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.

 

[nlitenme]

I'm trying to be nice here, but people like you are reprimanding me when you have absolutely no clue what any of these terms mean.

I'm not reprimanding, I'm trying to help. I'll stop now.

 

[Jannes]

I have to scroll to see the option you want me to choose (probably)?

 

[Gabriel360]

So Afternic has been withholding payout for an LTO sale for over a week now.

They REFUSE to process the first payout.
They keep telling me that the "transaction is still under review by the Transaction Assurance team".

And that's just INSANE!

Who reviews a sale AFTER the transaction is already concluded?

They have received payment from the buyer.
They have received the domain name from me.

Yet they are just now reviewing the transaction.

Attempts to get them to explain the nature of their review has been met with NONSENSICAL replies.

Meanwhile, the buyer is already using the domain name.

It's a MESS!

 

[DN_Hunter]

You don't understand what the Floor Price is and what you're describing is actually the Minimum Offer.

The Floor Price is the Minimum Price to Sell your domain and if someone offers the Floor Price, then it's immediately sold without notice. It's essentially a hidden, baseline Buy it Now.

This is a standard business term for the lowest price an item can be sold for, but here is a screenshot from Afternic describing what a Floor Price is and its implications:

Show attachment 297798

I'm trying to be nice here, but people like you are reprimanding me when you have absolutely no clue what any of these terms mean.

This is true -- the FLOOR price is basically a Hidden BIN.

@DomainRecap - when you get these "0" Offers in your Lead Center, does the AN Broker actually reach out to you for a price (I'm not talking about that automated email). I get the automated email because the LEAD is created with a "0" Offer, but the AN Broker never reaches out to me until they actually have an offer >= to my MIN (I usually DO NOT have FLOOR prices, only MIN and sometimes BIN + MIN).

 

[NicTraders]

I have to scroll to see the option you want me to choose (probably)?
Show attachment 297832

Show attachment 297833

Maybe they're saving everyone time because they realise the majority will score them 4 or lower?...

 

[Jannes]

Maybe they're saving everyone time because they realise the majority will score them 4 or lower?...

At least they're not trying to skew the score in their favor.

 

[DomainRecap]

@DomainRecap - when you get these "0" Offers in your Lead Center, does the AN Broker actually reach out to you for a price (I'm not talking about that automated email).

I've had both experiences with Afternic - sometimes the broker will not bother me and will try to get a real offer from the lowballer, while other times they keep asking me for a selling price, then put the transaction into "Stalled" status with a message like "No response from seller".

I just wish Afternic would either:

a) Halt this idiotic phone-in $0 Offer crap, as these time-wasting hobos are NOT leads and never, ever buy.
or
b) Include the Offer Price in the automated emails so I can save time by deleting them.

 

[DomainRecap]

I'm not reprimanding, I'm trying to help. I'll stop now.

With all due respect, you should really tone up on terminology and domain investing in general before offering advice to other people.

You posted that the Afternic Floor Price is actually the Minimum Offer, and if someone believes that, they can get into serious trouble by inadvertently selling a domain at a price much lower than they intended to.

 

[WW]

I just realized this weekend that Afternic brokers apparently don't operate on Saturdays or Sundays?

I received an updated offer through the Lead Center on Friday that I decided to accept within two hours, adjusting my floor price accordingly. However, it seems the broker had already left the office.

Even though my new floor was set to match the buyer's offer, there is apparently no automation in place to notify the buyer so they can finalize the sale immediately. Full 48+ hours later, now Sunday, there is still no update in the Lead Center showing that an email was even sent to the buyer informing them of a successful deal, let alone instructing them to proceed with the payment.

For some reason, I thought Boost included access to advanced brokership (I could swear I saw that advertised somewhere), but looking into it further, that doesn't seem to be the case. While I had good experience with the broker in question so far (not his first sale), I was under impression that Boost brought more benefits than it seems to. Between that and the radio silence on weekends, I’ll be handling my own negotiations going forward. I was already on the fence about Afternic Boost, and this experience just pushed me over the edge. I’ve turned off Boost and will be moving majority of my domains to my own landers.

