I have a Real Estate Web Design service I’m thinking about parting with since I’ve been designing websites for 10 years and I need to make a change. I have not done any advertising or SEO for the service, but I have gotten some clients through Real Estate agents. The service offers Custom Agent Websites, Virtual Tours, and a section with additional services like XML Sitemap, Custom Logo, Iphone App, Twitter Background Design, etc. Each Agent website is customized and has a fixed price of $3,500 compared to $10,000 offered by other companies. The key features that Real Estate Agents need are already coded and provided. I’m not to sure how to go about selling this service or how much I could get for it if it were possible but thought I should ask here.
How do you generate website business at present? what is yearly quantum of business?
If you need to have personal approach to the client in that case you need local web design company to buy out business. The best way is to approach your competitor or the companies who wants to enter into this business as a part of expansion ( not diversifications)
I haven’t been trying to get any traffic to the website which is why I want to let it go… but its not a local business, since the services are offered to agents around the country… but maybe I will try approaching competitors or a web design company
it hasnt been a year yet… but even so I havent done much with the service… I have had clients, but I just dont have much time or the energy to go on with it… I just wanna get out of web design all together… if I were to sell this service whats the best thing to do?
Trying to get my head around this and figure out just what it is that you’d be selling here.
It sounds like you’re the sole owner and designer so unless you’re charging your customers for hosting or any other ongoing fees, the only thing you’ve really got to sell is a list of clients you’ve already done work for, and I couldn’t see many people being interested in that.
If you have a great domain name or website with some good traffic coming in that could be something people would pay for, but if your business ceases to make money the moment you stop designing websites, I hate to say it - but I don’t think you have much of value to offer anyone.
I once decided to sell one of my websites. The highest monthly income I got was $2600+ through adsense. But since I am no longer working at home, I decided to sell it but the buyer is paying too low for it(havent posted it to flippa and similar sites). So i decided to just keep it and just post when i have time and it is still generating revenue for me. The amount Im asking was base on online sites that generates a value of a certain website.
I sold my web design business for $33,000, but here’s where the value comes from: residual revenue.
The only thing that has value from a web development business is whether the new owner can continue to make money. If you haven’t made a sale in a few months, then chances are pretty good your out of luck…
One thing I definitely wouldn’t do is place any credibilty on any unsubstantiated numbers people quote anonymously in forums like this.
Work out your annual profit and then an acceptable multiple of that as a base selling price and then factor in any other assets like traffic volume, number of clients, type and quality of clients etc etc.
it depends if you’re in a buyers or sellers market which is determined by supply volume.
here in Melbourne, house prices are sky-rocketting (I’d hate to be a first home buyer atm) because the volume of houses for sale is small compared to the number of buyers around and so sellers have a larger say in the final price than the buyers do atm.
It’s economics 101. If you can build a product for less than what buyers are willing to pay for it, then you might just have a business.
Money on this planet is all about emotions - its all about what people are willing to buy based on its perceived value. The only reason that housing prices are going up in Melbourne is because people believe that the houses are worth more right now.
However, as in the US market, people will all of a sudden believe that the houses are worth less (for no real reason) and the market will tumble.
Demand + perceived value = actual value. There’s nothing else to it
Right. If we’re talking about selling a business here (and not just a website) then there is only real value in it if the buyer can step in and continue operating the business as you were and continue making money. If you’re not making money, there’s not much to sell.
Not to say your business doesn’t have value and can’t be sold. There’s value in the operation, name recognition, existing marketing, etc., but what people are really looking for in a web design business is active clients, ongoing work, relationships that they can take over and continue to benefit from.
The price most people are willing to pay for a business is going to be some multiple of the earnings plus the assets. Of course the ultimate value of any business is what someone is willing pay. If someone finds something of particular value in you business model they just may be willing to pay an above average price based on earnings only because they are confident they can take what you have and increase the earnings.
