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interviews An Interview With JudgeMind: 15 Years Of Setting Goals

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Introduction

As I was getting started in domain investing, one of the voices offering sound advice was @JudgeMind. While not quite as active currently in NamePros, when he does contribute, I always know it will be well thought out and based on a decade plus of domain investing success.

While he only formally joined NamePros in 2013, he was active as a reader for years before that. He has a number of badges, including Pro Status. He has contributed more than 6000 NamePros posts, resulting in an impact rating of more than 19,000. That places him in the top 20 in terms of impact on our NamePros community.

I reached out to @JudgeMind, and he graciously agreed to an interview.

Interview

You have been in domain investing since 2008. Can you tell us how you got started?

In 2008 we had a recession and I found myself at home unemployed over the Christmas holidays. I was watching TV and saw an ad for GoDaddy about registering a domain name for your business. I started to research and learn about making money online, specifically by buying and selling domain names. I stumbled upon NamePros, and after reading a lot about domain investing, and seeing the sales reported by other investors, I decided to try it out.

What do you like about domain investing that has maintained your interest at such a high level over the years.

To be honest, the community and the interesting people I’ve met online and through domain investing have kept me in the industry. I have always treated domain investing as a hobby, and it has become a social outlet for me. I really enjoy reading about the industry, seeing the success of others, and discussing all aspects of the industry with colleagues whom I’ve met online.

It must be challenging, investing part-time, but with a fairly large and growing portfolio. Do you have tips on efficiently managing a portfolio?

I currently have just under 4000 domain names and have maintained a portfolio of 3000-4000 domains for around 6 years. Being a part-time investor with a moderately sized portfolio definitely has its challenges. Time management and allocation of time to certain tasks is key. I have created a process that has worked for me for many years to fit all the necessary tasks to maintain the portfolio into 1-2 hours of my time each day. Days where I have more time to invest are typically the times where I buy or register new domains. Being able to do most of the portfolio management on an iPad or mobile device allows me to quickly renew, register, transfer, list or purchase a name without being at a computer.

One thing that impresses me is how you set goals for yourself. Any advice for domain investors on goal setting?

I am always motivated to build my portfolio of domains and one way I’ve found is to set goals for myself to achieve. I typically set a 100 end-user domain sale per year goal. If I reach that goal before the end of the year, then I will set a new goal to reach by year end. I have been a seller at SquadHelp since 2018, and currently have just over 1100 premium listings in my portfolio there. I have been building that portfolio for many years now and, like my total annual domain sales target, I try to set achievable targets at SquadHelp to help me grow my premium listing portfolio. My goal in 2022 was to reach 1000 premium listings at SquadHelp by year end. My goal for 2023 is to reach 1500 premium listings by year end.

You seem very in tune with modern developments and trends. Do you have suggestions on how domain investors can catch trends early on?

Study, read, listen to podcasts, watch the news, and read articles in tech journals about new and future technology. I love to read about tech and domain names, so having a daily routine of reading new articles during breakfast or listening to podcasts while at the gym or on a walk has proven to be the best avenue for identifying new trends. When I read or hear about some interesting new technology then I can make a mental note to dig deeper into that topic and by learning more about it. I can diffuse specific keywords that are likely to be popular in that niche.

ImageJudgeMind.png

This is a very open question, but what one or two things did you learn that make you a better investor now than in the early years.

I was fortunate enough to make friends with some savvy investors early on in my investing endeavour. Two questions I heard those investors tell me to ask myself before investing in a domain that stuck with me are:
  1. Would you name your company that?
  2. Do you already know who will buy that domain?
You actively give back to the community both here on NamePros, where you are on the top 20 list of members with biggest impact, and on social media. Do you feel an obligation to help others, or do you simply like to share, or both?

I don’t feel obligated, but I feel its very important for the growth of the domain industry to educate others where possible. If what I share can help some new, want to be domain investor save their time and money to learn from my strategy, then I’m happy to share. It is very easy for new and even seasoned domain investors to lose money investing in domains. With an average industry sell-through rate (STR) of only 1%-2%, you need to be sure there is somebody, somewhere that will want to fork out some dough to buy your names.

How do you think the domain market is different now compared to five years ago?

There is far more competition from end users and tech giants bidding on domain names now in auction. The bots tend to drive prices out of reach for many investors who are looking to scale up. There are also a significant number of end users who are frequently bidding on expiring auctions now.

If someone in their first year of domain name investing asked for advice, what would you tell them?

Read, learn, study and ask for help or guidance from other investors when it’s needed. Domain investing is not a get rich quick scheme. Over the years I have been approached by many new investors; it’s very common they are asking me to review names they already bought or registered. Most of the time the names have very little value or are direct trademarks of major corporations. Be prepared to accept constructive criticism, and if you messed up the first time around, learn more, learn from your mistakes and try again.

Closing Thoughts

First and most important, a sincere thank you to @JudgeMind for answering each and every question I posed in such a complete and clear manner.

A lot of smart advice in the answers and comments he provided above. The following particularly resonated with me:
  • The domain community is an important resource to help us stay motivated and to recover from, or avoid, mistakes.
  • Have clear and realistic goals in mind, and work towards them.
  • Acquire names that people will want to build a startup on, or move a business site to.
  • Stay informed on opportunities provided by technological developments and trends, and a well-grounded sense of effective branding.
  • Have a process that works for you in terms of how you handle daily portfolio and domain related activities.
What things stood out for you in the interview? Are there other things you would like to ask Judgemind?

You can follow @JudgeMind here on NamePros. Wonder about his thoughts on the ‘sweet spot’ for brandable name pricing? Check out his response here.

@JudgeMind is also active on social media, where his Twitter handle is BrandAimCom. He recently shared the following, a nice summary of several key points:
To anyone new who is struggling to grow your portfolio, forget about getting rich overnight. You can, however, grow your portfolio to a passive income producing machine with a plan and steadfast execution of that plan.
 
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The views expressed on this page by users and staff are their own, not those of NamePros.
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Let talk numbers...

What the expenses?
How many domains sold and what are they and how much?

data data data
 
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Thank you Mr. @Bob Hawkes for theinterview.
I would like to ask @JudgeMind if he uses other brandable marketplaces such as Brandbucket.
 
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Thank you Mr. @Bob Hawkes for theinterview.
I would like to ask @JudgeMind if he uses other brandable marketplaces such as Brandbucket.
yes, i have a small portfolio at BrandBucket, i intend to start focusing on building that portfolio up in the near future.
 
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Let talk numbers...

What the expenses?
How many domains sold and what are they and how much?

data data data
That would be a whole other interview haha. Besides, i dont know any domain investor who would open their books like that to the general public. We all have some data we choose to not share, however i tend to share a lot of data, most often on twitter.
 
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He is a nice person, good friend and as always open to sharing.
 
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Agreed, Judge is one of the nicest and experienced domainers out there which I also call a great friend
 
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Judge & me have a hell of a story to tell to grandchildren ...and can be learn by others domainers in both ways
😍😍😍😍😍

Good luck in all you want to do in life
😍
Cheers
 
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Thank you Bob and also to @JudgeMind .Thank you for laying it all out there. I hope others will read and learn.
 
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thanks @JudgeMind i have learnt lots from you, you are part-time with so many domains, amazing how you handle that
 
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Great interview! I've always looked up to JudgeMind!
 
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