It’s inevitable.
There’s no getting around it…
Some of your sites (and products) just aren’t going to bring in the cheese that you were expecting. Some of them might even out-right FLOP.
So what do you do?
Stomp your feet? Chalk it up to experience? Go and cry on your favorite marketing forum about how affiliate marketing is a big scam and the only ones making money are people selling the “how to” courses about it?
Or is there something else that can be done to recoup your time & investment…
Personally, what I’ve done in the past is simply learned from it (usually after a short fit of violent swearing, cursing, etc.), and then focused on building more content into a niche that already performs well for me, ”chalking it up to experience”.
Well, not this year 
Instead of just cutting my losses and moving on, I’m gonna make a killing by turning BIG profits on sites that don’t perform as well as I’d hoped. Instead of just acting like a chump and saying “oh well…”
Because when life hands ME lemons this year (and it will) – I’m gonna SELL THEM!
That’s right folks, that’s the strategy.
——————————————–
Before I go any further – I need to caution you that selling sites can be a risky endeavour. The indsutry is full of scammers, and there’s a steep learning curve involved.
I strongly recommend that you pick up Tim Phelan’s Definitive Guide to Flipping Sites to emulate someone who knows exactly how to sell sites, how to price them, and how to avoid getting scammed. I bought this guide awhile ago, and it has my full recommendation, which I don’t give out lightly.
———————————————
Sell off your under-performing sites to other webmasters and let them do to them whatever they want with it. For example, let’s say your rule of thumb for yourself is that you want each site you create to bring in at least $300 a month (that’s $10/day). That’s just a sample figure – you can set your own minimum to whatever you want.
You’d then make that your standard:
Any site that doesn’t average $300+/mth in revenue once it’s getting steady targeted traffic gets auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Now, keep in mind that for many, many webmasters, buying a site that’s been consistently generating more than $100/mth is going to be a gold-mine for them – especially if they’re used to making chump-change with Google Adsense.
Since I’m building at least one 20-page affiliate site per month at the moment, I expect at least 30% of them to be what I consider to be under-performers. This means that I’ll be selling at least 4 sites this year – and I’m very excited about that!
Why?
Just take a look sometime at what established sites with consistent revenue patterns (and organic traffic) sell for on SitePoint.com
Sometimes sites with just a few hundred dollars monthly revenue sell for thousands…
So what’s the logic – why sell off sites that have a consistent, albeit low income? Because if it’s an under-performer, you can make several months’ income in ONE day (selling) and use that revenue immediately to reinvest in the sites/niches that are working for you.
Also, the numbers certainly aren’t unappealing. Let’s say you can sell a site earning $200/mth consistently from free, organic traffic. You could easily sell it for at least $1,200 minimum, because it would only take the investor 6 months to see a positive return on their investment, and that’s assuming that they do nothing to increase traffic or conversion.
That $1200 influx immediately gives you enough capital to comfortably outsource the creation of two 20-page mini-sites in your already-performing niche, with some cash left over for marketing and SEO outsourcing. What you’ve just done is simply accelerated your own revenues to build the better-performing parts of your business faster.
You don’t really lose out, either, because you’re generally going to make about 6-months to a 12-months revenue on each under performer when you sell it – so you’re basically just getting that money faster and using it to catalyze sites that will make more revenue than the ones you just sold anyway…
So I’m effectively trading a bad site for two better sites that will each earn more than the “loser”.
But you need to be careful…
Website marketplaces are full of escrow scammers, fraudulent buyers and otherwise people who are less than trustworthy. You also have to know how the site-buying market works, because it’s literally become a high-yield investment industry where many consulting agencies and big corporations are looking at for creating very high ROI’s for their seed capital.
My suggestion – if you want to learn as much as you can about how to do this – is to get Tim Phelan’s Definitive Guide to Flipping Sites
I bought his guide a short while ago and I personally wouldn’t feel confident buying or selling sites without reading it FIRST. Tim is a veteran site buyer and seller, and he’s the guy who a short while ago sold Pingoat.com – which was earning $1200 a month or so – for something like $30,000.
(John Reese bought it, as I recall).
