discuss Would you rent out your domain(s) for the short-term?

[DomaHub]

Hello NamePros experts!

Looking to get some discussion and feedback going for an idea we have been developing. We appreciate any comments!

Background:
We are an early-stage start-up, creating a platform for domain name leasing and rentals. Currently we have developed the workflow to rent out your domain to anyone else by the day, week, and month.

You pick the price and time you want to rent it out for (e.g. $1 per day, $5 per week, etc.), we present it on our site (i.e. nice, personalized listing page), and we take care of the contract + transaction with your renters. You would have to direct your domain(s)' A Record to our servers and we would then redirect the end-user's desired web content to your domain.

For example, the end-user rents out www.imsopretty.com and has it display her personal Instagram page.
Or a big company wants to launch a marketing campaign for a new product and they rent out www.thenextbigthing.com for a month.

Issue/Discussion:
Although we do plan on providing more traditional leasing contacts (3, 6, 12 months), we also really like the idea of providing short-term rentals because it creates a lot of utility for a domain name.

For example, you could make happybirthday.com rent-able on a daily basis and someone could potentially utilize that domain every day. We are trying to provide an alternative to parking as well as the idea that you have to build a website/traffic to generate value for your domain. You help someone out and they put money in your pocket.

However, we are unsure if domain owners would also be interested in short-term rentals. Do you guys see value in being able to let people use your domains for just a day or a week at a time?

We will be happy to answer any questions regarding our business and company as well.

Thanks for taking the time to read this!

tld;dr Would you be interested in renting out your domain(s) for days or weeks at a time?

 

[Kate]

can't remember how often did Edison fail?

One Edison quote:
I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.

Another (not his):
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Why bother with leasing when the market for domain sales is so tiny.

Another thing to consider: as long as the domain is under lease, it's effectively locked-in and cannot be sold to another party, should a nice offer come along.
It's all about timing.

Besides, it's the quality of the inventory that will bring lease contracts (or none).
Where are the premium names to be listed supposed to come from ? From domainers ?

LeaseThis.com never took off in spite in spite of being the project of seasoned domainers. But I can't remember that they had great names really, most likely it was their own inventory. I can tell you, regfee domains are not good candidates for leasing and will only clutter the site. Instead it should be more like BB but super-selective and limited inventory.

The problem is that domainers contemplate leasing as another route for domains that won't even sell. Back in the day the other trendy word was 'development' (read: MFA, minisites), throwing resources at domains that aren't worthwhile.

 

[frank-germany]

Why bother with leasing when the market for domain sales is so tiny.

because it lowers the entry burdon for a potential customer
and he may get adicted to the domain
- can't do without no more-

I kown they don't want to lease
but that doesn't mean
it can't work

 

[frank-germany]

Another thing to consider: as long as the domain is under lease, it's effectively locked-in and cannot be sold to another party, should a nice offer come along.
It's all about timing.

true

but it could also
ad pressure to a buyer

to buy it as soon as the lease is over

 

[frank-germany]

Back in the day the other trendy word was 'development' (read: MFA, minisites), throwing resources at domains that aren't worthwhile.

if the development was done right
a "not worthwhile" domain would have become
a NAME meanwhile

 

[Silentptnr]

Why does it feel like increasingly...registrars, operators, rental sites, lease sites, financing sites are all trying to gently eliminate or just plain use domainers?

At a minimum, to water down the importance of domain name speculators.

I just want to register domains, buy domains, sell domains. When i buy, i want to pay and move on. When i sell a domain, i just want my money and to move on.

Im all for innovation but I feel like there is increasing competition from many angles.

I want to work with companies that not only recognize the wisdom and foresight of a savvy investor, but that also defends the Free and legal right for us to speculate and invest in domains with the primary goal of reselling.

 

[frank-germany]

When i buy, i want to pay and move on.

right

but how about :
you need a domain

and seller won't sell?

but lease

 

[Silentptnr]

I dont invest in domains to help anyone but me. Bottom line.

