Empire Flippers started by selling $5,000 sites. By Q3 2019 it had passed $100 million in total sales. 💰
At the Chiang Mai SEO Conference, I sat down with Justin Cooke, co-founder of Empire Flippers, a marketplace for buying and selling online businesses. 🎙️
📊 In this episode, we unpacked:
- 🌏 From SEO managers to the Philippines
- 🏗️ How they became a brokerage
- ✅ How listings are vetted
- 👥 Hiring through apprenticeships
- 🎉 Masterminds and Chiang Mai
🎥 Watch the full episode:
🌏 From SEO Managers to the Philippines
Justin and his business partner were mid-level managers at a US local SEO company that needed labor. They had worked with a virtual team in the Philippines, so they proposed building a crew there. 🌏
It worked, and they eventually left their jobs and moved to the Philippines to run it. A year later, the company hit trouble and cut back heavily on contractors. “Oh my god, what are we going to do?” 😮
🏗️ How They Became a Brokerage
With a trained team and no clients, they started building small AdSense sites, and realized people would pay good money for them. 🏗️
After building an audience of buyers, they let others list sites too, then stopped selling their own and became a pure brokerage. Early deals were $1,000–6,000 sites; now they do six- and seven-figure deals. 📈
At the end of Q3 2019 they crossed $100 million in total sales, after doubling or more most years (about 50% growth in 2019). For more on flipping, read Thomas Smale of FE International. 🔗
✅ How Listings Are Vetted
Buyers like Empire Flippers because listings are vetted: they check that the seller is real, the earnings are real and the traffic is real. ✅
That sometimes frustrates sellers. If a business doesn’t meet quality standards, earn enough, or fit what buyers want, they reject it and suggest improvements. They don’t sell adult sites, because vetting and traffic sources work very differently. 🚫
For another view on buying sites, read Branden Schmidt on flipping websites. 🔗
👥 Hiring Through Apprenticeships
They learned an apprentice model from the Tropical MBA community: offer people from your audience enough to live in Southeast Asia, a seat at the table, and the chance to learn daily with the founders. 👥
They expected only weak candidates, but got exceptional people over the years. As the team grew, they stopped calling it an apprenticeship, but still hire mostly from their audience. 💡
🎉 Masterminds and Chiang Mai
They also run masterminds: villas, talks on specific topics, and fun like a yacht trip. They break even at best. It’s not a moneymaker, but it fits the brand and gives others the value they got. 🎉
Justin has attended Chiang Mai every year since it was just a mastermind with Matt and friends. He comes for the people, friends and customers. He spends seven or eight months a year in Saigon. For more on the event, read Gael Breton on authority websites. 🔗
📝 Key Takeaways From the Justin Cooke Interview
- 🌏 A setback led to a new business model
- 🏗️ Building an audience of buyers made the brokerage possible
- ✅ Vetting sellers, earnings and traffic protects listing quality
- 👥 Apprenticeships can attract exceptional talent
- 🎉 Masterminds build value beyond money
❓ FAQs About Justin Cooke
What is Empire Flippers?
A marketplace and brokerage for buying and selling online businesses, co-founded by Justin Cooke, with vetted listings.
How much has Empire Flippers sold?
Justin says they crossed $100 million in total website and online business sales at the end of Q3 2019.
Does Empire Flippers sell adult websites?
No. Justin says vetting and traffic sources for adult sites are very different, so they don’t handle them.
🎙️ More Inside A Hustler’s Brain Interviews You’ll Love
- Mushfiq Sarker Website Flipping Master: From Zero to 7-Figs
- Kalin Karakehayov Interview On Buying Expired SEO Domains
- Mads Singers on How To Build Effective SEO Team (Make $$$$$$)
- Matthew Woodward Live Interview At AWA Asia Bangkok About SEO
Would you rather buy or build your next site? Share this with a flipper friend. 💬
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Jitendra Vaswani is a well-known expert in SEO and AI-driven digital marketing. He has spoken at international events and founded Digiexe, a digital marketing agency, and AffiliateBooster, WordPress plugin designed specifically for affiliate marketers. With over 10 years of experience, Jitendra has helped many businesses succeed online. His bestselling book, Inside A Hustler’s Brain: In Pursuit of Financial Freedom, with over 20,000 copies sold globally, underscores his influence and commitment to empowering digital marketers.