Afternic - Official Thread

[GoDaddy]

Hello NamePros!
By popular demand, we have launched a dedicated feedback thread for Afternic, the GoDaddy-owned domain name marketplace.

We have created this thread as a way for you to tell us what works, what doesn't work, and what features you'd like to see at Afternic (please be constructive with your feedback). We're looking forward to hearing from the domain investment community to help us shape the future of Afternic.

We will also be sharing Afternic product updates in this thread.

Please note that this thread is not meant for support. Please email our support team at [email protected] for assistance.

 

[Rhinnnn]

Had a small sale and received the usual payment email about an hour ago:

But there's nothing from GoDaddy in my PayPal account yet. Until now, the email above always meant I had the funds.

Maybe this is because today is Saturday (or already Sunday where I am)? Why send the email then, when the funds haven't really reached me?

 

[Kyle Tully]

Had a small sale and received the usual payment email about an hour ago:

Show attachment 263748

But there's nothing from GoDaddy in my PayPal account yet. Until now, the email above always meant I had the funds.

Maybe this is because today is Saturday (or already Sunday where I am)? Why send the email then, when the funds haven't really reached me?

Yeah I used to get payment before the email. Last sale or two I got the email first.

 

[kesen]

Yesterday I redirected the domain from DAN to AFTERNIC, and set the landing page to Custom Lander. I used my own email to test the Make Offer function, and found that the inquiry page did NOT even have the option to enter a phone number. This also explains why some brokers do not know the buyer's phone number. In this day and age, many people prefer to communicate by phone. I hope Afternic needs to add an option for buyers to submit their phone numbers.

 

[kesen]

Yesterday I redirected the domain from DAN to AFTERNIC, and set the landing page to Custom Lander. I used my own email to test the Make Offer function, and found that the inquiry page did NOT even have the option to enter a phone number. This also explains why some brokers do not know the buyer's phone number. In this day and age, many people prefer to communicate by phone. I hope Afternic needs to add an option for buyers to submit their phone numbers. @Afternic @GoDaddy

 

[kesen]

When open the negotiation mode by ourselves? @Afternic @GoDaddy

 

[4L.com]

But there's nothing from GoDaddy in my PayPal account yet. Until now, the email above always meant I had the funds.

Maybe this is because today is Saturday (or already Sunday where I am)? Why send the email then, when the funds haven't really reached me?

The email with the subject line "Your funds are on the way!" doesn't mean anything - it’s an automatic notification sent when they change the status in their system, and it has nothing to do with the actual payment of funds.

I decided to try working with Afternic around mid-August 2024 and moved all my domains there. After that, I experienced a nightmare due to the number of bugs that surfaced, which I detailed in this thread. Since no one fixed these bugs, I changed the NS settings for all my domains and significantly increased the prices for the domains listed on Afternic.

In total, I used Afternic with their NS settings for about three weeks. During that time, I managed to sell 8 domains through their platform, and one more sold via LTO. However, as of today (September 29, 2024), I’ve only received payment for 3 domains. The rest have long been transferred to Afternic, but I have not received any payments for them.

All of my inquiries to support regarding payment timelines have been ignored. From what I understand, this kind of issue happens with Afternic, so I’m not too stressed about it. However, it’s still frustrating, and waiting over a month for payments for some domains is at least strange for a business of this scale. The Payee Account is filled out, and the payment details are provided.

I’m attaching screenshots from my account where all of this is clearly visible:

 

[doofer]

Was going to list some domains o Afternic after Dans demise but as I point mine to Sedo servers, Afternic/Godaddy want 25% commission (!) as opposed 10% on Sedo & not prepared to wait up to 14 days for payout should I get a sale, when Sedo pay out with a day or two !

 

[Rhinnnn]

The email with the subject line "Your funds are on the way!" doesn't mean anything - it’s an automatic notification sent when they change the status in their system, and it has nothing to do with the actual payment of funds.

Of course it's an automated email. But, in a well-functioning system, an automated task is tied to things that happen in reality. In this case, if GD says "we have just sent you" the funds, it should mean someone actually sent the money. A PayPal transfer is instant -- since I have yet to receive the $, it's obivous no one sent anything.

This is a recent change. As Kyle Tully also pointed out above, the "Your funds are on the way!" email used to mean sellers already had the funds (at least when it comes to PayPal, bank transfers are not instant).

BUT.

The bigger bug I just discovered now is that my Afternic dashboard currently contains NO TRACE of the domain I sold and for which, according to GD, I already received the funds. This is ridiculous beyond words. I can see all the previously completed sales. But nothing about the recent transaction, nothing in the Sales section, Lead center, Pending sales, nothing. It's like I never listed this domain on Afternic.

If I didn't have the emails, what proof would I have that I sold the domain and I should expect to be paid?

