- Impact
- 0
URL: www.houston-single-search.com
Age of site (months): 13
Description:
Most dating sites focus on a huge geographical area and are rarely successful. If you don't focus on some type of "niche", chances are it won't work out. However, HoustonSingleSearch (www.houston-single-search.com) is a fully developed dating site that targets the greater Houston, Texas market. The script offers many, if not more features than most dating sites out there, complete with a easy to use admin. It's extremely important to note that it's not necessary that the new owner lives anywhere near the Houston, Texas area for this site to be successful. They simply just need to take more time to promote and manage it than I ever did. (which was near zero.)
Revenue details:
Intitially, the goal was to generate revenue via paid members as well as ads. (google, adbrite etc.) I figured that at least I could earn a little revenue from the ads until I built up the member base enough to start charging to people to join. However, despite this site being up and running for nearly 13 months, I've just never had the chance to do anything with it at all, as I've been involved with another web business.
Even though I have never done any marketing, I still managed to make a tiny bit of revenue from google. I had placed a google text ad (468x60) on the top of all members pages which only averaged about 9 bucks a month. I was surprised it was even making that, since I pretty much ignored the site after designing it. Since I'm selling the site, I've already removed the google adsense banner. However, I havent yet removed the adbrite ads on the "outside pages" of the site. I've used them on and off over the past 12 months and have only made a couple of bucks.
As for long-term revenue, I really feel that most of the revenue would come from memberships. Once there is a solid enough member base, people will want to pay to join this site. When it comes ot dating sites today, It's all about focusing on a niche! In fact, I can list several other local dating sites that seem to be doing very well. The script already has a built in payment gatway so you can easily accept 2CO, paypal, and authorize.net etc.
Traffic details:
Again, after spending so much time and effort in developing the site, It's sad to say that I didnt do any promotion. I didnt even submit the site to any search engines or offer any link exchanges. I did however, submit it to a couple of local "directories" at one point, but they didnt prove to offer much traffic. Actually, traffic was decent for doing zero optimization or promotion. To be honest, I was a little shocked. During the first few months after launching, it appeared that 95% of all traffic was coming directly from yahoo search. People were somehow finding the site and joined. At one point, HoustonSingleSearch was 3rd and 4th position in yahoo for the keywords "houston singles" and "houston dating"! I have no idea what happened after that. Perhaps Yahoo changed it's alogorithym similar to google's. Also, in early 2006, I had actually forgotten to "renew" both of the domains. (houston-single-search.com & houstonsinglesearch.com.) Therefore, the site was "down" for a period of 5-6 weeks. After realizing this, I quickly repurchased the names and the site was up and running again. That could perhaps be the reason of the dramatic decline in traffic in the last 3 months. Either way, I'm sure that the new owner of the site could at least get the traffic back up to where it was with only a little optimization.
Admin Screenshots:
http:/
/img151.imageshack.us/img151/3830/webdate46dg.th.gif
http:/
/img233.imageshack.us/img233/7343/webdate10nk.th.gif
http:/
/img151.imageshack.us/img151/2391/webdate28jd.th.gif
http:/
/img151.imageshack.us/img151/9455/webdate51gh.th.gif
http:/
/img233.imageshack.us/img233/9581/webdate38vd.th.gif
Traffic Stats Screenshots:
http:
//img233.imageshack.us/img233/4540/hssstats19om.th.gif
http:
//img233.imageshack.us/img233/2526/hssstats27oc.th.gif
http:
//img151.imageshack.us/img151/290/hssstats32ee.th.gif
Google Adsense Screenshot:
http://
img157.imageshack.us/img157/1741/adsense0fh.th.gif
Monthly revenue: N/A - $9/mo.
Additional notes:
* 100% custom designed.
* Both domains: houston-single-search.com & houstonsinglesearch.com are included and paid through: 22-Feb-07.
* Unix/linux hosting environment required. Runs smooth in a shared environment.
* The company that developed the script offers free updates. (version 3.0 currently in beta.)
* I will transfer the site to your server/webhost for you. (if it uses Cpanel.)
* Or I'll host the site for you for free for 3 months after the sale, if needed.
* Currently has approx 60 members w/profiles and over 100 total members.
* Houston is the 4th largest city in the country.The number of local dating keyword searches continues to increase.
* Please only post or send me a pm if you're seriously interested.
This site has simply been sitting on "idle" and is just waiting for the right owner to promote it and reap the rewards. If you already run a network of websites, HoustonSingleSearch is a great addition to your web real estate portfolio.