I understand that a broker can't work seven days a week, but letting an essentially closed deal simmer over the weekend gives the buyer time to lose interest or find an alternative. That’s unacceptable.

If a lead broker is unavailable when a seller accepts an offer, automation or a stand-in broker should take over. My issue is not with the broker in question, but how the system seems to be set up...

 

[DN_Hunter]

I just realized this weekend that Afternic brokers apparently don't operate on Saturdays or Sundays?

I received an updated offer through the Lead Center on Friday that I decided to accept within two hours, adjusting my floor price accordingly. However, it seems the broker had already left the office.

Even though my new floor was set to match the buyer's offer, there is apparently no automation in place to notify the buyer so they can finalize the sale immediately. Full 48+ hours later, now Sunday, there is still no update in the Lead Center showing that an email was even sent to the buyer informing them of a successful deal, let alone instructing them to proceed with the payment.

For some reason, I thought Boost included access to advanced brokership (I could swear I saw that advertised somewhere), but looking into it further, that doesn't seem to be the case. While I had good experience with the broker in question so far (not his first sale), I was under impression that Boost brought more benefits than it seems to. Between that and the radio silence on weekends, I’ll be handling my own negotiations going forward. I was already on the fence about Afternic Boost, and this experience just pushed me over the edge. I’ve turned off Boost and will be moving majority of my domains to my own landers.

I understand that a broker can't work seven days a week, but letting an essentially closed deal simmer over the weekend gives the buyer time to lose interest or find an alternative. That’s unacceptable.

If a lead broker is unavailable when a seller accepts an offer, automation or a stand-in broker should take over. My issue is not with the broker in question, but how the system seems to be set up...

Agreed -- weekends are a killer as it just sits there, and I'm always wondering if the buyer changes their mind and/or finds an alternative domain name while negotiations stall during the weekend.

 

[WW]

Agreed -- weekends are a killer as it just sits there, and I'm always wondering if the buyer changes their mind and/or finds an alternative domain name while negotiations stall during the weekend.

Right? I find it hard to reconcile GoDaddy’s scale with the lack of weekend automation for finalized deals. While I respect that individual brokers need time off, the system should be able to bridge the gap.

The current process of manually adjusting the floor and then waiting for a broker to follow up is inefficient. An automated "Accept Offer" feature that generates an immediate checkout link would solve this.

Even if brokers prefer a personalized touch, which makes sense, automation should be the "stand-in" during weekend off-hours to ensure the buyer doesn't lose interest or move on to an alternative.

Either automate the process entirely, or have a junior broker employed over the weekends, sending out the congratulatory emails with a checkout link...

What you don't do however is 52+ hours of radio silence as it’s the fastest way to let a done deal turn into a dead one.

This is not just me being upset over a single delayed deal, but realizing that their professional service may not be as professional as I believed them to be given their position in the industry.

 

[WW]

To be clear, a 52 hour delay can be a perfectly valid "tactic" for a seller when dealing with tire-kickers or lowballers. It signals that they need to take the process seriously to get a response. But that tempo should be dictated by the seller, based on their sense of urgency, not a broker who is primarily relaying the messages and looking for an acceptable middle ground.

Having that said, once an offer is acceptable and you're ready to close, that is when the clock starts ticking on the 'dopamine window' period. Any time a buyer makes a serious offer, especially one higher than they're entirely comfortable with, they are in a so called 'buying mode' with their credit card metaphorically on the table, ready to pay right away. Every hour that passes without a checkout link allows that impulse to cool off. We’ve all been there. It doesn't mean the asset isn't worth it, but you're essentially inviting doubt to creep in.

If that happens with a $150 apparel purchase, you better know it absolutely happens with an $8,000+ domain deal.

 

[keepsmile]

Hi,

Few minutes ago I received email from the Godaddy with a request to authorize my domain name listing.

But didn't list anything with you !

Somebody is trying to list my another domain with you again.

For sure I didn't authorize it by following any link or pressing a button in this email.

