Best Practices for Selling Websites | Tips for Selling Websites
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If you need assistance in developing an eye-catching listing title and an enticing business description, there are professional writing services available to assist you.
Despite the consensus of some online business brokers, web based business valuation is an art, not a science. To one prospective buyer, the web property may be worth more than a generalized 2x – 3x multiplier of the owner’s annual discretionary cash flow. venforo offers a low-cost opportunity to test the market to determine the interest at a price you feel comfortable with. If you have followed these best practices for a listing and little or no activity has occurred, consider revising your opening price when re-listing.
If you are including a reserve price and/or BuyNow option as part of your listing, make sure that this is your lowest acceptable price. In accordance with the venforo Terms of Use Agreement, if the buyer meets the reserve or BuyNow price, you are obligated to sell at that price. Also keep in mind that for sale listings with lower (or no) reserve prices on auction-based marketplaces get more bidding activity in general.
venforo recommends including the following information for established internet business for sale listings. This information should be readily accessible as you develop your listing :
In the description for the listing's general info, provide as much detail as possible in a succinct manner. Be specific by expanding on the header. Describe the market(s) served (“selling direct to consumers and remodelers”), business history (“positive cash flow for the past 3 years with increasing revenues”) and strengths (“average 1250 unique North American-based visitors per month”, “unique web design & content”, “leading site in this niche market”) and why it provides a great opportunity for a prospective buyer. Expand on what differentiates your web property from others and makes it an attractive purchase. Stick to verifiable information and do not overstate or offer misleading information that will not hold up during due diligence and jeopardize the post-sale process.
Include as much detail as possible in what is included in the sale. List all the assets in so the buyer knows what is being sold. For example, is a transferable Google Adwords campaign, WordPress blog, or affiliate program included? Is the $15K inventory at the fulfillment house included in the price? Although the asset listing feature is optional and may be included in the body of the listing description, we encourage all sellers to take advantage of this built-in functionality and provide a complete list of all assets and their estimated values as a best practice when listing your web property for sale on venforo.
Offer a clear and concise reason for selling. If the business is struggling, the reason might go unstated, but if the web-based business is established (ie. > 2-3 years old) and has positive cash flow, provide a valid and sincere rationale. (“Personal or family illness”, “Retirement”, “Pursuing another unrelated opportunity”, etc.)
If this is your first time writing an advertisement for a business listing for sale, check how others position their business strengths in other listings on venforo, other marketplaces, and online business broker sites. After reviewing other listing samples by professionals, you can quickly get a sense of what should work for your listing.
One of the best and simplest ways of promoting your web property for sale and attracting the interest of prospective buyers is by letting all your contacts know it is up for auction on venforo. For a public auction, be sure to provide the unique venforo URL of your listing (ex. https://www.venforo.com/1234/My-Profitable-High-Traffic-Website-for-Sale) to all your friends and associates. Postings on your own blog and social media outlets ( Google+, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, etc.) are a great way to spread the word.
Do not take comments that may have a negative tone personally. In the increasingly impersonal world of blogging, people sometimes forget the power of out-of-context wording. Answering the question without emotion will reflect better on you in the eyes of other prospective buyers. You may contact venforo Customer Support to request removal of any inappropriate or misleading public comments or questions from your listing comments.
Depending on the value of the listing, you may want to request a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) to protect confidential information you may provide beyond the information listed on venforo.
If you are contacted about buying your web property directly, please do not respond. Outside-of-venforo transactions are prohibited by venforo as detailed in the Terms of Use Agreement. Attempts to transact business outside of venforo may result in the immediate suspension of your account and further use of the website.
Increase Your Chances for a Successful Sale on venforo
Developing an effective, eye-catching listing is the key to successfully selling your web business on venforo. Composing a compelling listing will attract more qualified potential buyers and can result in an attractive winning bid. Following these best practices will help your listing stand out in search results, increase overall views and bid activity, and facilitate a positive post-auction/sale process between you and the buyer.Select the Appropriate Business Type and Industry Category
Most business buyers have a specific type of web business they are interested in purchasing. Select the business type and industry category that most closely matches your business so that qualified buyers can find it. The dropdown menus offer a wide variety of categories to match your web property. Contact venforo Customer Support if you are unable to find an appropriate match.Write a Compelling Title for Your Listing
You only have a brief chance to attract buyers’ attention for an online business for sale listing. Most only glance at the header after entering their search criteria. What is great about your web business that differentiates it from others?- Unique products?
- Expanding niche market?
- High web traffic?
- Strong brand/domain name and reputation?
- Limited owner’s hours?
If you need assistance in developing an eye-catching listing title and an enticing business description, there are professional writing services available to assist you.
Select the Right Opening Price, and Possible Reserve or BuyNow Prices
Online business buyers often shop by price first so providing a reasonable opening bid price will attract that first interested buyer to begin the bidding frenzy. Setting an appropriate opening price will quickly cull unqualified buyers. However, setting the price too high without supporting justification will engender sticker shock and may limit any initial bidding activity. A starting price that is too low can devalue the business in the eyes of prospective buyers and raise pointed questions about its ongoing viability.Despite the consensus of some online business brokers, web based business valuation is an art, not a science. To one prospective buyer, the web property may be worth more than a generalized 2x – 3x multiplier of the owner’s annual discretionary cash flow. venforo offers a low-cost opportunity to test the market to determine the interest at a price you feel comfortable with. If you have followed these best practices for a listing and little or no activity has occurred, consider revising your opening price when re-listing.
If you are including a reserve price and/or BuyNow option as part of your listing, make sure that this is your lowest acceptable price. In accordance with the venforo Terms of Use Agreement, if the buyer meets the reserve or BuyNow price, you are obligated to sell at that price. Also keep in mind that for sale listings with lower (or no) reserve prices on auction-based marketplaces get more bidding activity in general.
