$200,000 Offer - Sell or Develop?

[DomainAuction]

I was offered $200,000 for a domain name that I own by a company that is worth billions of dollars.

This figure was expected for this particular domain name however I am in need of some advice in regards to possibly developing a company/website out of this opportunity instead.

My domain is an exact-phrase match for technology that is going to be around for the next decade (guaranteed) and this particular phrase will be on over 100 million consumer electronic products, their commercials, packaging and even brochures - you can't miss it. Average price of these consumer products (as of now) is $10,000.

So, do I develop/drop-ship (e.g. 5-7% commission for 10 years) with an exact-phrase domain and stellar SEO/Development skills OR do I take my $200,000 and buy champagne.

All feedback is appreciated ahead of time! Thank you

 

[NameAgency]

It is not a matter of positioning on Google. Exact words work in users minds in an authority-leadership-trust manner. That's the real value of these domains.

 

[decades80]

I would negotiate the price of 100,000 and some revenue share of the company developed site.You cant compete with the multi billion company.

 

[loredan]

This one is tricky. Think that the multi-billion company can TM the exact-phrase and get your domain for $2000 if they go for an UDPR. I'd say you should sell it now if they are so generous and willing to spend $200K. If the technology is going to be around for the next decade I bet someone would TM the exact phrase sooner or later.

Just get the money, find & register another related domain and develop your dropshipping site on this new domain.

 

[lennco]

The $200k is great up front cash, but you want some kind of ownership to go with that cash.

3% to 7% ownership is what you really want that way they do all the work and you sit back and collect money for the rest of your life, plus you would have some great equity.

Even if you have to drop the cash price a little it will be well worth it in the long run.

Good luck :tu:

 

[fm1234]

Everyone has an opinion on this one; hope you meant it when you asked lol.

First and foremost, let me compliment you on your prescience with the niche/subniche you targeted back in 2008. Well done!

Regarding the domain value, take or leave it questions, there may not be as much wiggle room as you suspect The fact that the buyer prospect is a multi-billion dollar company may or may not be relevant -- many companies, regardless of size, target certain price ranges for acquisition and development. Jumping from 200k to 500k is a huge leap, and before you do something like that you need to ask yourself how much the very next best name can be bought for. $50k? $20k? $1k? The balance can be spent on marketing. Consider, if you make a counteroffer, asking for the original $200k in cash and overage in stock or other non-cash options. You might find a better amount of negotiating room using that tactic.

If you do sell the domain, make sure that you are not precluded from operating in the niche after the sale. You seem to have a pretty good grasp of the market, and there's no reason (as has already been pointed out) that you can't sell the domain and make a killing marketing via the other ones you mentioned having acquired. Actually, supply line deals might be worth looking at as well, eg. $200k cash for the domain plus some kind of exclusive/premium pricing or marketing material that would enable you to more effectively market the product on your other domains.



Frank

 

[Domainate.com]

Having looked through this thread, it seems you are talking yourself out of selling it, so am not sure why you asked whether or not you should sell it. Clearly you don't want to, so develop it. Problem solved.

 

[wot]

Try to add on a percentage or shares in the interested company, best of both worlds. Easy for buyer as they do not have to front up additional cash. In the case of shares offer to retain them for a minimum period of time to sweeten the deal.

200K + shares/ percentage - sounds sweet to me.

 

[DU]

I would give my opinion with your situation but it's difficult without knowing the actual name.

Feel free to PM the name if you want another view point.

DING DING DING.
Give this man a prize.

We may be talking about a fake offer on a $5 domain or a real offer on a $1,000,000 name.

Who the hell knows? How did the offer even come? Through Bodis.com? Pretty sure no business just pops up and sends a $200K offer without checking their finances/legal team. A lot of billion dollar companies need to get accounting to clear a $100 battery replacement on a developers laptop.

@Jasonn - I totally would but I have 20+ domains in the same field that are even better! =)

So someone is offering $200K for the 21st best name in a niche that only you spotted?

