Site value

How to get a reliable appraisal?

[shallow]

How do I get a reliable figure of what my website is worth. Using online calculators gives me a chuckle, valuing the site anywhere between $55 and mid-five figures.

Thank you.

[vivalasvegas]

I think you're the one who can most accurately estimate your website's value. You know the business, income level, traffic sources, growth potential and so on. Also, have you received any serious offers yet?

[shallow]

Thanks for the reply vivalasvegas.

I have not put the site up for sale but am seriously thinking about it. The site is informational only; I do not sell products. My entire income is from associate programs such as Adsense, Amazon, etc.

I was wondering if there are reliable appraisers and, if so, where to find them.

[nomis5]

I don't think there are any, not ones that are any use.

There are too many variables such as how much work to maintain the site, is the income steady / falling / rising, how old is the site, development potential etc.

I do know that some sites go for less than one years income and others for more than four years income. It's a very subjective decision as to how much a site is worth.

I would imagine though than any site is now worth less after the last couple of years changes at Google. It's now blindingly obvious to anyone that a site can be OK today and obliterated tomorrow if it depends on traffic from G.

Two or three years ago many believed that a good site would be safe for years - that's gone now.

[shallow]

I would imagine though than any site is now worth less after the last couple of years changes at Google. It's now blindingly obvious to anyone that a site can be OK today and obliterated tomorrow if it depends on traffic from G.

Good information! Thank you!

It's probably not worth selling. I got hit very hard by Panda and there is no guarantee going forward. I think I'm just better off writing articles until I can't stand it any more, and the let the site slowly die. I'll be way far ahead income wise than what anyone may be willing to pay for it (though I've literally put thousands of hours into creating content). While I'm not making what I did before Panda, I'm still making an acceptable amount to supplement my retirement income.

[adder]

Probably not worth selling a "Pandalized" website right now. People will check it on SemRush or similar services and realise that you've been hit by Panda.

Writing more articles until you cannot stand it any more is also not a good solution.

Do you use Analytics? You have to identify the sections of site that had been hit hardest and then work on those sections to solve the problem. In many cases it means removing low quality content or rewriting the content. Depends on the case.

[shallow]

Thank you adder, for the information and suggestions. Much appreciated!

[onlineleben]

a reliable figure of what my website is worth

Think about how much it is worth to you. Your annual earnings and do you really need it? How much do you spend o keep it alive (time and money - put a dollar value to your time). But also look at it from the other side: howmuch could a an interested party save by buying it.

I was once asked by a competitor if I sell one of my sites. He is position 5 in the SERPS and also buys the toptop position in adwords, but my site comes out in position 1. I checked the adwords keyword tool and came up with a number of searches and click value. I gave them a low 5 digit number of adwords cost per year and told them what they could save over time - the declined. Many think that a domain is not worth more than the 15$ you pay for it per year. I barely get my registration fee back, but they could have developed the domain/site to full potential and gain much more than the adwords costsavings (Their average sale is around 1,000$).
What did I do? I didn't lower my price - no. I registered a new domain focusing on their area of expertise and that little site is climbing the SERPS like hell. Wondering when they start calling me again (it's my 15$/year joke).