 

[Silentptnr]

right

but how about :
you need a domain

and seller won't sell?

but lease

I need alot of things that people own and wont sell. Owning something means just that.

Now, if a person wants to buy, they might accept the option of leasing, but i guess the registrars will start doing that.

 

[Silentptnr]

Im not against the idea, just think the domain owner should be respected and not looked at as anything other than a smart investor.

 

[DomaHub]

Im not against the idea, just think the domain owner should be respected and not looked at as anything other than a smart investor.

Hope we didn't disrespect you or anyone else in any way. If we did, our apologies.

As we stated before, the point of creating this thread was to gauge interest from domainers and also to gather feedback so that we can try to create something that they would not only be interested in, but also have something to gain from.

Again, anyone is free to do whatever they please with their domains. We're not saying leasing/renting is the imminent future. It's just an idea we are working on and I would hope and expect everyone, not just domainers, to act in their best interest. We respect that - we just hope to create something that could be in your's and anyone else's best interest.

 

[Silentptnr]

Hope we didn't disrespect you or anyone else in any way. If we did, our apologies.

As we stated before, the point of creating this thread was to gauge interest from domainers and also to gather feedback so that we can try to create something that they would not only be interested in, but also have something to gain from.

Again, anyone is free to do whatever they please with their domains. We're not saying leasing/renting is the imminent future. It's just an idea we are working on and I would hope and expect everyone, not just domainers, to act in their best interest. We respect that - we just hope to create something that could be in your's and anyone else's best interest.

Not at all. You have been very gracious!

 

[lock]

I can only see the risks contracts won't offer less responsibility to owners.

 

[168]

Here's my 2 cents profit from a 1 day rental.
I see the initial pricing suggestions as way to low given the Inherent risk to owner/value of a premium domain.
Leads me to wonder if the creators understand this.
Can't say I'm excited about the domain choice Domahub.
Not likely to get the quantity of "premium domains" to support the platform
Scrap 1 day rentals. Not enough profit to fool with unless it's 60.00+ a day/minimum 3 days.
Event rentals/Campaign rentals could work @ 30 day minimum 600+ per month. Problem: Limited types of domains.
Startup or other- 2yr minimum lease @ 800-3k per month. I don't think most premium holders would "risk" for less.
With that in mind, this is why most choose to "buy" lesser quality to start.
What about chargebacks? messy.
Happy Hunting

 

[frank-germany]

Can't say I'm excited about the domain choice Domahub....
Scrap 1 day rentals.

1 day rental would be used for spammig anyway

so that leads to the question:
how about email functionality?

spam is quickly send
and could eventually never be cured

 

[168]

1 day rental would be used for spammig anyway

so that leads to the question:
how about email functionality?

spam is quickly send
and could eventually never be cured

Agree.
They mentioned earlier renters wouldn't have access to email.
Don't think this would work if it was a long term. Surely they would need email function.
I do think there could be monitoring of email use but again cost prohibitive and not worth the risk of devaluing the domain.

 

[hamiltondomain]

HI... For me the strategy is probably unlikely to yield the desired outcome you stated when opening the thread, for many of the reasons that have been mentioned, and it's a very restricted market (names like happybirthday.com are rare, and those that sign up to you will be even fewer).

If I was your consultant, my advice would be to maintain the framework you have, but adjust your strategy:
1) it's all about "try before you buy" - so it's lease for X days at £Y, to then have a right, but no obligation to buy at £Z. It's helps the seller sell and justify the sometimes crazy asking price, and the buyer test drive and see if it's feasible - and it's a model that would work for premium and super premium domains
2) brandables!! If played correct, there is an option to take on brandbucket with this lease to buy option. Startups looking for a brand get to launch at a low cost, and if it takes off, they then pay the sometimes crazy $10k+ for a domain that just sounds nice but isn't an actual word etc - yes appreciate there is a SEO risk for the owner if the option is not executed.

