advice Getting into domaining, looking for some advice about some things

[K-5]

Hi, recently me and a friend of mine have been trying to break into the domain selling business and I thought I would make a topic here to get some advice on how to do things better and also make sure we arent doing something horribly wrong in our approach. So anyway he's pretty good at coming up with catchy sounding names so we got a little over 100 of them on a budget of around 2000 bucks. What we both think some of our most potentially profitable names would be

bahamaresorts.com (especially this one)
countchocolate.com

And to a slightly lesser degree

royaleflushed.com
dubaidubstep.com
usps4u.com
eatacake.com
iconictonics.com

The rest of our names are mostly catchy sounding names like these

gnosismundi.com
sailinsolutions.com
dyckery.com
knuckeup.com
kineticeruption.com
ninedthree.com

We also have some porn names such as

dygitalporn.com
beenblown.com

So anyway weve been trying to sell these in a number of ways we of course have tried auctions on godaddy and sedo but havent had a whole lot of luck there yet. The issue with the godaddy auctions seems to be no one is looking at them. I posted a link to one but the forum said I'm not allowed to post links, if someone would like to take a look at one of my auction pages I'll message it over to you.

I mean I see names on godaddy going for thousands of dollars that look about as good as some of the names we have, but I don't know how those got noticed. Did they just get lucky or are they doing something different?

I also listed sailinsolutions and a few others on sedo for a bit more then 500 bucks each, those got alot of views but no bids, I would put them back up for a cheaper price, but the problem I have with the sedo auctions is that it costs 59$ to put something up in an auction there and if it doesn't sell I'm out another 59$ per auction, given I already spent around 2000$ on this investment I don't want to spend anymore unless I think it's a sure thing.

We also tried looking at domain brokers , but so far even when showing them what consider the top two names they said they arent interested. One of them even said the bahamaresorts name wasnt worth anything in his opinion, I don't think that'd be the case, I mean alot of people travel to the bahamas so I would think that someone would be willing to get that. Also he mentioned something about me just registering it the other day that sounded kind of negative. I noticed other people around the forum saying things that would imply newly bought domains would be harder to sell for some reason. I can't imagine why that would be as I'd think if you own something, it wouldnt matter how long you'd own it. But if there is some mysterious reason that would cause a domain to be devlaued depending on when it was bought I would like to know what that is.

Anyway that's pretty much where were at, if anyone can point out anything were doing wrong or what we could do better it'd be appreciated. Due to various reasons we'd like to flip some of these enough to make some sort of profit before mid january, so what would be the best strategy in terms of trying to do that?

 

[Nerevar]

Stop registering ASAP. Start reading this forum instead and do not register anything for 3 months. Try to grace-delete almost everything you have regged so far (call your registrar). If it's too late to grate-delete, perhaps you can sell the names for $2-$3 each on this forum.

 

[EmotiveDomains]

The reason these names aren't selling is because people aren't looking for them.

Sorry, but buyers aren't going to pay good money for two-word misspelled domains.

 

[K-5]

I think it might be too late to grace delete most of those as theres a five day window to do that. While alot of our names had 1 or two word off spellings like that, its not all of them. But yeah we kind of did that thing with the y some people like to do like "syfy channel" or "terminator genesys" and thought that might work, but maybe that wasnt a good idea. Honestly those weren't the ones I was focusing on as I've more been trying to t I get people looking at what I considered the top names which I mentioned like bahamaretreats. I kind of feel like one of our mistakes is we should have tried to focus more on quality rather then quantity when we were initially coming up with names.

What Im curious about is if the time you buy a domain effects its value at all, as I've been seeing a bunch of hints here and there that might be the case. What's going on with that?

 

[Nerevar]

Bahamas. It should be BahamasRetreats, in that case the name would stand a chance.

