs, and other internet properties is different. Make no mistake, there will be some real work involved—though I’ll be telling you a bunch of ways to lessen the workload. (In fact you can hire others to do all of the hard work for you and still come out ahead.) But on the whole, website trading is a fun! Once you try it and get a taste of success, you'll be hooked. And it goes without saying that if you're doing something you like, something interesting and engaging, you'll have greater motivation to learn and to succeed.

What makes flipping websites one of the most FUN ways for beginners to make money online? Let’s see…

1. Treasure hunting. Roaming the internet searching for properties to buy can be addictive—just don’t get bogged down in search mode!
2. You get to do many things, not just one thing. Consider what’s involved in a single site-flip project. First comes the search for prospects and possibilities. Then research and analysis so you know you’re getting a good deal. When you’re finally ready to buy a website, you’ll need to negotiate to get the best price. After assuming ownership you’ll start to plan and carry out a site improvement strategy with a focus on each of five different areas: appearance, content, traffic, ranking, and income. (Tipping my hand a bit here—I’ll have much more to say about all of this in future posts.) And finally, applying the right tricks and techniques to market and sell your website for a profit.
3. You can choose what interests you. In some forms of internet marketing you almost inevitably end up trying to write content or run promotional campaigns about things you may know very little about, and may not even like. Of course you can take that sort of “anything goes” approach to site flipping as well. But for beginners an easier and more comfortable option is to stick with something familiar, something you know pretty well or that inspires or motivates you.
4. Scalability. What I mean here is that website flipping can be conducted across a wide range of time, work and investment scenarios. The possibilities run from quick-fix turnarounds to long-term business development projects. You can buy a website for $20, or $200, or $200,000, or $2 million. Many of the fundamental skills of buying and selling websites apply across all price ranges, which means you can get your feet wet with low cost investments and then work your way up. Whatever range you’re working in, chances are the buyer of your site will be someone who thinks he can take what you have created and advance it to the next higher level.
5. Adding value. Website flipping is all about taking what someone has already put together, but not longer wants to maintain, and raising its value. Sometimes it means buying a site that someone created quickly and cheaply, with the intention of selling. Such sites may not have a lot of value, but they save you the legwork of getting a site set up and give you something real to start working with. Other times as a website flipper you may buy a blog or hobby site that the owner no longer maintains, or has lost interest in. Still other times you may buy a bona fide internet business because you think you can increase its profitability. In almost all cases sellers are happy to sell, and your own risk is minimal. You work with the site, improve it, and pass it on up the chain. And even if your improvement efforts don’t succeed as planned, as long as it’s the right kind of site and was properly valued, your initial investment is secure.