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discuss Mock Negotiation - Let's negotiate here week #3

Spaceship Spaceship
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Hi All,

As we are concluding the second negotiation here :
https://www.namepros.com/threads/mock-negotiation-lets-negotiate-here-week-2.1250841/

we have decided to bring to you another MOCK NEGOTIATION this week:

We know how tricky negotiations can be. It is a part and parcel of the domain name business. Even if we get the price for the domain name, that we were expecting, we feel like we left money on the table. And it happens time and again. So why not practice negotiation here:

Step 1: Members share the name which they would be willing to offer for sale
Step 2: I will be the buyer, the member whose domain is chosen becomes the seller
Step 3:
We appoint 1 member who doesn't belong to either party. Let's call him referee
Step 4:
Both buyer and seller share their minimum and maximum prices which they are willing to accept/offer respectively for the domain name
Step 5: We negotiate here on the thread with proper emails/texts. Everyone can view how you and I respond.
Step 6:
Buyer and seller can re-adjust their offer - buyer can increase the maximum that they are willing to offer, and seller can decrease the minimum that they are willing to take
Step 7: Either a deal is made or not
Step 8:
The appointed representative (referee) will share the buyer and seller minimum maximum
Step 9: We draw conclusions from the negotiation and the learnings

Please share your names so that we can pick one and start the process. The negotiation should last 1 week or less. Let's do this. The shortlist will be done tomorrow if we have ample entries.
 
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Thank you for that. I see that CamperCare.co is available and would be something that I may be considering as the next best alternative.
Also, I see that you have put up $2,500 as the lowest offer for this on Godaddy. So, that is what I can close at. Maybe a couple of hundred dollars here and there but not more.

Looking forward to your final offer.

An opening offer is the start of a negotiation, simply a minimum amount to qualify buyers.

$3,800 is the lowest I can go. If you are at the limit of your budget I can finance your purchase at zero interest. A better solution than compromising your brand.
 
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An opening offer is the start of a negotiation, simply a minimum amount to qualify buyers.

$3,800 is the lowest I can go. If you are at the limit of your budget I can finance your purchase at zero interest. A better solution than compromising your brand.
Fair point but I have a mandate to not go beyond a certain point. I can move to $2800 and can meet there if you come down. I see that you have been holding the domain for over 5 years and the wait could be a lot more.
 
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Fair point but I have a mandate to not go beyond a certain point. I can move to $2800 and can meet there if you come down. I see that you have been holding the domain for over 5 years and the wait could be a lot more.

If we can agree on $3000, I can transfer the domain to you within on hour of verified payment.
 
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If we can agree on $3000, I can transfer the domain to you within on hour of verified payment.
It's a deal! Let's close it at $3,000
 
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I'm $1K short of my goal.
Let @Future Sensors share what our initial messages were to him.

The floor is now open for comments - learnings and lessons, what could have been done better, where we did well etc.
@Future Sensors We eagerly wait for your comments.

@JimJammy Helped me through the endeavor. I am grateful to him for following this and sharing his inputs during the negotiation. Pls share your learnings from the negotiations.
 
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Thank you @abstractdomainer and @mr-x

It's been a ride! I'm glad you were able to get a good deal together and I do hope that the domain can be put to good use in the future. Congratulations to you both, gentlemen.
 
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DM from @abstractdomainer to me:

Screenshot 2021-10-24 at 20-16-06 CamperCare com - NamePros.png


DM from @mr-x to me:


Screenshot 2021-10-24 at 20-16-17 CamperCare com - NamePros.png


219266_265f1649a20e4541572522f620969bc2.png


219267_17c644d46d765962190736b5e9653e87.png
 
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Let @Future Sensors share what our initial messages were to him.

The floor is now open for comments - learnings and lessons, what could have been done better, where we did well etc.
@Future Sensors We eagerly wait for your comments.

@JimJammy Helped me through the endeavor. I am grateful to him for following this and sharing his inputs during the negotiation. Pls share your learnings from the negotiations.

