domain Links.com vs. Scores.com vs. Bookmarks.com

[richrf]

Hi guys,

I am not selling links.com, but I am continuing to evaluate partnership arrangements, since I have several routes that I am considering. From a valuation perspective, would Links.com be closer to scores.com ($1.2 million) or bookmarks.com ($400,000). Thanks for your input.

Rich

 

[rachelletcy88]

I wonder how many times you want this to be appraised. Stop wasting your time man.

 

[Ross]

bookmarks.com

 

[Ja$on]

bookmarks

 

[richrf]

Thanks guys.

Rich

 

[wild]

What can I say "Rich man"

 

[richrf]

What can I say "Rich man"

:hi:

Well, trying to get there. I know I have to do much more to develop the domain. I am going to continue to work on increasing traffic by providing better content.

Cya around,

Rich

 

[IAmAllanShore]

I'd say closer to "scores.com" in use, which would indicate value to an end-user.

$1mm isn't a pipe-dream on this one.

BOL,
-Allan :gl:

 

[IconPacks]

Properly developed it would be closer to scores.com in my opinion.

Links.com works better than link.com as well... the names got a LOT of potential, turn it into the ultimate web directory and you'll be laughing all the way to the bank

 

[wild]

I agree with above appraisals.

 

[IAmAllanShore]

I agree with above appraisals.

Which are very different, so your post means what?

:/

Went back and rethought mine some more - links.com has even more potential than scores.com if developed well, and as such if sold should command a similar price, :imho: . LinkedIn.com is huge, and the name is awkward, and the model imperfect, leaving the space open for a new mover. While links.com is begging for a TM issue if it was moved into the same market space, that is only one example of a better use than scores.com has.

-Allan :gl:

 

[richrf]

Properly developed it would be closer to scores.com in my opinion.

Links.com works better than link.com as well... the names got a LOT of potential, turn it into the ultimate web directory and you'll be laughing all the way to the bank

\

Hi there IconPacks,

Very much appreciate your feedback. If you can assist me in developing this domain, or know of someone who can, I would appreciate the referral. My approach is cautious, since lots of ideas, at the end, do not get traction. So I it is difficult to excite me, but when an idea is proven, I can move quickly into a full implementation stage. Please keep in touch, and again thanks for your input.

Regards,
Rich

I'd say closer to "scores.com" in use, which would indicate value to an end-user.

$1mm isn't a pipe-dream on this one.

BOL,
-Allan :gl:

Hi Allan,

Thank you for your comments. I can see you have quite a lot of experience in the area of domains. If you have any services that I might be able to utilize, please PM me.

Thanks again for your help.

Regards,
Rich

 

[snoop]

Would say around 200-300k. I beleive the bookmarks.com sale was to an enduser. I agree with rachelletcy88, this names seems to have been on the market forever, the longer something is marketed and doesn't sell, the more it looks like a lemon.

 

[richrf]

Which are very different, so your post means what?

:/

Went back and rethought mine some more - links.com has even more potential than scores.com if developed well, and as such if sold should command a similar price, :imho: . LinkedIn.com is huge, and the name is awkward, and the model imperfect, leaving the space open for a new mover. While links.com is begging for a TM issue if it was moved into the same market space, that is only one example of a better use than scores.com has.

-Allan :gl:

Hi Allan,

Yes, if I was to move into social networking, it would only make sense if I came up with a completely unique approach and target audience. In any case, I tried using LinkedIn a while ago, and found it too chaotic, so I was not very impressed with the concept. I would want something much tighter and useful, even if it addressed a smaller audience or audiences. Actually, I find very little for most of the social networks and I am always confounded why they are so popular. I don't think even my son uses it. I think he is mostly IM.

Thanks again for your additional comments,
Rich

 

[Ross]

Hi Allan,

Yes, if I was to move into social networking, it would only make sense if I came up with a completely unique approach and target audience. In any case, I tried using LinkedIn a while ago, and found it too chaotic, so I was not very impressed with the concept. I would want something much tighter and useful, even if it addressed a smaller audience or audiences. Actually, I find very little for most of the social networks and I am always confounded why they are so popular. I don't think even my son uses it. I think he is mostly IM.

