We’ve all heard of people flipping real estate; buying the house for a low amount, doing some minor/major work on renovations and then selling for a profit. Now people are doing the same thing with websites, site flipping. But is it a fly by night profession or another great business avenue for people to take? In this article I want to dig a little deeper into the subject. Let me know what you think in the comments.
Concerns about site flipping
There are a few arguments I see a lot when talking about site flipping, one I see the most being the fact that quick built websites are ruining the quality of the internet. In my opinion, you can’t hurt the quality of a place with billions upon billions of websites already floating around google. Searching for “clinic” in google brings up 115 MILLION results. Now, building websites targeting this keyword really will not make a dent in he amount of quality information out there. So regardless if people think its wrong, you can still do it for and make a profit for it.
Build with quality in mind
Even if you’re putting up a website to just sell, you should still treat it as a website you’d be proud to tell people you own. Flooding the page with 20 ads but only have 500 words is not something (in my opinion) to be proud of.
If flipping is your game and you want to make a go of it, as always it starts with great content, a desire to make it work and a determination to keep going. I am a shining example of an entrepreneur who loves the thrill of the build, it is almost like a high but coming off it when heading into the “maintain it” stage of the lifecycle is when I get extremely bored and restless.
This is not uncommon, look over the history of the vast percentage of the fortune 500 companies and you will find that usually the founder is not the person running the company any longer.
So if your unique ability is in finding a niche, building a following, passing it off and doing it all over again this could be a very profitable business model for you.
In this economy – flip the coin over
With the daily economic doom and gloom that is shoved down our throats, it’s hard to remember that we are in the middle of one of the best buyer’s market we have seen in a long time. History has proven that more millionaires are created in a recession if you take advantage of the opportunities that present themselves when people are scared.
Buying websites may be one of the easiest of these markets to get into because I don’t think there is a lot of “noise” in this market yet. This blog is an example of the power of this. I had been looking and learning everything I could about online marketing when I stumbled on the marketplace at sitepoint.com and found this site for sale. It was inline with my passion, had a great community and I saw that I could provide value to the readers and have a place to build credibility for myself without having to start from scratch and presto here I am.
Now when this economy turns around I will have an asset that I can choose to keep or be able to sell when it is the right time to do so. I believe that in the future websites that have strong ranking, a big following and good content will catch the eyes of bigger companies wanting to get a foot up on the competition.
Either way I’m left with choices and that is never a bad thing.
Most businesses today have a primary goal of driving traffic to their website. Here is a compilation of copywriting and marketing ideas and methods that will help you accomplish this goal and grow your business.
Copywriting and Organic Traffic:
In regards to sales, Zig Zigler said that you’re transferring enthusiasm that you have for your product into the hearts and minds of your prospect. Copywriting is simply the written form of that same thing.
We have to differentiate ourselves to convince potential customers to buy from us, not our competition. Whether it’s billboards, radio or TV, it’s impossible to go through a single day without being bombarded with some combination of what people want us to buy. So to escape from the delusion of advertisements, we’ve got to have a better way of targeting our audience.
One of the best places to begin is with positioning, not prospecting. If you position yourself as an expert in a certain field, then you can actually attract, magnetize, qualified ready-to-buy prospects to come to you. This is an ideal time for writing solid lead-generation materials within your Web site. However, some sights, especially those done in flash format aren’t readily compatible with that and would incur more programming costs. We’re here to save and make you money, so we always look for the most budget-friendly marketing methods first. We would suggest then that you try writing a series of expert articles for article submission sites. One of the leading trends of online use is information searches from qualified sources. Another reason why these sites work well with your budget is because it’s free to submit and post articles, they attract site visitors for you to your article and you only need to pay someone one time for the article, but it stays on their site indefinitely. This is why article writing is considered a type of organic marketing, it focuses on efforts that produce sustained, long-term growth. The main goal of these articles is to provide useful, expert information and to then drive that prospect to your site through an in-text link.