It is actually possible to hand-register semi-decent names, but it's almost impossible for a total beginner. The reason is that most good names are already taken and you must find those that were not taken for a specific good reason (e.g. because it is future tech, or because that type of brandables were not popular in the past). Most decent names are registered and stay registered. If they drop, it is because their owner forgot to renew or died etc. These good names are bough by investors in expiring auctions (or, sometimes, closeout auctions). That way, their age stays, it shows that they were reigstered for many years. Sometimes, if the registrar does not support auctions, then the name drops and loses its age. In that case, a good name is picked by paid dropcatching services. Sometimes semi-decent names can be hand-regged in a few days after they drop. Still, if a name was not regged for years, probably nobody needs it, stay away from it unless you know exactly what you are doing.

To make a profit, you must think about your buyer. Who will pay $xxx - $x,xxx for a domain name? Not a hobbyist. It must be a startup, or an established company, or perhaps a highly-paid professional. Think what are the names that they will use as their company names.

 

[Nattydomain]

Where did you see that buying made up words or "brandables" was the right way to go with a budget of $2000 Honestly if you wanted to make money that $2000 investment could buy 1 or 2 very very good names and even if yo usold it back at $5000 that is $3000 profit. You have (or had) the money and that should have been spent on one very good domain and build off that. Stop buying small fry names with a big budget. Buy 1 and step up closer to your goals.

 

[EmotiveDomains]

I think resorts is fine, but it would need to be BahamasResorts, not BahamaResorts.

 

[Nerevar]

I think resorts is fine, but it would need to be BahamasResorts, not BahamaResorts.

Right, I misspoke. Resorts, hotels, anything really. But Bahamas...

 

[hawkeye]

Maybe also look at what you actually have and what you 'think' you have, as you note BahamaResorts as one you think is potentially profitable, but you reference back to it latter as -

what I considered the top names which I mentioned like bahamaretreats

Since the latter was regged 2 days ago, and the first one back in 1997, and are owned by different people, knowing what 'you' own and are trying to sell, would be a good starting point also.

 

[JayT]

^ lol yea, I read bahamaresorts.com and I was wow'd! I kept reading and it got worse and worse...finally, he doesn't own bahamaresorts? LOL IT'S A TRAP!

 

[deez007]

Hey @K-5

Hate to be the bearer of bad news mate but much like everyone has already said...I don't think your domains are going to sell. It's prob best for you to check out the beginners area of the forum and read as much as you can before hand registering anymore domains. I think if you invested that $2000 on buying a handful of good domains from members here on the forum it would have yielded better returns on ur investment.

Hope you njoy ur stay here and all the best with ur domaining adventures...

 

[K-5]

oh yeah it was retreats, I remembered wrong about what the domain name was. Anyway I'll have to go over the things you guys said with my friend and see what we decide to do. Thanks for the help.

 

[EmotiveDomains]

oh yeah it was retreats, I remembered wrong about what the domain name was. Anyway I'll have to go over the things you guys said with my friend and see what we decide to do. Thanks for the help.

Don't be too disheartened, many successful domainers started off buying a bunch of low quality names. The important thing is to learn from any mistakes.

 

[K-5]

These good names are bough by investors in expiring auctions (or, sometimes, closeout auctions). That way, their age stays, it shows that they were reigstered for many years. Sometimes, if the registrar does not support auctions, then the name drops and loses its age. In that case, a good name is picked by paid dropcatching services. Sometimes semi-decent names can be hand-regged in a few days after they drop. Still, if a name was not regged for years, probably nobody needs it, stay away from it unless you know exactly what you are doing.

For future reference, does anyone have any recommendations in terms of exipring name auctions or drop catching services? I know about just dropped.com, do you think thats the best place to find those sorts of names or does anyone have a better recommendation?

 

[HKIBC]

For future reference, does anyone have any recommendations in terms of exipring name auctions or drop catching services? I know about just dropped.com, do you think thats the best place to find those sorts of names or does anyone have a better recommendation?

Welcome to NamePros! Like with most key domaining issues, there's a whole section dedicated to this topic here. So much, your head will spin

Here's a taste, in no particular order: DropCatch, SnapNames, Pheenix, DynaDot.....