Thanks again for your additional comments,
Rich

Social Networks are popular because they can drive traffic to your site. Plus stumble upon and other networks are a great way to find new sites that others think are cool, interesting, or useful. Hence why people would like their sites listed with these networks.

 

[richrf]

Would say around 200-300k. I beleive the bookmarks.com sale was to an enduser. I agree with rachelletcy88, this names seems to have been on the market forever, the longer something is marketed and doesn't sell, the more it looks like a lemon.

Hi there snoop,

Yes, I think the owner of NetRocket purchased this domain. Eliott blogged about it. I think he has a specific use for it, for his new social network.

I agree with your comments about a business going stale if it is out there too long. That is why I have not marketed or launched it. Besides specialized groups like NamePros, there really aren't that many people who are aware of the domain's existence, other than those who visit it for the blog each day. It is a fair amount of visitors, and I have been able to increase the number of monthly visitors by several fold over the last year, yet I agree that I can do much better.

So it really hasn't been publicized, or had a chance to fail yet. It is growing slowly. Right now, I am still in the very early development stage, where I am experimenting with ideas - e.g. directories, Digg-like site, blog, etc. There are several other ideas that I am working on. Each step gives me more information to build on.

If you have any ideas, I welcome them.

Regards,
Rich

Social Networks are popular because they can drive traffic to your site. Plus stumble upon and other networks are a great way to find new sites that others think are cool, interesting, or useful. Hence why people would like their sites listed with these networks.

Hi there Tivo,

I agree that some social networks are good for driving traffic, but most end up going nowhere, because people are reluctant to spend any time on any but the most popular social networks. Even on Digg, only a very small percentage of the daily visitors actually participate.

The difficulty that I have with social networks, is how to monetize them. I am not sure any have turned a profit yet, though at least two have been either sold for a tidy profit, or have been able to find some substantial investment dollars. However, this does not mean that they have been successfully monetized.

It is long shot to hope for a buyout (especially with all of the first movers out there like MySpace, FaceBook, and LinkedIn). So what I would like to understand is how to successfully monetize these sites. It is a well known fact that repeat visitors do not click on ads, and I am not even sure they are influenced by ads, since they learn how to ignore them, but I can be wrong about this.

Thanks for your comments.

Regards,
Rich

I wonder how many times you want this to be appraised. Stop wasting your time man.

Hi there,

During the client/server and Internet booms in the 80s and 90s, I was a technologist and served on the Board of Directors, of many startups. Most never made it big (though they might have had limited success), some grew into powerful, well-known, listed companies.

One thing all of the companies had in common, was leadership that had patience. It normally takes six years or more for a company to take off. There are lots of stops and starts along the way. Sometimes companies totally re-invents itself to take advantage of new trends. Google, for example, went from a Web search engine, to a major advertising platform.

I have been working on Links.com for about a year right now, and am very pleased with the progress. As I mentioned, I have increased monthly traffic substantially. I am working on new ideas and will continue to develop the domain. Like many of the startups that I have worked with during my career, I think that patience, persistence, and unique ideas for the marketplace, are key ingredients in building a great business.

Regards,
Rich

 

[Cush]

Scores.com would be great if linked/affiliated with different sportsbooks/casinos.

 

[exponent]

With a little work, $500,000 wouldn't be out of the question. With the current page however, it is unlikely. Investing in design (graphical and web) could definitely push this domain a lot higher.

Almost forgot.. If you could get a dating site up and going wouldn't that be amazing.. Links would be a heck of a name for that.

 

[Ross]

....snip

Hi there Tivo,

I agree that some social networks are good for driving traffic, but most end up going nowhere, because people are reluctant to spend any time on any but the most popular social networks. Even on Digg, only a very small percentage of the daily visitors actually participate.