I don't understand how piles of bugs and frustrating user experiences are allowed to thrive year after year at GD and Afternic. Please do better, whoever is in charge of this mess.

 

[Jannes]

not prepared to wait up to 14 days for payout should I get a sale, when Sedo pay out with a day or two !

I dunno, my latest Afternic payouts have been very swift, whereas on Sedo:
Credit note created 9/23/2024 (Monday).
”The domain has been transferred successfully and the payment note has been created. Our Accounting department will process the credit note shortly and will release the funds within 1-2 business days.”

Current status: not paid.

Overpromising & underdelivering is an industry-wide problem.

 

[NicTraders]

Was going to list some domains o Afternic after Dans demise but as I point mine to Sedo servers, Afternic/Godaddy want 25% commission (!) as opposed 10% on Sedo & not prepared to wait up to 14 days for payout should I get a sale, when Sedo pay out with a day or two !

I reckon Sedo must be seeing an uptick in listings at the moment...

 

[Future Sensors]

I reckon Sedo must be seeing an uptick in listings at the moment...

That appears to be the case. Sedo is still a huge player for active landers.

At least 1,200,000 domains have these nameservers
ns1.sedoparking.com
ns2.sedoparking.com

At least 302,000 domains have these nameservers
sl1.sedo.com
sl2.sedo.com

I'm personally using the second set of nameservers.

 

[NicTraders]

That appears to be the case. Sedo is still a huge player for active landers.

At least 1,200,000 domains have these nameservers
ns1.sedoparking.com
ns2.sedoparking.com

At least 302,000 domains have these nameservers
sl1.sedo.com
sl2.sedo.com

I'm personally using the second set of nameservers.

I've never used their landers. What's the difference between the 2 sets? (Sorry, I'm being lazy...)

* For anyone following along, you can read @Future Sensors very useful reply here. There's a good reason he uses the latter set.

 

[Rhinnnn]

The bigger bug I just discovered now is that my Afternic dashboard currently contains NO TRACE of the domain I sold and for which, according to GD, I already received the funds. This is ridiculous beyond words. I can see all the previously completed sales. But nothing about the recent transaction, nothing in the Sales section, Lead center, Pending sales, nothing. It's like I never listed this domain on Afternic.

If I didn't have the emails, what proof would I have that I sold the domain and I should expect to be paid?

I don't understand how piles of bugs and frustrating user experiences are allowed to thrive year after year at GD and Afternic. Please do better, whoever is in charge of this mess.

I found my domain after all. But it still doesn't show up by default when I go to Sales -> Sold:

The only way I can see the domain and transaction is if I manually change "status=completed" (which is forced by default whenever you click on Sold) to "status=all" in the browser bar. Terrible UX.

P.S.: You can also see all your sold/in-transfer domains, regardless of status, if you manually change the status to "PleaseFixThisMess" or whatever else your heart desires.

 

[Domain Pro Seller]

@GoDaddy Hello, when I search on godaddy.com search for a domain that let's say I put a price of over $100,000 on Afternic there is neither the option "make offer" nor "Lease to Own" unlike my other domains.

It makes sense not to have a LTO option because unfortunately Afternic only has LTO available for domains priced up to $100,000 (as opposed to Dan where there was no limit) I would suggest that you consider increasing this limit.

Anyway, I understand not having a LTO option on Godaddy search for the time being. What I don't understand, is why this particular domain doesn't even have a "Make Offer" option.

 

[DomainRecap]

But there's nothing from GoDaddy in my PayPal account yet. Until now, the email above always meant I had the funds.

No, that email actually means they have "released" your funds (it is worded badly) and that the payment will be physically sent out the next business day.

This email confused me too, until I had it happen a few times - then I noticed the pattern.

 

[Rhinnnn]

No, that email actually means they have "released" your funds (it is worded badly) and that the payment will be physically sent out the next business day.

This email confused me too, until I had it happen a few times - then I noticed the pattern.

It literally says "we have just sent"

"Just sent" means someone pushed a button and actually sent the money, which should arrive instantly via PayPal. The email is not confusing, but deceiving in this instance.

It's the first time when I receive the email without seeing the money in my account. This is likely because it's the weekend -- no problem, I assume I'll get the funds early next week. Just don't send an email (automated or not) that mentions things that have not happened yet.

 

[lennco]

Anyone know how long it takes to get domains listed using the Template file? Hours? Days? Forever?

 

[End User King]

On the phone with Godaddy now. They're being bombarded with Afternic payout issues.
866-351-9586.

 

[Rhinnnn]

On the phone with Godaddy now. They're being bombarded with Afternic payout issues.
866-351-9586.

I just received a payment via PayPal from a domain that was transferred on Saturday. Maybe I was lucky.

 

[End User King]

I just received a payment via PayPal from a domain that was transferred on Saturday. Maybe I was lucky.

I have 3 LTO and 2 Fts I'm holding on.