advice Can I trust what an Afternic Broker says to me

[fogfever]

I have many domains listed on sale at Afternic.
There was an offer 2 months ago that led to back and forth negotiations that had 3 or 4 offers from each side both of us taking several days to respond. Then the buyer made an offer and the next morning I received a message from the broker saying that the buyer said it's their last and final offer and they need an answer by the end of the day.
It just seemed very suspicious and not in the tone or spirit/speed of the negotiation. It got me wondering if the buyer really sent that message or is the broker trying to push the sale forward and fabricated that message from the buyer. This is a domain listed by me so the buyer did not pay a broker fee. What is the ethics of an afternic broker fabricating messages in this situation. And is there an afternic manager or someone to talk to in situations when you are doubting the broker assigned to a transaction.

 

[Future Sensors]

Be vary wary. They're not always acting in Seller's best interest.

https://www.namepros.com/posts/9511284

 

[GoDaddy]

I have many domains listed on sale at Afternic.
There was an offer 2 months ago that led to back and forth negotiations that had 3 or 4 offers from each side both of us taking several days to respond. Then the buyer made an offer and the next morning I received a message from the broker saying that the buyer said it's their last and final offer and they need an answer by the end of the day.
It just seemed very suspicious and not in the tone or spirit/speed of the negotiation. It got me wondering if the buyer really sent that message or is the broker trying to push the sale forward and fabricated that message from the buyer. This is a domain listed by me so the buyer did not pay a broker fee. What is the ethics of an afternic broker fabricating messages in this situation. And is there an afternic manager or someone to talk to in situations when you are doubting the broker assigned to a transaction.

Hi @fogfever, thanks for sharing the experience. While we obviously can’t discuss the specifics in a public thread, you’re welcome to DM us the domain and we can look into this.

To your broader question, trust and transparency are important in the relationship between you and your assigned broker. Afternic brokers are not permitted to fabricate buyer communication. If there’s ever a concern that this standard hasn’t been met, that’s something we take seriously and will review.

Be vary wary. They're not always acting in Seller's best interest.

https://www.namepros.com/posts/9511284

Just to clarify one key point for accuracy. The example linked involves a buyer-side broker at GoDaddy, which is a separate operation from Afternic’s seller-side brokerage team. The two roles are completely separate and function very differently. Our Director of Aftermarket sales, Wade Smith, discusses the two teams, along with where, and how you'll interact with them, on the Domain Name Wire podcast: https://domainnamewire.com/2025/11/17/selling-domains-through-afternic-dnw-podcast-561/

 

[Future Sensors]

Hi @fogfever, thanks for sharing the experience. While we obviously can’t discuss the specifics in a public thread, you’re welcome to DM us the domain and we can look into this.

To your broader question, trust and transparency are important in the relationship between you and your assigned broker. Afternic brokers are not permitted to fabricate buyer communication. If there’s ever a concern that this standard hasn’t been met, that’s something we take seriously and will review.


Just to clarify one key point for accuracy. The example linked involves a buyer-side broker at GoDaddy, which is a separate operation from Afternic’s seller-side brokerage team. The two roles are completely separate and function very differently. Our Director of Aftermarket sales, Wade Smith, discusses the two teams, along with where, and how you'll interact with them, on the Domain Name Wire podcast: https://domainnamewire.com/2025/11/17/selling-domains-through-afternic-dnw-podcast-561/

You're all part of the same company.

 

[Vertibox]

This is yet another example of the slimy tactics employed by this scummy shitbag of a company.

Everything they touch is tainted by their underhand, duplicitous and nefarious, almost criminal mindset.
If there was only a choice of this company (or any of their slimy offshoots) or have no domains, I choose no domains.

Give them the finger and use better options, because they are among the worst in everything. And they don't care about customers or past customers to boot.

The fluffy, management speak, parallel universe junk spewed out from the company here is emblematic of the fork-tongued behaviour that the company inculcates and promotes in its staff.

 

[VadimK]

''Can I trust what an Afternic Broker says to me''​

Absolutely not.

 

[Future Sensors]

The following Sherpa discussion highlights that both Afternic and GoDaddy brokers often act in ways sellers perceive as favoring buyers, by withholding buyer identity and pushing quick deals, creating a misalignment of incentives that can cost sellers (and Afternic) higher, more frequent sales.

Whose Broker Is It Anyway?
https://domainsherpa.com/dss09262024/

with Andrew Rosener, Jonathan Tenenbaum, Chris Zuiker

In this episode, the Sherpas talk about .ai domain names and if they are seeing a shift away from the extension as the technology becomes more prevalent and the space matures. They also discuss the role that Afternic/GoDaddy brokers play in a domain negotiation and whether they actually represent the buyer or the seller.

