Choices can be wonderful, letting us feel better about an action, or empowering new ways to accomplish a goal. But is it possible to have too many choices? Are you, or the marketplace you use, presenting potential purchasers with too many possible domain name choices? Alternatively, is it possible that you are not offering enough ways to make the purchase? In the right circumstances, choices can help the user feel good about the purchase. But they can also sow doubt and inaction, leading to fewer sales conversions.
Purchase Choices
Let’s set aside for now the question of how many domain name possibilities should be presented, and look simply at contact and transaction options. These could include:
Alternative Domain Choices
If you sell on marketplaces, your domains will be presented along with numerous other name options. Seeing so many choices may leave the potential buyer so uncertain that they do not feel prepared to make a decision.
If you have a large portfolio, you may be directing potential purchasers to your own site. Is it better to show them multiple names, increasing the chance that one of the names will appeal to them, or a lander with just one name and no distractions from other names?
What Do Experts Say?
How much choice is optimum is one element of customer experience, and numerous academics have studied the topic. One expert is Dr. Sheena Iyengar, a professor in the Management Department at Columbia Business School. She delivered a 2010 TED global address on the issue of choice. She points out that Americans embrace and demand choices more than those who live in much of the rest of the world. This suggests that possibly the optimum solution will vary with the region of the potential purchaser. Her book The Art of Choosing explores aspects of choice in more detail.
While she was not speaking of domain name choices, several things she said resonated with me as I considered the question of choice and domain sales.
Research, admittedly with rather different types of choices, has suggested that it becomes counterproductive when more than 7 or 8 choices are presented at once. I think there is room for innovative disruption in domain name marketplace search to optimize and personalize the process, rather than simply presenting long lists of names.
Another expert, psychologist Dr. Barry Schwartz, said in a 2005 TED Global event of the paradox of choice.
What Do Big Domain Sellers Do?
I had a look at how some of the large domain sellers operate. BuyDomains are part of the Endurance International Group, and operate both the BuyDomains and DirectDomains brands. I entered a few names to see what the lander looked like, and it took me to a DirectDomains lander with a price and Buy-It-Now button, along with a Make-An-Offer option. They provided a telephone number for contact. Interestingly, the names that I saw came with a Save x% Now message in red, showing both the regular and reduced price. The idea of showing a discount is doubtless effective in motivating some buyers. Directly on the BuyDomains page, the domain had a buy-it-now price and button, but not the make-offer option.
At HugeDomains the potential purchaser is presented with a list after search, and when selecting a name from that list you are shown two options, Buy Now and Start Payment Plan. They give a phone number for contact, along with an email form. There is also some general promotional information on domain names and their company.
At DomainMarket one is presented with a long list of names after doing a search, with buy-it-now prices shown, and when clicking on a name it immediately goes to a payment page with You are buying…. They do provide email and telephone contact information. However, if you type in one of their names, it presents both buy-it-now and make-offer options.
At NameFind, following a selection, it puts the name in an Afternic cart.
At SquadHelp when you look for a domain name it presents a number of possibilities with the price and a logo. When you click on the logo the buy-it-now price is prominently shown along with a purchase button. Below that there is a monthly payment plan option. Depending on the name you will be shown a few options for payment duration. SquadHelp have recently announced new hyperpersonalized search aspects for their site.
At BrandBucket options are shown with price and logo, and when you click on a name you have a Buy Now price button, as well as an option to complete a form to inquire. Their search allows choice by style or industry, as well as advanced search features.
One issue that many of us have complained about was the problem of no buy-it-now price and button right on the Afternic domain landers. Nikul Sanghvi recently expressed an opinion that many of us share.
Sedo has traditionally supported landers with both buy-it-now and make-offer options. They recently announced new simplified landers, now operational, that make the pricing even more obvious. Neither Sedo nor Afternic currently offer integrated monthly payment plan options.
For some time DAN have offered all of Buy-It-Now, Make-Offer and payment plan options, depending on seller choices.
What About Sales Of Comparable Things?
