NameJet, the domain aftermarket auction company, is one of the premier destinations for domain investors looking to buy quality domain names. Their inventory of short domains, one-word .COMs and two-word .COMs in particular, cater to the desires of most domainers looking to buy investment grade names to either hold or flip for a profit.
I am one of the hundreds of users that search NameJet listings on a regular basis. Adding backorders to domains I have an interest in either buying or watching, has become an almost daily routine, and I've managed to buy some incredible names in the past.
Last year while the Chinese market was at its peak, I spent a sizeable part of every day searching aftermarket sites for short domains. NameJet was one of the services that I used to place backorders on domains in two categories in particular: four-letter .COMs and six-number .COMs.
I lost the majority of auctions for domains I was interested in, since the prices usually climbed too high for a domainer looking to flip to Chinese investors. While I didn't win the auctions, the backorders stayed in the system.
That is until last week, when I had a spate of emails from NameJet confirming the start of several auctions for some six-number .COM domains. I haven't had an interest in six-number .COMs since early in 2016 when I sold the majority of my portfolio, yet I had several $69 bids in a number of auctions.
These domain auctions were the result of having placed backorders on domain names last year. I am in no way blaming NameJet for this; it's a part of their system, and keeping domain backorders on file can be advantageous to investors who continue to show an interest in a certain type of name, or even a specific domain.
I am blaming my poor administrative skills. I should have reviewed my NameJet backorders at some point and removed those that I didn't want to pursue anymore. Fortunately, I have been outbid on all of these auctions, so I won't lose money on domains I'm no longer interested in. But, it was a clear warning that I should pay more attention to my backorders.
Why am I sharing this story? I think that a number of us fall into the category of being poor administrators. I also think that many domain investors look to buy a certain type of domain that they may not be buying in 12 months time as circumstances, preferences and trends move on.
I'm not aware as to whether this happens on other platforms; I've only ever experienced this at NameJet, but it may be worth your while to go into your NameJet account to delete old backorders for domains that you have no interest in buying anymore. I did just that this morning, and managed to delete close to 300 backorders that I should have removed almost a year ago.
I am one of the hundreds of users that search NameJet listings on a regular basis. Adding backorders to domains I have an interest in either buying or watching, has become an almost daily routine, and I've managed to buy some incredible names in the past.
I lost the majority of auctions for domains I was interested in, since the prices usually climbed too high for a domainer looking to flip to Chinese investors. While I didn't win the auctions, the backorders stayed in the system.
That is until last week, when I had a spate of emails from NameJet confirming the start of several auctions for some six-number .COM domains. I haven't had an interest in six-number .COMs since early in 2016 when I sold the majority of my portfolio, yet I had several $69 bids in a number of auctions.
These domain auctions were the result of having placed backorders on domain names last year. I am in no way blaming NameJet for this; it's a part of their system, and keeping domain backorders on file can be advantageous to investors who continue to show an interest in a certain type of name, or even a specific domain.
I am blaming my poor administrative skills. I should have reviewed my NameJet backorders at some point and removed those that I didn't want to pursue anymore. Fortunately, I have been outbid on all of these auctions, so I won't lose money on domains I'm no longer interested in. But, it was a clear warning that I should pay more attention to my backorders.
Why am I sharing this story? I think that a number of us fall into the category of being poor administrators. I also think that many domain investors look to buy a certain type of domain that they may not be buying in 12 months time as circumstances, preferences and trends move on.
I'm not aware as to whether this happens on other platforms; I've only ever experienced this at NameJet, but it may be worth your while to go into your NameJet account to delete old backorders for domains that you have no interest in buying anymore. I did just that this morning, and managed to delete close to 300 backorders that I should have removed almost a year ago.
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