The hosts review an article and social posts about who Afternic brokers actually represent. Sellers list names and expect Afternic to act as their agent, but when leads arrive the seller often receives only a price with no buyer details, leaving the seller dependent on the broker's judgment.

That lack of transparency, combined with a perceived broker culture of close any deal leads sellers to feel brokers prioritize getting a transaction done over maximizing value for the domain owner. The Sherpa panel draws a practical distinction (based on Elliot's article): if a name is listed on Afternic, the broker should represent the seller. If GoDaddy/Afternic approaches an owner about an unlisted name, the broker may be effectively representing the buyer.

https://domaininvesting.com/afternic-who-does-domain-broker-represent/

Ultimately, domain brokers want to close deals. Domain name sellers should understand that even if a broker is theoretically working on the seller’s behalf, the ultimate goal is to close a deal. I always consider what a broker is saying, but I know they have their own interest in mind.

Part of the raw audio transcript provided by DomainSherpa:

22:44

The idea with, so Elliot, so some things that we do here on the Sherpa Shorts, we'll pull articles from, you know, the domain writers and some of the best guys in the business. Big shout out to Andrew Allenman and domain name wire, just had his five hundredth episode of his podcast. We had him as a guest on ours as well, so big shout out to Andrew. Elliot is another one that we, you know, we'll grab stuff from. He had something talking about after Nick, I guess somebody had posted on Twitter about who the domain broker represents on after Nick, and I thought this was kind of an interesting question. You know, we've got our names listed on after Nick. You know, we brought up here, you know, I brought up a bunch of times like I go in, I create an account after Nick, I enter all of my domain games. You know, I enter pricing, I work with a account manager there, right? So I believe that I should perceive that the relationship I have is that I am the customer and they are my agent, so to speak. Um, and then yet when a lead comes in, a potential buyer comes to app connect and makes an offer through their platform to a broker on the phone, email or a form.

23:56

Uh, I'm then given absolutely zero information except for a price. I'm not told who it is what country they're from. I don't have any information whatsoever Um, even less so now with the, uh, uh, elimination again. And so, um, you have no information and I'm at the mercy of, uh, uh, a broker at after neck who.

24:25	I would think represents me, but the actions tell me that they clearly represent fire regardless of the circumstances.
24:33	Uh, and so, uh, I think it's a problem I, you know, I think that's a problem. I think that that's an unfortunate problem. I think that, uh, I think that.
24:45	You know, there's a sort of fear and uncertainty in sales that drives people who aren't particularly good at sales to just have a methodology or a policy, which is, you know, just get a deal. Whatever the first deal is that you can close, that's the deal. And there's no salesmanship. There's no competition or drive to actually optimize a transaction. And so
25:19	I think without that, it's difficult for that culture to change. But I think that they're leaving a lot of money on the table for both themselves and their customers. And in the medium and long-term, they're affecting the market by not getting higher sales on a more frequent basis, which would further drive, you know, future growth, but for them and for the industry But I think it's a shame that they. are misaligned and you could say maligned against who I perceive to be their customers, which is the domain owners.

 

[Future Sensors]

These are some of the top brokers in the industry.

 

[Gabriel360]

There is a reason Afternic/GoDaddy LOCKS self-brokerage behind a paywall even though they'd get the same commission without the involvement of their brokers.

Given the opportunity to get the same amount of money while doing less work, most people would take it.

GoDaddy, an undeniably GREEDY entity, is doing the opposite.

There's a reason for that.

 

[Jannes]

I have many domains listed on sale at Afternic.
There was an offer 2 months ago that led to back and forth negotiations that had 3 or 4 offers from each side both of us taking several days to respond. Then the buyer made an offer and the next morning I received a message from the broker saying that the buyer said it's their last and final offer and they need an answer by the end of the day.
It just seemed very suspicious and not in the tone or spirit/speed of the negotiation.

How so? People do grow impatient and your buyer may have a deadline. Perhaps what you regard as the buyer’s response time is actually just the broker not communicating promptly?

 

[winst]

It does not matter.

Focus on your goals, not what the broker or the buyer says. The "Final Offer" or "Budget" may not be what it appears to be. Even within a company, there is a final "boss" who makes the final decision, and everyone else is just a messenger.

Every buyer is different. Trying to guess what the "boss" wants is an art. Now you have a baseline, it's a matter of how much more you can push to get the deal done, or walk away and wait for a better offer in the future.

Good luck!

 

[alcy]

trust is big word

if he works for u it's his biz to get u most money. if he work for buyer its his biz to get u least money.

but it is biz. not trust.

trust is like u believing your wife won't cheat u

or .... two cannibal having oral seks

 

[fogfever]

How so? People do grow impatient and your buyer may have a deadline. Perhaps what you regard as the buyer’s response time is actually just the broker not communicating promptly?

