It was once said that to be successful in the domain industry, you needed to register domain names very early on, circa 1990's.
Our guest today is proof that this is a false statement. James Booth (@BoothDomains) has been a full-time broker for less than a year, and he has already amassed sales of over $3 million and is currently brokering seven-figure domains such as HH.com.
Brother of British investor Andy Booth, who currently owns domains such as GSS.com and XXP.com, James is quickly building a reputation as one of top brokers in the domain industry.
In this interview, James shares his views on a number of subjects.
NP: How did you get started in the world of domain investing?
James: I have my brother to thank for this one. My background is Wealth Management and Finance, and after seeing my brother doing well, I decided to get involved and made a few good buys when I first started such as JNA.com and MKI.com, but then sold out and spent the money, which was a bad move. If only I had carried on.
It wasn’t until mid 2015 that I started getting involved again and quit my job to do domains full time. This was probably the best career decision of my life.
NP: Do you own many domain names personally, or are you concentrating on brokering?
James: I have literally just sold out of everything while I asses the market. There is a lot of manipulation going on right now. So I am going to stand back, follow what my Chinese clients are looking for, and make educated and calculated decisions.
I have a couple names left: CFJL.com, which in Pinyin means Wealth Manager and Accumulation of Wealth, and I also own FinancialProducts.com and DriverlessMotors.com.
NP: What is the best domain name you are currently brokering?
James: Right now the best name we are brokering at BQDN.com is HH.com.
NP: Last year, what was your total dollar volume of domain names you sold?
James: Just shy of $3m USD in my first 6 months.
NP: Have you noticed a change in the Chinese domain market in recent months? Do you think buyers are changing the way they invest?
James: I have noticed a massive change since the start of 2016. The Chinese are only really buying LL.com and NN.com if it is an amazing deal. I believe their mentality is that they can make more money ‘trading’ cheaper names in bulk, such as LLL.cc, LLL.co, etc.
NP: What do you see happening within the Chinese domain market within the next 12 months?
James: This is a tough one to predict. It all depends on things like the Chinese economy, Global Stock Markets, and a few other factors. I still believe the market is going to grow but not as quickly as it did at the end of 2015. I think certain areas will still grow, such as 4N.com, 5N.com, 4L.com, and I think Western premium 3L.com will grow also.
NP: What’s your opinion on new gTLDs?
James: Honestly, still not keen. I will just stick to .com and .net. If you can find an amazing deal, the name makes sense, and you can afford the renewals for 5+ years, then maybe.
NP: What's your top tip for anyone just starting out in domain investing?
James: Firstly, do research. Do not just hand register names. If you have a bit of spare cash and want to learn some good knowledge, I would recommend doing Mike Cyger’s DNAcademy as he has years of knowledge.
Alternatively, scan auction sites for cheap deals such as good combinations of LLLL.net, 5L.com, and 6N.com. It hurts when I see people with names like XVQT.net or .com. These mixtures of Western and Asian have no use at all.
No company in the west is going to want it and the Chinese are not going to want it, so pointless wasting money on them. Either get something like BAOD for the West, or TXZM.com for China, or even better, find a name that works globally [for the West and China] like BCDW.com. The top 5 Chinese letters are actually
NP: What is the domain industry missing?
James: That's a tough one. I see a lot of jealousy and greed in today’s market if I am honest. A few years ago, there was never so much hate towards another domainer for making an investment decision or being the broker for a name.
After reading blog posts about some people making their own personal investments, and so much hate being blasted at them, it was shocking. Very few people want to actually help one another these days it seems.
NP: What service would you most like to see in 2016 to help you succeed?
James: An English version of the Chinese market performance. Someone doing what Chaomi.cc and 111.co do but for the West instead of trying to use Google Translate all the time.
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Thanks to James for taking part in our Expert Exchange.
Our guest today is proof that this is a false statement. James Booth (@BoothDomains) has been a full-time broker for less than a year, and he has already amassed sales of over $3 million and is currently brokering seven-figure domains such as HH.com.
Brother of British investor Andy Booth, who currently owns domains such as GSS.com and XXP.com, James is quickly building a reputation as one of top brokers in the domain industry.
In this interview, James shares his views on a number of subjects.
NP: How did you get started in the world of domain investing?
James: I have my brother to thank for this one. My background is Wealth Management and Finance, and after seeing my brother doing well, I decided to get involved and made a few good buys when I first started such as JNA.com and MKI.com, but then sold out and spent the money, which was a bad move. If only I had carried on.
It wasn’t until mid 2015 that I started getting involved again and quit my job to do domains full time. This was probably the best career decision of my life.
NP: Do you own many domain names personally, or are you concentrating on brokering?
James: I have literally just sold out of everything while I asses the market. There is a lot of manipulation going on right now. So I am going to stand back, follow what my Chinese clients are looking for, and make educated and calculated decisions.
I have a couple names left: CFJL.com, which in Pinyin means Wealth Manager and Accumulation of Wealth, and I also own FinancialProducts.com and DriverlessMotors.com.
NP: What is the best domain name you are currently brokering?
James: Right now the best name we are brokering at BQDN.com is HH.com.
NP: Last year, what was your total dollar volume of domain names you sold?
James: Just shy of $3m USD in my first 6 months.
NP: Have you noticed a change in the Chinese domain market in recent months? Do you think buyers are changing the way they invest?
James: I have noticed a massive change since the start of 2016. The Chinese are only really buying LL.com and NN.com if it is an amazing deal. I believe their mentality is that they can make more money ‘trading’ cheaper names in bulk, such as LLL.cc, LLL.co, etc.
NP: What do you see happening within the Chinese domain market within the next 12 months?
James: This is a tough one to predict. It all depends on things like the Chinese economy, Global Stock Markets, and a few other factors. I still believe the market is going to grow but not as quickly as it did at the end of 2015. I think certain areas will still grow, such as 4N.com, 5N.com, 4L.com, and I think Western premium 3L.com will grow also.
NP: What’s your opinion on new gTLDs?
James: Honestly, still not keen. I will just stick to .com and .net. If you can find an amazing deal, the name makes sense, and you can afford the renewals for 5+ years, then maybe.
NP: What's your top tip for anyone just starting out in domain investing?
James: Firstly, do research. Do not just hand register names. If you have a bit of spare cash and want to learn some good knowledge, I would recommend doing Mike Cyger’s DNAcademy as he has years of knowledge.
Alternatively, scan auction sites for cheap deals such as good combinations of LLLL.net, 5L.com, and 6N.com. It hurts when I see people with names like XVQT.net or .com. These mixtures of Western and Asian have no use at all.
No company in the west is going to want it and the Chinese are not going to want it, so pointless wasting money on them. Either get something like BAOD for the West, or TXZM.com for China, or even better, find a name that works globally [for the West and China] like BCDW.com. The top 5 Chinese letters are actually
B, C, D, T, and W. Also, a bit of advice: Chinese do not actually like the letter Q.NP: What is the domain industry missing?
James: That's a tough one. I see a lot of jealousy and greed in today’s market if I am honest. A few years ago, there was never so much hate towards another domainer for making an investment decision or being the broker for a name.
After reading blog posts about some people making their own personal investments, and so much hate being blasted at them, it was shocking. Very few people want to actually help one another these days it seems.
NP: What service would you most like to see in 2016 to help you succeed?
James: An English version of the Chinese market performance. Someone doing what Chaomi.cc and 111.co do but for the West instead of trying to use Google Translate all the time.
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Thanks to James for taking part in our Expert Exchange.