Congrats @abstractdomainer. I should have stood my ground. Thank-you!
 
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Comments and tips from me.

About me: Full time domainer. My domains point to a landing page with a BIN button or contact me button. 95%+ of my domains have a BIN button. I use Afternic (ns5 and ns6) for domains for $2-$10K region and I have domains on brandable marketplaces (mainly in the $2k region). Anything else has a private landing page with a contact form.

Note, this is my experience
1. I have never had a conversation like this as a buyer or seller.
2. Domains priced below $5k, the deal is usually done within minutes, a few hours at most.
3. Be available, answer immediately. Buyers make snap decisions, you want them to press that BIN button straight away, you do not want them wandering off 'doing research' and potentially finding a better name or a really cheap alternative. You've heard of buyers remorse... it's too late after they've pressed the button. Your sole purpose should be to get them to hit that button as fast as possible.
4. Most people starting a website can afford a few thousand, you can sweeten a deal by offering installments.
5. You should never drop below 20% of your original asking price.
6. You should only drop the price once. If you drop it twice, the buyer will continue to push your limits and you'll drop it again and again until you end up having sellers remorse.

Tips about this conversation (and week 2):
A. Why ask what the domain was going to be used for? Don't do that. It suggests to the buyer that you are going to price the domain based on what you think they can pay. If you are a buyer and get asked that question, make out you are a mom and pop site ;).
B. As a seller, don't be afraid to say I'm sorry your offer is not enough instead of quoting a figure.
C. As a seller, don't be afraid to 'walk away' from a conversation. You can lower your BIN on your page and ignore the buyer. Around 25% of my sales are to buyers that had contacted me and I later ignored.
D. As a buyer, don't be afraid to say I'm sorry I can't afford that, if you decide to drop the price in the future, please come back to me. Most sellers will come back to you within a month.
E. It is pointless 'selling the domain' to a potential buyer if they contacted you first (telling them you'll add in services or there are xxx number of searches for that phrase etc). They have already contacted you, they want the domain.
F. Remember you want them to hit that BIN button.... don't say $x,xxx is the lowest I can go, instead say I have lowered the price on the domain to $x,xxx which will stand for the next 24 hours. Increase the price again if they don't hit that BIN!

You should change the domain name in the this thread to C@mp£rC@r£ or something similar so the domain name is not picked up by search engines when potential buyers are doing research.

Well done and good luck!

@Keith DeBoer, fancy helping out here with your comments and tagging someone else too?
 
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Thank you for the good advice. Negotiation is my weak link, most of my domains sell at the buy now price.
You both did well, lots of people reading this thread will learn something because you could be bothered to put yourself out there :)
 
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I've seen emails and private copies of many domain negotiations over the years. What I've noticed is that all negotiations end in the middle. That's why sellers anchor high and buyers anchor low - they want that middle ground to be in their favor.

This negotiation went the same way as almost all others I've seen.

Price was $5k and opening offer was $750
The mid point between those two is $2875
Deal closed at $3k

So, in my opinion, neither party "won" the negotiation. They just met in the middle.

Here's the breakdown of the negotiation:

Seller Buyer Diff
5000 750 4250
4500 2000 2500
4000 2000 2000
3800 2500 1300
3800 2800 1000
3000 3000 0

Seller did a good job of coming down in small and decreasing amounts - at first - but then caved at the end and reduced by $800. Is this wrong? Not necessarily. Maybe the seller needed rent money or had no plans to renew this domain etc. But. It was very inconsistent and could give the impression that the seller is desperate and may make the buyer think they are overpaying and walk away. I've seen it happen.

Now......... The art of negotiation goes way, way beyond the numbers. Great negotiators are able to subtly guide the other party through their emotional intelligence skills rather than the predictable back and forth of numbers and the inevitable meet in the middle outcome.

In 2016, I interviewed the author of Never Split the Difference for my NamePros blog. You might find some pointers there about developing your skills and also on his YouTube vids about email negotiations.

Good luck!!
 
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