Inorganic Traffic:
Now, although organic traffic does produce sustained, long-term results, it does typically take a little longer to produce results. For businesses with a bigger budget or for those who need significantly quicker results, there’s the option of a cost-per-click fee structure; also known as a pay-per-click program (PPC). With PPC, you write up a brief synopsis of your business and bid on a certain dollar amount that you’re willing to spend per click; the higher the amount, the higher you’ll be placed in the search engine. These are the ads you see in the shaded boxes at the top and right-hand side of a Google search for example. The positive point about this program is that you only pay when people click through to your site. The danger of this program is that the Internet is filled with tire-kickers, so you still risk the chance of burning through your budget-just because someone clicks on your ad obviously doesn’t mean they’re going to buy from you. The best approach is to use keywords with a mid-level competition, so you can get your feet wet at a lower bid amount. Overall, it’s wise to figure out a net present value of your customer or the lifetime value of the customer, and then determine how much you’re willing to pay to acquire each client.
And even if your first efforts aren’t yielding any fruit, turn that into progress by capturing contact and lead information. Build a database over time of people that are opting in for more information, and then as you e-mail out and communicate with them, they become customers. This can reveal that your prospects really just needed to build up a level of trust before they did business with you.
Check out this older article about Online resources that can help your bootstrapping business
Ever forget to close the door behind you and have someone ask if you were born in a barn? Well here’s a situation where it’s finally a good thing to leave the door open, your marketing. Always make sure your marketing is creating an open door to your business. Have an amazing product or service? Well it doesn’t mean diddly squat if your marketing doors are closed and your just not getting through to your prospects. Here’s a marketing tip or two for the bootstrapped budget and holy-overhead-Batman budget alike.
First, we call your attention to word of mouth marketing (WOM). Sure, you’ve heard of WOM before, getting new business through referrals and people talking about your business. But what most people don’t think about is actively encouraging WOM business, thinking that it’s more like a mythical beast that you simply come upon deep within the forest. Although WOM marketing’s effects can lay dormant for a long time and then rear its mysterious, budget-beautifying head months or even years after someone referred your business much like a mythical creature awakened from its slumber, it’s a very real approach that should be continuously infused in your marketing.
How do you start lucratively gabbing about your business? With an elevator pitch. We’re not suggesting that you grow your hair out, perm it and carry a soprano saxophone around with you at all times, but more like developing a business pitch that you can deliver within the length of an elevator ride (30 seconds to a minute)-short and sweet. You may know the ins and outs of your business better than anyone, but if you can’t convey exactly what you do with concise confidence on demand, then your prospect is going to wonder how the hell your business has survived thus far.
Start out by getting a laser beam on your unique selling point (USP), that which separates your business from your competitors, and then dress it up with a few accompanying sentences that support that USP. Here’s an example:
“I own a business resource called BootStrappingBlog.com devoted to empowering the bootstrapped businessperson to their full potential. We’re dedicated to providing ongoing contributions of the latest in business news, resources, tips and advice-anything and everything necessary to help bootstrapped businesspeople not only survive, but surpass their goals and enjoy themselves while doing it!”
Caveat: Fight the urge to sell every point of your business-if your pitch is longer than a Kenny G song, then you’re going to lose your prospect as fast as a teenager runs away from one of his melodies. The whole point of your elevator pitch is to chum the waters and cause your prospect to come to you. Tempt them with just a quick business pitch and then wait for them to feed on their own curiosity, letting them come to you when their interest is piqued and they desire more information about your business.
Another aritcle of interest: People buy benefits, not features
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, over 50 percent of small businesses fail in the first year and 95 percent fail within the first five years. Instead of snuffing your entrepreneurial candle and calling it quits though, all you need to is avoid one of the leading causes of these failed businesses. The evil enemy of many small and bootstrapped businesses? There’s a good chance it’s excessive spending and ill-planned budget-blowing campaigns. If you’re like most individuals working from home, then you’ve probably got a bootstrapped budget.
But let’s get one thing straight right now: you do not need to spend a lot to make a lot! We know…this is sheer genius, so we understand if you need to take a second to absorb that. Okay, so maybe this idea isn’t exactly groundbreaking, but the actual practice of spending a little to earn a lot is quickly becoming a lost art in today’s media- and marketing-hyped world. There are plenty of free to extremely low-cost solutions available to the small-business owner, so be sure to shop around before you grab for the marketing solution that glitters the brightest. Oh, what’s that you say? Don’t even have enough for a boot-strapped budget? Busy feeling sorry for yourself with mounting excuses? No problem! Just get medieval and barter.
