How To Start Selling Website on Flippa [A Beginner's Guide]

Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.

Do you want to take the plunge and make a splash on the Internet?

Creating a brand new website from scratch is very difficult, after all, both of our initial websites failed and for most people, it takes a year of hard work to get a website up and running before they can make a modest income from it.

Although we are now very profitable, the last few years have been an experience that many of us probably could not have imagined. What steps should you take if you can bypass all the boring work up front and get right to the most interesting part?

Invest in the most promising assets - immediate traffic and sustainable income.

You've probably never heard of Flippa before, an online auction platform from which people can buy/sell websites. For a long time we have been watching and studying the various products available on this platform, and thanks to this experience we have learned a lot of investment tips related to websites, and in this article we will show you how to evaluate and buy websites on Flippa.com.

Questions that should be determined before you start

Before you get to the final process, you need to identify some basic questions that will help make your future buying process smoother. Therefore, taking some time to do some research may help you achieve greater success.

1. Choose a website that has just been launched or an established website?

Flippa sells two types of websites: Starter Sites and Established Sites.

1. Starter Sites are brand new and may not have any visitors, Flippa defines them as sites less than 3 months old, with no traffic and no revenue.
2. Established Site is a website that has been established for 3 months or more, may already have visitors, and is capable of generating revenue.
3. What is your budget?

Starter Sites are usually very inexpensive, costing around $60-$100; Established Sites can cost much more, but it depends on the number of visitors and available revenue. For reference, ShipYourEnemiesGlitter.com was recently sold for $85,000.

1. Which payment method would you like to use?

Basically, Flippa offers 2 payment methods: Flippa Escrow and PayPal. if you are not familiar with Escrow, you can deposit funds before making the final payment; however, if you plan to spend a lot of money, you may need to use the Escrow route.

1. What type of website do you want to buy?

The next issue is to determine the type of website you want to buy, such as a website that sells a specific service, a website that offers a specific product, a website that is looking for a content-based website (such as a forum or blog), etc. The Flippa platform has many pieces to choose from, but remember that just because a website looks great doesn't mean it will be able to make money for you, and if you are having trouble deciding, it is recommended to Take some time to browse carefully and study all available website ideas.

1. which platform and host do you need?

Then determine the required platform and hosting. For newbies, we use and recommend WordPress, which is the easiest, most popular and powerful platform for building websites.

However, you also have to determine the type of hosting needed. If you are looking for affordable hosting options, we recommend renting a web host, but be aware that some huge sites may need to run a VPS or an entire dedicated server, which could cost you more than $100 per month.

1. The best web hosting recommendations
2. The best VPS recommendations
3. How much does Flippa charge for processing?

Finally, you need to consider the purchase costs involved. For each successful sale of a website, Flippa charges a 10% processing fee.

Cautions

You're about to purchase at least one website, which can be a significant expense, so there are some pitfalls to be aware of.

1. Duplicate websites

If you spend enough time on Flippa, you will likely notice a large number of duplicate sites, one of the most common types being sites that sell Facebook likes and Twitter followers.

We recommend staying away from these products and looking for more original sites -- not that they don't work, but what needs to be understood is that after taking them into your pocket, you definitely want to incorporate unique ideas to make your own site stand out on the Internet.

1. Action Plan

When you look at a website, you need to understand the marketing plan behind it. Some websites promise some great marketing plans to urge you to pay for it immediately.

If this is true, why don't the people who create the sites just sell the services they offer? The truth is that if you want to buy any site on Flippa, then you need to have a marketing plan of some sort, whether it's content marketing or Facebook advertising.

1. Talk to the seller

One last thing is equally important, we recommend that you ask the seller some questions before you buy a website. If the site you want to buy is very well established, then you should check with the seller about its revenue and number of hits.

Buy site on Flippa

Now that all the preparations are in place, it's time to find your first website.

1. Start searching

The first step is to do a search in Flippa and once you find a site that matches your expectations, you can add it to your watchlist to return to later.

1. Careful study

The next step is to examine each site in the watchlist, which is some of the groundwork we like to do.

1. Check the current traffic: First look at how much traffic the site is already getting and where that traffic is coming from. Some sellers like to use paid traffic from countries like India and Pakistan to spruce up the numbers, if this is the case you should give up and look for the next site. Also, you have to stay away from sites that have seen a sharp drop in traffic, as this is a clear sign that it may have been affected by Google's latest algorithm and may have been penalized.
2. Check the current revenue: Next, check the current revenue of the site. Again, you'll want to stay away from options that have seen a dramatic increase in revenue recently. Certain sites may seem to be getting a lot of sales, but it's likely that the seller is cheating, and once you buy these types of sites, you'll likely get a hot potato.
3. Perform a basic backlink review: You can do this by opening Link Explorer and entering your website address. If you see a lot of spam comments with backlinks, it may cause trouble for you later and lead to a penalty by Google.
4. Search in Alexa: If the site passes the first three steps, the next step is to search on Alexa. Alexa will show you a variety of information, including site traffic, popular keywords, audience interests, global rankings, and more.
5. Ask the seller questions: Finally, if all is well, the next step is to ask the seller questions. If the price of the site is high, you should confirm the traffic and revenue to make sure everything is in order. Ultimately, if you can't negotiate, you can move on to the next site.
6. Make an offer

If a site is in the research phase, the next step is to make an offer, and most sites require a minimum bid before they can be sold.

Tip: Don't worry about someone bidding at the last minute, as this will prolong the auction and cause it to continue, but in the end, it will be the highest bidder who wins.

1. Purchase website

If no one ends up bidding against you and you have already purchased the website, it is time to pay. After purchasing a website, you must abide by the terms and pay a lot of fees, and if you don't pay, you may face legal action.

1. Migration of sites

The final step is to migrate the site, although some people guarantee you free hosting, we recommend that you should migrate it to your own hosting account, which will require you to purchase a web host or VPS. there are many excellent web hosts on the market to choose from, you can refer to this article of ours.

Don't forget that you also have to move the domain name to your account, click here to see our recommended domain registrars.