Some customer experience professionals urge a call-to-action with a single purchase mechanism, that is buy-it-now or make-offer, but not both, and definitely not both along with a payment plan. Nothing else is exactly like domain names, but if we consider how real estate, vehicles, businesses or valuable artwork are sold, it seems to me that offering a combination of a list price, along with both make-offer and various payment options, is widely used.
Final Thoughts
I do not see a downside in having multiple options on how the potential buyer can make contact. Different people prefer to communicate in different ways, and the more options you are able to support the better.
With respect to whether allowing both make-offer and buy-it-now might actually detract from sales closing, I feel uncertain. I think some buyers do like the idea of being able to get a deal by bidding less than buy-it-now. Others prefer a straightforward buy at fixed price situation. The offer process may extend the purchase process, and the buyer in the interim may become less motivated to buy.
While I presume that the data comes from their brandable market, and may, or may not, apply to domain sales in general, Darpan Munjal, CEO of SquadHelp, shared
Nikul Sanghvi recently asked
After reading various views, my personal opinions are summarized below.
I hope you will share what you feel in the comments section.
Here are a few links to articles on NamePros somewhat related to this topic:
Purchase Choices
Let’s set aside for now the question of how many domain name possibilities should be presented, and look simply at contact and transaction options. These could include:
- A contact form for more information or price.
- An email or telephone number to learn more or get a price.
- Some sort of instant messaging or chat option.
- A price and buy-it-now button.
- Make-offer option.
- Payment plan options.
- With your own lander, you could offer several places to buy the domain name on different marketplaces.
Alternative Domain Choices
If you sell on marketplaces, your domains will be presented along with numerous other name options. Seeing so many choices may leave the potential buyer so uncertain that they do not feel prepared to make a decision.
If you have a large portfolio, you may be directing potential purchasers to your own site. Is it better to show them multiple names, increasing the chance that one of the names will appeal to them, or a lander with just one name and no distractions from other names?
What Do Experts Say?
How much choice is optimum is one element of customer experience, and numerous academics have studied the topic. One expert is Dr. Sheena Iyengar, a professor in the Management Department at Columbia Business School. She delivered a 2010 TED global address on the issue of choice. She points out that Americans embrace and demand choices more than those who live in much of the rest of the world. This suggests that possibly the optimum solution will vary with the region of the potential purchaser. Her book The Art of Choosing explores aspects of choice in more detail.
While she was not speaking of domain name choices, several things she said resonated with me as I considered the question of choice and domain sales.
I think there is a real problem in domain marketplaces, where too many similar domain names are presented at once. The differences between names may seem slight to the potential buyer, leading to uncertainty or even frustration, and they may end up buying none.But it is not only other people in other places that are feeling the pressure of ever-increasing choice. Americans themselves are discovering that unlimited choice seems more attractive in theory than in practice.
Research, admittedly with rather different types of choices, has suggested that it becomes counterproductive when more than 7 or 8 choices are presented at once. I think there is room for innovative disruption in domain name marketplace search to optimize and personalize the process, rather than simply presenting long lists of names.
Another expert, psychologist Dr. Barry Schwartz, said in a 2005 TED Global event of the paradox of choice.
All of this choice has two effects, two negative effects on people. One effect, paradoxically, is that it produces paralysis rather than liberation. With so many options to choose from, people find it very difficult to choose at all.
What Do Big Domain Sellers Do?
I had a look at how some of the large domain sellers operate. BuyDomains are part of the Endurance International Group, and operate both the BuyDomains and DirectDomains brands. I entered a few names to see what the lander looked like, and it took me to a DirectDomains lander with a price and Buy-It-Now button, along with a Make-An-Offer option. They provided a telephone number for contact. Interestingly, the names that I saw came with a Save x% Now message in red, showing both the regular and reduced price. The idea of showing a discount is doubtless effective in motivating some buyers. Directly on the BuyDomains page, the domain had a buy-it-now price and button, but not the make-offer option.
