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discuss Domain Microfinance Program

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What do you think of the idea of a grant and microfinance program?

  • This poll is still running and the standings may change.
  • Brilliant idea - Go for it!

    53 
    votes
    42.7%
  • Good idea but you are in for a tough run

    19 
    votes
    15.3%
  • Long shot but it just might work

    22 
    votes
    17.7%
  • You are going to lose your butt on this one

    30 
    votes
    24.2%
  • This poll is still running and the standings may change.

Rob Monster

Founder of EpikTop Member
Epik Founder
Impact
18,389
As some folks here know, I am a big fan of Digital Empowerment projects that scale.

Over the last year, I have seen lives transformed by people becoming successful domain investors on a bootstrap.

I have been discussing with a few folks about introducing a Domain Microfinance program for emerging economies and for young entrepreneurs.

This could be a Digital Empowerment strategy for helping people to bootstrap domain portfolios. The idea was inspired by a discussion with a young Angolan.

The idea is this:

- People apply to get a microfinance grant. To get the grant, they have to verify their identity. This is done in order to prevent repeat applicants.

- Domains registered are limited to .com. With a budget of as little as $30, right now that is about 5 .com domains at a promo rate of just $5.49.

- The domains are powered by an SSL powered landing pages which domain owners can optimize and then use to sell or lease.

- Once the grant participants generate a certain level of sales or leases, e.g. $100, they can request an interest-free domain loan based on their portfolio.
 
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The views expressed on this page by users and staff are their own, not those of NamePros.
It's a long shot. Limited budget can be compensated by hard work and good research. Fresh registration is tough for a beginner. Instead, $100 will enable one to buy about 3 domains from Godaddy Closeout. It may work if one is willing to go through the thousands of Closeout domains everyday, look for the few with end user potential, then contact them directly to sell the better domains to them.
 
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I voted “you are going to lose your butt on this one”

It takes a certain personality to deal with sales and do the required marketing.

I would say up the amount to maybe $1k or even $500, limit the applicants and make people prove they have the knowledge, business plan and skill required to execute.
 
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My initial thoughts are similar to what's been shared. Five hand regs or $30 dollars may only show who is lucky, instead of who is skillful. I believe by having a larger starting budget there would be a more clear understanding on who is skillful.

Great idea though! Good luck.
 
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For context, it might help to share sample correspondence of what is actually not atypical as we do more work in emerging markets:

upload_2019-9-18_21-53-21.png



We are dropcatching decently. Every day about 100,000 .com drop -- not all of them are trash. Many very decent names easily worth $100 to $1000 to an end-user are dropping to General Availability. They can picked up as hand-reg. People are doing it every day. I am seeing these folks parking them with our SSL landers and then getting offers and selling. It is certainly happening but not yet at scale which is where my idea came in. It requires teaching folks to fish. It might need a compressed tutorial from @Michael Cyger's DN Academy as part of the grant program!
 
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At these odds (having only 5 new domains to work with) it's even hard for experienced domainers to make something happen as far as making a sale goes nevermind a new domainer who is just beginning to learn the ropes. And to put them in debt without a realistic chance to come ahead might actually hurt them more than it's going to help them since $30 might be a lot of money for them to have to pay back if they don't make a sale.

Although I like your idea of trying to empower those who are disadvantaged (like me :)). Now instead of giving them money how about giving them some free domains to get them started. Something like 25 domains per person, not pigeon dropping domains, but domains that have a reasonable chance of getting sold for $50 to $75 each. The kind that some of the more experienced domainers here might have who don't mind donating to this cause. (just an idea, hope it helps)
 
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At these odds (having only 5 new domains to work with) it's even hard for experienced domainers to make something happen as far as making a sale goes nevermind a new domainer who is just beginning to learn the ropes. And to put them in debt without a realistic chance to come ahead might actually hurt them more than it's going to help them since $30 might be a lot of money for them to have to pay back if they don't make a sale.

Although I like your idea of trying to empower those who are disadvantaged (like me :)). Now instead of giving them money how about giving them some free domains to get them started. Something like 25 domains per person (not pigeon dropping domains, but domains that have a reasonable chance of getting sold for $50 to $75 each. The kind that some of the more experienced domainers here might have who don't mind donating to this cause.(just an idea, hope it helps)

To be clear, the initial amount is non-recourse debt. It is really a restricted grant.

At the end of 1 year, if they did not generate sufficient sales and don't want to pay the renewal, the registered domains simply are lost and go to the expiry stream. As such, the participants have no continuing burden at all.

In developed economies, people don't have time to buy for $5 and sell for $50. Well, in places like Indonesia and Angola, or even Gran Canaria and Serbia with 40-60% youth unemployment, they very likely do have time for this.
 
