Website flipping involves buying underperforming websites, improving them, and then selling them for a profit.
At first glance it may seem like an easy way to make money. But successfully flipping websites requires time, knowledge, and learning from experience.
The core business model is straightforward – purchase websites with potential, enhance their value, and resell them for more. Sites ripe for flipping often get traffic but don’t monetize well, or rank for some keywords but could rank for more.
The goal is to boost the site’s SEO, content, monetization, design, and user experience enough to sell it for substantially more than you paid.
While flipping websites takes effort and learning through experience, many find the model rewarding. With patience and persistence, flipping can become a fruitful endeavor. More on whether it is ultimately profitable coming up in the next section!
The concept of buying an asset, improving it, and selling it for profit is nothing new. People have been doing this for years with things like antique furniture, classic cars, and real estate.
Website flipping applies this same model, just in the digital space. The idea is straightforward – purchase an underperforming website, enhance it, then sell it for a higher price.
Compared to physical assets, websites offer some unique advantages:
Additionally, there is strong demand for profitable, well-performing websites. Many existing sites get traffic but don’t monetize it well. Others are outdated or subpar when it comes to design and user experience. This presents opportunities for flippers.
The website flipping model allows for both monthly cash flow from a site’s earnings, plus a big payout when it’s eventually sold. This lump sum can then be reinvested to scale up – buying more sites, outsourcing content, and repeating the process.
While success is not guaranteed, many find website flipping to be a viable and potentially lucrative business model. With some experience, the risks can be minimized and the rewards maximized.
If a website is profitable, why not just continue owning it instead of flipping it? There are some good reasons one might opt to sell:
So while keeping a profitable site can certainly be a good long-term strategy, flipping it brings some unique financial benefits as well. There are solid reasons on both sides, and entrepreneurs must evaluate their own goals and risk tolerance.
Below you can find a breakdown of what steps are required to flip a site.
But before you read on, have a look at case studies shared by our podcast guests!
Our Podcast Case Studies About Flipping Websites
Finding the right website to flip is a crucial first step that requires careful evaluation. While buying an existing site is faster than building from scratch, not every site is worth investing time and money into. When assessing potential sites to flip, keep these tips in mind:
When starting out, you’ll need to decide whether to build a website from the ground up or buy an existing site. Both options have their pros and cons. Building gives you full control over the site, but buying is much faster since the site is already indexed and receiving traffic.
Learn what it takes to pull the trigger and buy an online business with Jaryd Krause. Get valuable insights in this episode!
Buying an existing website can get you started faster, since the site is already indexed by search engines and receiving organic traffic.
Building a profitable site from scratch can take well over 2 years. With an existing site, you instantly have an audience to build on.
However, building gives you full control over the content, design, and monetization from day one.
When browsing potential sites to buy, it helps immensely to focus your search on profitable niches. Consider categories like food, travel, business, health and technology.
You may also opt for a micro-niche for greater focus and profit potential, like keto recipes or SaaS management tools.
Ideally, choose a niche you already have knowledge and interest in, as this makes creating content and marketing much easier.
Having a checklist ensures you thoroughly evaluate potential sites before purchasing. Include criteria like:
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Doing in-depth due diligence is a must before acquiring any website. Never skip this crucial step. Proper due diligence helps avoid making expensive mistakes and spots any red flags early on. Include steps like:
Never ignore any red flags uncovered during due diligence. Even if a site has great potential, major issues are best avoided from the start.
When evaluating a potential acquisition, look for ways you can quickly boost earnings. This shows the site has solid growth potential once you implement further optimizations. Things to check:
Even just a few quick fixes early on can significantly impact earnings. This indicates big potential for future growth and profits.
When searching for an existing website to purchase and flip, you want to find ones with clear potential for growth and increased revenue. The best sites to buy are those with proof of concept, untapped opportunities, and room to optimize.
Look for Solopreneurs and Hobby Sites
Websites run by individuals and hobbyists often have untapped potential without huge price tags. If teams of experts were working on the site, they may have already maximized profits, leaving little room for you to improve.