At HugeDomains the potential purchaser is presented with a list after search, and when selecting a name from that list you are shown two options, Buy Now and Start Payment Plan. They give a phone number for contact, along with an email form. There is also some general promotional information on domain names and their company.
At DomainMarket one is presented with a long list of names after doing a search, with buy-it-now prices shown, and when clicking on a name it immediately goes to a payment page with You are buying…. They do provide email and telephone contact information. However, if you type in one of their names, it presents both buy-it-now and make-offer options.
At NameFind, following a selection, it puts the name in an Afternic cart.
At SquadHelp when you look for a domain name it presents a number of possibilities with the price and a logo. When you click on the logo the buy-it-now price is prominently shown along with a purchase button. Below that there is a monthly payment plan option. Depending on the name you will be shown a few options for payment duration. SquadHelp have recently announced new hyperpersonalized search aspects for their site.
At BrandBucket options are shown with price and logo, and when you click on a name you have a Buy Now price button, as well as an option to complete a form to inquire. Their search allows choice by style or industry, as well as advanced search features.
One issue that many of us have complained about was the problem of no buy-it-now price and button right on the Afternic domain landers. Nikul Sanghvi recently expressed an opinion that many of us share.
GoDaddy have just announced that landers with Buy-It-Now pricing are coming soon, and that is, in my opinion, very good news. I am not certain, but believe it will apply to Afternic landers as well. Currently these landers are not yet available to investors, but are being tested with GoDaddy’s own portfolio of names.With the Afternic landing pages, the buyer can’t even see the price upfront - so unless they are highly motivated to buy the domain, they are unlikely to fill out a form and talk to a broker on the phone.
Sedo has traditionally supported landers with both buy-it-now and make-offer options. They recently announced new simplified landers, now operational, that make the pricing even more obvious. Neither Sedo nor Afternic currently offer integrated monthly payment plan options.
For some time DAN have offered all of Buy-It-Now, Make-Offer and payment plan options, depending on seller choices.
What About Sales Of Comparable Things?
Some customer experience professionals urge a call-to-action with a single purchase mechanism, that is buy-it-now or make-offer, but not both, and definitely not both along with a payment plan. Nothing else is exactly like domain names, but if we consider how real estate, vehicles, businesses or valuable artwork are sold, it seems to me that offering a combination of a list price, along with both make-offer and various payment options, is widely used.
Final Thoughts
I do not see a downside in having multiple options on how the potential buyer can make contact. Different people prefer to communicate in different ways, and the more options you are able to support the better.
With respect to whether allowing both make-offer and buy-it-now might actually detract from sales closing, I feel uncertain. I think some buyers do like the idea of being able to get a deal by bidding less than buy-it-now. Others prefer a straightforward buy at fixed price situation. The offer process may extend the purchase process, and the buyer in the interim may become less motivated to buy.
While I presume that the data comes from their brandable market, and may, or may not, apply to domain sales in general, Darpan Munjal, CEO of SquadHelp, shared
The most effective strategy for landing pages are (in order best to worst)
(1) BIN + Installment Plan
(2) BIN only
(3) Make Offer
(4) BIN + Make Offer
Nikul Sanghvi recently asked
In my opinion that is an option definitely worth considering.If I switched to BIN only, would the loss in revenue from MakeOffer sales be offset by achieving 100% of the list price on BIN sales?
After reading various views, my personal opinions are summarized below.
- Ideally the number of domain name possibilities presented at any one time should be limited, with personalized search to optimize the names presented.
- There should be multiple contact ways presented, because some prefer to contact by telephone and others prefer email or online chat.
- If the domain is priced, the buy-it-now price should be the clear dominant option for the majority of names.
- If make offer is also available, that should be in smaller font and a colour that draws less attention. I am still pondering the possibility that buy-it-now without any make-offer might be best.
- Payment plans can be offered, but again should not be displayed with equal prominence to the buy-it-now price.
I hope you will share what you feel in the comments section.
Here are a few links to articles on NamePros somewhat related to this topic:
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