Here’s his table of contents straight from the book:
—————————————————
Table of Contents – Excerpted from “Flipping Websites”
Section 1 - Buying web sites
a) What kind of sites do you want to buy?
b) How can you evaluate a site?
c) What is a site worth?
d) Where do you look for a site?
e) What kind of questions should you ask a seller?
f) What to look for in a seller?
g) What kind of sites sell more easily?
h) Why do people sell sites?
i) How to bid on an auction
j) Buying turnkey sites
k) Piggy Back Method
Section 2 - Building websites
a) Keyword research site flipping
b) Domains, hosting, scripts and promotion
c) Blog flipping
d) Forum flipping
e) Social Networks flipping
f) Increasing traffic
g) Monetizing a site better
h) Content sites
i) Product sites
j) Landing pages
k) Database Flipping (a special offer for the more adventurous)
l) Video Content Flipping
Section 3 - Selling websites
a) Where to sell
b) How to decide on a price
c) Should you use an auction format or fixed price?
d) What is a reserve and should you use one?
e) What is a BIN and should you use one?
f) How to check out a buyer?
g) What payment options to choose?
h) How to make money selling/ buying websites for others
i) WSO Flipping – Or Forum Special Offer Flipping
—————————————————
Again, you can check out Tim’s guide to site-flipping here >>
I strongly recommend it if you’re planning on making a killing with your under-performers this year, like me
Take care,
-Chris
48 responses so far ↓
1 Robert Michel // Mar 28, 2008 at 6:01 pm
I just stopped by your blog and thought I would say hello. I like your site design. Looking forward to reading more down the road.
Robert Michel
2 admin // Mar 28, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Thanks Robert,
I hope to provide much more content just like this so that your automatic friendly-sounding spam comment script can drop in and say hello from time to time…
(Sorry to all you human readers out there – I couldn’t resist the sarcastic jab, especially since this guy’s site is called “Social Networking Skills”)
Ironic.
-Chris
3 Sami // Mar 28, 2008 at 11:09 pm
Hey Great Site
Just dropped by to say hello and congratulate you on this site. Looking forward to more ..
Just kidding Chris
So why don’t you remove the auto generated comment?!
By the way I just read JV Secreat Weapons free report. I think everyone should read it.
Thank you for a great report. It is all the more impressive as it comes from such a young man.
Thanks again
Sami
4 Morgan // Mar 29, 2008 at 6:20 am
Hey Chris
Have plenty of RSS feeeds that I sift through each morning, instead of skimming your title of whether its worth the read or not like I do with most of the others, I always open it up and start reading cause of the great content you provide.
look forward to your next post
- Morgan
5 John Whelan // Mar 29, 2008 at 1:03 pm
Great stuff Chris!
My best blog is PR3 and over 2 years old. I do this part time and would be hard pressed to sell off my first real success site since I’m making over 200 dollars/mth. One post per week is the only upkeep now and it brings in residual income which is rewarding.
But I do agree with this concept and once one gets the hang of the low hanging fruit keyword tactic then it’s a cakewalk with some motivation mixed in. Down the road I’ll definitely consider doing the flip!
Regards,
John Whelan
6 Terry // Mar 29, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Nice post Chris. I have got a few lemons which I need to get rid of, trouble is they are really sour ones and no one will want them.
7 admin // Mar 29, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Hi Terry,
Perhaps – but that’s not always the case.
This reminds me of the way I feel when I’m “obliged” to go shopping with my wife in various decoration stores and so on.
I always think to myself – “Who the hell actually BUYS this stuff, anyway…”
The answer is – millions of people who aren’t like me.
At any rate, even if they’re lemons that don’t earn a thing, people still buy turnkey sites because of the functions or content that they come packaged with.
So, depending on what kind of lemons you have, you might be surprised
-Chris
8 Gregg // Mar 29, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Great post, Chris. I’m going to attempt to start selling some sites this year. I’ve been wanting to but I always have trouble letting go. I always rationalize that why should I sell a site if it’s bringing in money each month almost on autopilot but I like your thoughts on accelerating the growth of other, better performing sites.
Great comment, too! I was thinking that exact thing about the first comment and then read what you wrote. I was tempted to write something similar.
Gregg
9 James // Mar 29, 2008 at 4:01 pm
I’ve sold some of my affiliate sites before that were making me weekly (not daily) sales and were underperforming. I did very well out of it.
The only thing I would say about this post is that if you’ve got sites earning you at least some cash is that (since they have traffic AND probably PR) is that you could keep them as “assets” to help your future sites.
I’ve developed a few PR4 sites which I kept for adsense and link havens. They’re great.
It’s just a case of damage control and/or asset builidng.
