How to buy or sell an online business safely

A plain guide to valuing an online business, what proof to ask for before paying, and how to hand over a domain, code and hosting safely.

Buying safely

1. Compare monthly profit with the asking price before reading the story.
2. Ask for proof in chat: payment-processor screenshots, an ad-network export, read-only analytics access for 12 months.
3. Find out where the traffic comes from. One source is a risk.
4. Check exactly which assets transfer.
5. Prefer verified sellers and listings with figures checked by iSaleGuru.
6. Pay through a trusted escrow service, never by a direct transfer to someone you do not know.
7. Inspect everything before the escrow service releases the money.

Selling

1. Average the last six months of revenue and profit.
2. Write an honest listing.
3. Upload proof of earnings and traffic so iSaleGuru can mark your figures as checked.
4. Get the Verified badge.
5. Accept an offer or run an auction, then wait until the payment is verified before handing anything over.

How a sale works

1. Find or list. Sellers list a business with proof of earnings and traffic. Buyers browse and compare.
2. Check the proof. Open the screenshots and the screen recording on the listing, and ask the seller for more in chat.
3. Agree a price. Make an offer, bid in an auction or use Buy now. iSaleGuru introduces the two of you.
4. Pay through a trusted escrow service. iSaleGuru does not hold the money. Use an escrow service or bank you both trust, never a direct transfer to a stranger.
5. Hand over and confirm. The seller transfers the assets. The buyer confirms on iSaleGuru and the listing shows as sold.

iSaleGuru does not hold the money or guarantee this deal. Check the seller’s proof, use a trusted escrow service, and never pay before you have seen proof.

Auctions

An auction runs 3 to 30 days. The seller sets a starting bid and a reserve price, approves bidders, and cannot bid on their own listing. Bids are binding. A new highest bid in the last hour extends the auction to one hour after that bid.

Local business sites

Lead-generation and rank-and-rent websites for one trade in one area are listed under Local Business Site and tagged by trade: Plumber, Roofing, HVAC, Electrician, Landscaping, Lawn care, Tree service, Pest control, House cleaning, Carpet cleaning, Pressure washing, Painting, Flooring, Remodeling and more. Each listing must include a screen recording of the live call, lead and traffic dashboards, and the seller can prove ownership of the website. Buyers should check the recording, the Ownership verified badge, the rankings and what transfers before paying through an escrow service.

Valuation

Online businesses are usually priced at a multiple of the last 12 months of net profit. Try the free valuation tool.

How to list a business, step by step

1. Create a free account and verify your email. Choose your country when you join. A verified email puts the blue tick next to your name, and buyers reply to verified sellers far more often.
2. Press “List your business” and choose the type. Website or blog, YouTube or social channel, micro-SaaS, store, app, newsletter, local business site or domain. Each type asks its own questions, so buyers get the facts that matter for it.
3. Enter the real monthly figures. Average revenue, profit and visitors over the last 6 to 12 months. Do not use your best month. Buyers compare these with your proof.
4. Add your proof (required). Paste a link to a short screen recording (Loom, unlisted YouTube or Google Drive) in which you open Google Analytics, Search Console and AdSense or your earnings dashboard live and refresh the page. Then upload screenshots of the same dashboards showing the date range and account name.
5. Choose how to sell. Fixed price, where buyers make offers or use Buy now, or an auction lasting 3 to 30 days with a starting bid from $5 and an optional reserve price.
6. Decide whether to lock the listing. A locked listing hides the name and web address and blurs the picture until a member asks to unlock it. Locking costs $10 once. Use it when you do not want customers or competitors to know the business is for sale.
7. Send it for approval. iSaleGuru looks at each listing before it goes live and removes anything fake, unrelated or without proof. You get an email and a notification when it is approved.
8. Prove the website is yours. On your listing page press “Verify you own this website” and add the short code to the site. Buyers then see the “Ownership verified” badge.
9. Share your listing. Use the share buttons on the listing. When 10 people open it from your link, it is shown as Featured for 7 days at no cost.
10. Talk to buyers and close the sale. Answer in iSaleGuru chat, accept an offer or sell to the highest bid, then mark it sold. A listing stays live for 90 days and is removed automatically after that. If it has not sold, you can list it again.

