FP - Just purchased my first site to flip

[scrumpy]

Hey everyone,

I've made around $650 net profit on Flippa so far 'Hatching' sites, so this is the first site I've purchased with the intention of flipping for profit.

I must admit it took me a few hours today at least to trawl through DP listings and this particular one stuck out at me so I snapped it up before anyone else saw it.

It's a PR2 Adsense site that get around 4k UV's and generates $25 per month in revenue.

I snapped it up for $100.

I think that's a good purchase myself, so please let me know if you think I'm off the mark - I totally welcome your opinion that's why I'm here

So, I intend to increase the value by selling a few text links if I can and tidying up the design then I'll list straight on Flippa.

Any tactics with regards to pricing an auction?

For example,

$1 starting bid with a reserve, no BIN

Or $100 reserve with a BIN...

With this particular auction I was thinking of starting the auction at $100 with $100 and having no BIN. I don't want to put people off by putting a too higher BIN price.

Anyway, comments welcomed

[Thomas]

Good work buying your first site.

With Adsense sites, I would recommend spending some time adding a new theme with a higher CTR (most people use rubbish themes) so you will see the revenue increase from day one. Also install Google Analytics right away as buyers on Flippa will want to see this. I would then keep it a month so you can show an increase in revenue.

I would start the auction at $1 with no reserve. Just spend some time writing a good sales copy and make sure you use the featured listing option once (it's not cheap for a small site, but it's worth it).

Good luck!

[scrumpy]

Thanks for your reply, Thomas!

I've added analytics already and I've had a few interested parties in purchasing text links for $3 a month. If I can sell 5 links at $3 per month I've just increased the monthly revenue by $15.

Thank you for the tip on the auction start price. Man, that's a scary thought starting it at $1 - no reserve but I trust your experience.

If I can increase the revenue and prove it along with the traffic levels I shouldn't have a problem making a profit - I hope, anyway!

I'll keep you updated.

Russ

[Thomas]

Thanks for your reply, Thomas!

I've added analytics already and I've had a few interested parties in purchasing text links for $3 a month. If I can sell 5 links at $3 per month I've just increased the monthly revenue by $15.

Thank you for the tip on the auction start price. Man, that's a scary thought starting it at $1 - no reserve but I trust your experience.

If I can increase the revenue and prove it along with the traffic levels I shouldn't have a problem making a profit - I hope, anyway!

I'll keep you updated.

Russ

Good job on selling the links.

As long as you use the featured listing option and write a good listing, $1, no reserve is always the way to go on low end sites. Gets people bidding and more often than not starts a bidding war

[Ryan Sorensen]

Nice work on snatching up your first site to flip! I agree with Thomas 100% on this one. While it is a scary thought of starting your auction at $1 with no reserve, it's a proven strategy for smaller sites.

Definitely keep it for a month, increase the revenue, and the traffic if you can. Use actual revenue figures versus estimates. The graph, especially if it shows an uptrend, is a powerful sales tool.

I also recommend making a short video introducing the site, showing real proof of revenue and traffic, and giving them some ideas on how to increase these in a simple and understandable way. Also add as many relevant screenshots as you can. This helps to build trust, which is one of the three biggest factors in selling a site - the other two being traffic and revenue.

When writing your sales letter, remember to put your "buyers" hat on. Ask yourself all the questions a buyer would - time to maintain the site, what are your monthly expenses, what comes with the purchase, why you are selling, etc - and put it in easy to read sections.

Ultimately with a proven PR2 adsense site making $30 to $40 a month the site will practically sell itself. Just make it a clear and easy decision for potential buyers in your sales letter (don't forget the featured upgrade, accept the first $1 bid then hold off for a few hours letting more bids add up before accepting them), and you'll for sure make a profit.

Good luck!

[stefanz99]

Well what will you do to make the site better? And profit more? Where you want to sell it?

[scrumpy]

Update: I've been offered $210 for the site without doing any work which is a quick profit of $110. I don't want to do that, really, so I;ll hang on to it with a view of selling it on Flippa at the end of September.

~Russ

[Bryan]

Yep, definitely don't take this offer. $210 for an Adsense site that makes $25/mo isn't a good offer at all - even if you would list it on Flippa today you would easily get $300-$350.

[108flowers]

increase the value by selling a few text links

I'm interested in knowing where I could find buyers for text links. How does one go about that?

[Bryan]

I'm interested in knowing where I could find buyers for text links. How does one go about that?

My first choice would be DP. As much as I hate the place, there's loads of people over there and the link selling section is always buzzing.