Is it worth it selling domains on eBay?

[unknowngiver]

Hey
i bought thebatmanbegins.com thinking that it is a great name since the movie was just released...anyway it looks like hardly anyone likes it at namepros...so is it worth sleling at ebay? or any other site?

 

[unknowngiver]

ok i will try it out :D
thanks

 

[phpwiz]

ebay is NOT the way to go when selling domains!!!!!!

 

[RickyG]

phpwiz, why not? I have caught a few goodies on EBay..

 

[Grrilla]

I was recently discussing the reseller's market w/ a domain name vet who characterizes the sale of midrange names to wholesalers as "having your names sweated out of you". (By midrange, I mean the broad, general category of names that experienced domainers, (not the general public), view in the above averege to almost very good, range- not quite very good or premium ), and the name category w/ the highest number of transactions, and the names making up the bulk of most domainers portfolios.

Other than a few occasional and delightful exceptions, exchanges like Afternic Bazaar, eBay, and domain name forums, (there are some enduser sales, but from my experience, resellers account for most of the buying/selling traffic and activity at these sites), the buyers are looking for bargains- low or underpriced names, names that will fill specific, but not pressing needs, names that can be picked up, at, below or near wholesale pricing. (or what one would expect to see in a "reseller's market". (It's surprising to see how long it takes people, including myself, to figure this out.)

Enter the down and dirty world of the domain name sweatshop. This is the gauntlet. The acid test. Don't come here with any lofty, (or non-lofty), ideas or illusions that your names are going to receive very much respect. The reseller's market is where names go to cover losses. This is where they go to quickly find a new home and earn a few dollars for their owner before they drop. This is where names go, (the same names that were once being eagerly registered and touted), when they haven't quite reached their potential or haven't lived up to their owners expectations for them. This is a place where names are sacrificed to fullfiil their owners unforeseen and unplanned for financial squeeze. This is a market in which fair and legitimate pricing isn't always good enough and where fingers are crossed, hoping that perhaps it will go better this time than it did the last.

For the lionshare of names that are listed, the wholesale marketplace is a place where prices are trimmed down in increments of 1 1/2, and 2 and 3 and 4 dollars to entice a sale. It's a world in which pocket change is counted, the amount of which can impact a sale. Don't expect to receive the reg fee or low-mid $xx+/- amount that your name received at the appraisal board. Not saying that it doesn't happen, but selling midrange names at prices that are $10 or $20 above regfee, are the exceptions, and not the rule. If your name was appraised at $30, chances are, it won't receive a bid if you list it at $30. And, don't even count on it selling for $15 or at reg fee, for that matter. There are several high dollar sales that do take place in the reseller's market- 3LL.coms, strong dictionary words, high traffic names etc, but this is a fringe market, and doesn't fit the profile of the names in our model, which encompasses the bulk of the names that are listed in the reseller's market.

Most domainers can put their think cap on, do some hunting and come up w/ at least, a name or two that would be considered to be good and, occasionally, very good- by non premium, midrange standards. Generally, to sell a name to another reseller, the name has to be, at least, at this level, in which case it might sell at, or a few dollars above, regfee. If you have a name that measures up to the "occasionally very good" level, you might be looking at, on avg, a $15 or $20 profit. If the price is $5 or $10 above these standards, you probably won't get a sale. Remember, you are in the gauntlet. This is the acid test.

Over the past couple of years, I can think of at least 4 names that I sold, w/ prices ranging from $150 to $1500, that had been previously listed in reseller venues, w/ nary a bite or a show of interest. A couple of weeks ago, I had inadvertantly put two strong keyword names- one w/ nearly 400,000 OV searches/ mo, the other was right at 270,000. Thankfully, nobody offered me the $29 and $39 asking prices on these two names that had been mistakenly pasted in w/ the others in the list.

Add listing fees into the mix, and you can quickly find yourself running in the red due to the names that didn't sell- perhaps because they were priced a couple of dollars too high. (The way Regfly lists expiration dates, (2006,06,04) confused me once, and I screwed up the expiration date in my listing by 3 months ie 9mos reg remaining vs 12 mos. The guy emailed me all pi~~ed off about the mistake and demanded his $12.74 refund. I was happy to comply because the name hadn't gotten bid up to what I wanted, anyways- but this is a good example of the kind of people you might find yourself dealing w/ @ eBay. Meanwhile, while your "No Sale" emails stack up and you take another look at the listing fees that have accrued, the better names you had listed - the one's you had to think twice about - the one's where the price tag was probably a bit too generous - the names that you wouldn't mind seeing fail to sell - those are the ones that get swooped up or have started a bidding war where 8 bids have showed up 28 minutes before the auction closes w/each one going up $0.25 more than the last one!!

When you have reached this point in domain sales, congatulations! You have slid down into the gutter, and you now know, that you are swimming around in the domain name cesspool. :wave:

 

[Media.info]

Why eBay ? What's up with SEDO ?

eBay is not a very good place to sell domains

 

[JoshHendo]

Why eBay ? What's up with SEDO ?

eBay is not a very good place to sell domains

I agree. I think you should use sedo or afternic. They are much better than ebay!