James
10 nancy // Mar 29, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Hi Chris,
Just stopping by to say hello. I like your site’s design……hahaha!
Sorry Chris, couldn’t resist.
Anyway, I really like this idea. I have a site that I am really not interested in anymore. Don’t know if anyone else would be. But it’s an interesting idea.
I have lots of posts constantly being sent to me. I don’t read all of them, but I always read yours when they come.
Nancy
11 The Mad Webmaster // Mar 29, 2008 at 7:55 pm
Chris,
I almost sold my recipe site for $1,500.
It only does about $200 per month.
My wife almost had a heart attack. She called it to my attention that I haven’t done anything to that site for 6 months and it grows slowly in income.
Here’s my question.
I could see selling a site if your income was pretty low (ie: $50/per month), but would it really be wise to sell a site that’s producing $2,400 per year of passive income for $1,500 or $2,000?
Just curious.
Paul
12 Deb // Mar 29, 2008 at 7:55 pm
You sucked me in with this good post here.
One thing I’ve learned from selling many different types of sites over the last year is…
A revenue-generating site is not necessarily important to every potential buyer.
A site that’s well indexed and getting traffic, steadily growing traffic, backed up by stats – People will buy. Even with no income at all.
Many people are clueless/unable to do the on and offpage SEO necessary to get a site well indexed and into steady traffic – but those same people are often very skilled at figuring out how best to monetize a site’s traffic to squeeze every possible dollar out. And they’ll happily buy a site with good steady traffic for the opportunity to do just that.
Deb
13 admin // Mar 29, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Hi Paul,
That really depends on whether or not you need the funds, or if you’re working on projects in niches that have already shown enormous returns and wish to expand as fast as possible.
The $300/mth example is just that. Your own limits truly depend on what your goals are.
So the answer is: “it depends”
———————————-
Hi Deb,
Sorry about the tractor-beam post sucking you in
Anyway – GREAT point. I’ve seen this as well just from watching some of the marketplaces and how there’s great interest in turn-key sites.
In fact – that’s something that many of us should likely be doing more of – looking for sites that are already assembled and just need traffic.
Using basic SEO outsourcing, 3WL, LinkVana and your own linking assets, you can pretty well get decent traffic to ANY site with original content.
Not to mention employing “marketing 101″ overhauls to sites that would otherwise just be making Adsense pennies.
Damn.
I really need to start buying turnkeys, actually…
-Chris
14 Wes // Mar 29, 2008 at 10:14 pm
thanks for the great post, Chris.
As you know, I’m just getting started with the whole mini-site idea. What would you say would be some criteria for knowing when to “cut a site loose?” besides, obviously the money
thanks for all you do
15 Joe e. Clayton // Mar 29, 2008 at 11:27 pm
While I am not a great believer in flippin sites – I have other things I do for such sites – I thought that first comment thing was hilarious. I wouldn’t take it out – but I would purposely change his link so he gets no ranking benefit, like adding a ‘-1′ to his domain.
16 Martin // Mar 30, 2008 at 2:21 am
Chris,
just came to your blog. Are you by any chance a member of a dreaded place called “Warrior Forum” ?
I am asking because many of your posts sound like those they produce in masses daily there. Full of theory and good intentions. No offense.
Let us know how “Flipping Websites” goes…
Martin
17 admin // Mar 30, 2008 at 2:48 am
Hi Martin,
Actually, I am.
The knowledge I’ve gleaned from a few of it’s dreaded posts have been directly responsible for a dreadful 6-figure income.
So far this month (from March 1 to March 29) – just so you have an accurate picture – I’ve generated approximately $17,000 in affiliate commissions.
That doesn’t include product sales and other income streams.
Dreadful, isn’t it?
And I’m just a small fish.
Many of the people who frequent the warrior forum are multi-millionaires making more in a day than I make a month.
Most are complete newbies, though, and there is a lot of hype and theory.
But that’s a pretty big baby that you’re throwing out with the bathwater.
Dreadfully yours,
-Chris
18 Gil // Mar 30, 2008 at 9:01 am
Hi Martin,
If your serious…
I understand your cynicism with all the fast money making schemes out there.
But those “good intentions” (From the WF and also Chris’ Ebook) are already putting $200/month in my pocket which doesn’t sound like much but I’ve only started a few months ago and so far this is only a part time thing.
Most businesses take 1 to 2 years before their in the green. I should know I’m currently a GM for a small company.