Search for solo owners on marketplace profiles. Hobbyists especially may not have invested much in monetization, SEO, etc.
This presents opportunities.
Catch this insightful episode with Jaryd Krause and Carl Broadbent and discover how to manage and scale a content website portfolio.
Sites with Proof of Concept
Rather than unproven ideas, look for sites where the traffic source and monetization method already work together to generate income.
For example, a site with steady organic search traffic and affiliate commissions.
This shows the model functions and just needs some optimization and growth to boost profits.
Avoid sites that are essentially failed ideas without any traffic or revenue proof points yet. These require much more investment and risk to get off the ground.
Sites with Untapped Potential
Search for sites where you can clearly identify opportunities to improve growth.
Perform SEO audits and content gap analysis to reveal areas for optimization. Also ensure the niche has long-term relevance, not just a temporary trend.
Sites with clear potential have growth opportunities via better SEO, expanded content, increased links, and similar optimizations.
Sites with Room for Revenue Growth
Look for sites where you can quickly boost earnings through simple changes.
Avoid sites where traffic and monetization are already fully maximized, as there will be little room for you to substantially grow profits.
By targeting websites that meet this criteria of proven concepts, untapped potential, and revenue growth opportunities, you set yourself up for success flipping websites.
Check out this episode with Jaryd Krause and discover valuable insights about buying a business so you can make an informed investment decision!
Once you’ve identified a website to flip, it’s time to purchase it.
We have a whole hub page about buying websites, but here are some main tips for buying your first site:
Website marketplaces like Flippa, Motion Invest, and Empire Flippers make it easy to find sites already for sale. You can search based on criteria like niche, traffic, revenue, etc. These platforms hold your payment in escrow for safety.
Flippa is a top choice with its massive selection and user-friendly interface. They only charge a small processing fee, not a commission on the sale price.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate, especially as a first-time buyer. Aim for a price aligned with a valuation tool, but be willing to bargain. Patience can pay off with finding the ideal site at the right price point.
Make sure to thoroughly vet sites using your checklist before purchasing. With the right marketplace platform and negotiation strategies, you can acquire a quality website tailored to your niche and budget.
After purchasing a website, you must formally transfer full ownership to yourself. Don’t skip this crucial step. Follow these tips for a smooth transfer process:
The transfer process seems straightforward but many details must be covered. Using a clear contract and checklist ensures you legally obtain full ownership and don’t miss any key elements.
Once you’ve acquired a website, it’s time to optimize it before reselling. Follow these tips for improvement:
A comprehensive audit identifies problem areas to address. Use heatmaps to see where visitors struggle.
Perform technical SEO audits to catch issues hurting rankings. Check for broken links, inappropriate tags, poor internal linking. Auditing gives you a roadmap of what to improve.
Learn how we audited a website to recover it from a Google’s algorithmic penalty:
Add new, original SEO-optimized content that targets relevant keywords and provides value. Creating fresh, high-quality content attracts search traffic by giving Google more pages to index. Also improve existing thin or outdated content by expanding or updating it. More robust content enhances appeal.
Expand beyond basic affiliate commissions. Add sponsored posts, display ad units directly sold to advertisers, digital products like ebooks, online courses, subscription options.
Provide affiliate links to complement your content and recommend relevant products. Pursue diverse income streams to increase earning potential.
Do you want your site to be more profitable? Check out this podcast with Jaryd and Kristal Audain to learn how to generate and sell leads on your content website.
Drive more visitors by leveraging SEO keywords, guest posting on other sites, expanding your social media presence, sending email newsletters, and building backlinks.
Pitch relevant blogs in your niche for backlinks in exchange for guest posts.
More quality traffic should also earn you more, which makes the site more attractive to buyers.
Leverage Expertise
Play to your strengths for improvements. Excel at Pinterest? Tap into that. Great at pitching sponsors? Monetize via direct ads.