That would be my advice. If you want to discuss, drop me a PM.

 

[Kate]

2) brandables!! If played correct, there is an option to take on brandbucket with this lease to buy option. Startups looking for a brand get to launch at a low cost, and if it takes off, they then pay the sometimes crazy $10k+ for a domain that just sounds nice but isn't an actual word etc - yes appreciate there is a SEO risk for the owner if the option is not executed.

I am personally not convinced. Leasing domains makes sense for temporary campaigns/redirects, especially leasing high-traffic domains. I think the concept is more suitable for side domains, than for primary domains.

A startup should be adequately funded. Their domain is their brand. If they don't the confidence to buy a suitable domain but prefer to lease it, I find it strange. Unless the domain is objectively worth 7 figures. If it's worth 4 figures, does leasing make sense if you're confident in your business endeavor ? Not to mention that a good name is an asset that can be resold if the business doesn't succeed.
Keep in mind that the startup will most likely fail in the next two years, thus the domain may accrue negative history in the form of a failed business (and possibly wronged customers/investors). I am wary of end users who are not willing to make a strong commitment in their brand and their domain.
So I'd rather lease to an established entity that already has domains, than a newcomer.

But at the end of the day, you'll always need quality inventory. Without it, the concept is sure to fail. That's why I fear the worst, because few domainers have the right caliber of domains, and those who do are probably not interested in leasing anyway. And people who want to lease didn't wait for such a service, they can make proper arrangements themselves. It's like selling a domain, you can do it yourself even if platforms exist for the purpose

Look at the past and figure out why similar attempts have not panned out well.

 

[biggie]

Why does it feel like increasingly...registrars, operators, rental sites, lease sites, financing sites are all trying to gently eliminate or just plain use domainers?
.

Speaking in Yoda voice


ahhhh, young apprentice, grunt, finally... eyes are opening, starting to see, uhh, objective.... of dark-side of the farce.

hmmm, domainers, become we have, the end-user for them.

hype, fake, mislead, wrong, redirection... take you, uh, they will

inside your mind and pocket, agenda it is.




imo....

 

[hamiltondomain]

I'm talking about these brandables people are trying to sell for $10k+, but they are actually worth $50, 99 times out of a 100.

In terms of startups, there are many types. I deal with many, who wouldn't be able to pay £x,xxx at the very start, whilst in the "proof of concept" phase. Yes for a name like consultant.com, I would agree with you. But the majority of people that would use a service like this, don't own domains like that.

 

[frank-germany]

I am personally not convinced. Leasing domains makes sense for temporary campaigns/redirects, especially leasing high-traffic domains. I think the concept is more suitable for side domains, than for primary domains.

A startup should be adequately funded. Their domain is their brand. If they don't the confidence to buy a suitable domain but prefer to lease it, I find it strange. Unless the domain is objectively worth 7 figures. If it's worth 4 figures, does leasing make sense if you're confident in your business endeavor ? Not to mention that a good name is an asset that can be resold if the business doesn't succeed.
Keep in mind that the startup will most likely fail in the next two years, thus the domain may accrue negative history in the form of a failed business (and possibly wronged customers/investors). I am wary of end users who are not willing to make a strong commitment in their brand and their domain.
So I'd rather lease to an established entity that already has domains, than a newcomer.

But at the end of the day, you'll always need quality inventory. Without it, the concept is sure to fail. That's why I fear the worst, because few domainers have the right caliber of domains, and those who do are probably not interested in leasing anyway. And people who want to lease didn't wait for such a service, they can make proper arrangements themselves. It's like selling a domain, you can do it yourself even if platforms exist for the purpose

Look at the past and figure out why similar attempts have not panned out well.

