A few specific questions before selling to end users

[NLP]

I have a few questions about completing end user transactions. A lot of people advise against using Paypal for payment, because there's nothing to prevent the buyer from submitting a dispute after you've pushed the domain to their account, and canceling payment. I know Escrow is preferred for large sales, but I think most of my names will go for $200-600. I'm not sure what type of commission is involved, and if it's better to use Paypal or Escrow.

• For sales between $200-600, which is better, Paypal or Escrow?

• For those of you who let buyers pay in installments, how do you handle that?

• Are there any sample contracts online, similar to what people use?

• How would you go about pricing names? Most people say sales under $500 are easier, but if it's a company whose goods/services are in a much higher price point, do you start at a higher price?

(and sorry, last one)

• Are users turned off by seeing a parked page? If you're selling a developed site, I guess this doesn't apply, but a lot of my names are parked in the time being while I'm gearing up to start selling. Obviously, I'm going to explain up front that I'm selling a name, not a website, but I'm just wondering what effect seeing a parked page might have on a visitor. (i.e., it shows that I'm not developing the name right now, so what does that have to say about its value?)

I'm not developing these names because a) I don't have the time for that, and 2) most of these are specific to industries (like home improvement and furniture) that are outside of my area of expertise.

I know it's not going to be easy, but I don't want to be unprepared if & when someone actually agrees to a sale.

 

[bmugford]

• For sales between $200-600, which is better, Paypal or Escrow?

I always use an Escrow service, usually Escrow.com unless I know the buyer. The typical fee on that size transaction is $25 (minimum) - $35.

In my opinion it is better to do that than roll the dice with Paypal. They offer no protection.

Also, using Escrow.com can inspire more confidence in the buyer as it protects them as well.

• For those of you who let buyers pay in installments, how do you handle that?

I have done this before. The key is to have a signed contract that covers all the basic terms.

• Are there any sample contracts online, similar to what people use?

PM Me.

• How would you go about pricing names? Most people say sales under $500 are easier, but if it's a company whose goods/services are in a much higher price point, do you start at a higher price?

It really depends on the domain and potential buyer. Obviously terms in demand that represent higher cost products/services are going to be more valuable than lesser terms.

• Are users turned off by seeing a parked page? If you're selling a developed site, I guess this doesn't apply, but a lot of my names are parked in the time being while I'm gearing up to start selling. Obviously, I'm going to explain up front that I'm selling a name, not a website, but I'm just wondering what effect seeing a parked page might have on a visitor. (i.e., it shows that I'm not developing the name right now, so what does that have to say about its value?)

Many of my sales come through inquiries on parked pages that say "This domain is for sale". In fact many end users are not savvy enough to know what a parked page is. I have had several people ask me if the domain comes with the website (parked page) in the past.

Brad

 

[NLP]

Thank you, Brad. Rep points added.

One more question came to mind, that I'll throw out to anyone who wants to help. Most of my domains are parked at Sedo, but a lot of them are fairly new registrations. Since they're not existing sites with backlinks, I don't expect them to be indexed in Google, because they're parked pages. Is this the same as the "sandbox," and is it something to be worried about?

If I sell a domain to someone, if they develop the domain into a landing page right away, I want it to be of use to them. If Google doesn't acknowledge the site, it obviously won't help them much. If they developed it into a full-fledged site I'm sure the crawlers would come eventually, but I'm concerned about selling them a domain that's been jeopardized because of its 'parked' status. (And most of these people probably won't jump into development right away).

Does this make sense?

I have a number of 2 year-old domains that were de-indexed from G entirely because they'd been parked at Namedrive. Not good.

Essentially, I'm wondering if someone buys one of these relatively new names that's up at Sedo, and slaps some content on it, will it be indexed in search engines?

 

[johname]

Are users turned off by seeing a parked page?

Endusers luv park pages, They offend will tell you "Your not doing anything with it, Want to sell it."