Word of Advice Thread

[rjmlar]

Originally Posted by NameCharger

Newbies tend to use whois privacy too often and waste money. My advice to US residents is to get a PO Box to use for the address for all whois records and get a free phone number/voicemail at ringcentral.com. When you have good domains, people will contact you by looking up whois info and the easier it is for them to contact you, the quicker you may be to a sale.

I would prefer PO boxes for contact records but isn't a street address an ICANN rule in most cases?

As long as whois ID protection is cheap or bundled with a domain (that qualifies), contacting the registrant or admin is easy and straight-forward.

[Jackie]

Originally Posted by rjmlar

I would prefer PO boxes for contact records but isn't a street address an ICANN rule in most cases? As long as whois ID protection is cheap or bundled with a domain (that qualifies), contacting the registrant or admin is easy and straight-forward.

I've never heard that using a PO Box for the address in your WHOIS record is any less acceptable than using a street address.

[rjmlar]

Originally Posted by edjackiel

I've never heard that using a PO Box for the address in your WHOIS record is any less acceptable than using a street address.

Maybe I'm thinking of other TLDs in other countries. PO boxes are in wide use here so it must be ok. thanks!

[zabijaq]

Try to think like others might think. Domain name has the value of what buyer will pay not whta seller think he can get.

[mozzeratti]

Great tips. Great thread.
I'd like to add - familiarize yourself with the Warnings and Alerts section.
This is an industry full of scams, most of which are constantly evolving.

Pay attention to your instincts...when something seems
off, take some time to look into it.
Don't allow yourself feel such a sense of urgency, that you fail to spare a
moment to think things through.
.

[MoneyMingle]

word to the wise.....do not use calculator sites like domaintops...there are seasoned pros ready to sniper/register it before you can open a browser!

[zabijaq]

MoneyMingle: So they steal ideas? Good to know, thanx +rep

[m608c]

Everyone has some great advice here ......

[Mesa SEO Solutions]

For what its worth... I encourage clients to acquire domains that include the main keyword phrase that the site is targeting, even better if it includes a city or geographic location, as well.

[biznews]

Bust your chops registering names and wait for low ball offers at the forums....

[Fayces]

This is some great info. I am a newbie to the domain world and I am trying to suck in as much information as possible. Thanks for this.

[krx]

This is a great thread. Too bad I didn't read it when I was starting out. Would have saved me some time and money (mostly money!).

Not sure I get this point below though. Why would you expect a good generic phrase to show up in a lot of separate URLs? How does that equate with high search volume? Am I missing something?

Originally Posted by tpruby

2) Perform advanced google searches where your term is only to appear in the url. 3) Perform advanced google searches where your term is only to appear in the url and then if you notice a single web site appears often, perform the same search excluding that individual site. I have seen a term go from 66000 returns on google, then to only 8 returns where the term is found only in the url and then down to only 5 returns when you omit the repeating web site from the url search. Once you do that, you will see why the term has never been registered by anyone.

[jacques]

Some thoughts.

Even though I am relatively new to this board, I have been registering domains since the early 90s.

Be patient. If you are a "flipper" it is an art and you need to observe the marketplace section of this site for months to understand how to do it.

Register names that make sense. No 'backwards" regs like creditfree.com, etc.

Don't be discouraged if you offer your name at auction or offer your name to domainers in the "domains wanted" thread, and no one wants it. It takes time and it does not neccesarily mean that you have a bad name.

My best advice is to register you names for 2 years. The clock starts ticking as soon as you register and there is a lot of pressure to sell as the calendar starts to outrun your budget. Take your time, register domain names that mean something and, then, have the confidence that what you have regged is good enough to be prime virtual real estate for at least two years.

Lastly, register what you would "love" to develop, whether or not you choose to do so. When you realize that you will have to monetize one of your domains, trust me, its best if it is a subject that you enjoy and that you can develop successfully.

[owl921]

Find a job you love and you'll never work another day in your life.

[producer007]

Originally Posted by owl921

Find a job you love and you'll never work another day in your life.

That is so true and I agree with you. However, you got to pay the bills before you find what you love to to do. What then??????

[risenson]

What a great thread! I am brand new to the world of domains, even though I have been registering them for years. Thank you for all the great advice, and the teaching! Have sooooo much more to learn..

[apersad]

There are automated domain research tools that let you find thousands of domains worth buying. But this can be a tedious process. So, you need brute force where you combine a set of research tools to get the best results. This is a list of the most common tools that allow you to browse and look for potential domains.ame ideas in addition to tools for websites and SEO.

