Maybe you’re considering selling your business because life is moving you in a different direction. Perhaps you have a baby on the way, or you’ve grown your business as much as you wanted to before trying something else. Or it could be the case that you’re just ready for time off from your site.
No matter what, there is never a wrong reason to sell your website. However, there is a right way to do so. Instead of just letting your website die, it’s smart to look into online platforms that can help you sell your website. There are many valuable services that can make the process easy, allowing you to move forward quickly with cash in your pocket.
What Are the Benefits of Using Such a Platform?
While you may want to sell your website on your own, there are many benefits to using an online platform to get the job done.
Help With Valuing Your Website
Usually, platforms that allow you to sell your website have a service that helps you value your website. This is a huge benefit because deciding on what to set your website’s selling price at often requires the expertise of an outside party.
Better Marketing
Using a platform to help you sell your site will increase its exposure. Since these platforms get paid for selling your website, they have an incentive to get your website or online store sold as soon as possible. Some sellers will create featured listings that put your site on display more prominently than other websites, though this option often comes with an additional fee.
Seller Protection
Many platforms have escrow services that will hold on to the money until buyers and sellers complete their ends of the deal. Many sites also have security experts who protect users and provide fast support to those who need it.
What Factors Make a Good Place to Sell a Website?
Don’t be tempted to list your website on just any old platform. Consider the following factors before deciding where to sell your website.
Fast Processing Speed
You can potentially lose a sale if a buyer loses their patience waiting for a website to load. A higher speed means a higher conversion rate and a better chance that your website will sell.
Multiple Gateways With Support for Multiple Currencies
It will be much easier for people to buy your website from anywhere in the world if the platform you list your site on has multiple gateways that can process foreign currencies.
Secure Mobile Options
Look to see if the website you choose for selling your website takes measures to protect against a wide range of threats that may violate privacy.
Responsive Design
You will want to list your site on a user-friendly website that is easy for buyers to navigate. You don’t want to lose a sale as a result of buyers becoming frustrated by the website.
Security
Look for a website with security experts whose job is to protect users and provide fast support to those in need of assistance.
5 Best Places to Sell a Website
The following five platforms are great places to sell your website. Some are better for larger-sized websites seeking massive profits, while others are perfect for unloading a smaller website that simply no longer suits your personal or professional needs.
Flippa: The Most Popular Marketplace to Sell a Website
We chose Flippa because it is an established and reputable marketplace to sell a website. Flippa has facilitated the sale of 250,000 online businesses. Flippa is a marketplace that allows buyers and sellers to buy and sell sites, blogs, ecommerce stores and other digital properties.
Pros: Flippa has an excellent search feature that allows buyers to create curated searches, such as low-maintenance drop ship businesses, fast-growing recession-proof businesses and businesses with over $100,000 in annual profit.
Cons: The one con about using Flippa is the subpar customer service. Customer support is only ticket-based, so there is a wait time for resolving issues.
Best For: Flippa is best for the first-time buyer looking to start a business or anyone looking to buy and invest in high-value income-producing assets.
Pricing: Flippa charges anywhere from a 5% to 15% transaction fee based on the sale amount. Listing fees are fixed prices that depend on the value of your listing. For instance, if you are selling a website or an online business that generates revenue, the listing fee is $49.
Rating: 5/5 stars
Exchange Marketplace: Where You Go To Sell a Shopify Website
It was easy to choose Exchange Marketplace as one of the best places to sell a website because it is an easy-to-use platform that enables users to buy and sell Shopify websites. Shopify is a popular and attractive platform with many benefits, including its user-friendly interface and attractive themes.
Pros: Exchange Marketplace conducts transactions through Escrow which is a major advantage. Escrow is a secure payment platform that acts as a middleman between the buyer and the seller. No money is exchanged until each party meets the terms agreed upon earlier.
Cons: The biggest drawback of Exchange Marketplace is that buyers are limited to sellers who are searching for a Shopify website. If buyers are open to purchasing websites hosted by other platforms, then they won’t use Exchange Marketplace, which limits the customer base of sellers.
Best For: Exchange Marketplace is best for those looking to sell a Shopify website of any size.
Pricing: We love that Exchange Marketplace does not charge an initial fee to post your listing. You will only have to pay a fee once you make a sale and that fee is based on the final sale price. This fee will be deducted from the final sale price after the buyer pays you. The service fee combines the Escrow fee and the estimated Exchange Marketplace fee, excluding the Escrow’s standard $10 disbursement fee.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Latona’s: Sells a Variety of Website Types
We chose Latona’s because it is a boutique mergers-and-acquisitions broker specializing in established, cash-flow-positive web properties. They started small, but now you can sell any type of online business through their website.
Pros: A huge positive is that Latona’s will allow you to sell various businesses on their site, including content websites, ecommerce websites, domain portfolios, lead generation sites, membership sites and SaaS businesses.
Cons: Some sellers report that Latona’s comes with very slow turnaround times. This could be due in part to the high volume of sales that take place on the platform. Patience is essential when waiting to sell a business, especially when you choose Latona’s as your selling platform.
Best For: Latona’s is best for sellers that have been in operation for at least one year and yield an annual profit of at least $20,000.
Pricing: Latona’s charges a brokerage fee that equals 15% of the total sale.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Empire Flippers: Unbeatable Vetting of Website Sellers
We picked Empire Flippers as one of the top places to sell a website because they are known for ensuring reputable, legitimate listings. Serious buyers trust Empire Flippers.
Pros: The best thing about Empire Flippers is that they conduct an intensive background vetting process for sellers. Prioritizing this vetting process makes life much easier for buyers. Also, they do a stellar job at promoting the sites they sell. Sellers truly receive premium service when selling with Empire Flippers.
Cons: The biggest con of Empire Flippers is that it costs more than other website selling platforms. However, you are paying in part for the highly-reputable vetting procedure which makes sure the team knows that they are listing your website on a safe site. The high cost is worthwhile.
Best For: Empire Flippers is best for those looking for a high-quality, highly-vetted professional listing site for their website. You can expect to pay a $297 listing fee for your first website and $97 for every website Empire Flippers lists for you after that. Empire Flippers will take commission after selling your website. Their commission fee ranges from 8% to 15% of the total sale value.
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Website Properties: Excellent Choice for Larger Businesses
We suggest Website Properties for selling your website because not only are they brokers but they have sold their internet businesses before, too. They know how to help because they have been where you are before.
Pros: Website Properties has an excellent success rate. They also have an 85% closure rate, which is phenomenal. With numbers like that, your website is very likely to sell if it is listed by Website Properties.
Cons: The only con is that Website Properties usually only works with larger businesses. They have worked with smaller internet businesses at times, but they typically only work with companies that have higher valuations.
Best For: Website Properties is best for those selling established internet businesses, generating a minimum of $35k in annual net profits and valued between $100k and $25M.
Pricing: In terms of payment, Website Properties is performance-based. No fees are not due unless the business sells. Broker fees are structured on a tiered commission basis, with brokers earning as low as 6% of the total sale value of your company.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Are You Ready to Sell Your Website?
If it’s time to list your website for sale, we hope that this list gives you some valuable information to consider. Whatever your reason is for selling your website, we hope that this article will help you sell with confidence.