For hands-off improvement and growth through search optimization, consider our managed SEO service B.O.B. SEO. Our experts handle improvements to accelerate your website flipping success.
With the right audits, optimizations, and traffic boosting, you can significantly increase a site’s value and profitability for a future sale.
Once you’ve optimized the website, it’s time to sell it for a profit. Here are tips on pricing, listing, and selling your flipped site:
Websites typically sell for 24-36x monthly revenue or Seller’s Discretionary Earnings (revenue minus operating expenses the buyer will inherit).
This gives a valuation baseline.
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Make your listing shine by:
Top platforms to list your site include:
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Boost visibility by optimizing your marketplace listing for relevant keywords. Include keywords in titles, descriptions, and even in the URL slug if possible.
Get the word out by sharing your flipped site listing on relevant forums, social media groups, and your own site if applicable. Direct promotion expands reach.
Engage promptly and professionally with inquiries to build trust and rapport with potential buyers. Share documentation and answer questions.
While flipping websites takes effort, the rewards can make it worthwhile.
You’ll likely make some mistakes at first, but these become learning experiences.
With time and persistence, you can develop skills to consistently flip sites for profit.
Or, work with a proven website operator to handle optimizations while you focus on the buy and sell ends.
When done right, website flipping can absolutely be a highly profitable business model. However, like any endeavor, success is not guaranteed. Flipping websites for profit takes patience, persistence, and accepting some risk.
The core concept is simple – buy undervalued sites, improve them, then sell for a higher price. This buying low and selling high can produce large profits. Experienced flippers can purchase sites for 24-36x monthly earnings, then sell just 6-12 months later for 3-5x what they paid.
However, pinpointing sites with clear potential takes some skill. Conducting due diligence to confirm reported earnings and traffic is crucial to avoid getting burned on poor acquisitions. Maximizing value also requires expertise in areas like SEO, content creation, and monetization. Novices should expect some costly mistakes in the learning process.
There is also always the risk of Google algorithm changes negatively impacting traffic and rankings. And demand can fluctuate, making selling at the desired price point challenging at times, especially for smaller sites.
There is always a risk of losing money:
In this episode, Cody shares his heartbreaking experience of losing 6 figures from buying the wrong business. Tune in to avoid the pitfalls!
Yet despite the risks and learning curve, successfully flipping just a few websites can produce sizable profits. The keys are targeting sites strategically, thoroughly vetting them, and methodically improving them to amplify earnings. With experience, flippers gain the knowledge to consistently acquire and optimize sites for a significant return on investment.
While certainly not a get-rich-quick scheme, website flipping offers entrepreneurs a viable path to generating income online. For those willing to learn through experience and stick with it, it can become a fruitful endeavor.
Yes, website flipping remains a viable business model for generating income online. However, success requires strategic buying, improvement skills, and persistence. See the 'Is Website Flipping Profitable?' section above for more details.
Website flipping involves purchasing underperforming websites, optimizing them, and then reselling them for a profit. See the introduction for a more in-depth explanation of the website flipping process.
It is absolutely possible to flip websites with the right approach. The keys are targeting sites with clear potential, thoroughly vetting them, methodically improving them, and having patience through the process. With persistence and some trial and error, flipping websites can become a fruitful endeavor.
The capital needed can vary greatly. It's possible to get started with just a few hundred dollars for a simple site.
But flipping larger, more complex sites may require tens of thousands for the acquisition and improvement costs.
Beginners should start small and reinvest profits to build up their flipping capital over time.
What you should focus on is building your skills to improve the website for a higher multiplies, so you don’t have to spend your money on outsourcing.
Some key skills include SEO, content creation, basic design, business valuation, negotiation, online marketing, and data analysis. However, total beginners can see success by starting with simple sites and learning through experience.
It varies substantially based on factors like the quality of the domain name, market demand, and the seller's skills. But experienced domain flippers can generate from a $1,000 to anything above $20,000 in profit from a single short-term sale.
Top-tier premium names can sell for north of $1,000,000.
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