Creating a Tribute Fan Site to Get My Feet Wet Before the Real Deal

[Coney]

Hey guys,

Some time ago I discovered that the .net and .co.uk domain names of an extremely popular (popular in the US and Europe primarily) deceased celebrity was available so I immediately registered them. The .com domain of the celeb's name is of course up and running by the person's estate. This celeb has been deceased for quite some time but her influence is still being felt today with even some of the most popular artists of modern times channeling her in various ways. I checked search volume and it is more than decent. I don't have any experience with online marketing and I was thinking that before I take the plunge in the industry that I have my eye on and making many mistakes and fuk-ups, I was thinking of setting these sites up and promoting them in the US and Europe. They would be fan sites that would only be praising her, posting throwback pics, broadcasting the latest news and so on. I actually like this person so this would just be a pet project that I would enjoy anyway but at the same time it would get me comfortable with managing a site and all the marketing and research that goes with sustaining a successful site. And what's more, the target audience for this site would be the same for the "real" business that I will eventually be pursuing so I figured I could keep the email list from this site and sue it for the real business.

So what I'm basically doing here is using this site as a teaching tool

 

[Rob Lowem]

Hey Coney,

It's a nice idea especially since you are getting started. Just make sure to use the appropriate disclaimers that you are NOT the official site but a fan one. The fact that is is an exactmatch domain worries me a bit.

I have such kind of a site. Its a fan site of a tv show which I made 3 years ago. When I started the show only had a couple of episodes, but now it is being syndicated all over the world. Whenever it comes on tv I get a flood of traffic.

Now I tell you this just to inform you that, I have HARDLY MADE/MAKE MONEY from that site. It takes a lot of work but makes 20-50$ per month on adsense. This is becuase the traffic just doesnt convert.

I have tried EVERYTHING, even using content lockers which require you to complete an affiliate offer to view the website. Nothing came of it. I have tried selling the DVD series on amazon and I get maybe 3 USD per month. MAYBE.

Just recently have I found out that as the domain is old and established (over 800 comments including protagonists from the tv show), It can be used for creating content related to the TV show topic (dancing tv show can now talk about courses on how to dance for example) but with product reviews, higher buyer intent content.

This is going well as the domain easily ranks for low competition keywords without backlinks. I can now finally see a way of monetizing this domain whereas I just couldnt think of one when I created it years ago.

So let your idea be a training for you and see where it takes you. The more you learn, the more you can transfer into better money making ventures.

Take care.

Rob

 

[Bastion]

If it's a matter of doing this site or not diving into any site at all, then for sure do it!

I'd also take what Rob said into consideration though. Do you have any other interests that would have more obvious commercial intent? You'll be going through all the exact same processes and there's no rules that you can't still approach any site as a hobby site in the beginning.

If you did pick a niche with real earning potential out of the gate you would be able to grow the site alongside your skills with fewer barriers to "going pro" when you're ready. In my experience, nothing motivates progress like the first few real deal dollars earned out of the ether.

 

[Coney]

Mercy! The last part of my post was cut off which is why it ended so abruptly lol.

@Rob Lowem
Thanks so much for your informative post. What types of problems could the exact domain match generate? You mention that it worries you. I was really surprised that those extensions had not been snatched up but then again I think the estate is run by a bunch of old fogeys who probably didn't know any better.

Yes, I figured that since this is still a popular and influential person, that making money off the site would be tricky. I've had the domains for about 2 years now but they have not been attached to any site whatsoever.

Once again, thank you Rob. You have just given me a much needed boost of confidence since it's refreshing to know that a fellow BuilderSociety has taken the path I wanted to take.

Coney

@Bastion

Yes, I do have another niche I have my eye on that would be sort of related to the celeb which is why I thought it made sense to do it this way. I have 2 niches actually but just 1 of them would be similar to the tribute site.

Coney

 

[Ryuzaki]

What types of problems could the exact domain match generate?

I'm not sure how the law would work, and if you'd be willing to defend yourself over it, but I can imagine having the domain of a name means nothing. But the fact that you're building it around a specific person could result in a cease & desist attempt from the estate and an attempt to take the domain from you.

Making it clear you have no official relation and that it's just a fan club might help, but again are you willing to waste the time and money defending your position?

making money off the site would be tricky

Rob was talking about Adsense, which is definitely an okay way to monetize these types of sites, but if you have a lot of return viewers, they will quickly become ad blind. And if you require a click from them, it's not likely to happen.

A better alternative for forums and specific-interest sites with lots of return visitors would be CPM ads instead of CPC. This way, you're getting paid for the pageview regardless if they click or are ad blind or not. Testing a combination of both may yield even better results.

 

[Coney]

Thanks @Ryuzaki . Your input gave me something to think about. This is why I love this forum. The members here give you new ways to look at things which in turn allows you to not screw yourself over. Very much appreciated.

 

[yogipanda]

@Coney I'm with you, I recently started outlining content for a fan site & YouTube channel dedicated to one of my favorite podcast hosts. I have so much to learn when it comes to coding, security, Wordpress, (Net Neutrality repeal-- should I add that to the list?!) that it just feels NICE to pursue something for the fun of it, without worrying about the dollars...

That said, the project is still sitting on the back burner, barely simmering. I've been going through major periods of inspiration punctuated with utter disgust in my decision to pursue something "fun" rather than something profitable. @Rob Lowem thanks for sharing your insight as well, because I think you might have given me the kick in the ass I needed to just scrap the thing and jump on something that I know can generate $ (especially after reading the Keyword Research day of the marketing course - if you are new and haven't read that yet, you should really put that at the top of your list of things to check out).

Cheers fellas. Thanks for the thought provoking thread.

 

[Rob Lowem]

Hey @Coney sorry for this late and useless response but I'm glad to have given you some advice based on my experience. We had 3 rounds of sickness in the home and I've basically been floating like a zombie these last months.

Yes my worry was that these dormant guys may become hungry greedy Bas...rds if they see your loved fan site starts ranking super high for the Stars name. I just dont see how they will allow you to make any money from that site with affiliate links, adverts etc. without wanting that pie for themselves.

@yogipanda My fan site will now become a review site as the name of the domain is a bit generic if you dont know about the show. I now hate the show I used to love because every episode review I did was 4-5 hours of writing.

I dont regret my having taken this route but all I got out of all this is an aged domain with good backlinks from authority sites in it's niche, a good base of nearly 100 pages indexed and incredible user interaction with over 900 comments/2k fb likes.

But there are easier faster ways to attain this. If I spent those hundreds of hours on more buyer intent content, I will have a $2k per month site at minimum.

Jump into money making projects and grow with those.

Rob