discuss “I don’t buy from domainers on principle”

[equity78]

To buy, or not to buy, that is the question. So the headline here comes from an email a reader sent me about an exchange they had with an end user. The reader sent a targeted email to just one person, asking them if they would be interested in the domain name they had for sale. The prospect replied, "Sorry Robert, I don't buy from domainers on principle." David. When they asked me what I … [Read more...]

 

[Keith]

I love to buy from domainers. They understand the business and are more likely to just sell for a small profit.

Now, what I don’t do - SELL to domainers. They always want rock bottom prices which I don’t do!

 

[Grego85]

I've often wondered about this phenomena as it exists right here on NP. You see halfway decent names being passed up and failing to sell for $15 and then go into the snap of the day thread and see people bragging about throwing away $79+ on garbage domains.

I've also started doing a lot of out-bounds lately to sell some of my inventory and I've also started offering drop catching services via outbound as well for names not quite good enough for my portfolio. I get WAY more responses to my outbound emails offering the drop catch service than I do when I'm trying to sell my own names. The email template is almost exactly the same and the names are of lesser quality, it makes no sense.

The only answer I can come up with is people like to feel like its their catch or their good idea. They have to come up with the idea or they have to discover that gem hiding in the pile of crap. If their brain doesn't get credit for it, they don't want it. But I dunno.

 

[Mister Funsky]

From the article "So do you avoid buying domains from domainers?"

I will buy a name from any seller (as long as an escrow service is used for larger amounts) whether a domainer or not. As long as I can turn a 25% (or more) on a quick turn, lets make a deal!

 

[Internet.Domains]

Why limit business potential by judging and labeling prospects as "domainers?"

Seems foolish for someone to feel they are above "domainers", especially when they are one.

Interestingly, the subject of that article has since introduced a market place where he does buy from "domainers."

My how things change.

 

[MapleDots]

I have no high horse to sit on...

I decide each business deal on its own merits regardless of who owns the domain.

 

[xynames]

I think it’s more important to analyze why a potential buyer would say such a thing versus coming in with an arms crossed Take it or Leave it attitude.

Which was the point of my post above - that there are ways to deal with potential buyers that make it clear that you’re a re-seller but also that you’re not a bloodsucker. The details on how I do that - after reading all the hard nosed comments here putting down the end user who said “I don’t buy from domainers on principle” - make it clear that such sales tactics such details are lost to many of us.

Yes we’re all just trying to sell but there’s a right and wrong way to approach a buyer. Any buyer who says that he won’t buy from you on principle hasn’t been made to feel that you’re looking out for his interests as well as your own. In life - and in business - we must learn how to get people to do what we want them to do not because we told them to do it, but because it is in their best interests to do it. The true art of the deal is in getting the other guy to feel that he’s doing it as much for himself as for you.

 

[BRANDERX]

TheDomains publishes some of the nicest & most interesting articles/content in the industry, imo..

They are all domainers, Godaddy, Snapnames etc.. are full of individual domainers, members of this forum & active bidders elsewhere.

Sure, they can claim they don't buy from domainers, but they do actually, all the time..

When domaining makes you a millionaire or at least financially comfortable , its easy to say such things.

 

[Grego85]

Another reason I just thought of is that maybe its the old "people want what they cant have" mentality. You find a name that is dropping or at auction and it isn't for certain that you will be able to win the name. That makes you want it even more. When you know for sure you can get a name for x price then the allure is lost.

And then, yeah, some people just don't like domainers. I cant say I even blame people for hating domainers when you see these threads where a domainer finds out a potential buyer is from a large company and so they plan on jacking the price WAY up. Things like that give us all a bad name.

 

[MapleDots]

There is a professional way of handling inquiries...

Client email: Hey Man, how much you asking for domainx.com?

MapleDots: I'm sorry, to open dialogue you must use our contact form at www.mapledots.ca/contact

Once they see that form they are either a real client responding or a deadbeat that decides to leave well enough alone.

