Whether you want to get an existing domain that gives you plenty of opportunities to grow your business or you're in the market to flip websites to make quick returns, the whole process can seem ambiguous, and there are bound to be many questions you have.
One of these is how the process all works and what this means for the content on the site and the hosting it has, but once you learn all of this, it can be a straightforward means of getting your ideal domain.
We'll demonstrate what you can expect when you purchase the site and the steps you need to take to ensure your new domain is functional and doesn't fall into any disputes while getting the best value out of your new site, which we look into more below.
Having a website is a sure way of giving legitimacy to your business or brand, so customers know where to find you and can find out what you're offering, but it can also give you a shortcut as you can get a pre-existing site which means you don't have to start from scratch.
Another aspect of this is website flipping, where you can buy a highly profitable domain that doesn't have the monetization or SEO that can take it to the next level.
These types improve this and make the site more valuable before selling it off.
Whichever you are, it's a good idea to have a strategy and go for sites not just because they seem interesting but because you can see an opportunity, so let's go over the process in more detail.
How Does The Transaction Work?
You can find many sites with domain names, one of these being
Flippa, which you can search through thousands of listings and view by asset type, extensions, domain length, and monthly profit, and here you'll see asking prices or active bids.
Before doing this, you should know what the site is and what its traffic and income look like so you can get an idea of how much time and money it will take to improve the site and sell again if you're flipping it.
Once You Negotiate The Purchase
So you've agreed on a price with the seller and are ready to move on to the next step. You'll usually be given a domain name and ownership agreement to sign, which outlines the sale's details and what is owned.
Once this has been signed and agreed upon, the seller has to transfer the domain over to you, so they can do this by contacting their registrar or the hosting service they are with and requesting the transfer.
Once they do this, they will be given a code that is only useable by the true owner, so once they give you this through your registered email address and it is approved, the process of transfer will begin, which can take around 24-72 hours, depending on the provider.
Now that this process is complete and you have access to the site's inner workings, you first need to check the hosting plan, which might be due to expire, so that you can extend it to another year.
The seller may already have extended this, which may be reflected in the price, and if you need any technical assistance due to things like earnings, you can arrange a monthly fee, so the transition goes more smoothly, but this might not be the case for all sellers.
How To Find The Right Value
Before buying a website, it's a good idea to work out what you intend to do with the domain and how to improve traffic and visibility on search engines.
This is more prominent if the domain is linked to your existing product or service.
When you purchase a site, it's a good idea to keep the name for some time, as if you change it as soon as you get the domain, you may see a decline in traffic, so getting a good domain name that explains your business or product well is essential.
This is even more important if the domain name describes a particular niche, as you'll have an audience actively looking within this niche which could, in turn, reflect on the site's price if this has already been realized.
For example, the domain is well-named, but the site itself isn't optimal for its audience, so you can go into the site and change the layout and code, as you'll need to get the permission of the original creator if you want to use any assets that come with the site.
Consider Your Return On Investment
This will likely be different on every site you look to buy, so the first thing you want to think about is how long it will take to get a return on the price you paid for the domain.
If you want to see this return within 1 year, you want to avoid paying more than 12 times the monthly net profit of the site, but if you don't mind sitting on this investment, you could go up to an 18 times profit, but this can be a higher risk, and you may not get a good deal.
Alongside this, consider the domain name, which can be $10 to $20 a year, and the hosting costs, which can cost from $9.99 up to the hundreds depending on the domain ending and the hosting platform you use.
Use Keywords To Your Advantage
The great thing about tracking how often words are used online is that it gives you an insight into what is popular and what people want, so if you already have a product or service, you can search through databases with keywords you can apply to the site.
This makes it easier for you to land on one domain that links well to the keywords you're looking for.
So, for example, if you want a site that deals with financial advice, you want a site name that reflects this but targets a specific kind of advice.
Something like 'retirement strategy' not only won't rank well with searches, but also it has a generic value as any brand or organization could use this if they have the same intentions as you for when they create their site.
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