1. Quickly find sites and domains for sale in the marketplace based on criteria that interests you.

    Enter Marketplace
  2. Advertising
    y u no do it?

    Advertising (learn more)

    Advertise virtually anything here, with CPM banner ads, CPM email ads and CPC contextual links. You can target relevant areas of the site and show ads based on geographical location of the user if you wish.

    Starts at just $1 per CPM or $0.10 per CPC.

What should I look for while buying a site?

Discussion in 'Sites' started by kashem, Mar 31, 2006.

  1. #1
    Hello
    I am planning to buy one or two sites that earn $100+ /mon.

    What should I look for while buying a site?
     
    kashem, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  2. mad4

    mad4 Peon

    Messages:
    6,986
    Likes Received:
    493
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #2
    • Site age
    • DMOZ listing
    • Backlinks in all 3 search engines
    • Archive.org listings
    • Proof of revenue
    • Traffc details
    • Advertising costs
    • Whether the links are natural
    • Will the links stay in place after the sale
     
    mad4, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  3. jimkarter

    jimkarter Notable Member

    Messages:
    5,168
    Likes Received:
    347
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    235
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #3
    And:

    Registrar (free push or not)
    Domain blacklist status (you can check them at whois.sc)
    Whether blocked by some specific advertising networks.
    Ask whether seller is ready to use escrow (some sellers just runs away on this)
     
    jimkarter, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  4. techlady

    techlady Active Member

    Messages:
    168
    Likes Received:
    4
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    53
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 1
    #4
     
    techlady, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  5. Staale

    Staale Peon

    Messages:
    287
    Likes Received:
    6
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #5
     
    Staale, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  6. dkessaris

    dkessaris Peon

    Messages:
    984
    Likes Received:
    119
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #6
    And,
    Source of traffic
    Number of indexed pages (and whether they are supplemental or not)
    Consistency of traffic and revenue over a period of a few months
     
    dkessaris, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  7. onedollar

    onedollar SEO Consultant for Hire

    Messages:
    3,481
    Likes Received:
    333
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #7
    No one has mentioned it yet, not all but some buyers look for PR too.:)
     
    onedollar, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  8. Amilo

    Amilo Peon

    Messages:
    624
    Likes Received:
    18
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #8
    Check there trader rating.

    if unsure, PM a member with lots of posts of this forum or any onther forum that has sites for sale and ask them to check it out for you;)
     
    Amilo, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  9. Seiya

    Seiya Peon

    Messages:
    4,666
    Likes Received:
    404
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #9
    An obvious one... :p will you be able to provide updates? ;) Is the site for monetary interests only or because its somethign that interests you for leisure.
     
    Seiya, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  10. kashem

    kashem Banned

    Messages:
    1,250
    Likes Received:
    76
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #10


    certainly I will PM you:D
     
    kashem, Mar 31, 2006 IP
  11. Greg-J

    Greg-J I humbly return to you.

    Messages:
    1,844
    Likes Received:
    153
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    135
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #11
    I just came accross this with purchasing automotivehaven.com:

    Make sure the seller knows how to transfer the site to you. In my case, I found out the seller hadn't a clue what he was doing and had to log in to his CPanel account so I could set get the site files. And when it came time to transfer the domain, I received a PM with "you can set it up now, I deleted the domain".

    Needless to say I simply got my money back and wished him good luck.

    So, the lesson is:

    Make sure the seller knows how to transfer the site files, database (if there is one) and most importantly, domain.



    TIP
    Make the seller agree to keep the site on their server for 72 hours after you change DNS. Having a seller delete the site the moment they transfer it can be disastrous.
     
    Greg-J, Apr 1, 2006 IP
    jimkarter and ryan_uk like this.
  12. tasari

    tasari Peon

    Messages:
    800
    Likes Received:
    11
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #12
    I think you also should get the unique visitors instead of pageviews (if seach engines pass buy a lot of pageviews automatically counted)

    A little extra question.. which escrow service is good to use ? which do you use and why ? :)
     
    tasari, Apr 1, 2006 IP
  13. Greg-J

    Greg-J I humbly return to you.

    Messages:
    1,844
    Likes Received:
    153
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    135
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #13
    I use escrow.com and escrow.com alone.

    I would say that Page Views are every bit as important as Unique Visitors though. Just make sure your tracking software isn't counting includes. That can drive up the number quite a bit.
     
    Greg-J, Apr 1, 2006 IP
  14. Amilo

    Amilo Peon

    Messages:
    624
    Likes Received:
    18
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #14
    And i wil PM you back a list of the good traders on here;)
    There are some top members who will look after you.
     
    Amilo, Apr 1, 2006 IP
  15. spondishy

    spondishy Peon

    Messages:
    735
    Likes Received:
    15
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #15
    I'd also want to know the technology involved in the site. If I can't support it then it's no good to me.

    Also, the site may make $1000 a month, but how much work am I going to need to produce that revenue.
     
    spondishy, Apr 1, 2006 IP
  16. jimkarter

    jimkarter Notable Member

    Messages:
    5,168
    Likes Received:
    347
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    235
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #16
    I totally agree. Some registrar allows pushing but in some cases transferring is the only option. Make sure seller understands it well. Also, how to zip/export/dump the database from online interface. (rep to you). :D
     
    jimkarter, Apr 1, 2006 IP
  17. kashem

    kashem Banned

    Messages:
    1,250
    Likes Received:
    76
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #17

    will they not fight with me to buy the site?:) It will be nice to have a list of strong rivals:D
     
    kashem, Apr 3, 2006 IP
  18. petertdavis

    petertdavis Notable Member

    Messages:
    1,494
    Likes Received:
    159
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    235
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 5
    #18
    I think the most important factor is something Amilo touched on, checking the reputation of the seller. It's really not enough to look just at the trader rating here at DP, though that's a good start. The real scamsters will be able to pass that test. The real scamsters will go from site to site, here at DP, next at Sitepoint, then NamePros, then DNForum, and so on, and they'll setup a new account at each place. Maybe they'll even do a couple of small transactions to build up their reputation a bit. Then, wham, they got you on a scam and you're out hundreds or thousands of dollars.
     
    petertdavis, Apr 3, 2006 IP
  19. jinmin

    jinmin Active Member

    Messages:
    448
    Likes Received:
    2
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    58
    As Seller:
    100% - 0
    As Buyer:
    100% - 0
    #19
    Make sure the domain is not been blacklisted or sandboxed by Google.
     
    jinmin, Apr 10, 2010 IP