And the most interesting thing that I checked the domain with the Godaddy and got next :

How the hell is that possible !?!!??!?!?!?!

Who is selling my domain name for $2k ?????

I didn't authorize the listing so there is no the domain name in Afternic search result.

But the Godaddy shows it can be purchased for $2k !?!??!?! HOW !??!?! But It Now !??! Who is selling it !?!?!??!


PS.

Как вы уже задолбали !!!

 

[Name2go]

Hi,

Few minutes ago I received email from the Godaddy with a request to authorize my domain name listing.

But didn't list anything with you !

Somebody is trying to list my another domain with you again.

For sure I didn't authorize it by following any link or pressing a button in this email.

And the most interesting thing that I checked the domain with the Godaddy and got next :

Show attachment 297983

How the hell is that possible !?!!??!?!?!?!

Who is selling my domain name for $2k ?????

I didn't authorize the listing so there is no the domain name in Afternic search result.

But the Godaddy shows it can be purchased for $2k !?!??!?! HOW !??!?! But It Now !??! Who is selling it !?!?!??!


PS.

Как вы уже задолбали !!!

Welcome to the boat.

This E-Mail probably relies to the previous owner's Afternic listing that hasn't been deleted. It's a well-known and never-resolved problem. Be careful. We all suffer from it because eventually, every Afternic confirmation email gets distrusted.

Someone will post soon telling you to contact Afternic support. What you indeed might do.

 

[love4ever]

Hi,

Few minutes ago I received email from the Godaddy with a request to authorize my domain name listing.

But didn't list anything with you !

Somebody is trying to list my another domain with you again.

For sure I didn't authorize it by following any link or pressing a button in this email.

And the most interesting thing that I checked the domain with the Godaddy and got next :

Show attachment 297983

How the hell is that possible !?!!??!?!?!?!

Who is selling my domain name for $2k ?????

I didn't authorize the listing so there is no the domain name in Afternic search result.

But the Godaddy shows it can be purchased for $2k !?!??!?! HOW !??!?! But It Now !??! Who is selling it !?!?!??!


PS.

Как вы уже задолбали !!!

To avoid this scenario you can add your TXT record to the domain and list it at afternic , Verify your ownership , Domain will be transferred directly to your account after ownership verification , Then list the domain normally .
After that select the domain and use ''unlist'' option as below , Domain will stay in your account but hidden (not active ) .

.

 

[domainer8888]

Anyone else seeing @Afternic stalling payouts again?

 

[Rippa]

So many troubles & complaints about Afternic. We can only Wish it weren't so... year after year.

 

[Jannes]

My doctor (for hypertension) ordered me to use BIN only at Afternic. Not exactly her words, but I can take a hint.

 

[WW]

Anyone else seeing @Afternic stalling payouts again?

I’m not sure if it’s intentional stalling or just a "processing drift," where the payout initiation does not adhere to a fixed calendar date, but the exact payout dates are inconsistent indeed. They seem to vary by up to four days lately, which makes it hard to rely on the payouts to plan your expenses, let alone borrow against the expected cashflow. Regardless of their timing, our banks and partners expect payment by an agreed upon due date, so I do find these delays annoying at times of lower liquidity. Have you noticed even longer delays lately?

 

[fka1080405]

I understand that a broker can't work seven days a week, but letting an essentially closed deal simmer over the weekend gives the buyer time to lose interest or find an alternative. That’s unacceptable.

The value of a broker is a personalized relationship with the buyer. Automation defeats that. You can use Afternic's self-brokering if you want to control the relationship.

Floor price is the minimum that the broker is allowed to negotiate to, not a buy it now price, if you update the floor price then the broker will still go back to the buyer and continue the negotiation.

If you want Afternic to be able to negotiate on your behalf without delay, then you should keep your floor price up to date with the actual lowest amount you are willing to accept. If you have to update your floor price in response to a broker negotiating then you are not giving the broker all of the tools to negotiate effectively.

An argument could be made that if you update the Buy It Now to be less than or equal to the buyer's best offer then the payment link could be sent automatically, but that shouldn't happen with the floor price because that isn't the point of the floor price.