I can give more details about this deal. It is a 6 figure offer - in my experience the higher the price the longer the time expected to consider offers. 6 figure deals would generally mean at least a couple days . If a seller accepts an offer too quickly it can scare a buyer off. I also feel that you should accept offers at the beginning of the week on a Monday or Tuesday so the buyer has all week to make payment. Not on a Thursday or Friday when the buyer can delay replying and then change their mind. I’ve also heard that a buyer is more likely to follow through with payment if they say the final ‘yes’ - instead of you saying ‘yes’ to their offer.
So to accept a 6-figure offer within one day on a Thursday goes against many of my negotiation principles. But the broker said that the buyer needed an answer by end of day Thursday. The important issue for me to know is if the buyer actually made this deadline or the broker fabricated it. I later found out that this broker had a planned vacation for Friday and was not in the office. It is now 5 days later and the buyer is not responding to the broker to say when they will be making payment. So, did the broker potentially mess up a six figure sale by fabricating a deadline because they were going on vacation the next day? It will be hard to know for sure what happened but the arbitrary Thursday deadline seemed very strange and if it was fabricated possibly scared off the buyer.

 

[Vertibox]

If someone wants something, then they aren't going to be put off by minor/admin matters.
If they do get put off by these silly non issues, then they probably didn't really want to buy in the first place.
Just think about it for your own life - you really like something and want to have it. If you have to wait 1-2-3-4 days to get it, does it matter?

This is a perfect example of why you should not engage with middlemen.
The middleman does not care for your benefit. You and only you care about that.

 

[Brother Bob]

If someone wants something, then they aren't going to be put off by minor/admin matters.
If they do get put off by these silly non issues, then they probably didn't really want to buy in the first place.
Just think about it for your own life - you really like something and want to have it. If you have to wait 1-2-3-4 days to get it, does it matter?

This is a perfect example of why you should not engage with middlemen.
The middleman does not care for your benefit. You and only you care about that.

True, but sometimes you can't do everything alone; you need a middleman.

Even Jesus Christ understood this mystery, which is why he had disciples.

 

[Vertibox]

True, but sometimes you can't do everything alone; you need a middleman.

Even Jesus Christ understood this mystery, which is why he had disciples.

The only problem with that analogy is that the middleman does not have your interest at heart and he never will.
And you can't ever make him have your interest at heart either.

And that guy you mention is in dispute as being a real person.

 

[Keith]

@GoDaddy and @Afternic simply don’t pass along inquiries. It was shocking when I found the area of my control panel at Godaddy with tons of inbound requests for a variety of my domains. They never bothered to contact me via email or phone to negotiate.

 

[AEProgram]

When a domain broker contacts you (not just afternic) ask yourself what price you will take and be happy with. Give them that price and tell them that is your lowest and not to contact you about any counter. Let the broker do with that what they want. Also, it is not uncommon for buyers to say this is my max. By the way, sellers in real estate hear the same thing from brokers (the buyer said they won't go higher, final offer). If you know your price, you don't worry about these things.

 

[cooljub]

And that guy you mention is in dispute as being a real person.

Considering he was might help temper the caustic vitriol you're spitting all over the forum.

 

[fogfever]

If someone wants something, then they aren't going to be put off by minor/admin matters.
If they do get put off by these silly non issues, then they probably didn't really want to buy in the first place.
Just think about it for your own life - you really like something and want to have it. If you have to wait 1-2-3-4 days to get it, does it matter?

This is a perfect example of why you should not engage with middlemen.
The middleman does not care for your benefit. You and only you care about that.

Vertibox - I have been buying and selling domains for the past 20 years. And for the past 19 years I have followed through on any all offers and deals. But the first year I was unsure, I would get buyer's remorse or seller's remorse and sometimes cancel offers that I had made. Most buyers at Afternic are first-time one-time buyers. I would guess the payment follow through rate on negotiated domains is low - maybe 50%. I get a lot of non-payers at afternic. That is why I try to follow negotiation tactics that are meant to not scare a buyer off (waiting a few days to respond, responding to them at the beginning of the week, letting them be the one to say 'deal' instead of me saying 'deal'.
I think this broker possibly fabricated a deadline from the buyer and rushed the buyer in a way that scared them off. As the hours tick buy and still no word from the buyer it becomes more likely this is what happened.
Am I supposed to believe that the buyer made an offer late Wednesday afternoon, emailed the broker again early morning Thursday that they needed to hear a response by the end of day and once they got a response go ghost for 5 days.
I think I need to move any high-value domains away from afternic landing pages. What is the best landing pages so that I can negotiate with the buyers directly - etsy? any others? Godaddy seems to get more inquiries because of brand recognition but maybe there are other quality landers I can use where I can negotiate directly with buyers.