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Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

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Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#21

Post by datums »

"We just want it to go to a good home". - Then a fixed priced is probably not the way to get there.

What's the ROI look like ? Lets say I absorb the development of the new billing system. How many clients will re submit there billing information ? If I leave it on auto pilot how long till I make my money back? 2.5 years ?

"With over 10,000 free accounts, there’s tons of untapped opportunity here in the existing customer base" Likely part of the buzz around the initial launch.

Pros: The revenue is there. The hosting cost is going to be affordable (low traffic), Cons: billing switch (huge problem), unless there is value.

"We either sell it by July 1, or we close it down." - Close it down != a good home at all.

What's the operational overhead? support via emails? charge backs? bug fixes?

Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#22

Post by cpher »

Let me get this straight. You want to sell a web property that requires no effort to maintain and generates ~$17k/month(!). Wowzers, I'm jealous. Besides that, what happens if you don't sell it now that a "price" is on the market? I'm curious to know how this may affect other "meta" sites like this. I applaud you guys for the guts to do this.

Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#23

Post by aviv »

danielhellier wrote: post #20

I don't believe for a moment he will shut down $200,000 profit with little maintenance. It's condescending to suggest "I want it to go to a nice home but I'll close it down if I don't get x." If you're willing to entertain such thought then you do not truly value the user.

Or the charity that can benefit from putting this on auto-pilot.

Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#27

Post by cbsmith »

tylermenezes wrote: post #24

If it passively generates $200k /yr with no maintenance, what reason is there to sell?

If they aren't focused on it, it is a distraction and can potentially tarnish the brand. Plus, they aren't going to sell for nothing, so they get immediate capital they can invest in areas where they expect a higher rate of return.

Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#28

Post by rockarage »

sandofsky wrote: post #12

I'd be worried about the requirement to switch billing. I'm not sure there's a clean way to switch a customer from one billing system to another without requiring user intervention. In general, recurring billing is a scam by its opt-out nature. If you aren't on top of your accounting, tiny charges slip by. When you spot them, you may be too lazy to immediately cancel it, so you forget. It isn't enough to know how man…

> We’ve put Sortfolio on the clock: We either sell it by July 1, or we close it down.

I'm wondering, If you had $480,000, why not spend 10% of that to build an alternative, and release it on July 1. After all the customers are going to have to signup to a new payment system either way.

Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#29

Post by citricsquid »

stevenj wrote: post #26

Anyone know what being a premium member gets you? I wasn't able to quickly figure that out upon first encounter.

> There is no charge to be listed on Sortfolio — every web designer gets a free listing. We also offer a Pro listing for $99/month. The Pro listing includes a larger interactive display ad, up to 6 large images, placement above free ads, and a spot for your logo. You can upgrade, downgrade, or cancel at any time.

http://sortfolio.com/about

Re: Sortfolio: Going once, going twice...

#30

Post by duck »

tylermenezes wrote: post #24

If it passively generates $200k /yr with no maintenance, what reason is there to sell?

Focus. Just because something has little to no maintenance doesn't mean you don't think about it. When it doesn't match your existing portfolio of products it makes it harder to incorporate into your overall plans.
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