If your just being silly…
Actually your post gave me a great idea where I think the WF should close membership so that newcomers cannot access these theories and therefore be filled with dread (like yourself). And then the WF couldn’t “spread the dread” anymore and just keep to themselves privately exchanging dreadfully profitable ideas.
Hoping the best for you Martin.
Gil
19 Simon // Mar 30, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Hi!
Great ideas in this post anhd I love the blog in general.
Bestwishes
Simon
20 Martin // Mar 30, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Hi Chris,
this was a serious question or post, not something to joke about.
Your income is great, but please understand that people claim figures like yours online, and in the WF, sorry
, all the time. But I am not saying that your are lying.
Actually, 9 out of 10 members of the WF have no clue about marketing at all. And that includes some of those mutli-millionaires you mentioned.
Blasting promotion after promotion to a big list that was acquired through multiple JVs in the hope that eventually something sticks is not marketing. Simply ask a professor at a university near you, or attend a few classes if you are interested.
There is not only a lot of hype and theory. There are a lot of lies and deception.
“Marketers” selling dreams to each other.
Martin
21 Martin // Mar 30, 2008 at 2:53 pm
H Gil,
I am serious
.
But quite frankly I do not understand your post.
Are you saying that your are using said ideas to bring that small company to a new level, being the GM (!) of it ?
I do not think many would care if the WF goes private. Whenever I need some marketing ideas, hints or new angles I visit Digitalpoint.
Another good place to learn is Cashtactics.net.
What do these two places have in common ?
WF members copy the proven marketing strategies published there, for free of course, arrange them in a PDF and sell them to fellows like you as a WSO for good money.
Wishing you all the best,
Martin
22 Scott // Mar 30, 2008 at 3:11 pm
“Simply ask a professor at a university near you, or attend a few classes if you are interested.”
Hilarious. Reminds me of the old adage – those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.
“9 out of 10 members of the WF have no clue about marketing at all.”
And 4 out of 5 dentists recommend Crest.
Seems it’s time for someone to get over themselves. And their suffering.
23 admin // Mar 30, 2008 at 3:24 pm
Martin,
Valid point – but you have a skewed perception on the reality of internet marketing in general.
I have no reason to prove that my incomes or methods are valid, because frankly, I couldn’t care less about others opinions.
If you really must know, ClickBank verifies the accuracy of any CB account screenshots on websites that make such claims (mine is one of them) prior to approval.
In addition, you can see for yourself from other comments on a variety of posts on my blog that people ARE seeing real-life returns from my information and teaching.
As for asking a Uni Prof about “real” marketing – are you kidding me?
Not to say that I wouldn’t learn something – but are you forgetting what marketing IS?
It’s presenting people with offers.
That’s it.
Complicate it all you want, but that’s what it comes down to.
And by the way, TheLazyMarketer.com is a hobby project for me at the moment. I have plans to scale it up, but by no means is it my bread and butter.
You seem to think that we all try to make a living by selling dreams to other marketers.
I have 2 websites devoted to marketing/marketers.
I have over 50 websites devoted entirely to niche markets, where I present people with offers and build business assets.
People who don’t have a clue – or any interest – in marketing whatsoever. They just want to fix their problem, or learn how to do something better.
I present them with an offer, and some of them buy. Then I maximize my results by delivering more value, building a real relationship with my clients and scaling out the business.
Maybe you’re more drawn to demographics studies and corporate branding. That’s a much more “university-friendly” topic.
It’s also more obscure, because most of us don’t have $30 million to run a mass-promotional campaign or advertise on TV during the superbowl. And for many online business models, raising VC is simply not practical.
But it ALL boils down to the same thing.
You’re still just measuring the results of an offer that reaches your target audience.
Your style might be to purchase demograhpics data and raise a bunch of VC to build a brand.
My style is running under the radar and using keyword data to laser-target my prospects, and building just as real of a business, and just as liquid a cash-flow in a scaled sense, because I’m not employing 2,000 people – or sucking up to my investors and shareholders.
Instead, I get to travel the world with my wife and generate relatively passive profits with no ceiling on revenues, other than my own restraint in some ways because I value my personal life and relationships more than reaching abstract income goals when I’m already doing just fine.
You can believe what you want and think whatever you may about us “small” folk – but what really matters?
“Correct”, university-approved marketing knowledge –
OR – real-life, in the trenches experience with the lifestyle (and resources) to show for it?