Highest-income Producing Activities
Now, many small-business owners are tempted into handling as much as possible on their own in order to cut as many costs as possible. Sometimes, just sometimes, this is absolutely necessary. However, spreading yourself too thin dilutes the energy you should be putting into the major elements of your business. Ultimately, your business may be able to tread water in this fashion, but you’ll probably never actually reach the shoreline. The first thing you need to do then is write out a list of your core capabilities; what you’re best at.
This will help you stay focused on your highest-income producing activities. In doing this, you can then decide which tasks you need help with. Take this a step further by creating a list of your associates, friends and existing contacts, writing down the main functions of what they do for a living, uncovering their core capabilities. Not sure what they’re best at? All you need to do is ask them—people like talking about themselves and tend to know more about themselves than you do! And once you get a steady bead on each other’s core capabilities, you’ll be able to offer those in exchange for each other’s services. For example, let’s say you you’re a polished, proficient copywriter, but have no idea how to design a site and definitely don’t have the cash flow for it. You would then offer to write Web content for them in exchange for a Web site design. No money is exchanged, yet equal services are still delivered. None of your contacts need copywriting? Hard to believe, but if that’s the case, then get creative with your barter, such as offering anything from babysitting their kids to helping them install a new fence in their backyard.
Our cutting-edge technology and corporate America influences have us believing that bartering is a dead practice. Not true my bootstrapped brethren!
Happy New Year! It is now 2009 and today I want to take a bit of time to reflect on the past year. Things have been slower from time to time, and at times this site might have seem untouched, but there has been a lot going on this past year and with the amount of quality articles that were posted here, I thought it would be best to start 2009 off with a bang and link you to some of my (and the commenters here) favorite articles.
- 50 Guerrilla Marketing Tactics You Should Be Using
This article has been a favorite of every reader and is the most popular article we’ve had to date. Definitely worth taking the time to download the free PDF version and printing it out - 15 More Guerrilla Marketing Examples
Around August I really got into the Guerrilla Marketing spirit after reading the Guerrilla Marketing book by Jay Conrad Levinson and this is one of the articles I posted that showcased some great inexpensive guerrilla marketing tactics that will definitely help you bootstrap your way to success - Chasing Your Dreams: Dare to be Stupid
If you’re looking for a bit of motivation to just get out there and try something you love, this is the post for you. It was therapeutic when I wrote it too - Say Yes: A simple tip that will help you close more deals
This article holds a very simple key to unlocking more sales for your business. Do you not have 2-3 minutes to spare? - 5 tips to appear large on a small budget
For the bootstrapper, this is vital information. Are you swimming in an ocean of big sharks but you feel the size of a gold fish? If so, check out these tips to appear larger and get in the mix. - 10 Awesome guerrilla marketing videos
This goes back to my Guerrilla Marketing rush – simple yet effective campaigns that gain mass attention from your perspective client base. - Emotional Selling: What, why and how
This article will show you how to pull at your target markets emotions and really win them over instead of giving them the feeling that they’re being forced to purchase from you - Quotable Business: Small business success tip
This is a series I plan on developing further here in 2009. The quotable business series features great quotes from amazing people that you can turn into advice and inspiration for your business. Need a small business success tip? Check this article out. - Be Your Own Boss: Leaving the cubicle in five simple steps
This is one well thought out plan on what you should be following if you’re thinking of making 2009 the year you jump from full time employment to full time freelance. Its a guide well worth reading and putting into practice. - Will Smiths two keys to life
This is one of the few articles on this site that I feel may have been overlooked because it talks about “The Fresh Prince”. In all actuality though, Will Smith is a brilliant man and the video in this article that was taken from a kids choice awards show will definitely make you view him in a different light. Plus, it’s a great motivation for you as well
Now below are ten of my personal favorite articles and also well worth checking out. Feel free to comment and tell me which article(s) you like best if your favorite isn’t on the list.
- Building an effective guerrilla marketing strategy
- How to: ten steps to bootstrap your freelance career
- Small Business Blogging: ten reasons why it’s essential to business growth
- The one hit wonder: Why opening statements are so important
- 10 things your small business can learn from cage fighting
- Seven great ways your bootstrapping skills can benefit homeless war veterans
- Bootstrapping Your Business part one
- Word of mouth marketing: Thank your referrers
- Better your business with customer feedback
- Quotable Business: success vs value
Oh, and don’t forget to link me to an article from your site that you’ve written in 2008 that you believe will benefit me. I am always looking for motivation 