Investing in an internet company, buying secondhand websites

INVESTING IN AN INTERNET COMPANY, BUYING SECONDHAND WEBSITES

Investing in an internet company, buying secondhand websites, how to make money from buying and selling successful internet companies, advice on website flipping

There are other things that you can do to check if the website is Kosher and give you an indication as to whether it is actually performing as the seller claims. You need to log onto Google to see how many pages Google has indexed for the site. Simply type in - site:nameofthewebsite.com and click search. Google will return search results telling you how many pages it has indexed for the site. This will also show you how Google is actually viewing the site. You need to do this every few days whilst discussions are ongoing to see if Google is dropping pages. This will either be due to duplicate content or because the algorithm has changed and the pages are now considered less relevant or important and subsequently listed in the supplemental index.

BUYING SECONDHAND WEBSITES

Another thing you should do is check which search terms the stats report tells you people are using to find the site. Are they highly used search terms and if so, where in the Google rankings does the website appear for these search terms.

Having gone through all the checks, you now have the problem of deciding whether or not the website is actually worth what the seller is asking. This is not like buying a car where you can look up a guide price or a house where you can see what other houses in the street are selling for. Websites that are duplicates of, or very similar to, other websites are virtually worthless; websites that are unique have nothing that can be used to make a price comparison.

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INVESTING IN AN INTERNET COMPANY

Large companies will have all the in-house expertise and legal advice at their fingertips. If you are a small company or an individual you will have limited financial resources and be tempted to try and cut corners. Cutting corners is often just another way of cutting your own throat and you should be cautious about trying to do anything where you do not have enormous experience or full knowledge about the subject.

We buy websites that are failing and turn them around before selling them on, in part or as a whole, as profitable going concerns. The client often retains us as their IT consultants to advise and manage the site on their behalf, or as partners. It means that they have all the experience and expertise they need on call and can continue to develop the business whilst concentrating on the areas they know about and have the expertise and experience.

WHY BUY AN EXISTING WEBSITE?

There are a number of reasons why someone should buy an existing (second hand website) but it usually boils down to one thing - profit.

First of all, a website that has been established for a reasonable period should be generating a regular monthly income and full documented proof should be available. The buyer should normally know about the subject and see ways of being able to improve the income.

HOW TO MAKE MONEY FROM BUYING SUCCESSFUL INTERNET COMPANIES

If the buyer is an existing company they may want to buy the website because it compliments their existing business model, has technology and back end systems that they need and can merge together or can add value to their company.

If the buyer is a private individual they should only buy a website if the subject matter is either non specialist or is something they know about and have the experience to develop.

Please note: figures provided are for demonstration purposes only.

Let's for arguments sake say that you are a retired doctor. You feel you have a number of good years left in you and you are sitting on money in the bank that is only earning you 5% interest per annum. To make my sums easy, let's suggest that the figure is £10,000 and you are therefore earning £500 per annum in interest.

You could invest in the stock market where you have little control over what actually happens or you could buy a secondhand website that is medical related. Let's say the website is earning £2,500 per annum and because it has a lot of content and future development potential it is valued at £10,000. (You may have other costs such as legal and consultancy fees to pay on top).

HOW TO MAKE MONEY FROM SELLING SUCCESSFUL INTERNET COMPANIES

However, the website you have just purchased would return you 25% income on your investment which is five times what you are earning from the bank. However, you cannot sit back and just let the money roll in as a website income can degrade as competitors enter the market or develop their own sites.

So you spend a couple of hours a day writing medical articles, blogging, adding affiliate schemes and increasing revenue through the additional traffic that this brings in. You don't have to work everyday, you can take your laptop with you on holiday to answer queries or questions on the forum and you certainly don't have to make it a full time occupation....

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The Golden Web - The Internet Entrepreneur's Definitive Guide to Making Money Online

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Investing in an internet company, buying secondhand websites, how to make money from buying and selling successful internet companies, advice on website flipping