You can say so much with a proper contact form that you really don't have to say much at all.

In the end I don't care who is buying or selling as long as I can profit from the transaction. We all need to leave our personal feelings out of it and analyze each transaction on it's own merits.

 

[DomainGuy86]

"I don't buy domains from domainers on principle"

...but I'll buy an Iphone from a company that employs slave labour. I'll drive a car that pumps c02 into the atmosphere, helping to accelerate climate change. Won't think twice about it. I'll go to the store and pick up a bucket of chicken sourced from a farm that makes a quenton tarrantino movie look like a disney cartoon.

I'll buy a domain from a large registrar whose aggressive marketing campaigns teach people that they can score "big" with their next idea.

I'll sit idly by while the world literally implodes on itself from social inequity and strife....

...but toss an extra dollar to a domainer?

No, can't do that. Lord knows some of these people need the money to feed their families....but, no...poor people can stay poor, right?

Wrong.

It's called decentralization....bitcoin...microeconomies...wealth equalization. If you were really ethical you would realize most of the people clamoring for a sale actually need the money.

Flush your "ethics" down the toilet. (Not directed at OP or anyone, just had to rant at the notion itself)

 

[.X.]

I think it’s a psychological thing for end users, kind of like us buying a car from a small mom and pop dealership, we know the mom and pop dealership are buying their cars from individuals or auctions and marking them up substantially, so we will avoid buying a car from them.

The end user knows a domainer is doing the same type of thing and I think it disturbs them in the process of purchasing a domain name.

It’s to be expected IMO, however when I sell a name to an end user I am as transparent to them as possible, they still know I am hoarding domain names to sell them so to speak.

 

[equity78]

Why limit business potential by judging and labeling prospects as "domainers?"

Seems foolish for someone to feel they are above "domainers", especially when they are one.

Interestingly, the subject of that article has since introduced a market place where he does buy from "domainers."

My how things change.

True and good point which I was going to say at the end, Frank is now looking to buy from domainers. It was not just about domainers, the headline did come from an end user prospect that a reader sent.

 

[equity78]

I've often wondered about this phenomena as it exists right here on NP. You see halfway decent names being passed up and failing to sell for $15 and then go into the snap of the day thread and see people bragging about throwing away $79+ on garbage domains.

I've also started doing a lot of out-bounds lately to sell some of my inventory and I've also started offering drop catching services via outbound as well for names not quite good enough for my portfolio. I get WAY more responses to my outbound emails offering the drop catch service than I do when I'm trying to sell my own names. The email template is almost exactly the same and the names are of lesser quality, it makes no sense.

The only answer I can come up with is people like to feel like its their catch or their good idea. They have to come up with the idea or they have to discover that gem hiding in the pile of crap. If their brain doesn't get credit for it, they don't want it. But I dunno.

Exactly people love to give GoDaddy money, but not another domainer. A few years ago ran as best of an experiment as we could, expired 4L.coms at $1,000 with 3 days left, renewed and immediately put up as a public auction, most came in at a max of $300, a couple $500. Expiry vs public is another way of saying I won't buy from another domainer, now to be fair Frank brought up some good reasons why some might want to do that.

 

[secretagentdad]

People dislike domainers because they view them as non value adding middlemen off an artificially scarce property right.

The counter argument is that by investing they are providing segmented price discovery for word opportunities.

I would argue that domainers as a whole are a form of market magic brewery. Meaning that top performers in the market may well act as oracles in some word market sectors.

The problem is tuning in usable domain market signals and tuning out broker noise.

 

[secretagentdad]

@secretagentdad Here is a perfect example of what those outside of the domain bubble think of domainers. You read the comments and look at the alternatives suggested.

https://www.jwz.org/blog/2011/08/domain-squatting-parasites-not-interested-in-haggling-apparently/

hehehe
People are haters. That's a pretty salty thread.

