How to Sell Your Internet Radio Station

You’ve been running your internet radio station for some time now and it has been an epic journey so far. Years passed without even noticing it. You’ve managed to create a strong community of listeners/fans who you consider family. However, in the last couple of months you feel that the station is more of a burden than a pleasure. What do you do? Have you considered selling your station? If you have, this post will walk you through the process.

1. Why sell your internet radio station

It can be hard to let go of your station. You feel like it’s your child. You saw your station growing from just an idea, a passion of yours to play music, to a strong brand that reaches thousands of listeners a month. How can you even think of selling your station, right? Here are a few reasons:.

• You’re not passionate about your station any more

When someone starts an online radio station, it often is borne of passion. However, we tend to evolve and change as we age and therefore our interests and passions also change along the way. If your passion for online radio goes away, it’s a good idea to sell it.

• You’re in need of money

Another common reason why you would consider selling your station is that you’re in need of money. Being in a difficult financial situation is a common reason why people look to sell valuable items. However, in such a case, you need to be sure that you won’t regret it in the future. So, if you have financial issues and you also don’t find pleasure in running your station anymore then, selling is a good way to go.

• You need to save money

When you first started your online radio station you might not have thought about all of the costs that go into running it. These costs include your internet radio software, your website server, the licensing fees, rent, etc. If you haven’t monetised your station, then you just spend money and you have no profit.

If you don’t want to sell your station but you indeed need to save money then you may consider the following tips:

• Pay annually and save

Pay annually to save monthly. Most internet radio software providers offer discounts to those who pay on an annual basis. For example, Airtime Pro offers 2 free months (equivalent to 16% off) on all annual plans. So, if you’re an Airtime Pro user, paying for the starter plan, and you choose to pay annually you will pay $33.29 instead of $39.95 per month.

• Downgrade to a simpler plan

All this time you may pay for a plan that you don’t even need. It’s like paying for a 4-bedroom flat while using just one room. You’ll need to investigate your analytics to see how many listeners you have a day and how much storage you use. For example, you may need just 5 GB storage and you actually pay for 15 or you may get around 500 listeners a day and you pay for 1,000. So, you will want to downgrade your plan and if you see that you indeed need more features, then upgrade.

• Monetise your station

If you don’t like the idea of selling your station then you just need to think about how to save money and at the same time make money out of your station. From selling radio ads and banner ads on your site to finding sponsors to sponsor your station or each show, there are various ways you can monetise your station. We’ve written an in-depth piece on this exact subject. Here are 13 ways to make money with your internet station.

2. How to find buyers

There are two ways to sell your internet radio station: by yourself or through a third-party agent or marketplace. If you are a natural salesperson, then the first option might sound ideal, as you will try to get the most money possible without spending on commission. However, keep in mind that this option can be tricky and time-consuming. If you already have an offer in hand then you could negotiate with that buyer for a deal that would make both of you happy. If you don’t have an offer, you will need to find potential buyers yourself and that’s not an easy task. If you decide to work with a private broker, then you can find a third-party marketplace, and the good news is that there are indeed some good options to choose from. Below are the two most popular marketplaces for buying and selling online businesses.

https://flippa.com/

https://empireflippers.com/

You will need to sign up and start looking for potential buyers. Keep in mind that it might take some time before you find a buyer, and also until you actually make the deal and receive the money. The commission that you will need depends on your final sale price. They range from 5% to 15%.

Sell your station with Empireflippers.com

Empireflippers.com is a full service marketplace. They curate online businesses that meet their requirements and offer a dedicated team to take care of the website transfer. They won’t charge you a monthly fee, but instead they will charge a commission once your station is sold and the commission is deducted from the sales price. Empire Flippers only accepts online businesses that earn at least $500 per month in profit. The commission rates depend on the value of the business. For example:

If you sell your station for less than $700,000, the commission will be a flat 15% on the sale price.

If the deal closes between $700,000 and $5 million, then the commission will be reduced to 8% on the amount above $700,000 and below $5 million.

You can find out how much commission you will need to pay based on your estimated listing price via this commission calculator.

Here are the four steps of the sale process through Empireflippers.com.

• Submit your station

You’ll first need to submit your internet station for sale to the marketplace. They will ask you a few questions about your business and then they will review your application.

• Submission review & approval

You will need to wait for a few days until a review of your submission is completed. If they require additional information they will contact you. Otherwise, you will get notified that your application is successful.

• Publish & Accept Offers

After your listing is successful they will promote your business to potential buyers and you will start receiving offers.

• Help selling your station

You will receive help negotiating and structure deals that get you top value and a lightning-fast close. They help you in every step so that you close the deal. They even transfer the business to the buyer for you.

Sell your station with Flippa.com

Flippa is a peer-to-peer marketplace and it’s the most widely used marketplace for selling online businesses. They charge a listing fee as well as a 5% success fee payable when you sell your business. The platform offers various listing packages starting from $29, which  include: 3-month duration marketplace listing, data integrations, and same-day support. Flippa lets you chat and negotiate directly with potential buyers. You can list your business yourself or ask Flippa’s team for help. They also promise to beat any success fees provided by other relevant marketplaces by 1%.