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Also you have to vet the applicants very carefully to make sure that you are not empowering the wrong kind of people specially in those undeveloped countries that might have gangs, militants, and perhaps even terrorists mixed in with the regular crowd who don't mind having an additional source of income to do their evil (worse yet they might use innocent younger people to do their bidding like the way they use child soldiers). Don't mean to be negative, but it's something to consider nevertheless.
 
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Also you have to vet the applicants very carefully to make sure that you are not empowering the wrong kind of people specially in those undeveloped countries that might have gangs, militants, and perhaps even terrorists mixed in with the regular crowd who don't mind having an additional source of income to do their evil (worse yet they might use innocent younger people to do their bidding like the way they use child soldiers). Don't mean to be negative, but it's something to consider nevertheless.

Yup, there is some intake application that needs human review, plus we already have a workflow for automated ID validation. It is a grant, so people can spend 30 minutes applying for it. If it becomes really popular, it would require some process automation or volunteers to screen and support the grantees. It might not be worth the trouble but it is hard to get those emails from Angola and not want to help.
 
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We are dropcatching decently at Epik . Every day about 100,000 .com drop -- not all of them are trash. Many very decent names easily worth $100 to $1000 to an end-user are dropping to General Availability.
Well, then let them acquire domains from your drops, and do the hard work of researching and contacting end users. Set up a dedicated page to provide education sources such as Domain Sherpa shows, DNW podcasts, Namepros links, Domaining.com, etc. Learning must come first.
 
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Yup, there is some intake application that needs human review, plus we already have a workflow for automated ID validation. It is a grant, so people can spend 30 minutes applying for it. If it becomes really popular, it would require some process automation or volunteers to screen and support the grantees. It might not be worth the trouble but it is hard to get those emails from Angola and not want to help.


It might be a calling for you to help those who are disadvantaged and by no means did I mean to change your mind, I believe that it is a good cause and it's worth putting some more thought into it, just have to figure out some safeguards to make sure that the right people are being helped. Maybe ask for pictures of their home, school, and some of their social activities and school transcripts like as if you are trying to adopt them.
 
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Domaining already has one of the lowest, if not lowest barrier to entry out there. Like you said, $5.49.

I don't think getting people caught up in loans, especially people without much money is a good idea.

If you want to help people from certain areas, have a special section for them, tell them if you reg thru Epik, hook them up with courses, like DNAcademy or something.

I don't even follow the email above. He has a 1000 names to register, what does that mean? He already posted 703, what does that mean? Then he said he only has 1 registered name.
 
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Domaining already has one of the lowest, if not lowest barrier to entry out there. Like you said, $5.49.

I don't think getting people caught up in loans, especially people without much money is a good idea.

If you want to help people from certain areas, have a special section for them, tell them if you reg thru Epik, hook them up with courses, like DNAcademy or something.

I don't even follow the email above. He has a 1000 names to register, what does that mean? He already posted 703, what does that mean? Then he said he only has 1 registered name.


Yes, already reached out to Cyger. Funny enough a guy from Nigeria said same earlier today in response:

upload_2019-9-18_22-48-12.png


However, indeed there is no debt to start, and any debt would be non-recourse, secured only by the domains.

The point is that folks can't even get started when they have no money, or no access to an electronic payment method. They have time and hustle, and some of them are highly entrepreneurial. Their domain quality is remarkably good, e.g. Nigerians.
 
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So technically it's a "Social Welfare Program for domainer's" :xf.grin:

"We the domainer's" should form our own ".com virtual country"

👇

TheGovernmentOf.com (available for registration in all TLD'S :woot:)


 
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Still don't understand a lot of this. What is the 1000/703 domains stuff?

If they have time and hustle, they don't need paid courses. They can simply put the time into reading forums like this one and blogs. It's free.

You said domain quality relatively good. Good domains sell. So they should be making profit, take that and buy more good domains.

Then, this isn't something I would get into in their situation, if they lack money, knowledge etc. It's investing. I wouldn't advise broke people to get into this, stocks, crypto etc. It should be something you start on the side (hopefully they have a job) and if you're good at it, you'll make money and grow from there. From what I've read, cost of living is much less than say in America, so they wouldn't need to make as much as some others. Get your hustle on like everybody else in the world.
 
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Good idea but you are in for a tough run.
Unless you're ready and willing to go further than what you've just outlined.

Consider this. 5 domains with industry average portfolio sell through rate of 1.5% per year.
How many years will a noob need to sell 5 hand reg domains?


In domaining money, as compared to knowledge and experience, is nothing. Unless you're ready and willing to equip your "aspirants" with necessary knowledge, then you might as well not bother yourself. Anything short of that will be good intention turn sour.

