|
|
| Domain Name Information |
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
How Do I Buy a Domain Name?
Q: I'd like to buy a domain, but I discovered that it's already registered by a bulk domain buying company (just check negres.com). I tried to contact them but I have received no answer. Do you know how much these companies charge in average for a domain? Or are they focused on the traffic and clicks and will not let it go? Any recommended approach to bid for the domain? A: This is a tough one because domain names, unless you have a legal claim on them, exist in a pure commodity marketplace. What I mean is: the value of a domain is defined solely by its perceived value to the buyer. If you wanted to buy one of my unused domains (for example, "BABY.NET" which is for sale, actually) then I might ask $20 for it, or I might ask $200,000 for it, or, who knows, $2mil. What's it worth? Well, that depends. If you're a huge company with a massive marketing budget and are passionate about obtaining this exact domain then $500,000 might be a fair market price for it. But then again, maybe $100 would be more than it's worth. Economics books talk about pricing strategies where you charge "what the market will bear", and you can see where in domain names, well, that's almost impossible to figure out without a specific buyer involved. There's no third party, no standards organization, no reference point for what domains are worth. I've bought domains from others for $200 and I've paid $8000 for one domain. My most recent domain purchase, BLOGSMART.COM, was about $500. I should note that I have never bought a domain from a scalper (some people call them "squatters", or "domain squatters") or domain resale agency, however: My impression is that domain resellers encourage domain owners to set unrealistic prices and hold out. For the individual domain owner who doesn't know any better, it seems like a good deal and if offers at lower price-points roll in, well, they're easily ignored. Then, three, four or even five years later, the domain owners with dozens or even hundreds of domains suddenly realize that they really aren't worth much after all because it's clear at that point that the market isn't valuing the domain the way that the reseller is. But even without that disconnect, domains aren't typically worth what you may think they are. To see what I mean, pop over to AfterNIC, one of the top resellers in this space, and browse their 'recently sold' and 'featured' domains lists. A few tips on valuation, before we get there, though: '.com' are worth more than other top level domains, dictionary words are worth more than multiple word amalgamations (think 'car.com' versus 'myfavoritecartodrive.com'), and that domain names with hyphens are worth less than those without. Further, remember that if you get a singular name, you need the plural, if you get a hyphenated name you need the unhyphenated too, and so on. Unsurprisingly, the closing bids for "tiny-treasures.com", "yourbetterhalf.com", "onenet.us" and "2EB.com" aren't very impressive, but there are a few that shine as particularly good domains: "america.org" (sold for $20,000), "maple.net" ($5,000), "x360.com" ($5,000), "itoldyouso.com" ($15,000) and "searchme.com" ($15,500). Based on that, "baby.net" should certainly be worth at least $20,000, don't you think? I believe that the best domains change hands in private transactions, however, and that if you've a third-party involved, it will unquestionably complicate the situation. Anyway, back to your specific situation, I would try one more email message to the domain owner, and if they don't respond, well, it's probably time to do some creative synonym brainstorming and come up with a different name entirely. If they respond, but are asking for far more than you're willing to pay, keep dickering: I've been surprised how quickly potential buyers vanish, when I'm just negotiating a price. Good luck to you! Dave Taylor is an internationally recognized expert on business and technical topics and is the author of 18 different books and thousands of magazine articles. His Q&A Web site is http://www.askdavetaylor.com/
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Liberalization of in-Domains? Communications and IT Minister Dayanidhi Maran has -as Hindustan Times reports-some advice for Indian patriots: use in-domains for Websites and e-mail IDs to popularise Indian identity in the world. How to Profit from Expired Domain Name Registration After the dot com crash, expired domain names and expired domain name traffic have been a source of potential income. It is important to inexpensively obtain the automated tools required to track the thousands of domain name registration and abandoned websites that are removed from the domain registry and become available for purchase. How to Choose the Right Domain Name for Your Company As the editor of DomainNameWire.com, I'm frequently e-mailed by people asking for domain name advice. Specifically, what should they look for when registering a domain name for their company? This may be basic for some of you, but I hope some of my readers gain value from this. Warning: Your Domain Name Could Infringe On Trademark Rights! If you have or are about to purchase a domain name, YOU could be in trouble and you don't even know it yet... Making Money from Parked Domains Let me tell you a true story. A friend of my who likes to collect domain names was describing a few that he had acquired. While he has a wide range of domains in various categories, these particular domains were all related to web hosting. Earn Money With Parked Domain Names Do you have domain names that you are not currently using? Understanding The Value of Expired Domains I would like to explain a few things related to