I'm Brad Mugford, owner of DataCube.com. AMA

[bmugford]

I registered my first domain in the late 1990's, but have been an active domain investor for 15+ years now.

I am going to call this an Ask Me (Almost) Anything.
There might be some questions I am unwilling or unable to answer.

I would prefer to keep the questions related to domain investment, or business in general.

Feel free to ask general questions, or specific questions for instance regarding an appraisal of your domain.

About:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/datacubecom (I have not really used Twitter much, but plan to start using it more.)
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradmugford/

I am not sure how long I am going to leave this thread open. Let's see how it goes.

Brad

 

[Igor Mironyuk]

I have no idea.

I have limited experience in the affiliate marketing field.

Brad

I mean How find people who earn on affiliate because they after purchase domain, can make affiliate website on it.

 

[eternaldomains]

When scouting for private acquisitions, is there an accurate way to find out who's actually willing to let go of a domain or is it usually a hit and miss? In the past I tried searching expired but not dropped names but some many owners are just slow in renewing names.

 

[topdom]

Do you own datacube since 1987?

Do you ever suspect that a potential buyer might be an agent controlling a lead
(coming from a registrar) and buying it for a client, and this is why he is lowballing,
or even if not lowballing, you could get 10x more than his best offer?
If so, what do you do?
Does it bother you that marketplaces where your domain is listed doesn't give
any hint about potential buyers?
If so, do you choose your own landing page to get more info about
the buyer?
And if you feel there is a bigpocket buyer behind an offer,
do you make an effort to guess who that buyer might be
and try to contact them directly, to avoid the middleman who is trying to scam you?

 

[Charybdis]

How many hours do you spend on domaining per day and per month? By "domaining" I mean things like looking for new domains, acquiring new domains, uploading new domain listings, optimizing existing listings, replying to offers, replying to general messages, renewing domains, repricing domains, dropping domains, transferring domains, learning new things, optimizing the whole portfolio, working on DataCube, accounting, record-keeping etc.

And do you have any virtual assistant or employee?

 

[Mytz.com]

Very good bro!

 

[bmugford]

I mean How find people who earn on affiliate because they after purchase domain, can make affiliate website on it.

I don't really understand the question.

Feel to PM me and I will try to answer it.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

When scouting for private acquisitions, is there an accurate way to find out who's actually willing to let go of a domain or is it usually a hit and miss? In the past I tried searching expired but not dropped names but some many owners are just slow in renewing names.

Not really, and it is even harder now with WHOIS privacy.

It is a bit like a fishing expedition.

You just have to throw the hooks out there. Eventually you will catch something.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

Do you own datacube since 1987?

No. I was a young kid then.

I purchased it later, after the company went under. It was a competitor to companies like Adobe back in the day.

Do you ever suspect that a potential buyer might be an agent controlling a lead
(coming from a registrar) and buying it for a client, and this is why he is lowballing,
or even if not lowballing, you could get 10x more than his best offer?

I don't know about coming from a registrar, but many potential buyers mislead or straight up lie about who they are, their budget, their intentions, etc.

If so, what do you do?

I just ask the price I would have asked.

I price domains based on my perceived value. The buyer's budget or usage rarely makes an impact on that.

Does it bother you that marketplaces where your domain is listed doesn't give
any hint about potential buyers?

I can see it both ways.

As a seller, I would obviously like more intelligence.

As a buyer, I can understand wanting anonymity.

If so, do you choose your own landing page to get more info about
the buyer?

Outside IP address, which really only tells you are limited amount, the other data is only as good as what was entered into a system. Many times it is hard to know who you are actually dealing with.

And if you feel there is a bigpocket buyer behind an offer,
do you make an effort to guess who that buyer might be

Sometimes you might have information that leads to intelligence on the likely buyer.

If you know you are dealing with a strong buyer it can impact negotiations.

However, just because I might have information on the buyer doesn't mean I am suddenly going to inflate the price 10x, 20x, 50x, etc.

I think that is a mistake some people make.

Brad

 

[Future Sensors]

Agree with the above mentioned by @bmugford. In addition, marketplaces and brokers want to avoid that you contact the other party directly without using them, for business reasons. I think there are even situations where both buyer and seller pay fees to the same company for search and brokerage services.

 

[Sam1234]

Did you build your site or use a freelancer?

What does it mean to proactively buy domains from owners? Do you just find a domain you like and check the WHOIS, then reach out?

 

[omnia]

Great thread Brad....

Was wondering, and might be of interest to others.

After your initial listings on Dan &/or Afternic &/or whatever do you do any other "promo" type work? Don't mean outbound scenario here, or do you just allow the domains to "percolate" until a buyer comes along.
Leads to another question about what sort of review schedule do you have?
Fairly obvious may be a difference between high value domains and the rest, or is there?

 

[Chrstn]

Hi Brad,

I have this domain profitial/com and was thinking to develop this domain. I dont want to waste my domain parked somewhere else if i can use them. Can you advise me what possible project this domain can be use?

 

[topdom]

He meant: Ask Me Anything, except "what to do with your stupid (or smart) domain".