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess it's something like

ultrahighdefinitiontelevision.com

That's a pretty mediocre exact key word match with better alternatives (UHD, 4K) etc...

Anything in that space is not worth $200K and your best advice would be to not count your chickens. You won't even see $10K.

If it's in that niche - your chances of doing anything of value development wise is 0%. Dropshipping works in very short technology windows - when demand is high and supply is short.

Good luck, either way.

---------- Post added at 04:09 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:06 AM ----------

I agree, cash + shares

that way (assuming you keep the shares) you will share in profits

An existing company worth billions... and you want shares so you can share in the profits? How many shares you want?

0.000001%?

---------- Post added at 04:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:09 AM ----------

And - if it is in the UHD niche.. TVs already available for under $1K.

Great value for the 2 or 3 IMAX movies that are available

If it's not that's fine but it just to prove how quickly prices tumble in the modern world. In 5 years they will be in every TV for $500 (still no content) So bear that in mind too. Predictions make fools of great men.

 

[Keith]

I would counter offer if you feel it's that good. If they walk away, you develop it. If they take your counter offer then you got exactly what you were asking.

 

[mikeowoicho]

*faints*

---------- Post added at 05:09 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:05 AM ----------

I think this is a wise advice. Get peace of mind, this UDPR pharisees are doing whatever they want lately just take the money and find another domain for less than $5,000 and get into the business anyways. $200,000 is a huge capital to start a new business and you can go with the trip to Paris too.

This is the best thing to do.

 

[Nappy Bunch]

If you are 100% not worried about the tradmark issue and this is an exact keyword match, and its a billion dollar company and you are not sure whether you wish to develop the site or sell how about put the ball back in their court..
Ask for $500,000 as a final offer, its not like they cant afford it and if they say yes then complete with a smile and if they say no then keep it and develop it.

Just my thoughts.. whatever happens best of luck

 

[NetOctave]

Have you tried contacting potential competitors who might be interested in that name ? Who knows, maybe you will start a bidding war ...
Another suggestion is getting a good negotiator, specially some one who is experienced in negotiating large domain deals. They might have contacts who can get you touch with other bigger buyers.

 

[decades80]

Very true @decades80 - I totally agree on the competition factor.

However, selling 250 of these products as a drop-shipper or an affiliate will generate $200,000 in profits alone - and it's very possible to accomplish this. What if I were able to sell 1000 units? =)

I am not a fan of greed, but the #'s just don't add up to me although this is largest offer for any domain I have ever owned.

To sell 1000 Units, youll have to invest in SEO like 200K
Just listen what everybody is saying and dont be greedy

 

[Jasonn]

take the money and run. spend 10k buyying another good domain in that same field and with proper development you can still make a bunch of money with it.

 

[urlurl]

Take the money,

As google's algorithms have changed, you don't need exact words or phrases to get ranked or found these days, just good content, links, seo, etc.

 

[sofiapartner]

I would take the money and run. But thats me. Maybe you are smarter or not. Future will tell.

Do what you feel you should do. That way you wont regret later.

Good Luck.

 

[lincolndsp]

negotiate

 

[ipodxpert]

I was offered $200,000 for a domain name that I own by a company that is worth billions of dollars.

This figure was expected for this particular domain name however I am in need of some advice in regards to possibly developing a company/website out of this opportunity instead.

My domain is an exact-phrase match for technology that is going to be around for the next decade (guaranteed) and this particular phrase will be on over 100 million consumer electronic products, their commercials, packaging and even brochures - you can't miss it. Average price of these consumer products (as of now) is $10,000.

So, do I develop/drop-ship (e.g. 5-7% commission for 10 years) with an exact-phrase domain and stellar SEO/Development skills OR do I take my $200,000 and buy champagne.

All feedback is appreciated ahead of time! Thank you

Congrats on getting an offer of $200k. Considering other facts you provided about the potential buyer and the products, it shows that you are really good at finding/picking a gem of a domain name.