Include Financials and Key Web Metrics
venforo enables you to provide revenue and traffic data for your site within the listing details. Prospective buyers want to see trends so venforo has included 12-month rolling revenue data to demonstrate how the business has been performing over the past year. This information provides the underpinnings for your opening price and/or BuyNow price.venforo recommends including the following information for established internet business for sale listings. This information should be readily accessible as you develop your listing :
- Gross revenue, net profit/owner’s discretionary cash flow for the past 12 months
- Unique pageview and visitors per month
- Date the business and URL were established
- Breakdown of monetization methods (i.e. drop-ship ecommerce sales -75%; Adsense revenue – 15%; Other on-site advertising revenue-10%)
- Any special payment requirements (i.e. Credit card? Wire transfer? )
Details, Details, Details
Accurately completing all the fields provided when creating a venforo listing for sale will enable a potential buyer to effectively evaluate the initial appropriateness of your business and support the opening price.In the description for the listing's general info, provide as much detail as possible in a succinct manner. Be specific by expanding on the header. Describe the market(s) served (“selling direct to consumers and remodelers”), business history (“positive cash flow for the past 3 years with increasing revenues”) and strengths (“average 1250 unique North American-based visitors per month”, “unique web design & content”, “leading site in this niche market”) and why it provides a great opportunity for a prospective buyer. Expand on what differentiates your web property from others and makes it an attractive purchase. Stick to verifiable information and do not overstate or offer misleading information that will not hold up during due diligence and jeopardize the post-sale process.
Include as much detail as possible in what is included in the sale. List all the assets in so the buyer knows what is being sold. For example, is a transferable Google Adwords campaign, WordPress blog, or affiliate program included? Is the $15K inventory at the fulfillment house included in the price? Although the asset listing feature is optional and may be included in the body of the listing description, we encourage all sellers to take advantage of this built-in functionality and provide a complete list of all assets and their estimated values as a best practice when listing your web property for sale on venforo.
Offer a clear and concise reason for selling. If the business is struggling, the reason might go unstated, but if the web-based business is established (ie. > 2-3 years old) and has positive cash flow, provide a valid and sincere rationale. (“Personal or family illness”, “Retirement”, “Pursuing another unrelated opportunity”, etc.)
If this is your first time writing an advertisement for a business listing for sale, check how others position their business strengths in other listings on venforo, other marketplaces, and online business broker sites. After reviewing other listing samples by professionals, you can quickly get a sense of what should work for your listing.
Incognito Listings
If you do not want your customers, vendors, employees and competitors to know that you are listing your business for sale at this time, select the Incognito plan. Incognito listings are designed to protect your and the business’s identity and the confidentiality of the listing information. Information beyond basic descriptive data on your listing is released at your discretion after receiving a signed Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and researching the buyer. All communication and bidding is held in private so the sale will not be open to unauthorized eyes. Please keep in mind that Incognito listings are out a disadvantage as these listings inherently cannot be promoted as actively as other listings.Check for Errors
venforo enables you to build, edit, and save a listing in steps prior to online publication on the site. As the listing is being developed, ask others to review the description for any typos, grammatical errors and clarity. Remember your listing is a reflection of your business. A listing full of errors will be a sure turn-off to qualified buyers.Upgrade your Pricing Plan
Selecting the Gold or Platinum plans provides your business listing an advantage by enabling better exposure on venforo. Including relevant images in the Platinum plan will draw more attention to your listing and provide the essence of its quality level. Likewise, being featured on the venforo home page and in search results will draw more traffic to your listing as these are shown to buyers first. More exposure results in more views and potential activity.Spread the Word about Your Auction
One of the best and simplest ways of promoting your web property for sale and attracting the interest of prospective buyers is by letting all your contacts know it is up for auction on venforo. For a public auction, be sure to provide the unique venforo URL of your listing (ex. https://www.venforo.com/1234/My-Profitable-High-Traffic-Website-for-Sale) to all your friends and associates. Postings on your own blog and social media outlets ( Google+, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, etc.) are a great way to spread the word.
Respond to Questions and Comments
Reply to buyers’ posted public and private questions quickly and completely. This demonstrates a responsiveness and transparency that qualified buyers will want to see in a business seller both during the sale and in the post-sale process. Some prospective buyers may ask questions before placing a bid, so answer regardless of whether the user has placed a bid or not. Chances are if one prospective buyer has a question not covered in the listing description, others have or will have the same question or concern.Do not take comments that may have a negative tone personally. In the increasingly impersonal world of blogging, people sometimes forget the power of out-of-context wording. Answering the question without emotion will reflect better on you in the eyes of other prospective buyers. You may contact venforo Customer Support to request removal of any inappropriate or misleading public comments or questions from your listing comments.
Know Your Prospective Buyer(s)
venforo is not a business broker, does not represent either the buyer or the seller, nor do we handle funds or the transfer of assets post sale. Therefore it is the responsibility of the seller to verify the buyer’s financial and managerial capabilities during the sales process. Contact any bidders through the venforo private messaging system, exchange phone numbers or Skype to chat before the listing expires to evaluate their qualifications and responsiveness. Search the internet for any negative comments and for further insight on your prospective buyer and related companies owned. Request and review the buyers’s social media content to a get additional sense of their background and capabilities.Depending on the value of the listing, you may want to request a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) to protect confidential information you may provide beyond the information listed on venforo.
If you are contacted about buying your web property directly, please do not respond. Outside-of-venforo transactions are prohibited by venforo as detailed in the Terms of Use Agreement. Attempts to transact business outside of venforo may result in the immediate suspension of your account and further use of the website.