 

[Future Sensors]

He meant: Ask Me Anything, except "what to do with your stupid (or smart) domain".

I think we can have a little patience. There will be a nice response

 

[CK_Yau]

Thanks Brad for having this thread. Appreciated.

I started learning about domains during the COVID lockdown due to the work-from-home policy. Since then, I found it interesting.

About a year ago, I received a direct email from a person representing a company on the West Coast, saying that his company was interested in A/I/D/I/L/I/G/E/N/C/E .com and their offer would be $300.

Although it was only a hand reg, I declined it as I thought it should worth more.

Afterwards, this person had disappeared for good.

Although I can't turn back the time, I always wanted to learn - if I am right or wrong in declining the offer?

Thanks for answering. Please do feel free to PM if it would be inappropriate to reply publicily.

 

[bmugford]

I will be back later today to answer the new questions.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

How many hours do you spend on domaining per day and per month? By "domaining" I mean things like looking for new domains, acquiring new domains, uploading new domain listings, optimizing existing listings, replying to offers, replying to general messages, renewing domains, repricing domains, dropping domains, transferring domains, learning new things, optimizing the whole portfolio, working on DataCube, accounting, record-keeping etc.

Probably a few hours a day, if you include actual "work".

It was a lot more in the past, but I really fine tuned my systems when it comes to searching for domains.
Responding to inquires I generally do in batches every 2-3 days.

When it comes to the accounting, stuff like updating spreadsheets, I do that every few weeks.

And do you have any virtual assistant or employee?

I don't have official employees but I do use assistance on various tasks sometimes.
I do outsource some work, especially when it is tedious or boring.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

Very good bro!

Thanks. I hope some people are able to take something useful from my answers.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

Did you build your site or use a freelancer?

I gave some opinions on aspects of the design, but it was largely designed by another party.

What does it mean to proactively buy domains from owners? Do you just find a domain you like and check the WHOIS, then reach out?

Well, there are any number of ways.

You can look at lists of domains that are expiring, but can still be redeemed.
You can come up with lists on your own, starting with a keyword, concept, or format.

Then you try to find out who owns it, and reach out to them.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

Great thread Brad....

Was wondering, and might be of interest to others.

After your initial listings on Dan &/or Afternic &/or whatever do you do any other "promo" type work? Don't mean outbound scenario here, or do you just allow the domains to "percolate" until a buyer comes along.

Honestly, I do hardly anything. This is not some strategy, I am just somewhat lazy about it.
I kind of see the listings as fish hooks in the water, looking for a bite.

Leads to another question about what sort of review schedule do you have?
Fairly obvious may be a difference between high value domains and the rest, or is there?

I am not sure if I understand the question, but I assume you mean separating domains by value.

I generally put prices on lower upside domains, which include domains like non .COM, GEO, or specific formats with limited upside. These provide steady cash flow.

The rest of my domains I generally just have set to "make offer". I think I would have a higher sell-through rate if all my domains were priced, but there is a question on total revenue.

I also factor in that good .COM tend to go up in demand and value over time, so I am less motivated to sell them without a strong offer.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

Hi Brad,

I have this domain profitial/com and was thinking to develop this domain. I dont want to waste my domain parked somewhere else if i can use them. Can you advise me what possible project this domain can be use?

What does it mean?

Develop into what?

I generally buy domains that have a clear use or pool of potential buyers from the start.

Buying that type of domain is kind of working backwards in my view. If you buy a domain, then look for uses or users there might not be any obvious ones.

Putting money into development, without a clear plan, can be throwing good money after bad AKA sunk cost. IMO.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

I started learning about domains during the COVID lockdown due to the work-from-home policy. Since then, I found it interesting.

About a year ago, I received a direct email from a person representing a company on the West Coast, saying that his company was interested in A/I/D/I/L/I/G/E/N/C/E .com and their offer would be $300.

Although it was only a hand reg, I declined it as I thought it should worth more.

Afterwards, this person had disappeared for good.

Although I can't turn back the time, I always wanted to learn - if I am right or wrong in declining the offer?

It is a lot easier to answer the question in retrospect.

Have I turned down offers I wish I accepted? Many.
Have I got sales way higher than expected by turning down offers? Sure.

That is not really a great domain, but it was not really a great offer either.

I wouldn't lose sleep over it. All you can do is the make the best decision at the time.

Brad

 

[CK_Yau]

Thanks Brad! Appreciated!

Since you've mentioned the collection of sports cards, may we know what sports you like?

and yes,it is not a domaining question sports-wise, purely.

 

[bmugford]

Thanks Brad! Appreciated!

Since you've mentioned the collection of sports cards, may we know what sports you like?

and yes,it is not a domaining question sports-wise, purely.

I collect a mix, mainly graded vintage stuff. Pre-junk wax era.
I am not that interested in modern day cards.

I generally prefer basketball and football, but baseball has way more iconic cards when it comes to collecting.
I have a little hockey as well.

I also have some nostalgic cards like early Garbage Pail Kids.
Anyone who grew up in the 80's remembers those.

Brad

 

[Kainazarov]

I appreciate the offer, but in general I am not really interested in .XYZ.

Brad

Thank you!