$250 Site Flip

$250 Site Flip

Posted on 06. Jul, 2009 by Michelle in Site Flipping

Site Flip
In this post I’m going to show you an example of how easy it is to make money online.

Working from home selling virtual real estate is one of many quick ways to make money but it’s also a way to build a substantial income too.

The site in this particular example was one I built myself in a matter of hours and then sold for $250, pocketing $218 in profit. That’s $218USD which converted to around $280 Australian dollars at the time. :)

I flip a variety of sites but in this particular case I built a basic blog and matching Twitter account. Given the site was all about Twitter I felt it made perfect sense to add a Twitter account to it.

So why did I decide to build a site about Twitter? If you’ve done any type of niche marketing you know there are opportunities to be found in new markets that are hot/taking off. Twitter is becoming so popular that it seemed obvious to me that this was a niche worth considering.

If you’re considering building or buying a site to flip then analysing the sites that are selling is a great way to get ideas of what markets to focus on.

After deciding on the market to build the site around I then needed to purchase the domain name. I won’t ever risk a trademark issue and would advise you not to either although plenty of buyers and sellers don’t think twice about it. A little bit of creative thinking to avoid the word Twitter, and I came up with www.TweetChatter.com.

For a unique touch I built the site using Artisteer, created my own header graphic and purchased two images at $5 each; one I used in the graphics and the other for post images. If you’re looking for a great place to purchase images for your blog posts or graphics you should check out Dreamstime, they’re my favourite and you can even get some images for free.

Setting up the Tweet Chatter Twitter account was quick and easy and a few simple graphics added a nice touch to the entire package for sale. During the time from set up to the final sale I sent out a few tweets and followed other Twitter fans which built up quite a nice following in a short time.

Offering for sale a virtual real estate package that is brimming with loads of extras can really help your sites stand out from the crowd.

To beef up the value of this site further I visited my trusty PLR (private label rights) membership and found a product on Twitter for newbies. I used the PLR as a guide to write my own ebook from. This took the most time out of the entire site build but with a base to work from I had it done in around an hour and a half complete with graphics and images. I also used PLR as a base to write the blog posts. Lastly I added a few affiliate programs and free Twitter buttons.

Using a template I created for my auction listings I edited the relevant parts such as the url and monetization methods and placed the site up for sale. The site sold for its reserve price of $250 and was purchased by someone who had bought from me before. It’s wonderful to see the site sitting on a PR3 already and starting to get some ranking for its targeted keywords after only 6 short weeks. And wonderful that the buyer has set up a replica site and Twitter account in French!

virtual real estate

Although it sounds ‘busy’ the above example was an absolute cinch to build. Over time you can become very efficient at building web property and flipping it for sizable net profits.

You might see this type of money making like others often do; as no better than a JOB because it doesn’t seem to offer passive income but rather like you just have to keep repeating the build, sell, build, sell cycle.

Well I talked about the whole dream of leading the passive income lifestyle in my Make Money From Home post and how indeed it is great to build passive businesses. Meanwhile though, if you want a way to work from home earning money quickly, then to flip a site or two every week might be just what you need.

Perhaps you’ve lost your job and just need quick cash, or you need to prop up your online income a little while those more passive models grow; site flipping is a way to achieve that.

All that being said, there is a way to build passive income into site flipping and also ways to make even greater profits with not too much more effort than I’ve outlined above.

Once you get a taste for the size of the profits you can make from one site flip and the passive income streams at the back end you could very well catch the site flip bug! :)

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29 Responses to “$250 Site Flip”

  1. TiptopcatNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    06. Jul, 2009

    Hi, fantastic post. I am currently working on a challenge of trying to write 100 hubs within 30 days. Others have made good money during this process so I thought I would give it a go too.
    I would very much like to try site flipping I feel that I am not skillful enough to achieve this yet. I hope to learn more so that I can emulate your success and start earning $250 selling new sites.
    Thanks
    TTC

  2. SunshineNo Gravatar (6 comments)

    06. Jul, 2009

    Hi Michelle,

    You make this look too easy girl. I would love to do this but am no techie at all.

