Website Shopping: Should You Buy a Website?

Browsing through EBay, let’s say you came across a website that’s up for sale OR say you come across a website that complements your niche. You think this website might be a great supplement to your current site. Should you consider buying it? Here are three important steps to follow: (a) Research the site (b) Determine the site’s worth and (c) Negotiating strategically.

Research the Site: Registration, Ranking and Backlinks

Is the website registered? An easy “Whois.com” or “networksolutions.com” Domain Name Search (DNS) provides vital background information on the website such as the owners’ details and contact information. The DNS helps determine the credibility of the website.

What is the ranking of the website? A good place to start is Alexa.com. Under the “Traffic Rankings” link on top of the landing page, you can enter the URL/website you are interested in purchasing. You should receive a site ranking. If you are unable to receive any information, just try typing the “domain name” itself. There are millions of websites and the question of “what is a good viable rank” depends on the niche, category and the site’s competitors. Alexa rankings are largely based on traffic. Therefore, lower the ranking, greater the traffic.

Are there back-links or incoming links on the site? You want a site to have as many back-links as possible because this generates traffic. To learn whether the site’s back-links, you can do this by inserting the following letters in your Google search (without quotes) “link:” and then type the corresponding web address.

Determine the Site’s Worth

Once you have determined the credibility of the site by ensuring that it is properly registered, finding the site’s ranking and seeing that there are plenty of back links, it’s time to determine the website’s worth. It’s always important you do this before you begin the negotiation process with the owner.

To determine the value of the site, a must-read article is “what a visitor is worth” on Internet Marketing University. Consider another website within your niche and say it receives 1000 visitors daily, with each visitor earning you $ 0.35.

Now assume that every visitor coming to the site that you are looking to purchase is worth 20% of $ 0.35, which is $ 0.07 per unique visitor. With a 1000 visitors, you are making $ 70 per day.

When making an offer, you would want to consider at least 6 months of profit. In our case, 70*180 days (6 months) is $ 12,600. Keep this number handy and by no means disclose this figure to the site owner. Because the next thing you will do is talk to the owner and determine the sale value.

Negotiating Strategically

You can acquire the owner’s contact information either directly through the website or through your DNS. First, inquire if the site is on sale. It’s best to not disclose too much information. You may mention that you thought their website would provide a great vehicle to market your product. If they inquire about a price, let the owner know that it would be based on traffic and ranking. As mentioned before, do not indicate the price that you had come up with: $ 12,600.

Next, ask the owner (s) for their “asking price” – the price they are willing to sell their site. You can ask the owner what the website is earning on a monthly basis. If he/she gives a figure of $500/month, this would mean $ 3,000 for a six month period - a considerably lower amount to the price you had determined!

Make your Best Buy

Buying a website includes research and strategy. Regardless of the fact it might not be a “brick-and-motor”, a website is a business. So treat it like one! After your purchase, plenty of work follows in terms of content and marketing. The best part about this deal is – if you have done your research and have negotiated well – you have a gold mine of a website to start with that has the traffic, ranking, credibility and the content to help you in your profit-generation. This could be a great investment in the long run!