And last but not least, not a drop catching service, but for low hanging fruit, recommend diving in to: ExpiredDomains.net

 

[tha-she]

From reading your post, i see you have ALLOT to learn and with that i mean almost everything.

What made you pay $2000 for 100 hand-regs? you could have registered 100 .com domains for under $200 via promotions some registrars run every now and then, or are running now, granted those are not the best and most secure registrars, but looking at your domains security wont be needed much.

Like others, i suggest you consider this a lesson and stop with buying immidiatly and go over all the information you can find here, when you feel like you know more, start again..... but slower.

 

[Robert G]

1st, get a godaddy VIP account for $150, domains can be registered and renewed at ~ $8
2nd, get a namejet account
3rd, don't bid on domains I am trying to win.

 

[Kate]

I kind of feel like one of our mistakes is we should have tried to focus more on quality rather then quantity when we were initially coming up with names.

Hmmm yes you just found out about rule #1 but too late. As said above, you could have bought just one or two domain names, but quality domain names. And then end users would come to you and possibly make unsolicited offers. Good names sell for themselves !

To make it simple here are a few tips.

• If you find a name that is available today, ask yourself why nobody would buy it for $10... 127 millions domains are registered in .com today, so the extension is extraordinarily saturated and it's not like people are not trying hard to find something suitable for their need.
• Logical conclusion: most good names are already taken. You want quality names, buy them where they are. Do not expect to find gems still unregistered, waiting for you...
  
• Looks at what sells, analyze reported sales, to better understand what kinds of names are in demand. Otherwise it's pure gambling.
  
• Keep track of your inventory and expenses. Figure out how much you've spent and how much you will need to spend on renewal fees every year. Then you know how much you need to make in sales just to break even. If you own only a bunch of domain names, renewals are pocket change. When you are stuck with a big portfolio, renewals are painful and fraught with dilemma as you have to figure out what to keep and what to drop.
  
• Can you see a real business on your domain names ? Would you use them ? Would you buy any from yourself ? Can your names be branded ? Are they fit for advertising ? Could you put them proudly on business cards ?
  
• Remember that sales are the exception and not the norm. Nobody likes to pay a premium for a domain name. People will always try to find something available for reg fee. They will buy from somebody else only if they have a compelling reason. End users buy domain names for a business project, not for a hobby or for personal use. It seldom happens. Domain names must have a clear use and be commercially viable.

So, just because a name sounds cool or creative, doesn't mean everybody else thinks like you and that the name will ever sell. That is not enough.

 

[tha-she]

Id also like to point out that simply because someone here prices a domain at $500+ its not automatically a good domain...

I see many are saying you should have went for 1-2 good ones instead, but do note that you will find endless amounts of domains here that will be offered to you at -$1k, that are worth nowhere near that as a reseller, so be extremly carefull when making these picks aswell.

 

[168]

Since you have some time on your hands, (1yr)
Outbound sales are better than auctions for these" types" of domains.
Auctions are better suited for "Trending" sales. Study the auctions know what to look for.

I would use,
bahamaresorts.com
for affiliate cash
dyckery.com
kineticeruption.com
for Viagra sales
AND (if your old enough)
dygitalporn.com
beenblown.com
for affiliate cash (personally I would stay away from any domain that exploits humans)
then put them up on Flippa as websites for sale

Submit the ones below to BrandBucket see what happens
bahamaresorts.com
countchocolate.com
eatacake.com
iconictonics.com
dyckery.com
knuckeup.com
kineticeruption.com Maybe a BAND name ?
ninedthree.com Maybe a clothing brand ?

Domains with letters and numbers are most commonly used in the China market. There is some use in the western market but they are exceptional combos so avoid mixing.

Auctions are only 1 way to profit. If this is the only way you want to play use BIN pricing below 100. for your domains or be prepared to wait and factor in cost to hold for 2-3 yrs.
The others not mentioned definitely drop unless you have an end user in mind.
Once you factor in your time, commissions, and other related costs you will understand why it's better to buy a handful of quality
domains vs quantity. Taking the quantity approach requires several hundred or into the thousands domains to be profitable.
Happy Hunting!