• DigitalPoint – offers keyword recommendation tool to help with new domain name ideas in addition to tools for websites and SEO.
• DnScoop – gives you information related to a domain. This is whois, traffic data, domain history and popularity, domain appraisal, pagerank, backward links, etc.
• PagerankPredict does what it says – predicts Google pagerank for a domain which is very important if you plan to develop the domain.
• AjaxWhois – a web 2.0 domain search engine that is useful to search multiple TLD searches on a root domain name. This is convenient if you know what domain name you want to buy.
• DomainState tools – offers browser based domaining tools and facilities to trademark databases.
• SearchStatus is a good domaining tool that you can use with the Firefox browser. This SEO and SEM tool gives you a quick brief on a domain you plan to buy and the backlink information related to competitior site, which in turn helps in pricing.
• Domain Tools has valuable domainer tools combining domain history, reverse IP where you can see the other websites hosted on the same IP and DNS tools, domain monitor, etc.

[lizmarcus7]

I could no longer find good tips to share here.

I would just say thanks for this post.

Its a nice guide for Newbies of Namepros member.

[www.DONT.net]

Find a job in the field of your interest, and I'm sure you will be on the top of whatever you will do!

Quoted by my uncle, Indian National Award Winner for his movie production: J.S. Cheema

[lizmarcus7]

Hey i have something to share now:
Be patient and be friendly to the
NamePros Member.
No spamming.

[Forgan1860]

Hello friend,
I am new member in this forum.I read your contant.
Thanks for sharing your information as expert and please review my domain and tell about this name.

[cwinhall]

Had I read this thread last week, I would of saved $100! Doh!

You live and learn! Especially from msitakes!

Rep added to those that deserved it!

[eniggma]

Im just starting out myself and I love this site man! I really have been doing alot of research and I think the niche method is the most comfortable for me to start with because when your are knowledgeable about an industry it really broadens your horizons on keywords to think. Ive just started with two domains, golfironsstore.com and betterteetimes.com and im working on parking them now so we will see what happens...

[daj]

Don't register a domain just because you happen to like it, or because you think it's catchy, cute, or the bomb. 99% of the time you will most likely be the only one who's thinking that. I still do this from time to time, and these domains that I think are cool, are the ones I lose money on, because I was the only one who had saw a vision for them, had developmental ideas running through my head, or came up with a catchy slogan in my mind for them. So unless you're buying a domain to develop yourself, don't buy domains just because you like them.

Stick to logic and reasoning when it comes to buying and registering domains. Get into a "business mindset". What do I mean by this?

1. Make sure the keywords in the domain get a good amount of "exact" searches each month with google's keyword tool (https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal).

2. Search on google with the domain's keywords in "parenthese" and make sure there are a good amount of websites using the keywords, and there are google ads showing for the keyword.

3. Make sure there are similar domains taken with the same keywords you're using at your registrar (is the .net/.org/.co.uk /etc taken).

4. Search for similar sales of the keywords in your domain at DnSalePrice.com and NameBio.com.

Only if the domain has a good amount of exact searches for the keywords in the domain (1,000+), a lot of websites using the keyword terms, google ads displayed for the keyword, other similar domains taken, and very similar domains that have sold, should you purchase it in most cases.

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[ladytrucker44]

Thanks so much for all the great information, wisdom and advice. The point you make about competition is valid now that you mention it didn't really think about that. Thanks for reminding me that I must spend time researching a new area of interest. Excuse me while I find my glasses and make my self comfortable. It's gonna be a long night.

---------- Post added at 11:07 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:24 PM ----------

Originally Posted by owl921

Find a job you love and you'll never work another day in your life.

Amen to that. I have worked many jobs to pay the bills: Taxi Driver, Carnival Worker, Secretary, Nursing Assitant, Plebotomist, Preschool Teacher justt to name a few. I also sold various goods and many services. Most barely paid the bills, others made me feel ill that I had to go. But you do what you have to do right. Most recently I've joined the ranks of the millions of unemployed/underemployed and this is the worst.
I finally asked my self what do I enjoy. What can I do well. Write! Since I was in elementary school learning to read and write I've gotten A in english and helped others create essays, send letters to thier friends and write stories for my grandbabies.
So here I am learning to navigate the web to sell my writings. I am thrilled to use my imagination and write my stories. I've been learning about content writing and blogs, Adult fiction and ghost writing. While I am not making much yet I am not working so much as enjoying my hobbie.
It is a blessing to finally do something I love:}