Wanted Domain Liquidation Platform - Seeking input for new Epik project

[DanSanchez]

Dear Namepros,

The team at Epik is exploring the development of a project that aims to shift the painful domain name expiration process into a more profitable experience for domainers. Perhaps you have read my opinions about registrars selling expired domains and refusing to help registrants in recovery. The time to disrupt this with action has come!

In the meantime, since joining Epik last month, I decided to do something about it with the help of some amazing engineers. The goal of this "name liquidate" idea is to sell domains directly to buyers that may otherwise wait to acquire these domains at expired auctions or being filled as registrar backorders which pays zero to the registrant.

The planned solution addresses two domainer pain points,
1. Liquidation of expiring inventory brings much needed capital, meaning you can renew more of your portfolio.
2. Buyers get clear title and dont waste time bidding on names that can be recovered post-expiry.

Here is the process,
1. Submit your domains: you unlock your domains, provide auth codes.
2. Seller acknowledges that a fast-transfer of the domain will occur once domain has a bid.
3. Bidders agree to non-revocable change of ownership if their bid prevails.
4. Sellers receive a large portion (80%?) of auction proceeds.

The process begins with a 7 day reverse auction counting down hourly/daily, down to $1 plus renewal/transfer for delivery. The domain doesn't have to be expired or expiring. You can submit the name multiple times during the life of the name but not more than once per year. Once the auth code is verified:
• Epik parks the domain with auction template with Make Offer pricing so retail bids can come in.
• Wholesale buyers are informed of expired auction inventory update.
• Domain goes through reverse auction in 7 days
• Domains are fast transferred to Epik as soon as one bid is made.
• If seller locks name, all domains will be removed and no further listings will be accepted from seller.
• Domains already at Epik are pre-qualified for "name liquidate" services, but you must opt in manually.
• External domains are eligible once auth codes are verified.
• Data will include number of views, expiration date, and expected delivery.
• Pre-set domain buys will give you the ability to buy any name when a price hits a certain target.
• Once a bid is submitted, it cannot be revoked. All purchases a final non-refundable.
As for brand name, we are considering NameLiquidate.com — very descriptive name and targeted at a very specific audience. That said, open to considering other names. A separate brand naming project is coming shortly for what Rob describes as the “Ultimate Digital Brand Marketplace”. This is separate.

 

[topdom]

If my domains are liquidated without my knowledge (after I lose control), do I get anything from it? Do I need to submit them?

 

[NicTraders]

If my domains are liquidated without my knowledge (after I lose control), do I get anything from it? Do I need to submit them?

Currently all domains on NameLiquidate are added manually by the registrant. I believe the long-term goal is for any of your expiring names reg'd at Epik to be added there too (in which case the plan was for you to receive some income from that), but that is not happening yet.

 

[DanSanchez]

There were two $400 sales overnight, for example. The bidding system is beginning to do it's job. You have to remember that most investors reg domains, the second most common investor is actively buying at auctions with no idea how much an auction will end up costing.

NameLiquidate will help establish the liquidation market that ALL other industries have. Once we succeed here, we can all enjoy a reliable exit path.

 

[DanSanchez]

If my domains are liquidated without my knowledge (after I lose control), do I get anything from it? Do I need to submit them?

You mean your Epik domains? That is happening by opt-in only as a first stage very very soon. Next phase is testing it with external domains, and then rolling it out to every Epik account that wants to participate.

Thank you @NicTraders for responding accurately.

 

[topdom]

Can I add a domain to NL anytime (including, before expiration)?
Do I have right to renew a domain which is on NL (and quit NL)?
Can I bid on my own domain (can cost less than redemption)?
How can I know my domain is getting bids at NL? Can I check this before redemption?
Is there a button which would add all my domains to NL?
What percent of sale price do I get (maybe zero)?
Can Epik add my names to NL, although I didn't approve such a thing?

(I didn't follow everything, so asking all in one place as reference)

 

[topdom]

Here is a crazy idea: just after someone bids to buy the domain, allow others to bid higher for 1 minute, and start a bidding war upwards. This way people would be more likely to bid as soon as possible (to get the domain while everyone is sleeping), and the selling price would be higher, in all cases.