And by the way – explain to me how the multi-millionaire marketers would somehow know less about marketing than a University Professor on a salary?
Just some food for thought, my friend.
Remember that this notion of priveledged knowledge is the selling-point of EVERY university.
You’re basically buying a really expensive course that lasts 4-5 years and costs as much as a house.
But you get a real nice piece of paper at the end of it all which acts as a great “pick me!” tool when it’s time to begin the begging process to obtain employment somewhere.
Take care,
-Chris
24 Martin // Mar 30, 2008 at 3:36 pm
Scott,
insulting nonsense at its best.
Martin
25 Martin // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:01 pm
Chris,
you do not have to explain your business or prove anything to me.
In regards to Uni professors I kid you not.
Where do you think the corporate people, or small business owners, initiating the campaigns got their knowledge from ?
There are not always millions in capital involved (viral marketing).
And by the way, I was talking about the WF and “its” millionaires. They know less about marketing than professors because they are not professors. It is that simple.
Real marketing involves surveying your (potential) customers, for example, and give them want they want based on their feedback.
I cannot comment on your university system because in my part of the World there are no fees to attend if one meets the qualifications.
One cannot pay ones way into university here in Austria.
Take care,
Martin
26 Martin // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Chris,
“You seem to think that we all try to make a living by selling dreams to other marketers.”
Yes, that is exactly what is happening in the WF on large scale. Again I am referring to the Warrior Forum in all my posts.
Martin
27 admin // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Martin,
Greetings from Canada. I was just in Austria with my wife a short while ago, in Innsbruck for a week when the Christmas Market was on.
Saw the golden roof, etc. etc.
Your definition of “real marketing” is exactly on par in some ways. That’s part of what I do, that’s part of what I teach.
But it’s not the only part.
The other half is knowing how to reach your prospects, and then how to optimize your marketing processes to achieve maximum profits.
You have a deluded view of how the business world works.
Where do you think University profs get their knowledge from?
God?
Some other higher source?
They get it from researching and studying business structures, historical examples and other “been there, done that” people.
In other words, they learn by evaluating others. Learning from others.
So do I.
You’re putting this into a box.
There is no box.
There’s simply demand and various forms of supply. Either you tap into it or you don’t.
You can learn from anyone who is in a position you want to be in. Not just an accredited teacher.
You said: “They know less about marketing than professors because they are not professors – it is that simple.”
In the real world, my friend – no, it’s not.
Not even in Austria.
In regards to marketing and business, the only – and I mean ONLY thing that matters – is results. The numbers.
Ask your professors what their net worth is.
Then ask a successful business person.
Do this enough times, and I think you’ll start to see a pattern emerging. And I don’t know about you, but I’d far rather learn from someone who can, figuratively speaking, ride a bike, than from someone who knows all about how to ride a bike…
…but doesn’t ride a bike.
Alright, well, I think I’ve said all I’m going to say about this. Those who are reading this from the outside are probably enjoying the entertainment value here, but a lot of us can also relate to remembering what it was like to know everything.
Your perspective changes once reality sets in.
Amateur hour is over, folks – so let’s get back on topic here: selling websites.
And Martin, one final, yet on-topic comment: selling websites isn’t theory. You can see for yourself exactly what they sell for, even on places like the Marketplace section of the DigitalPoint forum.
Even though I’m truly enjoying this humorous exchange, I’ll be deleting any comments from this point forward that aren’t on-topic as it relates to site flipping.
Take care,
-Chris
28 Rich // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:20 pm
All this “university” talk and slamming the WF is really lame people.
Here’s my story… hopefully it will inspire some of you enough to not say things without realizing the facts:
I’m 18 of March this year (just recovering
) and currently have a job which is something I resent but have to live with for the time being.
Anyway, I’ve been “in business” (trying out various odds and ends) since I was maybe 11. Never took it too seriously because I knew that I didn’t have the foggiest clue about how businesses worked and all that stuff that you go to university to learn. That was until I stumbled across the WF and Mr Rempel (have I spelt it right?).
I was running a skateboard shop thing online and it so happened that Chris was doing the exact same thing but by actually producing the boards. He was also partnering with some market leaders and selling stuff for them. All inspiring stuff for me 2 years ago when I emailed him and asked him how he got into this game and what do I do to get going like him.