I am afraid you are right

when I tell people a name is lets say $1500 usd
and they tell me they can afford it

when I then start to offer them leasing
they always tell me
they rather like to own the domain

 

[hamiltondomain]

1,500 is still pretty affordable... Domains with a value of between 5k and say 15k will be the main market.

 

[DomaHub]

1 day rental would be used for spammig anyway

so that leads to the question:
how about email functionality?

spam is quickly send
and could eventually never be cured

We currently have flexible pricing on our rentals--which means the domain owner decides how much he/she is willing to rent the domain out for. If you do not wish to have 1 day rentals, you can simply choose not to. You can choose 1 week, or 1 month rentals if that's something you'd rather have.

And as far as spammers go--if you price the rental accordingly (something not trivial, but not prohibitively expensive) then its hard to believe that spammers will want to pay you money to spam on your domain. End of the day, if the spammer wants to spam, you're still getting the price you said you'd be willing to rent it out for.

And in regards to the damage of "spamming" on your domain, that's something we're still thinking about. Right now, it's easy to see how spam can damage your domain brand because the idea of "short term" rentals doesn't exist and all domains are extremely static/long term. But what if the idea of "renting domains" became more widespread and accepted? Then perhaps what you see on a domain or URL may not necessarily reflect on that domain's brand.

It's very similar to a link shortener or URL redirectors. There are millions of spam no_url_shorteners shortened links, but when you see a spam no_url_shorteners link you don't associate the spam with no_url_shorteners's service or brand.

 

[DomaHub]

HI... For me the strategy is probably unlikely to yield the desired outcome you stated when opening the thread, for many of the reasons that have been mentioned, and it's a very restricted market (names like happybirthday.com are rare, and those that sign up to you will be even fewer).

Well the desired outcome of opening this thread was to spark discussion, so in that sense we may have succeeded.

If I was your consultant, my advice would be to maintain the framework you have, but adjust your strategy:
1) it's all about "try before you buy" - so it's lease for X days at £Y, to then have a right, but no obligation to buy at £Z. It's helps the seller sell and justify the sometimes crazy asking price, and the buyer test drive and see if it's feasible - and it's a model that would work for premium and super premium domains
2) brandables!! If played correct, there is an option to take on brandbucket with this lease to buy option. Startups looking for a brand get to launch at a low cost, and if it takes off, they then pay the sometimes crazy $10k+ for a domain that just sounds nice but isn't an actual word etc - yes appreciate there is a SEO risk for the owner if the option is not executed.

That would be my advice. If you want to discuss, drop me a PM.

These are interesting points you brought up. We've discussed the idea of "brandable" akin to BB or Nameforest, but in the end, it wasn't something we were interested in pursuing. However, it may come up again at some future point in time if we decide to pivot our product.

Thank you for your insight.

 

[DomaHub]

Agree.
They mentioned earlier renters wouldn't have access to email.
Don't think this would work if it was a long term. Surely they would need email function.
I do think there could be monitoring of email use but again cost prohibitive and not worth the risk of devaluing the domain.

No email from our service.

Domain owners want money, they want their domains to be sold out for a profit, or leased out constantly and generating stable passive income. It's the same concept as owning a rental property. Why bother with constantly changing renters when all you really want is to either:

1. sell the home for a huge profit (millions)
2. find a single party to rent it from you forever and ever

Unfortunately, the type of domain we're hoping to attract are priced too high for any single party to want to purchase / lease long term. Which is why we're suggesting that the domain owner of such a domain, lower their price points and lease it out to multiple parties over a long period of time.

This begs the question--why wouldn't they just do this themselves? Well a lot of domain owners have a lot of domain names and this adds up to a lot of work over time. We're trying to create an automated system and marketplace that allows for this to happen seamlessly and effortlessly for all parties involved.

 

[168]

1,500 is still pretty affordable... Domains with a value of between 5k and say 15k will be the main market.

IMHO relevance should be the criteria not value as value is very subjective.