Type of site:
Established and functional website with traffic
Price (or starting bid): $300
Is an auction?: Yes
BIN: $650
Payment Method: Paypal
------------------------------------------------------------------
Site is SOLD
Age of site (months): 13
Description:
Most dating sites focus on a huge geographical area and are rarely successful. If you don't focus on some type of "niche", chances are it won't work out. However, HoustonSingleSearch (www.houston-single-search.com) is a fully developed dating site that targets the greater Houston, Texas market. The script offers many, if not more features than most dating sites out there, complete with a easy to use admin. It's extremely important to note that it's not necessary that the new owner lives anywhere near the Houston, Texas area for this site to be successful. They simply just need to take more time to promote and manage it than I ever did. (which was near zero.)
Revenue details:
Intitially, the goal was to generate revenue via paid members as well as ads. (google, adbrite etc.) I figured that at least I could earn a little revenue from the ads until I built up the member base enough to start charging to people to join. However, despite this site being up and running for nearly 13 months, I've just never had the chance to do anything with it at all, as I've been involved with another web business.
Even though I have never done any marketing, I still managed to make a tiny bit of revenue from google. I had placed a google text ad (468x60) on the top of all members pages which only averaged about 9 bucks a month. I was surprised it was even making that, since I pretty much ignored the site after designing it. Since I'm selling the site, I've already removed the google adsense banner. However, I havent yet removed the adbrite ads on the "outside pages" of the site. I've used them on and off over the past 12 months and have only made a couple of bucks.
As for long-term revenue, I really feel that most of the revenue would come from memberships. Once there is a solid enough member base, people will want to pay to join this site. When it comes ot dating sites today, It's all about focusing on a niche! In fact, I can list several other local dating sites that seem to be doing very well. The script already has a built in payment gatway so you can easily accept 2CO, paypal, and authorize.net etc.
Traffic details:
Again, after spending so much time and effort in developing the site, It's sad to say that I didnt do any promotion. I didnt even submit the site to any search engines or offer any link exchanges. I did however, submit it to a couple of local "directories" at one point, but they didnt prove to offer much traffic. Actually, traffic was decent for doing zero optimization or promotion. To be honest, I was a little shocked. During the first few months after launching, it appeared that 95% of all traffic was coming directly from yahoo search. People were somehow finding the site and joined. At one point, HoustonSingleSearch was 3rd and 4th position in yahoo for the keywords "houston singles" and "houston dating"! I have no idea what happened after that. Perhaps Yahoo changed it's alogorithym similar to google's. Also, in early 2006, I had actually forgotten to "renew" both of the domains. (houston-single-search.com & houstonsinglesearch.com.) Therefore, the site was "down" for a period of 5-6 weeks. After realizing this, I quickly repurchased the names and the site was up and running again. That could perhaps be the reason of the dramatic decline in traffic in the last 3 months. Either way, I'm sure that the new owner of the site could at least get the traffic back up to where it was with only a little optimization.
Admin Screenshots:
http:/
/img151.imageshack.us/img151/3830/webdate46dg.th.gif
http:/
/img233.imageshack.us/img233/7343/webdate10nk.th.gif
http:/
/img151.imageshack.us/img151/2391/webdate28jd.th.gif
http:/
/img151.imageshack.us/img151/9455/webdate51gh.th.gif
http:/
/img233.imageshack.us/img233/9581/webdate38vd.th.gif
Traffic Stats Screenshots:
http:
//img233.imageshack.us/img233/4540/hssstats19om.th.gif
http:
//img233.imageshack.us/img233/2526/hssstats27oc.th.gif
http:
//img151.imageshack.us/img151/290/hssstats32ee.th.gif
Google Adsense Screenshot:
http://
img157.imageshack.us/img157/1741/adsense0fh.th.gif
Monthly revenue: N/A - $9/mo.
Additional notes:
* 100% custom designed.
* Both domains: houston-single-search.com & houstonsinglesearch.com are included and paid through: 22-Feb-07.
* Unix/linux hosting environment required. Runs smooth in a shared environment.
* The company that developed the script offers free updates. (version 3.0 currently in beta.)
* I will transfer the site to your server/webhost for you. (if it uses Cpanel.)
* Or I'll host the site for you for free for 3 months after the sale, if needed.
* Currently has approx 60 members w/profiles and over 100 total members.
* Houston is the 4th largest city in the country.The number of local dating keyword searches continues to increase.
* Please only post or send me a pm if you're seriously interested.
This site has simply been sitting on "idle" and is just waiting for the right owner to promote it and reap the rewards. If you already run a network of websites, HoustonSingleSearch is a great addition to your web real estate portfolio.
Type of site:
Established and functional website with traffic
Price (or starting bid): $300
Is an auction?: Yes
BIN: $650
Payment Method: Paypal
------------------------------------------------------------------
Site is SOLD
Last edited:
