Sometimes it’s unavoidable.
You spend countless hours designing, building, and promoting your website. You put your blood, sweat, and tears into your business. Then the unpredictability of life happens and you’re faced with the unthinkable: your creation must be sold.
Thousands of websites change hands every year. While not all of the scenarios are as dramatic as above, it can still be a very daunting prospect to many website owners who have no idea where to start. Before slapping a “This Website for Sale” sign on your website, here are some things to consider.
A Lesson from the Boy Scouts’ Motto – Be Prepared
There are several things you can do to prep your online business for the sale. Information gathering is one of the best ways to be prepared for negotiations with potential buyers.
Traffic Statistics
Buyers are going to want to know specifics, such as how many visitors you get each month, how many times visitors view the pages on your website, how you get found, popular keywords, and more. Google Analytics is a great tool to use for this purpose.Have at least three months worth of statistics to show your buyers, though a year would be preferable.
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Average Monthly Revenue
Get your financials in order. Buyers will almost always want to see records that substantiate your revenue claims. You’ll want to have 12 months of records, if possible. Often buyers will pay the equivalent of one year’s worth of revenue.
How Much Would it Cost to Duplicate
Consider how much it would cost to rebuild your business, including designing the website, acquiring quality content, finding relevant links, building traffic. If it would be easy and inexpensive to duplicate, your site may lose some of its value. In preparation for a sale, beef up your business by adding value through the design and content. Make your site irresistible!
Brand & Reputation
A good, strong brand is important. You can increase your brand’s visibility by consistently getting your logo and business name out there. You can place ads on relevant websites, develop strategic alliances and link exchanges, write articles in which you position yourself (and your company) as an expert, create a strong social media presence (Facebook, Twitter, social bookmarking sites like Digg and StumbleUpon, etc.). Collect documentation for all of these things. Also, ask your previous customers for testimonials on your products and service. This will help attest to your good reputation.
What it’s Worth
There are all kinds of website valuation tools on the web. But the reality is it’s difficult to determine exactly how much a website is worth because it depends on so many factors. At the end of the day, the only thing that really matters is how much a buyer is willing to pay.
Where to Sell Your Website
There are a number of website marketplaces on which you can list your website. Here are a few of our favorites:
YoungEntrepreneur.com – Websites for Sale
DNForum.com
And Remember…
As with anything in business, you’ll want to protect yourself against getting burned. Do your research, work only with reputable companies, and go with your gut. Be a savvy seller and it will be “smooth sale-ing” all the way to the bank.