Although most people wouldn’t think of it, websites are like the digital equivalent of  real estate. If you really think about it, both websites and real estate are both investments that almost always increase in value. Although location is not a factor for websites, a domain name that is memorable, and availible is very important for the survival of a website. The final similarity is that improvements that cost very little to do, but, increase the value of the website exponentially.

Websites, as I have stated many,many times cost very little to start and can with skill, hard work and a little luck, the website could be worth millions of dollars. Digg.com is a great example of this because Kevin Rose initally used $10,000 of his money to get Digg started and  now the site is worth around $100,000,000!This shows that with a good plan, talented people and some money from some venture capital firms you can build a valuable, triving business.

Since websites exist online and not in the real physical world, the golden rule of “Location, Location, Location”  does not apply however, you need to get fomain name that is available and is memorable so people can come back to your site. Domain names are crucial and can be fatal if you choose the wrong one. The whole domain purchasing process sounds easy but, it can be very tedious because the domain may already be claimed or could be “squatted”. My method is to list all my name ideas then look them up to see if the domains are available and eliminate domains that are claimed or not good enough. From their eliminate the less desirable domains down until you are left with the domain you plan on using.

Building and adding value to websites is also inexpensive, websites start only with the value of the domain and from there, anything added to the site adds value and like in real estate where a $50 can of paint jumps the value, little new features that cosr you little money can increase the site value signifigantly. If you are the only developer and you are not paying yourself, then you are only using time but, if you are developing even if you are paying $1,000 for developing the service, you still are able to make money because that service may add more than $1,000 of value.

In conclusion, websites are the internet equivalent of real estate because they increase in value exponentially, they have a crucial factor to their success or failure, and in expensive improvements can increase the site value exponentially. The vast majority of people can afford to build a website and it is a great investment just like real estate.