 

[DanSanchez]

Can I add a domain to NL anytime (including, before expiration)?
Do I have right to renew a domain which is on NL (and quit NL)?
Can I bid on my own domain (can cost less than redemption)?
How can I know my domain is getting bids at NL? Can I check this before redemption?
Is there a button which would add all my domains to NL?
What percent of sale price do I get (maybe zero)?
Can Epik add my names to NL, although I didn't approve such a thing?

(I didn't follow everything, so asking all in one place as reference)

Thanks for the questions! My answers are in bold

Can I add a domain to NL anytime (including, before expiration)?
Yes, you can add it up to 15 days past expiration.

Do I have right to renew a domain which is on NL (and quit NL)?
No, domain renewals (for expired Epik domains) and transfers (for domains outside of Epik) are paid by the buyers if needed.

Can I bid on my own domain (can cost less than redemption)?
No, you can manually remove the domain or add a reserve to preserve a certain price. The reserve is fluid so you can change it at any point.

How can I know my domain is getting bids at NL?
Your seller administration for NameLiquidate is here https://registrar.epik.com/auction/selling - You can see the bids placed on your domains.

Is there a button which would add all my domains to NL?
Yes, you can submit your internal Epik domains without an auth code and use the bulk submission form for names that require authorization codes.

What percent of sale price do I get (maybe zero)?
You receive 91% of the proceeds of the sale.

Can Epik add my names to NL, although I didn't approve such a thing?
If you mean automatically auctioning off your expired domains and paying you 91%? Not yet. That feature will be a voluntary program to begin with. Then it will be rolled out to anyone that wants to opt into automatic liquidation.

 

[WhoaDomain.com]

It's not going to happen. It's a reverse auction with the starting price @ $998, so that's the max price. Price drops continually until reserve is hit so I dare say the number of sales above $500 would be extremely low.

I understand that but I'm sure once more traffic happens their site will expand to more than just that. can't be a one trip pony and expect to succeed continuously.

adaptation and innovation never hurts.
being seen as outdated does.
Sharks die if they don't keep moving.

Ok enough inpirational one liners. lol

Back to domaining!

 

[NicTraders]

I understand that but I'm sure once more traffic happens their site will expand to more than just that. can't be a one trip pony and expect to succeed continuously.

adaptation and innovation never hurts.
being seen as outdated does.
Sharks die if they don't keep moving.

Ok enough inpirational one liners. lol

Back to domaining!

I believe NameLiquidate will stay how it is - a liquidation platform.
However I believe Rob has a long-term goal of having a marketplace for complete digital assets and I suspect that might eventually include higher-value domains, or no doubt he will eventually start some other competitor to the likes of Flippa.
Epik is far from being a one-trick pony, that's for sure. Their 'Labs' seem to pump out more projects than just about anyone, though many are still in the incubation phase.

 

[topdom]

How about this (future idea): I buy a domain at Epik, list it on Epik marketplace, also immediately add it to nameliquidate with min selling price 500, and I decide "whether it is autorenewed just before redemption".
This way I buy a domain, make necessary changes, and forget about it, go on a vacation for 1 year, and when I come back check which domains are still on my account, and how much money I have and how much comes from sales and how much from liquidation. (maybe most of it already possible).... I think liquidating can be done for domains which have not expired yet. I mean to get some eyeballs.

 

[NicTraders]

How about this (future idea): I buy a domain at Epik, list it on Epik marketplace, also immediately add it to nameliquidate with min selling price 500, and I decide "whether it is autorenewed just before redemption".
This way I buy a domain, make necessary changes, and forget about it, go on a vacation for 1 year, and when I come back check which domains are still on my account, and how much money I have and how much comes from sales and how much from liquidation. (maybe most of it already possible).... I think liquidating can be done for domains which have not expired yet. I mean to get some eyeballs.

You need to understand the NL platform a bit better. You can't do that as domains are only on there for 7 days (and then another 7 in the bargain area). It is a liquidation platform, not a marketplace.

 

[Rohit kalra]

@DanSanchez I have one domain on registrar godaddy and Which is about to expire on 16th june and I want to liquidate my domain. I tried adding domain but It was asking for Auth code. Do we need to transfer domain at epik first. If yes, then if it doesn't sold on epik what epik will do. Epik will keep this domain ? or do we need to renew domain at epik ?