Based on your other comments/opnion, it seems either you have already made up your mind or have a strong inclination towards waiting, holding and developing the domain name.

I'm sure you may have already done the research of that particular technology either getting outdated in next few months to few years. In technology world, things change really fast.

Secondly, what is the possibility of that particular company going for other ext? Is there a possiblity that someone has already applied or may apply for a new domain name extension with that particular phrase? Reason, I'm asking this is because you have mentioned that it will become a very popular phrase on commercial products...etc. What if that company or some other company in that niche applies for a new domain name extension with that exact phrase? Have you considered that?

Go with your guts and research because it has already worked in your favor when you got the offer of $200k.

Good luck!

 

[urlurl]

@urlurl You are comparing Candy that's $1 to the successor of a product that sold over 200 million units which (now) has a $1,000 on average price tag for over the past 10 years. Also in regards to Candy - the .com is weak in my opinion, but their Alexa Ranking proves they own A LOT more than .001% of the Candy pie. See where I am coming from?

i'm not comparing products, just domains. having a perfect match name these days does not guarantee top position.

Take the money

And if you are looking a building an affiliate site, buy a nice brandable, build a superior site, add some seo and now you are in business.

my 2 cents

 

[dbdomains]

If the domain is worth that much or more:
1. invest in a well qualified attorney
2. Negotiate
3. Try to get equity out of the deal as well

A domain is not the end-all-be-all of a business, especially one that is selling a product with a generic name. If they are worth billions, then they certainly have a powerful brand(s). but companies like that don't get large without knowing what they are doing. The fact that they offered $200k leads me to believe that they would pay a lot more. A law firm, especially one skilled in IP and deal-making will be able to get you top dollar.

IMHO

 

[DomainAuction]

Very true @decades80 - I totally agree on the competition factor.

However, selling 250 of these products as a drop-shipper or an affiliate will generate $200,000 in profits alone - and it's very possible to accomplish this. What if I were able to sell 1000 units? =)

I am not a fan of greed, but the #'s just don't add up to me although this is largest offer for any domain I have ever owned.

 

[Ralph2472]

Yes, I agree with loredan; but it's easy for anyone else to decide (they're not in your position.)
If it's such a good product that will be used by millions over the next 10 years, use some of the $200k to buy shares in the company.
Anyway, good luck with it all. I'm quite jealous.

Regards

Ralph.

 

[ecuadorbusiness]

This one is tricky. Think that the multi-billion company can TM the exact-phrase and get your domain for $2000 if they go for an UDPR. I'd say you should sell it now if they are so generous and willing to spend $200K. If the technology is going to be around for the next decade I bet someone would TM the exact phrase sooner or later.

Just get the money, find & register another related domain and develop your dropshipping site on this new domain.

I think this is a wise advice. Get peace of mind, this UDPR pharisees are doing whatever they want lately just take the money and find another domain for less than $5,000 and get into the business anyways. $200,000 is a huge capital to start a new business and you can go with the trip to Paris too.

 

[DomainAuction]

I have no knowledge regarding trademarks,
however this technology was not developed by 1 particular company or lab.

It's a generic phrase that will be used all around the globe and I registered my domain(s) with interest in developing companies/websites far before any trademarks were possibly filed.

Also, if any trademark situations pop-up - I won't be the one backing down.

 

[loredan]

I have no knowledge regarding trademarks,
however this technology was not developed by 1 particular company or lab.

It's a generic phrase that will be used all around the globe and I registered my domain(s) with interest in developing companies/websites far before any trademarks were possibly filed.

Also, if any trademark situations pop-up - I won't be the one backing down.

It really doesn't matter who developed the technology, if someone has a trademark on the key phrase and you setup your site to sell the same key-phrase products that means you use your domain name in bad faith and compete against them for their trademarked products.

I'd say you should read the thread below as an example.

https://www.namepros.com/industry-n...holder-oeovation-haira-registered-2012-a.html

Hope it helps