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I am usually surprised to learn that some domain investors who have been in the business for one or two years have not made their first sale. If this is your case, maybe you should consider the following sets of five Do’s and Don’ts that at some point helped me reinvent my domaining business for the better. These tips, opinions and recommendations are based on my experience and are not to be taken as legal or financial advice.
Do’s
1. Carefully review and study the case of successful domain investors and ask yourself why their names are selling. Whenever you see domain sale reports, check if you could determine a pattern or trend in the value of certain keywords. Spend quality time in NameBio.com and the Completed Domain Name Sales thread here on NamePros, but see it as more than just as a vague fun fact learning exercise. Read each sale. Study it. Dissect it.
2. Consider domaining as a little more than a hobby, even if it is. Take some steps to treat it as a real business. If possible, have an online presence, a website and a professional email (e.g. [email protected]).
3. Create your own system and stick to it, if it works. For example, take one or two hours everyday to do expired or expiring domain search. ExpiredDomainNames.net is an invaluable tool. Most of the names I have sold were found there. Take one or two hours to keep up with domain news and posts. Take two or three hours to find potential buyers for your domain names. Again, these are times based on my experience. You should know what time you have available. The point is to be proactive.
4. Remember that some of us came to the domaining game later (not necessarily late), therefore, we need to do some extra work and use extra flexibility to score sales. For instance, if a well-known domain investor who owns 100,000 names sold a mediocre name for 50K, it does not mean that you should go ahead and overprice all your domain names. In most cases, if you were able to hand-registered a domain name, it is not worth thousands (now, it does happen sometimes for investors who really know what they’re doing). In short, be realistic with your pricing.
5. Be proactive. List your domains everywhere, reach out to end-users in a professional manner, learn how the most prominent domain marketplaces and registrars work, ask for feedback on your names and processes and constantly engage in self-criticism.
DON’TS
1. Don’t buy domain names unless you already have carefully considered what type of businesses may be interested in acquiring such names. After sometime, you will develop a gut feeling that will, in a way, override this recommendation, but for now, stick to it.
2. Don’t be afraid of reinventing yourself by dropping bad names (those that don’t receive offers, would not sell on NamePros even for $10 and end-users don’t want), and consider whether you should create a different system of buying and selling.
3. Never be dishonest when dealing with other investors or end-users. Do not misrepresent your domain names data or value. Do not promise what you cannot deliver.
4. Don’t ask end-users to make an offer if you reached out to them. You should know the price of your own product.
5. Don’t be greedy. If you paid $10 for a domain and the end-user offers you $700, while you priced it at $1000, take his offer and move on. You might be able to be more firm with your prices after you have better names.
Do’s
1. Carefully review and study the case of successful domain investors and ask yourself why their names are selling. Whenever you see domain sale reports, check if you could determine a pattern or trend in the value of certain keywords. Spend quality time in NameBio.com and the Completed Domain Name Sales thread here on NamePros, but see it as more than just as a vague fun fact learning exercise. Read each sale. Study it. Dissect it.
2. Consider domaining as a little more than a hobby, even if it is. Take some steps to treat it as a real business. If possible, have an online presence, a website and a professional email (e.g. [email protected]).
3. Create your own system and stick to it, if it works. For example, take one or two hours everyday to do expired or expiring domain search. ExpiredDomainNames.net is an invaluable tool. Most of the names I have sold were found there. Take one or two hours to keep up with domain news and posts. Take two or three hours to find potential buyers for your domain names. Again, these are times based on my experience. You should know what time you have available. The point is to be proactive.
4. Remember that some of us came to the domaining game later (not necessarily late), therefore, we need to do some extra work and use extra flexibility to score sales. For instance, if a well-known domain investor who owns 100,000 names sold a mediocre name for 50K, it does not mean that you should go ahead and overprice all your domain names. In most cases, if you were able to hand-registered a domain name, it is not worth thousands (now, it does happen sometimes for investors who really know what they’re doing). In short, be realistic with your pricing.
5. Be proactive. List your domains everywhere, reach out to end-users in a professional manner, learn how the most prominent domain marketplaces and registrars work, ask for feedback on your names and processes and constantly engage in self-criticism.
DON’TS
1. Don’t buy domain names unless you already have carefully considered what type of businesses may be interested in acquiring such names. After sometime, you will develop a gut feeling that will, in a way, override this recommendation, but for now, stick to it.
2. Don’t be afraid of reinventing yourself by dropping bad names (those that don’t receive offers, would not sell on NamePros even for $10 and end-users don’t want), and consider whether you should create a different system of buying and selling.
3. Never be dishonest when dealing with other investors or end-users. Do not misrepresent your domain names data or value. Do not promise what you cannot deliver.
4. Don’t ask end-users to make an offer if you reached out to them. You should know the price of your own product.
5. Don’t be greedy. If you paid $10 for a domain and the end-user offers you $700, while you priced it at $1000, take his offer and move on. You might be able to be more firm with your prices after you have better names.