Your guide to buying an established website
Buying a website.
Don’t start from zero.
Your idea deserves a good start. And sometimes that start is a business already up and running online.
Updated:
Choose an established website, agree the price with the owner, and leave the technical details to the team that already knows it.
01 / Find a good foundation
How do you choose an established website?
The idea first, then the website.
Start with the websites for sale and think about what you want to achieve: more enquiries, presenting your services, growing a portal or continuing an existing business. A good choice brings together your line of work, your taste and your budget. The design catches the eye, while the content and features should help your future client take the next step.
The websites for sale are already online and have a longer or shorter history. See how they work on a phone, how they present their offer and how well they fit your plan. For a specific project, ask for the available data on traffic, optimisation and Google results. A beautiful shop window is great; it is even better when you understand what happens behind it.
The list includes our own websites and projects from other owners. When one catches your eye, send us its name or link. We go through the next steps with you, or put you in touch with the owner and the person who looks after the website.
02 / Everything important in one place
Who sets the price of a website? The owner.
Every project has its owner, and it is the owner who sets the price. The price can reflect the build quality, design, features, content, history and the results so far. For an established business, the wider package the buyer takes over matters too. That is why the price of an established website is considered offer by offer.
Before you confirm the purchase, you agree on the amount, the payment method, the scope of the handover and the changes you want. For our projects you agree the deal with us; for the others, with their owner, with our help in connecting you. Once the deal is confirmed and the agreed payment is made, the website starts being prepared for your business.
The purchase price, one-off changes and future maintenance. Alongside them, check the costs of the domain, hosting and licences. That way the whole plan has a clear price, from day one onwards.
03 / Your name on the door
What do you change after buying?
From an established website to yours.
If the current look and content suit you, the start can be very simple. After the agreed purchase, the phone number and email address are changed, so calls and messages from the website start coming to you. On a simple website, swapping those two details can take about five minutes. That is the practical moment when the project starts working for your business.
In most cases, though, changing the contact details is not enough. Usually the logo, images and texts need changing, and perhaps some other details of the website too. Handing over the domain and accounts is agreed with the owner. These things are usually included in the price of the website.
Want more of your own character? Bigger changes can be agreed: different colours, extra pages, additional integrations and special features. Like finding a suit with an excellent cut and having a tailor fit it just for you. You confirm the scope, price and timeline of those changes with the person or team that maintains the website.
04 / Familiar hands, new plans
Who maintains the website after the purchase? The one who built it.
The technical details are handled by the person or team already running the website. For our projects, that is us. For websites from other owners, changes and ongoing maintenance are agreed with their current developer or team. That way you are talking to someone who knows its layout, settings and all the little things that are barely visible from the outside.
For future support, agree in advance who receives your requests, which changes the maintenance covers and how extra work is arranged. You can find more details in the frequently asked questions about buying and selling websites.
Before the final decision
Just the website, or the whole business?
The whole business story is possible too.
Buying a website can cover the web project alone, and some offers include the whole business that has grown around it. In that case you talk about the brand, content, business processes, location, the registered company and other parts the owner is offering. The scope of the purchase follows the specific offer: exactly what you have agreed together.
It is worth asking the important questions and making clear what the buyer actually gets:
- What does the buyer get besides the website?
- Is the company registered, and what is its reputation?
- What physical items does the buyer get?
- Are business premises included?
- What is the business’s revenue?
The existing Google rankings and traffic help you value a website, while valuing a business can be far more complicated and depend on the competition, profit, location and many other factors.
There is room for your special idea too
Looking for something
exactly to your taste?
If you are still looking for the right one among the projects on offer, contact us. Describe your line of work, the features you want, your budget and the style you like. Send a few examples too — one good reference often says more than ten messages about “that particular shade”.
We can look for a suitable existing website or arrange a new one built to your wishes and taste. Together we go through the content, design, technical needs and timeline. The goal is a website that looks like your business and supports the way you want to work.
A little more clarity before the first step
Questions about buying a website.
You ask, we explain.
Am I buying the website from you or from another owner?
You buy the website from its owner. We own several of the websites on our list ourselves, so in some cases you are buying the website from us.
Who sets the price of an established website?
The website’s owner sets the price. You confirm with them what the offer includes and the terms of purchase. The people who look after the website need to be part of the process too, to agree on changes, maintenance and other technical details.
What can be done in about five minutes?
On a simple website, swapping in your phone number and email after an agreed purchase can take about five minutes. Transferring the domain and accounts, and larger changes, have their own scope and timeline. The price is the same either way.
Can I keep the team that maintains the website?
Yes. We recommend the website stays in a familiar environment by agreement with its current team, because they know the project best. For our own websites that is us; for the others it is their developer or team.
What if none of the websites on offer suits me?
Tell us what you are looking for. We can look for a suitable existing project or arrange a new website built around your business, wishes and taste.