How long does it take you good domainers to sell?

[sky]

I have several .pro domains that are great names (if .pro was seen as more viable), and a few decent .COM domains, not great, but OK, I think (see my signature).

I'm really promoting the .pro's and getting a lot of hits on some... 100-120 on some within the last 30 days, with a good chunk whenever I do some promotion work. But not one single nibble.

What's your experience with this? Any tips for me? Advice?

 

[acronym007]

The less unique the domain name, the longer it takes. The more of a niche or specialty the domain is the more time to find the right buyer.

 

[sky]

The less unique the domain name, the longer it takes. The more of a niche or specialty the domain is the more time to find the right buyer.

Did you mean to say the more unique (ie. less generic) a domain name is, the longer it takes? If that's what you're saying, I agree. My .com names are less generic than my .pro names. My .pro names are all pretty generic within their broad well-known categories, but have the liability of being .pro and less known/understood/popular and have a confusing licensing thing.

I'm getting hits though. Among about 25 or so domains I have had 1100 visits to the sale page (because that's where the domain names point to) within a month, so I'm just trying to get a feel for people who have sold names, particularly with people who have a lot of experience about how long it takes for them to sell a domain and how hard they have to work at it, and what the average number of sale visits they get before someone makes a bid, and before someone makes a decent bid.

I understand that it is difficult to say exactly, but any impressions, ballpark figures or interesting experiences would be useful to hear about.

 

[accent]

A thousand hits is not a lot, for selling purposes. I would guess you need a couple more zeros. Ain't easy.

 

[sashas]

here's the thing:

.com names sell the easiest. .net, .org, .info...not quite as easily. As you go down the 'order of extensions' - from .com to .net, to .org, to .info, etc., the ease of making sales decreases.

Some names are also more liquid than others. Typically, the shorter the name, the more liquid it is. LL.coms are the most, then LLL.coms (also LN.com, NL.com, LL.org/.net)

You can sell a LLL.com within 24 hours for a good price on the forums. For others, you'll have to play the waiting game.

I believe its so very important to choose the names you buy according to what you plan to do with them. If you want to make a quick flip, go only for .coms. Leave even the single word .nets aside - they don't too well with resellers.

If you have the patience to wait for buyers, then of course, buy any name you wish..

 

[DnEbook]

i dont think much future for .pro ......... but oneday all dot coms too expensive

 

[sashas]

they already are too expensive...

 

[sky]

i dont think much future for .pro ......... but oneday all dot coms too expensive

What does it mean no future for .pro? What about existing registrants and their domains and websites? Can they be pulled? Could there be lawsuits?

 

[accent]

What does it mean no future for .pro? What about existing registrants and their domains and websites? Can they be pulled? Could there be lawsuits?

Yes, there is the risk that ICANN or the registry could go back to the original requirement that .Pro domains be owned by professionals in a few fields. Probably not too likely, they like the extra money.

And if it goes the other way - they reduce the cost and open regs to all comers, well then the early buyers have some very nice domains. That is what they call speculation.

 

[onewordonly]

I quite like the .pro tld, just too bad about the reg price & the rules.

 

[npcomplete]

To answer the original question: "How long does it take you good domainers to sell?"

I first tried selling in 1996. I just got my first sale, so in my case it took eleven years to complete the sale.

Maybe I am not using the best sales techniques... you think???

Marc

 

[sky]

To answer the original question: "How long does it take you good domainers to sell?"

I first tried selling in 1996. I just got my first sale, so in my case it took eleven years to complete the sale.

Maybe I am not using the best sales techniques... you think???

Marc

Did you make a good profit?
Did you work hard at it?
How many domain names did you own?
Did you have good domain names?
Did you make a lot of contacts?
How many hits per month average?
Was it a good domain name that sold? Mediocre? Poor?
Did you sell the one you expected to sell, or were you surprised?
Did you sell one of the ones you were actively promoting?

If you or anyone could share your stories with me and answer questions like this I'd be very interested to know.

 

[sashas]

Did you make a good profit?
Did you work hard at it?
How many domain names did you own?
Did you have good domain names?
Did you make a lot of contacts?
How many hits per month average?
Was it a good domain name that sold? Mediocre? Poor?
Did you sell the one you expected to sell, or were you surprised?
Did you sell one of the ones you were actively promoting?