 

[Raz0rBlade_uk]

I have sold many domains on eBay. Sometimes you can get a really good sale. Often there's hype about one thing and people on eBay will pay more for it than anywhere else.

Overall I found that it was very hard to make a profit due to using bold, gallery etc features. If you don't use promotion then it can be hard to sell a good domain.
I suggest you avoid it. I won't be using it again for a long while.

 

[AdoptableDomains]

The choice of sales venues depends on your needs to sell in a certain amount of time. If you need to sell quickly, you'll usually be attracting wholesale buyers who are going to resell the domain. If you want retail or end user buyers, be prepared to wait months or years for the right buyer unless you actively seek end users to direct market to.

Ebay - Most ebay listings are 7-10 days. The odds of finding the exact right end user who happens across your domain in that period are small. You'll most likely find wholesalers looking for quick bargains. When I did sell there, I found it best to list the domain not exclusively in the domain category, but in a category end users may search. For example listing a photography domain in the camera category, or antiques domain in the antiques category. Also, even crudely developed websites sell better than a domain name alone.

Afternic Bazaar - specifically listed as a wholesale domain reverse auction. You can sell quickly, but rarely expect to get more than $50.

Afternic, Sedo, and Great Domains - Long term listings and parking will lead to higher prices and end users based on landing on a parked page or searching listings for something they like. If you can get parking to pay for renewal fees, time no longer becomes a factor in your cost to hold the name.

TDNAM - yet unproven, but somewhere between AN/SEDO and ebay. listings are not a year or more, but a few months, and free to list initially. We'll see how their market pans out.

The forums - normally wholesale buyers, but a few end user developers know to look here for good domains. If you don't mind sacrificing price for quick sales and turning of money. Advantage is many ways to sell such as fixed price, auction, or make offer.

The second best way to get end user pricing is to park (with for sale on the parked page) and wait, as well as make sure your whois indicates a way to contact you and some indication you may be willing to sell.

Probably the best way to get end users is to actively seek them. This can be time consuming and if you pick non-generic names can get you into UDRP territory. However, the best way to get retail buyers is to let them know something they may want or need is available. This is not practical if you have a huge portfolio or little time, so combining with the above paragraph is the ususally smart.

 

[Grrilla]

Adoptable has brought up a good point, that was implied in my post, but that probably should have been more clearly stated. The scenarios I have described all fall under the umbrella of a quick or "forced" sale. The "cesspool" I refer to isn't the listing site per se, but rather a "swimming pool" of our own design. The intent of my post is to issue a caution, and not an indictment.

The reseller's market, from the seller's POV, can look like the bleak wasteland that I have described, and domainers, particularly the new, and less experienced should heed the warning. But, there is also a larger, brighter and more optimistic picture, as well:

-As was mentioned, good sales, and even some enduser sales do occur. Just don't bank on it happening in the short term. You can market to enduser's at site's that have an audience w/ a broader demographic, (ie eBay), but it is important to weigh listing *and* relisting fees, (and don't forget registration renewal fees), against the asking price when calculating potential profit. Also remember that the higher your desired price, the tougher the sell and the higher the risk of coming up blank.

-Take the "crap shoot" mentality. Don't model your business around this approach, but occasionally, you might want to throw the dice, and put up a name, at retail, on eBay or ABazaar, just to see if you might hit on a yoleven! I've hit hot "yoleven's" in Vegas before, (one time I hit them twice in a row!!), but I have yet to hit one selling a name at retail on a, (primarily), reseller's domain name listing site.

-With time, patience, and persistency, better results can be acheived. If you are diligent, consistent, are not prone to discouragement, don't view the lack of response to your listings as rejection and can take it all in stride, (at least to some degree), eventually, (who knows when or where?), you are going to sell some names at, around and, yes, even above, their appraised wholesale values. After reading my previous post in this thread, it may seem ironic to some, that I sold 5 names last week at fair, appraised market value prices, right here at the NP "Domain Names For Sale" forum.

The safest way to list names in the reseller's market, and w/ the lowest amount of financial outlay and risk, is to list right here at NP, where there are no membership fees and no listing fees. I can't speak on behalf of the other forums, or their domain name sales boards, but I do know that besides being the fastest growing domain name forum, NamePros is now also the largest, has the highest volume of traffic, and the quality of the name transactions and the participants involved, has been markedly rising.

The moral of the story? There is life after swimming in the cesspool. :sold: :hehe:

 

[tandiono]

If your domain name is very gud, then try Greatdomains.com.. All the best

 

[unknowngiver]

Hey thanks guyz
i think i will stick wid Namepros and instead of selling the domain, i will take time to develop it and sell it as a developed website :P

 

[Grrilla]

i think i will stick wid Namepros and instead of selling the domain, i will take time to develop it and sell it as a developed website :P

:bingo:

If your domain name is very gud, then try Greatdomains.com.. All the best

I've got 4 listed there now. Is it OK to stop holding my breath, yet?

 

[equity78]

Michael your two long posts were the most realistic and informative for new sellers I have read you broke everything down to its purest form. Nice Job Rep upgraded.