These are the things you generally want to look for when choosing a domain name.

1. The shorter, the better

A shorter domain name will be easier to remember, faster to type and easier to brand.  As much as possible, stick to within three keywords or less.   If you can get away with it, do limit the character count to 19 or fewer as well.

2. Stick to the major TLDs

For purposes of flipping, keep the domain name to within the three major TLDs, namely .com, .org and .net.  If you’re considering purchase of a site with a different extension, see if you can buy a major TLD of the same before going through with the transaction.  Otherwise, you may just want to pass.  The majority of people default to .coms when they hear about a website, so as much as possible I grab a .com domain.

3. Cram your keywords into the domain

Having the main keyword in the domain automatically brings SEO value to the site, as well as slapping those vital words right on the brand.  This brings major points once you throw the site back on the market as keywords are among the first things buyers look at when looking for online properties to invest on.

4. Avoid trademark violations

Always check whether a domain violates any trademarks.  The last thing you want is to invest all that time and energy developing a site for flipping, only to have buyers refuse to even come near it for fear of infringing on other companies’ legal properties.

Stick to these few guidelines and you’ll be off to a good start in the website flipping proccess.

If that’s all you’re going to do, though, you’re not going to maximize the inherent profitability of the business model. Sure, picking out a $25 site, tweaking it a little and letting it simmer for a few weeks before turning it over for $200 is a good way to make a small profit. However, it’s neither going to make you rich nor is it a real foundation to a sustainable business.

Experienced website flippers always go beyond “cheap” when looking for properties to turn around. They also don’t restrict themselves to places where websites are normally traded, such as webmaster forums or auction sites like eBay, where competition can prove fierce. Instead, they turn to search results and other avenues, evaluating websites to go after based on their merits and potential.

Finding those sites that are not on the market but may be available requires you to really search deep into the web. The more familiar you are with a particular industry, the more likely you will be able to scope out those under-performing properties that hide within its confines.

Big sites that show up in the first page of search results for that industry are obviously out of the question – they’re too expensive and well-managed on their own that changes you put in may actually be detrimental to it. What you’re looking for are those niche properties that have received some actual attention from their owners but are now being neglected for the most part. Maybe they’re good sites that are badly-optimized, content sites with no structure or decent products that weren’t given any promotion – if they actually carry some value but could use a little more work to make their mark, they will be your target acquisitions.

Take some time and go beyond the typical sources for websites to buy and flip for a profit. With a little work and patience, you can chance upon some real treasures.

-Brett

ps. if your interested in getting started or bettering your website flipping skills I highly suggest site flip academy

When evaluating whether you want to flip a particular website, you want to look for certain qualities that will make it a potential hit. Many times, you’ll come across sites with one or more of these factors going for it, with its owners simply unable to capitalize on them.

1. Backlinks

Despite all the  pages upon pages of SEO advice written across many books and blogs, nothing still helps a site up the search rankings better than solid backlinks.  When evaluating a site for a possible flip, check its backlink profile.

If it has many links from social media, adding an authority link from two or three popular and respected sources in its industry will probably be enough to turn it into a goldmine.  The more natural and authoritative links that it already has, the more valuable it should be to you as a potential site for flipping.

2. Pagerank

While many now discount the importance of pagerank, there are few metrics as easy to see that will give you good indication of where a site is at in Google’s graces.   People still pay good money for pagerank too.

3. Community/Users/Subscribers

An existing audience makes a property extremely valuable for any site flipper.  Whether it is a blog with RSS subscribers, a forum with members or an ebook sales website with a mailing list, having built-in users you can leverage right from the get-go makes a site brimming full of potential.

4. Professional Work

Check the layout, the design, the backend, the scripts and other tangible components that comprise the actual website.  Are they professional-grade or low quality patchwork?  Do the articles and databases look like they can be worth a decent amount?  Is it running some custom scripts or CMS that can be worth a good amount on its own?

5. Domain Name

How valuable will the site’s domain name be on today’s market?  Is it brandable and memorable?  You might recognize a site’s name to be related to a popular brand, for instance, on a totally different niche.  If you can buy the site, you can easily overhaul it to  serve that market and sell it for much more based on the name’s value alone.

If you are interested or want to learn more about website flipping check out Site Flip Academy

Most people involved in website flipping take an under-performing site, put some development work into it and seek to maximize its potential before deciding to sell it.  A few, however, may not have the same desire to spend as much time on the properties they buy, looking instead to put it back into the market immediately.

Quick Sale

Some sites sold around the web simply go for less than what they’re worth.  Whether it’s due to plain ignorance of their properties’ actual value or a quick need for liquid funds, the owners are putting it up at a price that makes it a veritable steal.  Knowledgeable website flippers can identify these opportunities, sweep them up and list them up for resale at their actual value, earning a profit with absolutely no work.

Adding Value

While it’s always nice to make a quick buck from directly arbitraging a website without any work, adding a little more value to the property can raise its stock in considerable ways.   In fact, that’s how most seasoned website flippers will approach this same situation.

A few tweaks in some key areas like on-site SEO, backlinks and flagship content can easily double a cheaply-acquired site’s resale value.  If you can quickly implement these changes before the market renders it obsolete, you can be looking at a hefty revenue.

A Challenge

While that may all sound easy, the reality is that quickly flipping a website at a considerable gain is one of the hardest things to master.  The web, after all, is one of the fastest-changing industries in the world.  Unlike the stock market or real estate, your hot new acquisition may only stay that way for the next two months.  If the buzz fizzles out before you can capitalize, you can end up with just another loser in your portfolio.

-Brett

ps. if you need help getting started in website flipping I use and recommend siteflipacademy.