If you or anyone could share your stories with me and answer questions like this I'd be very interested to know.

Thats a lot of questions!

I believe his names were of the top order
If you'd kept an eye on the reported sales thread, you might've caught him mentioning his sales.

Selling has, simply put, two sides: do you want to sell to a reseller, or do you want to sell to an end user?

To a reseller, you can sell a good name anytime. A LLL.com can be sold within 24 hrs.

To an end user - and the right end user who'll pay top dollar - it can take anything from 2 days to 10 years. It of course, also depends on how you market the name. I don't believe NPComplete did that (marketing), hence the long turn around time.

 

[npcomplete]

I suppose I am a good case study in how to do everything wrong on the sales side... I have always paid careful attention on the buy side.

This would be a very long thread on the selling mistakes. If I had one and only one piece of advice to pass on it would be this:

advice list:

1.) Get your wife/husband/girlfriend/boyfriend involved early. As the saying goes: "If mamma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy". This applies to husbands/other too. For years my wife asked what am I doing with all those domains. She didn't get upset (didn't need the money), but she was always neutral ("oh, that is just another one of Marc's hobbies"). Once I decided to take selling seriously she got involved since she could see the round trip. She then began actively suggesting names, just like she did in the beginning eleven years ago. In the next few days some of her names are going up for auction in the geo auction. While it may be easy for us as domainers to see the value, it may not be so easy for your partner. So my advice is to sell some at a profit just to give your partner a sign of encouragement. This positive feedback was easy to see in our other investments like real estate, stocks, futures, etc., where the benefits are easily measured, but in domaining the benefits are less obvious. I have to admit that eleven years is a long time to go with the "trust me" comments alone. Never underestimate the power of teamwork.

Marc

 

[domainer50]

Generally if i have a name that i think applies to a certain industry i will contact a reputable site within that industry pitching the name. If they are interested great, if not then you go on to the next one.

 

[jondoe0069]

Generally if i have a name that i think applies to a certain industry i will contact a reputable site within that industry pitching the name. If they are interested great, if not then you go on to the next one.

What do you generally say when you pitch? I've been meaning to get more serious about this tactic, but I'm too busy buying domains. I think it's time to start trying to move some of the ones I have.

I have contacted people with other extensions developed when I have the .com, but never seem to get a response.

 

[AdoptableDomains]

How long does it take you good domainers to sell?

The answer to that isn't all that simple. I've sold domains just hours to days after buying them. I've also sold some I've held for 7-8 years. Partly it depends on several things: Your style, Your cash flow, your portfolio, your sales technique, your asking prices, your knowledge of the domain industry, your knowledge of the subject of the domain name keywords, and several other factors.

If you can maintain enough PPC to pay the renewals, there should be no hurry to sell, unless you need that money to live on. Patient domainers tend to get higher prices than those that need to move them quickly. They also get more retail than wholesale buyers. Aggressive marketers can turn name quicker and plow that back into building their business. Adapt to your own situation and do what works for you.

 

[sashas]

The answer to that isn't all that simple. I've sold domains just hours to days after buying them. I've also sold some I've held for 7-8 years. Partly it depends on several things: Your style, Your cash flow, your portfolio, your sales technique, your asking prices, your knowledge of the domain industry, your knowledge of the subject of the domain name keywords, and several other factors.

If you can maintain enough PPC to pay the renewals, there should be no hurry to sell, unless you need that money to live on. Patient domainers tend to get higher prices than those that need to move them quickly. They also get more retail than wholesale buyers. Aggressive marketers can turn name quicker and plow that back into building their business. Adapt to your own situation and do what works for you.

Some of the best advice you can get...every name is different, every domainer is different. The full timers can afford to spend 10 hours just marketing their domains. The part timers can't.

 

[mjs]

I hold two principles close to my heart:

1. You make your own luck; and
2. Nothing worthwhile comes easily.

There are a few others that come to mind. But my point is this....

.Pro will succeed! Period.

 

[sashas]

I hold two principles close to my heart:

1. You make your own luck; and
2. Nothing worthwhile comes easily.

There are a few others that come to mind. But my point is this....

.Pro will succeed! Period.

you've got some great .pro names in your siggy!

But I'll maintain what I said before. If you want to sell fast, stick to .coms.