    When is your course coming out on this or can you recommend a really inexpensive course on this topic?

    fyi, when I clicked the tweetchatter link in your post it stayed on the same page.

    I really enjoyed this article and seeing your success with site flipping. It was just the pick me up I needed today!

  3. Donnie@Chattanooga Search MarketingNo Gravatar (1 comments)

    06. Jul, 2009

    This article gives a good example of that basic process of flipping a web site. Gives me a little more info to work with. I’m looking a flippa.com next. Thanks for the help demystifying this for me.

  4. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    06. Jul, 2009

    @ TipTopCat Congrats on working through the 100 hubs in 30 days challenge, it will be great to follow your progress on your blog. Site flipping is certainly not an exact science and expecting a certain $ amount every time isn’t altogether realistic but every flip reveals more about the market to help improve your chances of success. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. ;)

    @ Sunshine I’m working on a basic free guide to get you started which should be finished within the next week. For all the technical detail and a thorough look into how I’m working this market, well that would require a more sizable product which I hope to have on offer by year’s end.

    Thanks for the heads up on that link and I’m glad you enjoyed the article. :)

    @ Donnie checking out flippa.com is a great idea to help with familiarising yourself with how buyers are likely to navigate the marketplace and also to begin to get a feel for what’s selling.

  5. simply stephenNo Gravatar (13 comments)

    07. Jul, 2009

    Michelle…again, such an eloquent way of putting things. Informative too. I have watched you polish your processes, technical prowess and presentation skills. Your marketing abilities are second to none. I am therefore convinced that your blueprint is solid. Thank you for sharing the salient points.

    One question. How much time do you spend on the whole process (section by section) now versus at the beginning?

  6. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    07. Jul, 2009

    Thanks for your kind words Stephen.

    That’s a great question about the time it takes for each component. I’ve learned that if you set something up well at the beginning for a repetitive process the gains are huge.

    When I first set up my auction listing template, I spent hours on it. But now I have the ‘template’ it’s really just a five or ten minute process to list the site up.

    The design phase took me hours too but now I have header templates ready to go and basic Artisteer themes I created that I tweak colours on in one click bringing that down to only minutes to complete.

    Content creation was much more difficult if I didn’t have PLR to use for a base to write from, now if I don’t have any I’ll buy extra just for that purpose. I do intend to outsource most of my writing for site flips from now on though as it’s the part I enjoy the least.

    There’s more to it that I need to cover in future posts etc. Thanks for the comments and question.

  7. AudreyNo Gravatar (4 comments)

    07. Jul, 2009

    Great work, Michelle. You make it sound so easy. Can’t wait to read your guide.

  8. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    07. Jul, 2009

    Hi Audrey,

    Like everything, once you do it enough the task at hand becomes second nature not to mention none of it’s rocket science to begin with.

    Your blog looks great by the way. Thanks for stopping by.

  9. Keller HawthorneNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    08. Jul, 2009

    Wow Michelle! I never knew it was this easy to flip websites. I love that you actually utilized PLR content to start it off on the right track. That means it’s not just another spam site, but rather has a foundation of real content to grow on. I am really impressed!

    May I ask where you sell your websites? Also, what are the potential challenges and timeline during the actual transaction process?

  10. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    08. Jul, 2009

    Keller I sell sites at Flippa.com. In my earlier post, Flipping Out At Flippa.com, I discussed the number one marketplace to sell sites being SitePoint.com, and why they moved the marketplace to Flippa.com.

    One of the biggest challenges for beginners who don’t have a lot of technical experience is the actual site transfer once payment has been received. I avoided site flipping for a long time simply because I imagined the transfer to be significantly more challenging than it actually is. Thankfully it’s really more a challenge of the mind and now knowing the steps, to which really there aren’t that many, it’s just another part of the process. :)

    In terms of the time line of the transaction process, typically for me the site will be paid for immediately and transfer is complete within 48 hours. A lot of that time is spent waiting on email correspondence from the buyer due to time zone differences. Once the IP address, log in details and all the other relevant information is received I will have the transfer complete within half an hour, normally sooner if the domain name resolves quickly to the new server. All in all, probably an hour’s work in total from payment to finalising the move. For me though, I spend quite a bit of time fostering relationships with my buyers and offering them help beyond that one hour. ;)

    Thanks for stopping by and leaving your comments and questions. :)

  11. Vic - BusinessAccentNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    14. Jul, 2009

    Hi Michelle,

    It seems that site flippig is very exciting and interesting way to earn online. It’s a business where all your talent and skills (designing, marketing, writing) are fully utlized. Thanks for sharing this great insight.

