How to transfer site from Myebiz

[glideinyostride]

I am looking at a dropshipping site but it is currently hosted by myebiz.com. If I were to purchase this site I would want to transfer it to something like Wordpress since that is the only thing I have a little experience with and I don't like the idea of building up PR etc for a site I don't have control over. However, one of the reps with myebiz said that all the files and images cannot be moved off of their servers.

I was going to pay to get it transferred over to Wordpress anyhow because I don't know anything about that. My question is, if the files can't be transferred does that mean that I would have to get the original photos, etc off of the owner's computer? What else would this entail? Is that a big hurdle or merely a hiccup?

I am trying to search for help but am not seeing much info that I can use.

[grynge]

Transferring a domain/website really depends on 3 factors, 1st the registrar, 2nd the website host, 3rd the structure of the site itself.

Transferring the domain name and adding new hosting nameservers can be a quick simple and free job say for a .com hosted by godaddy or it can be massively complex if it is a .com.au or some other ccTLD's as you may need to fill in legal documents and pay other transfer fees. Every country has their own unique set of rules.

Now for the transfer of the actual website whilst I can't comment on myebiz as I have never seen their product but I can comment on other transfers from software package to software package. Transferring hosting for most sites is usually simple, copy all the files, copy the database, upload files and database to new host. 2 minutes for a small html site, hours of time if there are 1000's of tiny files and images. Some web service products can make this simple or a very impossible task if they wish to not let you leave. There could also be exit fees as well that you would need to check out.

If the site is straight html (no database) then copy and pasting into a cms like wordpress can depending on how many products and pages be a simple 2 minute job for a small site or a very laborius job for a large site.

Now if the dropshipping site you intend to purchase is built in a database then the conversion can be simple if there is a conversion tool. Or quite a nightmare if their is no conversion tool. If your site uses MSSQL and you want to migrate it to MySQL then there are tools but they don't always work 100%

Also note if there is qnything unique about your site, say for example a unique tool, it may require specific server modules to be loaded. What I mean is I have a font site that I hand wrote a conversion tool for but that tool needs specific set of programs to be installed on the server and the site would not work without those programs. If I was to sell the site I would need to sell the server along with it. MyEbiz could have scripts on their network that can't be run on other systems then again it maybe a breeze.

Each site is going to be a little bit different from another site. Html sites can be quite simple if they are small, and unique hand coded sites can be quite difficult. I am sorry there isn't a more precise answer. I would be happy to check the site out if you want to pm the domain name I can then see roughly what it would entail to move, though this method isn't always 100% accurate either.

[akirk]

There may be a slight confusion here...

when using a hosted website (built on an online website building system) you will usually find that the files (the web pages) use code in common across all sites using that tool - therefore they can't be moved to another hosting company as they are shared with other websites - you don't own a discrete website...

however content and images (other than the website core images such as buttons etc.) should be transferrable - as a last resort you can use a html website copier such as httracks to copy them... anything you can see in the browser can be copied...

think of it rather like buying a flat - you can't physically move the flat to another place as you share the building's outer walls / internal plumbing / lifts / etc. with everyone else...
however you are free to move the contents - furniture / carpets / etc.

so I would guess that the rep was meaning that you can't technically move everything across - but that won't stop you moving across the content...

I would echo grynge's comments above - and don't under-estimate the technical issues / time to convert from one system to another - unless it is going to make a huge difference to build your business - leave it where it is...

Alasdair

[Clinton]

I tried to Google this for you but the first few results for how to transfer site from myebiz are all pointing to this thread. So we can take it there isn't much info around on transferring away from myebiz.

myebiz sounds a bit like Site Build It (SBI). We have a thread about moving a sitebuildit site to Wordpress. It's a useful thread for you to read and would give you an idea of the complexity. akirk's post in there describes in some detail the process of moving a site to WP from a captive system such as SBI and myebiz.

My advice: Don't buy the site unless you're willing to pay a few hundred dollars for someone to move it for you and are willing to take the risk of that going smoothly. Also, if you did decide to proceed, I would discount the price substantially. A site built on a captive platform should not be valued anywhere near a similar site that's independent. Any factor that ties you down should depress the price. And if it's a sub-domain on another site apply a massive discount for the fact that you are tied down and at the mercy of the person owning the main domain (hubspot, squidoo) and don't touch it with a bargepole if it's on a main domain that doesn't allow sale/transfer of sub-domains.

[glideinyostride]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I will definately have to factor in the potential difficulties into the pricing if I decide to pursue further. I am going to continue looking into it and decide.

Clinton, yea I couldn't find anything at all really about myebiz except a bunch of sales testimonials etc. The first thing that came to mind was SBI so I tried looking up transfering SBI sites to Wordpress and came up with much more info, even from SBI staff which was refreshing. Myebiz, however, doesn't seem too keen on releasing its customers which detracts from the attraction significantly. The positive is that it is on it's own privately owned domain through GoDaddy.

[akirk]

I would have a suspicion that the domain is managed by Myebiz though - it is normal in these cases to point the domain to the web company which means that moving the domain doesn't move the content as the hosting will by Myebiz's hosting...
check who has ownership of the domain - not always who you suspect!
check where it is managed from - myebiz / a registrar such as godaddy etc. - will you have control of it?

Alasdair

[glideinyostride]

User details are protected through GoDaddy but Owner assured me it was his domain.

[Matteo]

MyEbiz is related to the scammers, Professional Marketing International (PMI Coaching). The drop shipping "business" is not portable. You would likely be a sub-affiliate. You will get high pressure calls to sell you coaching and upgrades.

DO NOT BUY THAT SITE!! Run as fast as you can from that site purchase.

If it is a resale someone is probably trying to dump it and recoup their lose from being ripped off.

[akirk]

MyEbiz is related to the scammers, Professional Marketing International (PMI Coaching). The drop shipping "business" is not portable. You would likely be a sub-affiliate. You will get high pressure calls to sell you coaching and upgrades.

DO NOT BUY THAT SITE!! Run as fast as you can from that site purchase.

If it is a resale someone is probably trying to dump it and recoup their lose from being ripped off.

That is quite a claim - is there a known set of issues on this / reports from others as well? Would be great to know more detail (within sensible boundaries of not being libellous!) if this is the case...

Alasdair

[grynge]

That is quite a claim - is there a known set of issues on this / reports from others as well? Would be great to know more detail (within sensible boundaries of not being libellous!) if this is the case...

Alasdair

From what I can see Matteo could be correct the registrar details for PMI use myebiz as their contact.

http://www.bbb.org/utah/business-rev...hi-ut-22169054
http://www.bbb.org/kansas-city/Busin...ey-mo-99122599
http://www.bbb.org/utah/business-rev...044/complaints

and thats what I could find for a couple of seconds search just from the BBB and their are many other reports on these set of companies which when I took a quick look listed dozens of domains and companies.

My personal opinion would be to not purchase the site, just based on the BBB reports.