The difficulty that I have with social networks, is how to monetize them. I am not sure any have turned a profit yet, though at least two have been either sold for a tidy profit, or have been able to find some substantial investment dollars. However, this does not mean that they have been successfully monetized.

It is long shot to hope for a buyout (especially with all of the first movers out there like MySpace, FaceBook, and LinkedIn). So what I would like to understand is how to successfully monetize these sites. It is a well known fact that repeat visitors do not click on ads, and I am not even sure they are influenced by ads, since they learn how to ignore them, but I can be wrong about this.

Thanks for your comments.

Regards,
Rich

snip...

I think the whole point of these sites is not to motenize them, but to gain Exposure to your site. The more people like your site the more exposure you gain from these networks. Once you gain a steady flow of traffic and good gathering of returning visitors you motenize them with subscriptions to exclusive areas to the site or you offer some kind of service that people might want. Its a very hard way to go about motenizing a site because that site has to have something special to gain that type of exposure like myspace or any of those types of sites got that got HOT "over night".

What im saying is if you are trying to build up a site and gain potential from the site then yes social networks can help out A LOT. If you are just trying to build a site you can make a couple bucks on through AdSense then SEO is the way to go. Its all about choices and how you want the site to turn out. I can tell you this though with a gem like Links.com i would definently plan it out before you decided to do what ever you are going to do. Offer something unique and drive quality traffic to it.

Easier said than done im afraid...

 

[richrf]

With a little work, $500,000 wouldn't be out of the question. With the current page however, it is unlikely. Investing in design (graphical and web) could definitely push this domain a lot higher.

Almost forgot.. If you could get a dating site up and going wouldn't that be amazing.. Links would be a heck of a name for that.

Hi exponent,

Thanks for your comments.

If you are a web designer, and have some ideas that you think would boost traffic, as well as ad conversions, please PM me. I would like to discuss your ideas with your.

If I could come up with a unique slant on a dating site, I would move on it. However, the marketplace is pretty saturated, and I have been unable to come up with anything unique.

Thanks again for your reply.

Rich

I think the whole point of these sites is not to motenize them, but to gain Exposure to your site. The more people like your site the more exposure you gain from these networks. Once you gain a steady flow of traffic and good gathering of returning visitors you motenize them with subscriptions to exclusive areas to the site or you offer some kind of service that people might want.

Hi again Tivo,

I 100% agree with you that initially the goal should be to build traffic. But, whatever the traffic that the site gets, eventually has to be monetized. Google's traffic, for example, was eventually monetized via Adwords/Adsense. I thought this was very clever. Other large sites also eventually figured out how to monetize their traffic - mostly through ads, though sometimes via subscription if there is a very unique service - e.g. Morningstar. But eventually, the traffic has to be monetized in some way in order to have a business.

What is not clear to me is whether MySpace traffic can be monetized. New Corp. purchased it for their network, but News Corp does have very deep pockets and can lose money on MySpace if the acquisition can help it achieve some other goals - e.g. elect another Republican President. The question is whether sites like LinkedIn can monetize and go public, or find a buyer. Either exit is O.K. but I am not sure whether both are available for these kind of sites.

Its a very hard way to go about motenizing a site because that site has to have something special to gain that type of exposure like myspace or any of those types of sites got that got HOT "over night".

Yes, again I totally agree with you. It's basically what I have discovered over the last year.

What im saying is if you are trying to build up a site and gain potential from the site then yes social networks can help out A LOT. If you are just trying to build a site you can make a couple bucks on through AdSense then SEO is the way to go.

My primary goal is to build a very popular site, with traffic that can be monetized.

Its all about choices and how you want the site to turn out. I can tell you this though with a gem like Links.com i would definently plan it out before you decided to do what ever you are going to do. Offer something unique and drive quality traffic to it.

Yes, that is what I am trying to do. However, it does take time to come up with that gem of an idea. Oracle, for example, was founded in 1979. It really didn't take off until the mid-1980s. Startups take time. I think you would agree.

Easier said than done im afraid...

Yes.

Regards,
Rich