opinion Hand Registering Domains Is Not Domain Investing

[DN Playbook]

Admittedly, this may be somewhat a sensationalized title. But hand registering is only a bridge or gateway to investing in domains. This article discusses why. What are your thoughts? Looking forward to them. Here is the link to the article:

Hand Registering Domains Is Not Domain Investing

 

[DN Playbook]

People have become wealthy on hand registering the right domains in the early days of an industry.

You have to understand the thrust of the article. As I mentioned in the OP that the title is somewhat sensationalized purposely to get people to think and analyze their domaining strategy especially if they are losing more money than making.

It is not a blanket statement to condemn all hand reg's. But hand reg'ing alone does not make it domain investing. As someone noted, if I register rewqrweqrqerw.com and similar domains (extreme example), it does not make me a domain investor by the virtue of hand reg'ing those domains.

It becomes an investment when you see an obvious value in the domain to the point you are willing to renew it year after year and/or dedicate sufficient resources to develop it into a marketable web property.

Of course there will be hits and misses. So you can still be in the domain investing business and have reg'd duds.

Rick Schwartz, Mike Mann, Frank Schilling, Thunayan K. Al-Ghanim, and others who have gotten in the game early hand reg'd many investment grade domains. They knew they had good investments. They hung on to them for many many years. Some they developed others they sold for significant amounts, still others they hang on to this day. Spending thousands in order to keep all their domains registered each month.

Hope this clarifies the point of this OP and the article.

I assumed that www.dnplaybook was hand reg in 2017. And you developed it into website? why?

Playbook is a very common word in both the sports and business worlds, as well as elsewhere. It refers to specifically defined strategies. I wasn't sure what I would use it for when I registered it. But liked the name and thought it would be a good name for a domain blog to outline strategies, ideas, recommendations, news, general thoughts, etc. It is designed both for domainers and end-users. You can learn more about it here: About DN Playbook - DN Playbook

 

[DN Playbook]

Friends, I get the feeling that a lot of the information is being glossed over. A sentence is read and it sets off an emotional response. The OP is not anti hand reg'ing.

 

[DN Playbook]

So, by your view, even if I've sold $20K+ this month with a $16K net profit (or more, month is not finished yet), of only $xxx to low $xxxx range domains, I am NOT an domain investor.

I'm reaching 6-fig investment soon, yet again by you I am NOT a domain investor.

You have not mentioned whether these names were first year hand reg's. Somehow I doubt it.

 

[DN Playbook]

@Windoms makes a great analogy with real estate. Buying real estate in populated areas is a safe investment. And if you renovate or develop then the value will go up substantially. Buying into premium, investor grade, domains is similar.

You can buy land in the Mojave desert and build it into a high end tourist magnet city (i.e. Las Vegas). But if you leave the land as it is, then it is not really an investment. Even still, Vegas was not built just on any piece of desert. Thought went into its location. And as it was being developed, a lot of planning and strategy was involved. Time, money, and strategizing turned this desert land into a thriving market.

If you want to start at the ground floor, I have some swamp land to sell you.

 

[DN Playbook]

@DN Playbook You are welcome, better use your time doing more due diligence on the names than really giving and telling about your past purchases, better work today than praising 20 years back hand reggs, keep in mind some people still doing useless reggs even 20 years back, so the essence is in the domain name not how/when/where you acquired it.

*** Tired of This Thread!! I need a life lol!

I can see that you are driven by emotion rather than critical thinking. It may be the result of the few sales you have from your hand reg's. I can tell the excitement in you from the domains your are posting on other threads. However, it is blinding you to the point of this thread. You still think this thread is anti hand reg'ing.

 

[DN Playbook]

So in stocks, day traders are not investors? In crypto, people that sell because the price drops are not investors?

Day traders are not investors. They are traders. And crypto is so new that people buy into it due mostly to hype. Whether something is an investment or is a short-term money grab or a complete loss doesn't determine whether you are an investor or not. Your can have a mix of investments, quick flips, and many losses. But just because I register asdasadsdas.com doesn't make me an investor. Decisions must be made on real world data, win or lose.

 

[DN Playbook]

@Cocoonbay The debate of profit margins from hand-regs versus profits from aftermarket acquisitions is a separate one. Investments are based on available data, the experience of the domainer and intent, IMO. If the domain in the mind of the domainer is not worth hanging on to or develop then it was a gamble. If you don't see value in it, then how can you expect someone else to. The fact is that it is so easy to register many domains, especially with the .99c offers floating around, that one can easily be tempted to register worthless names, not sell any or just a few for a few bucks, then give up feeling that domaining is a waste of time. There has to be thought involved, irregardless of quick profits. But just saying "I registered a bunch of new names, therefore I am a domain investor" is fooling yourself, IMO. There is more involved than just simply reg'ing a domain.