What each type of listing asks for

• Website / Blog: Niche, Built with, Main traffic source, Top visitor country, AdSense approved, Ad or affiliate networks used, Published articles, Domain rating (DR or DA)
• YouTube / Social: Platform, Subscribers or followers, Views in the last 28 days, Watch hours, last 12 months, Monetization enabled, Strikes or warnings, Content style, Niche, Top audience country
• Micro-SaaS: Monthly recurring revenue, Paying customers, Monthly churn %, Payments through, Monthly hosting cost
• E-commerce: Store platform, Orders a month, Average order value, Model, Stock included in the price, Supplier contacts included
• Mobile App: Store, Total downloads, Monthly active users, Store rating, Built with
• Newsletter: Platform, Subscribers, Open rate %, Click rate %, How often it is sent
• Local Business Site: Trade or niche, City and state served, How it earns, Rented to a business now, Google Business Profile included, Leads a month, Phone calls a month, Main keywords it ranks for, Ranks in the Google map pack
• Domain: Registrar, First registered (year), Expires on, Extension, Has a live website

iSaleGuru features and how they help you

• Free to list, offer, bid and chat. iSaleGuru charges no commission on a sale at the moment, so the whole agreed price is between the buyer and the seller.
• Proof on every listing. Each listing carries a screen recording and screenshots of the real dashboards. Buyers can check the numbers before they write a single message, and sellers hear from serious buyers only.
• Details that fit the type of business. A YouTube channel shows subscribers, watch hours and strikes. A website shows niche, traffic source and AdSense status. A local site shows trade, city, leads and calls. Buyers compare like with like.
• Email-verified tick and country flag. You can see that the other person confirmed their email and which country they are in. It is a basic check, not an identity check.
• Ownership verified badge. The seller placed a code on the website, which shows they control it. It protects buyers from people listing sites they do not own.
• Figures checked. When iSaleGuru staff have compared the uploaded proof with the figures, the listing says so. It is a helpful sign, not a guarantee.
• Offers, Buy now and auctions. Sellers choose a fixed price or an auction. Bids start from $5, the seller can sell to the highest bid or cancel, and both sides are told the moment a listing is sold.
• Notifications by email and on your dashboard. New offers, new messages, being outbid, becoming the highest bidder, approval and sold notices reach you at once, so you never lose a deal by being late.
• Private chat. Buyers and sellers talk inside iSaleGuru and keep a written record of what was promised. It works on a phone as well as a computer.
• Locked listings. Hide the name, web address and picture of a business until you choose who may see them. $10 once. Useful when staff, customers or competitors should not know it is for sale.
• Share and win a Featured spot. Bring 10 visitors with your own share link and your listing sits in the Featured row for 7 days, free.
• Seller levels and the Pro badge. “First sale made”, “Rising seller” and “Top seller” appear as you complete sales. The optional Pro badge is a one-time $20 that supports the site. It is not an identity check.
• Recently sold. Sold businesses stay on a public list, so new buyers and sellers can see what actually sells and for roughly how much.
• Local business sites by trade. Lead-generation sites are tagged by trade (plumber, roofing, hvac, electrician, landscaping and more), so a business owner can find a ready-made site for their own trade and city.
• Jobs board. Businesses post SEO, WordPress, YouTube, writing and design work, with a map pin for local jobs. Every job is looked at before it is shown.
• Free valuation tool. Type in your profit and a few facts and see a realistic price range before you list or make an offer.
• Listings stay out of Google. Listing pages are not offered to search engines and links to a seller’s site are nofollow, so details of a business for sale do not spread across search results.
• Works as an app. Open iSaleGuru on a phone or computer and add it to the home screen. It behaves like an app, with nothing to download from a store.

Fees

iSaleGuru charges no commission on a sale and does not provide an escrow service at the moment. It connects buyers and sellers and gives no guarantee for any payment or deal.