To cut a long story (and lot’s of blood, sweat and tears) short, I will say that I’ve been a huge fan of Chris ever since. He’s active on the WF as I am thanks to him recommending it to me.
Only through the WF have I had the chance to talk to big players and learn some amazingly valuble material that you actually wouldn’t expect to learn in university. It was only last week that I was actually in communication with the “legendary” John Reese (income.com) about some marketing stuff. I’d like to see you do that WITHOUT the WF.
It’s an incredible tool for promotion, social and information. In other words… if you’ve got your head screwed on right then you will undoubtedly realize the sheer value of that collection of marketeers all in one place. It’s both an opportunity to sell, plug and advertise but it’s also a great place to learn too… and what’s better than some “desperate” marketing newbies wanting to know how to learn X, Y & Z?
Answer: marketing newbies wanting to learn X, Y & Z surrounded by multi-millionaires who make them jealous and even more eager to buy the next “secret” that lands on their Internet screen.
So that’s why the WF’s good and shouldn’t be slated.
Now to university professors and the like…
I’m 18. I should be heading to university this year with all my friends. I’m not.
Instead, I took what I learnt online and went and got a $30,000 ($2,000 a month) marketing job at this company called “Penketh’s” (http://www.penkeths.co.uk). I had to get through two interviews and did it by being creative in the way I approached them and then creative with the presentation I gave to the senior management… when I was 17.
I had no “degree”, no really good qualifications or anything. I just had the knowledge I learnt from people like Chris and then applied it. Now I’m helping the managing director establish a new company.
It’s not the qualifications you have in this life that determines what you achieve. It’s what you’re capable of and how you go about getting it done.
My online income has almost eclipsed my full time job income now. My Clickbank stats are almost like Chris’s homepage ones… and I’ve done it all from using my own initiative and not through university.
I’m staying at my job for the experience for now but I’m actually teaching my manager (4 years @ uni to get a marketing degree) new things every day.
You don’t need a shiny piece of paper to get places and however you do things online or in business doesn’t matter one bit…. as long as you have the money at the end of it all (or whatever result you want)… that’s all that counts.
Thanks Chris for all the guidance you’ve given me and for the inspiration that business isn’t this big “taboo art” that I once thought it was.
R.
29 admin // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:26 pm
Thanks Rich
I expect that you won’t stop going until my homepage stats are a joke to you. Seriously – keep on going dude, you’re doing awesome.
Looks like you got your off-topic comment posted just as I was posting my latest comment, so I guess I’ll let it slide
Cheers,
-Chris
30 Rich // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:36 pm
I just want to maintain my current level of online income and explode it with an authority site with a brand, content, services, community, etc to match.
Sorry about posting off-topic. I just saw some posts and thought maybe people might have been losing “faith” in you.
Needless to say I’ve seen the light and if you want a juicy story that’s ON-topic..
I sold http://tinyurl.com/2unjf6 (don’t want to disclose the URL to the SE’s) about a month ago or something for $4xx.
It was generating about 2 sales a month or something ridiculous which just goes to show how you can really cut out the “dead wood” and capitalize on it completely.
Thanks again
Rich
31 Gagan // Mar 30, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Chris,
I thought this was a really secretive topic because not many people knew about it or were using it.
After spending 6 months on my first site tweaking it, it just didn’t perform well, so I went a head and sold it for 10x the monthly revenue.
I did the same for my second site and got $1200 for it. Not bad.
I didn’t have any set figure in mind. I thought both my sites didn’t do good, so I sold them. Now, you can either do this or actually keep the site if you feel you’re doing okay with it. Personally, i don’t just move on. Plus once I know I can make a site profiable in a certain niche, I can simple create a new site from scratch.
This is could be a separate business model for you of creating and selling sites. But you have to do the work to make it profitable and prove it that it is profitable, even if it is $50/mo. People will buy it.
Gagan
32 Martin // Mar 31, 2008 at 12:30 am
Chris,
that is great. I am a bit more south in Klagenfurt, which is also a host of the upcoming EURO.
Let us just agree to disagree. Otherwise we would argue around till the end of times.
Here in Austria a university is a place of invention AND scientific research. I have been there and done that so to speak.
I certainly do not know everything, nobody does, but I would not call my views amateurish or entertaining.
Regarding “Flipping Websites” I found your post theoretical since you yourself did not sell any websites yet but used a major pinging service as an example.
Take care,
Martin
33 Martin // Mar 31, 2008 at 12:43 am
Hey Rich,
that is cool. John Reese must be a great advisor.
Keep up the pace,
Martin
34 Gagan // Mar 31, 2008 at 8:55 am
Martin ,
You need to go back to your 9-5 job. That’s all I can say to you.
Gagan
35 jack // Apr 1, 2008 at 12:00 pm
Hey Chris,
Just thought I’d support your plan with a story of my own.
Late last year I came to the conclusion that I didn’t want to continue with a site which I’d had for several years but was not earning anywhere near what I felt was reasonable.
I’d sort of lost my enthusiasm for it and decided I might be willing to part with it, but first I tried to find a partner who would take over the development on new material on the site in return for 1/2 the future income from it. My price for that partnership was simply to produce 100 new pages of content, to match what I had done and pay the annual web host’s fees of about $300.
I just about had a partner arrangement worked out when the other person got cold feet.
I later turned around and sold it for over $2,000 which I calculated was what it would have cost someone to outsource the content. I just about took a lesser offer when I used a nameboy.com appraisal service for the value of the domain name I had, which came up with almost exactly the same evaluation I’d had just for the domain name.
In the end I sold for the nameboy’s appraised value and am now using that to enhance the value of other sites by outsourcing. This seems to be the essence of your plan … so it certainly seems sound to me.
Jack
36 Ryan Cote // Apr 1, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Interesting post. The silver lining of having sites that fail is you to start to learn what works and what doesn’t. This type of education is priceless.
Ryan
37 The Mad Webmaster // Apr 1, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Wow.
I don’t know how we went from flipping sites to flipping off internet marketers, but I guess I have to pick up the gauntlet on this one too.
I endorse very few eBooks on my sites and I only have 7 sites and a blog, but you’ll find Chris’s book “lazy affiliate” named eBook of the month in November.
I’m pretty picky about that kind of stuff and no I’ve never met Chris or done a joint venture with him.
I’ve only been doing this for about 14 years with over 35 years in sales.
I can tell you that his book ranks up there with “Make Your Site Sell”, and helped me add some cash to my bottom line.
This whole conversation kind of reminds me of my mom and dad. My mom had a PHD in English, my day history teacher. They were both pissed off because I earned more money than the two of them together by the time I was 35 years old selling insurance with only 1 1/2 years of college.
Who ever said “those who can’t… teach” is about 1,000% right.
A lot of hype on the net? You bet. Lies? Yes. A bunch of fluff? Absolutely.
But every once in a while you find a diamond in the rough and I’m glad I came across Chris.
All the best,
Paul
38 Hayley // Apr 2, 2008 at 8:56 am
I have to admit I have been spending less and less time in the Warrior Forum, but one thing that I found there that has been invaluable in my success so far as a new internet marketer. That’s Chris and his ebook.
Flipping websites is a perfectly good way to make some cash. I personally wouldn’t build my career around it but it is a great way to harvest some profits from an otherwise dead site.
39 65 Ways To Get Traffic // Apr 8, 2008 at 9:58 am
What a great idea. I never thought about selling a website but perhaps I should consider this. I own about 50 domains which costs me about $500 a year to renew. Perhaps I could do a little sprucing up of the domains, get a little more traffic to them, and then flip them.
When life gives you lemons, sell them!
40 Jon // Apr 12, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Hi everybody,
I’ve been reading a lot about COALSA. I hear nothing but great things and coming to Chris’ blog definitely confirms that people are having success with it. So needlessly to say I’ve been contemplating purchasing it.
I don’t mind starting fresh with new websites and with a new way to market. But I currently have 11 BANS (Build A Niche Store) sites. For those that don’t know they are basically eBay affiliate sites.
My question to Chris, or any of your students for that matter is how COALSA works on my already BANS sites. I see a lot of people hear promoting Clickbank products. How would it do with promoting eBay products?
I might be wrong but, I’ve read a lot about making mini sites to promote one large site. With my BANS sites, many of them have no correlation with another, so I’m wondering if COALSA can be used with them.
Like I said, I don’t mind building new websites but it would be a shame if I couldn’t use COALSA for site that already and ready to be promoted.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
41 admin // Apr 13, 2008 at 12:06 am
Hi Jon,
The overall goal that I lay down in COALSA is to work toward building an entire empire (niche by niche, based on results) with a VARIETY of traffic sources and income.
You start off with mini-sites (kindling sites) to gage the profitability and what kind of traffic is available.
If it’s worth expanding on, then you create your own “web” in that niche, piece by piece, of valuable sites, products, viral tools, email lists, and so on.
Where COALSA thrives is that it shows you how to build and target your sites for MAXIMUM punch.
You can literally get half the traffic and make twice as much as your competitors just by profiling your site correctly to be made available to the visitors who actually WANT to buy something.
This single “switch” is the anchor of everything you do within COALSA.
———————————
To answer your specific question:
Yes, you can use your existing sites to propel traffic and SEO leverage if they’re in a niche with large demand, existing sales-channels and proven products, and a customer-profile where spending money to obtain the solution/product/”thing” isn’t an issue, but rather a central focus on the niche itself.
In other words – you wanna be selling things in markets where lots of people are buying stuff
-Chris
42 Jon // Apr 13, 2008 at 11:47 am
Thanks Chris for the info. I am going to go buy it right now.
43 Iain // Apr 14, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Just one poit going back to what some of you have said about…
… those who can’t, teach – I just wanted to point out that without those useless idiot teachers none of you would be able to communicate with each other and the human race would probably still be dragging it’s knuckles on the floor. Education is valued so very highly by those in countries where it can’t be gained easily and yet apparently westerners, particularly those who have the privelige of a free education seem to devalue it and those that teach them.
Without at least the basic understanding of the subject be it marketing or site flipping we are all just basically pissing in the wind.
Ironically the original post was suggesting we rush out and buy the site flipping guide, why? so that the author could teach us!! but surely we have now agreed teachers are rubbish so why do we need it? you see we are all teachers to each other in some way and just because someone chooses to devote their life to educating others does not mean that they do not keep up to date or can’t do, it could just mean that they have an altruistic personality, i for one think teachers should be respected not riiculed whatever their subject and whether they are John Reese, Chris Rempel or Mrs sSmith your old English Teacher
On the topic of the post I bought into Domains into Dollars some time ago and although it’s not neccessarily a site flipping guide it is an education in itself of the way the domain & website market works, and judging by the contents you posted above it coves much of the same ground (although probably more expensive for being the more thourough. Using the techniques taught to me i have for the past year been selling domain names and sites on a very regular basis and would agree with you Chris that their is potential in what you are saying.
The other matter was that if you have a site producing 200 per month as stated above, i personnally would not let it go for less than a year’s income i.e. 2400. Of course if it’s only earning 200 it probably used to earn 400 or maybe more, we are only considering selling it because revenue is falling so you may wish to take that into consideration before deciding your price, and always remember your site can have a percieved value to potential buyers, do not be afraid to price accordingly.
I have a gambling blog that is now generating tons of targetted free traffic from search engines for fiercely competitive keywords, i have never paid for traffic its a geniune top ranking site built through good seo and valuable content – i do not monetise that site at all, if i was to sell it i believe it would fetch in the region of 10,000 plus as it is ripe to monetise and ome marketer would be chomping at the bit to pay that much for it and yet it is not earning a penny for me ….YET. the point is the value in your site does not have to be the amount it is making you.
Food for thought for some people i hope
That reminds me i really must monetise that gambling site….
regards
Iain
44 Iain // Apr 14, 2008 at 7:47 pm
oops sorry about the spelling mistakes – its late here
perhaps I should have paid more attention to the teacher in spelling class
45 Kang // Apr 16, 2008 at 5:15 am
Hi Chris,
Lol, I like your response to the spam bot.
I always have this dilemma when I’m responding to my comments as well.
You risk looking stupid if you really reply courteously to a bot.
46 Tony // Sep 17, 2008 at 1:04 pm
Hi Chris,
About warrior forum, that’s where I found your material. Not put the website to use yet, but found a great source for super blogs and getting this up and running first, it’s even starting to make some cash. So I tend to read everything from you and others and juggle it around till it looks right.
Look forward to you emails.
47 William // Sep 18, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Chris,
When you flip a website that you don’t want anymore do you ever do a quick face-lift or “update” a few things to maybe make a few extra dollars off the site? Kinda like when selling a home?
48 Charles // Nov 4, 2008 at 8:45 am
Hi, having read that whole conversation I must say that Iain is right on. And “Those who can’t do ….teach” is one of the most stupid expressions I have ever heard. I have the feeling that there is an business amateur among us by the way. But it is not Martin.
Peace
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