 

[karmaco]

Oh yea - definitely for that simple reason: you got there before they did. As if there could never be more than one person with the same idea on the entire planet and that their idea would remain untouched for eternity until they felt like pursuing it. I've encountered some real nasty folks out there. I may be paranoid but I think some make offers just to get me "on the horn" so they can verbally assault me with their opinion of domainers.

This reminds me of a verbal assault I got by email regarding a canna name. He called me every name in the book without even knowing my price He was just pissed his brilliant idea was thought of first. I told him to up his dose and never contact me again.

 

[Innoverge]

The basic mindset behind those investors unwilling to buy from other domainers, is not liking the possibility of being on the receiving end of their own game i.e. being flipped to, at a higher price than the original investment.

But for expiring auctions, the perception might be different, since no one in particular(domain investor) is auctioning these domains off and these are considered prospective/valuable investments falling out of the sky, which if you don't grab, someone else will.
Of course in the above scenario the registrars are waived off as neutral parties, even though they directly profit from these expired auctions.

While there is nothing principled about not buying from domainers, an expert investor is one who can look beyond any bias or prejudice, and sees every domain for what it is, through the lens of its investment potential.

 

[DomainGuy86]

If I, as a domainer, have to pay a premium for a premium domain...why would any business person assume I'm going to shoot myself in the foot and unload it without a profit?

That's called business. I would retort to anyone eschewing deals with domainers a simple "Domains are contracts. I happen to own the contract you are seeking. If you want to assume ownership you have to buy out the contract."

If they continue to assail you with the moral or ethical ambiguities of the domain business, then cap it off with a "If you conducted your business like that you'd be insolvent within the year. Surely you know that."

That's how business works. If they don't like it, too damn bad--some milk and cookies may be in order.

 

[.X.]

People really took the mom and pop car dealership and ran with it LOL

That was an example purely for the psychological side of buying.

When you know someone paid $50 for something and they want you to pay $500 for it a short time later, it starts a couple of things, a person gets a little pissed off inside, perhaps jealous and other shit.

Then the person feels like they are getting fucked on the deal.


You have to remember, an end user has no idea of the amount of time and knowledge a domainer spends on getting their inventory, they simply don’t know the process.

So the end user psychology is saying to themself, a domain name costs $10 at the register, so why would I pay someone 10k for it, it is very psychological.

I have had to explain over the phone to end users why I am asking a certain price for a name. Once they understand why, I have never had a problem. Trying to justify pricing by email is a tuff deal, so I always speak to them by phone.

 

[DomainRecap]

Trust me, if the Devil himself has the goods at the right price, people be lining up to buy.

This "I don't buy from domainers on principle" comment is just a standard "not interested" topped off with an insult.

 

[artstar]

well what were these people b4 they were self named domain gurus? hmm maybe a DOMAINER? get over yourself buddy! c what $ does to some people?? especially ez $$!! domaining aint exactly brain surgery and anyone with the foresite and a dictionary could make decent $ in the day they were available to hand reg and buy cheap, what a self entitled git

 

[Keith]

Keith I can tell you I have experienced what the reader sent in, in the industry I came from Wall Street. The name was desired but my contact who I knew for years said we will not buy from squatters it's our policy. They very much liked the name, this was 15 years ago.

They are not endusers, they’re opportunists.

 

[Keith]

They were an established brokerage firm for 80 years, they were an end user.

Who cares? You pay the market value or move on. It’s the same rule if your budget is $1 or $10 million. 80 years is meaningless in this biz.

 

[equity78]

You’ve dealt with people that don’t like the asking price. Has nothing to do with who’s selling.

No simply not true, but I appreciate you telling me what I know. In one case the asking price was $500, the price was of no concern. The firm's policy was not to deal with squatters. The name was not a tm by any stretch and I pointed out they should learn the meaning of "squatter"