expired domains in a definition format, which should make it easy to understand. How Do I Buy a Domain Name? Q: I'd like to buy a domain, but I discovered that it's already registered by a bulk domain buying company (just check negres.com). I tried to contact them but I have received no answer. Domain Squatting Explained The one thing that annoys me most about the topic of domain names is when trying to find a domain name for a new site only to find most of the names I come up with are already taken. Even more annoying is that these names are not being used for a site that relates to the domain name. Selecting Your Domain Name - Things to consider Selecting your domain name Selecting a domain name can be a very frustrating process as a lot of domains have been sold already. With 30.000+ domain names being sold each day it can be a challenge to find the appropriate domain name for your company. So what do you do? Your business name might not be available or be too long. If you did think about doing business on the Web when you started, your name might not be appropriate for the web. What if your domain name is available for the country code extension but not .COM? Should you buy the .CA anyway? How long is too long? A Very Simple 3 Step Process To Find That Perfect Domain Name Using Some Free Online Tools So you finally decided you want your very own home on the World Wide Web. Many people use free services like Geocities or AngelFire for their first home on the Internet. Others jump in and get their very own domain and then set up a hosting account. Investing in Great Domain Names when They Come for Sale Domain names are not just online identities anymore they are the most important asset an online company owns. There are businesses being spun out because the owner stumbled on a good domain name. These folks are minting money like hell that they use this revenue to build more and better businesses. Have you invested in stocks and found that a small bad news would completely change the value of the stock? Rather invest in online domain names they are relatively easy to acquire and maintain. The initial acquisition cost is sometimes high but most often in the right hands this will be gold mines that can bring in 10 times more revenue per year than the initial investment each year. Have you owned real estate property as investments? You know that their value goes up slowly but surely. The domain names are similar to the land you buy, you can change the home you build on top as many times while the land value goes up. Acquiring land is important like that the domain names are important to buy when one good one becomes available. For example patriotism is a good theme and it is evergreen, owning a domain name that deals with patriotism it is a good investment. Like this there are many common themes that you can invest on which are long term great investments. Whats in a Domain Name? You've decided to start up your own website. You've weighed all of your options, and have come to the conclusion that you want to purchase web space for your site. Good job; you're one step closer to having your name on the world wide web. Free eBook: Business Domain Names Since every website needs a name, Dr. Steve Baba has written a free ebook that will help you obtain a brandable, memorable domain name at a reasonable cost, which will contribute to your brand equity and profits. The ebook, downloadable from Seemly.com, explains how to select and buy an elite domain name. You will be able to obtain a better name than your competitors have. Signing up for a Domain Name? Consider Private Registration A plethora of websites exists to register a domain name. Google 'register domain names' and have a fun-filled time comparing prices. Though price is definitely a consideration when choosing a domain name registrar, it is also important to find a registrar who offers private domain name registration. The Sub-Domain - An Affiliates Friend It's surprising, at least to me, the amount of Affiliates who aren't aware of the value and flexibility that the 'sub-domain' can give their promotional website activities. Set up in the right way, a single domain through a host who includes multiple 'sub-domains' in their hosting package can fill ALL the online needs of even the busiest and most diversified Affiliate. What is a Domain Name and Where to Register? A domain name is an alias for an IP address. Now what is an IP address? An IP address is a numeric code that signifies where to look through the Internet for content. An example of an IP address would be 22.226.141.25. Rather than typing in a long and easily forgotten IP address, a domain name helps you by typing an easily remembered name to access the same site. Secrets of Expired Domain Name Traffic One of the biggest challenges to a webmaster is how to generate traffic. More traffic to your website equates to more sales. So how does one generate extra traffic to their website? Search engine optimization, email campaigns, pay-per-clicks, banner advertising, are among some of the tactics that are popular. Another method of generating traffic is through expired domain names. How To Boost Affiliate Profits Using Secret Domain Tricks Want to increase your affiliate link click-through rates and profits? How to Conduct a Domain Name Search and Why Your Domain Name Matters for Long Term Branding Creating a website is not just about designing your pages and including all the important information, it is also about creating a domain name that relates to your products and services and that is also easy to remember and spell for your customers. A domain name that is easy to remember will have more return customers and more word of mouth advertising than domain names which are hard to spell, remember, or both.
|