Nonetheless, kudos. At least you're giving a thought to how to empower the less privileged.
 
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Okay, this is a very good starting point.

This post begins the conversation towards what might become a solution.

Next step is likely for those who like the idea, to gather all the pros and cons and filter through everything to see what comes of this idea.

If there is a fairly good chance that it could help than it will be up to an organization with enough resources to do a trial-run and see if it would work.

Also, how about doing some sort of community co-op where a group is funded and makes a purchase of a good quality name, a name that has been appraised high enough to make a good return.

This can and will start the wheels turning...
 
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But to answer your question yes you are charged $8.49 but if you don't get it the funds will be refunded back to your account.
 
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Still don't understand a lot of this. What is the 1000/703 domains stuff?

If they have time and hustle, they don't need paid courses. They can simply put the time into reading forums like this one and blogs. It's free.

You said domain quality relatively good. Good domains sell. So they should be making profit, take that and buy more good domains.

Then, this isn't something I would get into in their situation, if they lack money, knowledge etc. It's investing. I wouldn't advise broke people to get into this, stocks, crypto etc. It should be something you start on the side (hopefully they have a job) and if you're good at it, you'll make money and grow from there. From what I've read, cost of living is much less than say in America, so they wouldn't need to make as much as some others. Get your hustle on like everybody else in the world.

It's hard comparing folks in places like Nigeria to the US. We've got college graduate looking for means to start cab driving, bar tending, hair grooming, just any job ete.
You wouldn't understanding in a Million years how hard people struggle just to earn a Dollar, only to live by it, and the cycle continues till age sets in. That 5 names as little as it seems, it's an opportunity to change destiny. It may not work for everyone, but chances are someone can make it from there.
Thanks @Rob Monster. Great initiative. And God Bless.
 
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While acknowledging the concerns and caveats expressed,I like the idea a lot @Rob Monster and voted brilliant. Micro loans have been empowering. I like the idea of a very restricted start like $30. I genuinely feel that with sufficient time, and as you say the economics of time cost is very different in different regions, money can be made turning $10 into $100 and then build on that success. Epik's aggressive pricing, now extended to drop catches, makes the most of that $30 start.

I would strongly agree with the importance of an educational component, but would add the caveat that the training should focus on learning appropriate to this domain experience. I am not saying that the idea of buying $$$ names to sell for 5 to 6 figures should not be part of it, but the main focus should be on names for $ that would sell for $$$. Ideally in time the mentors would be successful prior participants who had transformed a $30 start into a successful part-time business.

Best wishes for this innovative and empowering idea.

Bob
 
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For context, it might help to share sample correspondence of what is actually not atypical as we do more work in emerging markets:

Show attachment 129485

if I got that attachment in the mail, I would certainly discard it as a spam solicitation

there are too many contradictions in the story for me

maybe offer that :poop: to np members first and tell them to join the forum, then apply.

if it's a free grant, then yeah, let me know
i'll spend $30 of your money gambling on some hand regs anytime

:)


imo...
 
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Okay, this is a very good starting point.

This post begins the conversation towards what might become a solution.

Next step is likely for those who like the idea, to gather all the pros and cons and filter through everything to see what comes of this idea.

If there is a fairly good chance that it could help than it will be up to an organization with enough resources to do a trial-run and see if it would work.

Also, how about doing some sort of community co-op where a group is funded and makes a purchase of a good quality name, a name that has been appraised high enough to make a good return.

This can and will start the wheels turning...

@BradWilson - you made a good point there about community coop. Epik owns the domain name called DomainEquity.com. It was originally intended for a domain lending platform but I am staring to see another purpose -- a registrar-agnostic domain bank.

I think so many of us have domains with auth codes that we routinely dump. Rather than dump them on the last day of expiry, after they go through Snapnames, for example, they could certainly be made available for reg fee.

At Epik, we have Daily Diamonds. It bottoms out at $9 + reg fee. And then we drop the domain. However, we actually have one more day that we could use from Verisign where people in a special program could pick up these domains for just reg-fee or even subsidized/discounted reg-fee.

I think so many of us have domains we don't need and won't sell but are not junk. If these domains could be listed with an auth code, folks in a special program could sell them or buy them and sell them later.

Also, if that part were structured as a non-profit, folks could get a tax benefit, similar to how it works with Goodwill. You donate a domain, get a tax benefit, and then Goodwill sells the item to some retail customer.

Anyway, it needs more thought, but I think the coop idea is relevant. Governance and ownership will be important. If someone knows a good non-profit lawyer, I could use an introduction. I hear Swiss Foundations are a good structure for concepts like this one.
 
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