 

[NicTraders]

@DanSanchez I have one domain on registrar godaddy and Which is about to expire on 16th june and I want to liquidate my domain. I tried adding domain but It was asking for Auth code. Do we need to transfer domain at epik first. If yes, then if it doesn't sold on epik what epik will do. Epik will keep this domain ? or do we need to renew domain at epik ?

You don't need to transfer to Epik first. You are providing the auth code as the buyer must transfer to Epik when they purchase. If no-one buys it you can just renew at the old registrar as per usual.

 

[Samuel Pye]

@DanSanchez any update re. nameliquidate nameservers? Thank-you Sam

 

[topdom]

Epik should allow us to list grace expired domains on Epik marketplace. Dynadot does it. Namesilo allows us to keep grace expired domains on their marketplace if listed before expiration. Epik's grace expired landing pages have "contact owner" link, but we are not that owner. A default admin contact is the email.
We can't know if there is an inquiry unless Epik manually informs us about it.
...
Let's say I have 1000 expired domains each bought for 1. If Epik allows them to be listed on their marketplace, then I would put $100 price on all in a minute and park at epik, and allow endusers to buy them very cheaply. I would send outbounding emails, maybe they would work because price is very cheap. People NEVER respond to ANY email. But they read them. I think both Epik and us would profit from this.
(Why don't I try this on Dynadot: good question.)

 

[Rob Monster]

Epik should allow us to list grace expired domains on Epik marketplace. Dynadot does it. Namesilo allows us to keep grace expired domains on their marketplace if listed before expiration. Epik's grace expired landing pages have "contact owner" link, but we are not that owner. A default admin contact is the email.
We can't know if there is an inquiry unless Epik manually informs us about it.
...
Let's say I have 1000 expired domains each bought for 1. If Epik allows them to be listed on their marketplace, then I would put $100 price on all in a minute and park at epik, and allow endusers to buy them very cheaply. I would send outbounding emails, maybe they would work because price is very cheap. People NEVER respond to ANY email. But they read them. I think both Epik and us would profit from this.
(Why don't I try this on Dynadot: good question.)

It works that way already. As long as the domain has a valid auth code and is unlocked, you can list it in NameLiquidate.com.

As for listing expired domains in the Epik marketplace, you are right that this is not currently possible:

I think we'll have that fixed by tomorrow. Your request is reasonable. We'll do it.

 

[robs01]

Is it possible to add a search alert feature so that people can enter their preferred keywords etc and get email notifications when any potential domains are listed? Not just at NameLiquidate, but also at Epik Marketplace.

(I wrote a similar comment in another thread but thought it might be more appropriate here.)

 

[Rob Monster]

Is it possible to add a search alert feature so that people can enter their preferred keywords etc and get email notifications when any potential domains are listed? Not just at NameLiquidate, but also at Epik Marketplace.

(I wrote a similar comment in another thread but thought it might be more appropriate here.)

Yes, that feature is coming soon. I recently asked for it of engineering. I believe it will be very useful.

@vitigo

 

[richtrading]

It's 2023 now, is NameLiquidate.com still the best place to liquidate COMs?

 

[NicTraders]

It's 2023 now, is NameLiquidate.com still the best place to liquidate COMs?

No. In case you've missed it, Epik has been in major turmoil for almost the last year. At the current time, the future of NameLiquidate is very uncertain. The new owner of the website says they have taken the site down but it's actually still up. The amount of inventory on there is less than 5% of what it used to be. I've had a few instances where domains I purchased were not delivered, and while a refund eventually came through, it is not a reliable platform at all presently. I don't know what the best alternative is, but at the moment I would not recommend NL at all. It used to be a great platform, and maybe one day that will be the case again, but I would not risk it now.

 

[richtrading]

No. In case you've missed it, Epik has been in major turmoil for almost the last year. At the current time, the future of NameLiquidate is very uncertain. The new owner of the website says they have taken the site down but it's actually still up. The amount of inventory on there is less than 5% of what it used to be. I've had a few instances where domains I purchased were not delivered, and while a refund eventually came through, it is not a reliable platform at all presently. I don't know what the best alternative is, but at the moment I would not recommend NL at all. It used to be a great platform, and maybe one day that will be the case again, but I would not risk it now.

Thanks Nic. I wonder what the alternative is. I saw NameLot, but that just seems to be regular prices. I'm thinking of domains I liked to sell on the $1000 count down to $1 style auction format, over a 7 day period.