    Vic

  12. simply stephenNo Gravatar (13 comments)

    14. Jul, 2009

    Michelle…it’s been a year since we both starting communicating online. Your quality surpasses that of any guru I have met. You adapt like a chameleon and communicate with passion and confidence. You are the “real deal” when it comes to no BS.

    For that reason (and so many more),I have just nominated you for a Kreativ Blogger award, it is basically a pay it forward for all of your efforts. Details on my blog.

  13. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    15. Jul, 2009

    @ Vic you’re right that site flipping is exciting, I for one love it! :)

    @ Simply Stephen Wow! Thank you so much for your kind words and nomination, I’m truly flattered. I’ve read over the details on your blog about your Kreativ Blogger Award, congratulations to you, I certainly would have nominated you too if I’d known there was such a thing! I really enjoyed reading your seven interesting points. I’ll be sure to check out Davina’s blog and keep the pay it forward going, in fact I’ll be excited to do so over the next few days.

    Thanks again Stephen, it seems much longer than a year since we met online and I’m so glad we crossed paths. Your ‘green’ and ’simple’ philosophy has impacted on me positively, thank you so much. I look forward to lots of fun years ahead online and hopefully one day meeting up in person at some wonderful place on this beautiful planet of ours.

  14. RicNo Gravatar (5 comments)

    10. Aug, 2009

    Michelle, if you were to keep it and build up some pr with that site, what would be the range that you could then sell it for?

  15. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    10. Aug, 2009

    Ric I’m gathering you mean to build the site up where it’s earning income?

    In terms of income, the general rule that is repeated constantly is that sites will fetch somewhere between 10 to 12 times monthly income. This is true to an extent but I’ve seen sites with little to no income sell for quite a few thousand dollars.

    As I always say, it’s not an exact science but nothing much is, is it. :)

    Thanks for your question.

  16. RobertNo Gravatar (5 comments)

    15. Aug, 2009

    Michelle,

    You mention back end sales.

    I also flip sites and love it. There is plenty of room for us all in flipping sites.

    But I’m interested in the backend. What type of products would you offer in backend sales ?

    Thanks
    Robert

  17. lotharNo Gravatar (1 comments)

    20. Aug, 2009

    This is a great example. But you really must be quite experienced to rewrite and layout a plr ebook in just an hour. Would probably be a day for me.
    One mor question: Who made the graphics. on the ebbok, the different designs of the twitter followers and the twitter background.?
    Can you do it yourself or can you suggest a place to outsource?
    Thanks!
    lothar

  18. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    20. Aug, 2009

    @ Robert There are endless opportunities at that backend. One that quite a few site sellers offer is hosting. I don’t personally offer that but I could for a nice recurring income.

    A few others are an autoresponder account via AWeber or GetResponse, content/article writing for the site if applicable, marketing services, general coaching on how to take the site forward and of course custom orders for similar sites. There really is a very long list of opportunities only limited by the imagination.

    I don’t personally offer all those or actively seek them out but they are a few that can really boost the profit per site sale.

    @ lothar I work well if I have a sequence to work from so to write this ebook in one hour was quite easy but I also had a reasonable amount of knowledge about Twitter already. Also there were many images in the book as it really was about signing up to various programs and showing the reader how things ‘worked’.

    As far as the graphics for all those things you mentioned, I did them myself. It can take quite a bit of learning to get graphics to a standard where they don’t scream amateur but my work is still a far cry from expert. I believe anyone can learn it to a point, obviously graphics that are mind blowing are in my opinion created by the very very talented artists.

    You can find many new designers who are building their portfolio so will happily make graphics quite cheap. You can put a job up at Elance.com and even find designers at the Warrior Forum.com to name a few.

    Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. :)

  19. Lis - Passive Income OnlineNo Gravatar (1 comments)

    04. Sep, 2009

    TipTopCat pointed out this post to me as I am talking about getting into site flipping as well – so hi fromsunnny Perth – and I am thinking along the same lines as you re backend. I have one question though – you are using Aristeer – I spent most of yesterday playing with it – is it worth the effort to get a unique design? I am design challenged but with Aristeer I can make something presentable – I know its important to buyers to have unique content but in your opinion does the unique design add to the sales price too?

  20. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    05. Sep, 2009

    Lis thanks for stopping by! I’m in ’sunny’ Melbourne! :)

    You’ve asked a great question.

    I tend to ‘over deliver’ on as many aspects as I can when I build a site to sell so if I can quickly pull together a unique design then I will. It gives me another thing to highlight to potential buyers. :)

    Do I expect to get a higher sale price? No not necessarily…what I’m aiming for though is a way to increase the chances of the site selling.

    Some regular buyers are so tired of seeing the same old themes therefore a unique one might help with the appeal factor.

    The other concern some buyers have is whether the ‘free’ theme on the sites is being sold legitimately. Not many buyers are concerned about this but again, I like to cover off as many bases as I can.

    I find Artisteer a breeze to use and I’m proud to offer buyers something unique too. But don’t agonise over your theme design if it’s going to stall your progress. Just grab a free theme that you know is allowed to be resold and go for it.

    If you have any further questions feel free to post them here.

  21. Paula from Affiliate Blog OnlineNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    16. Oct, 2009

    Great post. I am adding this one to my favorites. I love developing websites but like you mentioned in one of the comments above, I have always thought that the actual transfer would be a big hassle. Would be great if you could write up a post about the actual transfer process.

  22. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    17. Oct, 2009

    Paula I cover how to transfer a site in my free QuikCash Convertor ebook, you can grab a copy here. :)

  23. Paula from Affiliate Blog OnlineNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    17. Oct, 2009

    Thanks Michelle – I’ve just signed up for it so will have a good read.

  24. Donnie @ Chattanooga Web DesignNo Gravatar (7 comments)

    19. Oct, 2009

    Taking your advice. I put a site up for sell on flippa. Thanks!

  25. LynnNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    24. Oct, 2009

    Michelle, can you clarify the issue of using stock images for your sites? Dreamstime say that images on web templates designed for sale need to be purchased with an extended license. It’s quite confusing!

  26. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    24. Oct, 2009

    @ Paula I hope you found the ebook useful. :)

    @ Donnie congrats on getting your site up for sale. Let me know how things went.

    @ Lynn by template Dreamstime are referring to one design that you would sell multiple copies of. For example I gave away two free themes to hundreds of people recently and that is considered a template. (I didn’t use licensed images. :) )

    For a theme/site that you will be selling only one copy of you have the right to use images purchased under the royalty free license. You then have the right to use that same image in another way in another website, print material etc as outlined in their royalty free license terms.

    Let’s say you purchased an image of a dog and use it in a header design. You cannot sell that header in multiple copies without purchasing the extended web license (usually costs $50 per image.) What you can do is sell that header once. You can then use the same dog image in let’s say a post, ebook cover or anything you can think of pretty much…so long as you don’t use it as a ‘design once – sell hundreds of copies of the exact same thing over and over.’

    I hope that helps clear things up. If you are making ‘unique’ designs each time you can simply purchase under the royalty free license.

  27. LynnNo Gravatar (2 comments)

    24. Oct, 2009

    Thanks very much, Michelle, for explaining about image use. Everything is clear now!

  28. Ruri @ free online article directoryNo Gravatar (5 comments)

    25. Nov, 2009

    Hi Michelle,
    This is interesting story about how you can sell simple site. I already look at tweetchatter.com. This site look amazing although have few articles only.

    If you don’t mind telling me, how did you determined this site value is $250?

  29. MichelleNo Gravatar (204 comments)

    29. Nov, 2009

    Ruri I determined the price based on extensive ongoing analysis and subsequent knowledge of the marketplace and knowledge of my customer base.