 

[xbank]

nah nah .. see my prices:

DeepComfy.com	​		1799​
Mergect.com	​		2499​
Greply.com	​		8699​
Convetics.com	​		3299​
Relabor.com	​		3299​
FrontAnchor.com	​		2299​
Exotin.com	​		8699​
Tutorialy.com	​		3299​
Insuplex.com	​		2299​
InvestReach.com	​		2699​
Defendez.com	​		2799​
Migrai.com	​		2499​
Mevero.com	​		4499​
TopStrive.com	​		2499​
HuntBest.com	​		2699​
YehUp.com	​		2799​
Xish.com	​		44999​

 

[DN Playbook]

All right, let's go to your direct quote: ''At best, hand registering domains is speculating, at worst it is wishful thinking''.
Your basic point here is that you can't really hold a hand-reg fee for multiple years and then successfully sell it (that's why it's not an investment to you, - isn't it correct?).

Incorrect. Hand reg'ing is ultimately speculating if you register emerging trends or where the buyer pool is small. But it can also be wishful thinking, and mostly it seems to be, when you reg names that include certain keywords but also have superfluous words in the mix.

The basic point is that if you don't see the value in a domain to keep renewing it then it is not an investment. Because you don't just drop investments after a year or two. If you don't see the value in renewing a domain then how possibly can it be an investment. It becomes a liability. You might renew valueless domains but still that is liability. So you must do due diligence. Make an informed decision.

Well, this idea to me is totally wrong. I have a number of domains I hand registered for 8,50 (me taking the first dot com tld,) which are now, just a few months later, are ''in the company'' of 6-7 other TLDs taken by different people. There are also other indicators that tell me I will sell such names in 1-2 years time for thousands % ROI.

That's great. If you sell a domain for profit within a year or two then you got a winning ticket. Who knows how much that same domain can attract in 5 to 10 years. Maybe nothing. So you got a steal.

I think you simply don't believe that it's possible to get a good domain thru hand-reg, which will ''mature'' during the time, - and I completely disagree with you here.

Not true. Most of my domains were bought at reg price and sold at significant profit. But I had to invest multiple years in renewals which meant I had to be confident of their value in order to hang on to them.

 

[enterscope]

In fact Rick Schwartz did an entire interview with Domain Sherpa demonstrating that you can find profitable hand registrations.

Get your facts right before misleading people on here.

How about you post some of your hand registered domains in this thread so we can see the gems you acquired.

 

[DN Playbook]

You don't get it, if I invest $1 and get $5 for every $ invested it's a great return, you don't get these returns in real estate or stock exchange. If I use 1k to invest in $8 hand regs, with the intention to only sell a few and drop anything else and to make 5k at the end of the year, that's a great investment. If you can replicate and reinvest everything at the end of the year, believe me, you can't get these returns with passively waiting with an xxxx aftermarket return, waiting for an average of 5 years. At the end of the day, that's a great investment, no matter what you want to call it.

You are prospecting. If you are so lucky then good on you. Would you hang on to those domains and give them to your children as an investment? I am not saying there is no money in prospecting.

But I would postscript that by saying you would be foolish to invest 1K in 100 hand regs. That is gambling because your are assuming a few will sell to make you a 4K profit. What basis do you have for that assumption? If you have expendable income then you can take that risk.

 

[DN Playbook]

It seems the vehicle doesn't matter in your judgment. Meaning whether stocks, nfts, crypto currency, domain name, tennis shoes, or any collectible/tradable item, if a person buys then sells, it's not investing.

In your opinion, a retirement plan is investing. A penny jar is investing. So long as you don't sell.

I guess I just don't understand your distinction between hand registration and aftermarket domains determining whether a purchase is an investment.

If I hand reg a domain today and believe it is valuable and am determined to hang on to it whether it sells or doesn't before it expires, then it can be an investment. If I register a domain today with the plan that if it doesn't sell before it expires I will drop, then I cannot call it an investment. But the decision process must include some real world data or experience to exhibit it's value.

 

[DN Playbook]

So the domain that is available in the aftermarket came from where? It was handregged sometime ago right?

OMG [insert hand over face] you are not getting the point of this OP. Please read the thread.

 

[xbank]

Please tell me if my prices seems less ?? I can move them up...

Nextganics.com	2688​
VaultAsset.com	3888​
Omgfy.com	3988​
DealFounder.com	2488​
Clinicey.com	4688​
CannaDrug.com	4688​
Deepense.com	2988​
Omegta.com	2688​
Communers.com	2988​
Hugfy.com	3488​
AcctID.com	3488​
Whipey.com	4688​
Hiveria.com	4688​
EternalFoods.com	3488​
Spectego.com	2688​
Validina.com	2488​
Terracone.com	2488​
VitalPerks.com	3488​
Heckta.com	2488​
Guestey.com	2888​
Convud.com	1988​
Systice.com	2488​
WealthBreed.com	2688​
LearnFreak.com	2688​
CultGo.com	2688​
Refixey.com	2488​
DeepAlter.com	3488​
Crewta.com	2488​
Deluxter.com	1988​
BulkEdge.com	2488​
PlanCrafts.com	2388​
Vaultsa.com	2988​
WorkJury.com	2688​
SaleDive.com	2988​
Trapey.com	2988​
Convetai.com	3488​
Oregis.com	2688​
VaultFront.com	2688​
Correctex.com	8888​
Tactey.com	4688​

 

[xbank]

Congrats again
They are good , not top quality and not low quality domains ,
But let me now assume that what help increasing the sales is the quantity !
Thousands of domains you have

Yes bro, going to touch soon 10k names.

Plan is to make 250k net in profit a year, that is all.

 

[Windoms]

Here is the thing.
It is very hard to sell hand regs for $xx,xxx +.

You can sell them to xxx or xxxx, but 5 figs is not viable at all.

To me if you want to brand yourself as a domain investor, you need to spend good cash on good names, and sell those names for a fair mininum of $5000 (name clearly worth 5000 or more)

The $xxx or low $xxxx sellers, Id call that domain entrepreneurs.
Whose goal should be to become domain investors.

Thats my view.

 

[DN Playbook]

this thread waste of time!

Thanks for your opinion. Why are you here?

 

[DN Playbook]

Sold approx 1250 hand registered domains till date...

I rest my case...

That's not investing. That's flipping. I rest my case.

 

[DN Playbook]

You sure made people think but not about this topic.

By the way, here is the definition of domain investment from your site:

"What is Domain Investing

Domain investing is the acquisition of domain names and then selling them for a higher price than what you invested initially. Some domain investors buy domains and hold on to them for a long time and sell to the best buyer possible. This is someone who is keenly interested in that specific domain with the goal of building a business on it. Others may acquire domains to flip them quickly for profit."

Article titled: Can You Make a Living With Domain Investing?

If you knew what intent meant OR you remembered what's on your own site, you would've saved your comment.

This doesn't contradict the premise of the OP. I am not sure why this thread has such emotional reactions. Investing is a calculated risk where you anticipate making a profit, whether that is long term or short term. The "calculated" part is the key.

 

[DN Playbook]

We care about people that are showing signs of irrational behavior and speech. I am especially concerned about people that forget what they write. With one of the signs of covid being brain fog and memory loss, I am always on alert and take into account that people, even those that don't know it, might be suffering from long covid. What you wrote so far in this thread is concerning, not about domains, just your overall behavior. Constant contradictions, forgetfulness, possible confusion of meaning of words and overall bad logic.

https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/intent

"If you are intent on doing something, you are determined to get it done. If you have an intent, you have a motive or purpose.

Intention and intent are synonyms, but with a subtle difference. Intention implies a general desire or plan to accomplish something, while intent is a little stronger, indicating a firm resolve to get it done. Intent can be used as a noun or adjective. So you may be intent on finishing your homework, but the amount of it has you convinced of your teacher's ill intent."

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I will get myself checked out. But understand that one sign that you can't win an argument is when you start attacking the messenger. Also, I am not trying to win an argument. I don't care whether you agree with me or not. Why are you even making this personal? What's the point? That baffles me.

 

[DN Playbook]

Intent is not investing? An apple is not a grape. Do you even know what intent means? What exactly did you innovate with your post?

Your intent might've not been to confuse people, but you did a good job at it.

For the people new to domaining reading this, he didn't say anything new. I made a point that anything you do with the intent of one day making a profit from it is investing.

For example, if you are drunk and you handreg a random name, that is unintentional and it is not investing.

If on the other hand you were reading the forums and saw someone waste peoples time with posts that contribute nothing and you decided to handreg WasteOfTimePosters.com because you feel you can build a site featuring all those posts and get traffic and make money or you feel you can resell the name, that is intentional and IS investing.

I think I know what the word intent means. I hope I made people think with this post. That was my intent. Even if you build a site on a poor domain name it is an investment if you are investing time and money and you have reasonable expectation it will be profitable.