Namerific vs Brandbucket vs Brandroot vs others

[muttus]

Hi NPs,

I would like to start discussion to get as much knowledge about existing marketplaces in to one nice thread. I know there are specific threads for each marketplace but I think it is good to compare them to get good picture. I have been submitting domains to both Namerific and Brandbucket till now and had few accepted in BB.

These are my thoughts please feel free to contest them.

Namerific
+ Faster reply 2-3 weeks
+ Free to list
+ More focused on 2 words and descriptive
+ Seller chooses the price
+ You can still have the for sale in other places

- Rejection rate?
- Outreach ?
- Size of database? - I am worried that if you have so many names one more will just get lost, nobody wants to go through more then couple dozen names

Brandbucket
+ Free to list after voting
+ Focus on word hacks and short pronounceable names without meaning
+ Probably most visible and marketed
+ Search options?

- Long waiting period 4+ weeks
- Require exclusivity
- Size of database? - I am worried that if you have so many names one more will just get lost, nobody wants to go through more then couple dozen names

Brandroot - please submit your ideas


Others - please submit you ideas


Now to the questions.
Where do you place you brandables?

Where do you think is highest chance to sell and why?

What is your average success rate for submission and sale?

Do you submit your brandables according to main focus of the marketplace?

Bad vs good experience?

Are there any official sales numbers for each marketplace?

 

[Chris Hydrick]

Namerific 'non-exclusive'? That's funny. My acceptance rate at Namerific was about 3% and I had to wait as long as a month or more to get my domains reviewed. I don't call that non-exclusive.

Regarding the listing fee you can spin it any way you want but Namerific has listing fees. More than half my accepted domains at Namerific required a listing fee for publication. Yea they have special weird deals for free listings but they were inconsistent and whimsical. Personally I'd rather deal with a marketplace that doesn't waffle back and forth on their fees on a whim. I like to know where I stand and BB makes all their policies and procedures clear in their seller agreement and seller FAQ.

All great points @Keith DeBoer !!!

Waiting over a month is way to long. BrandBucket has done a great job to cut wait times down. I had issues with BrandRoot waiting several months because I didnt know they stopped reviewing domains when had a pending approved domain. They approved one, and I thought they'd review the full list without having to publish the approved domain first. Perhaps it was just a security measure for new BrandRoot accounts. When I submitted domains a few months ago, BrandRoot was extremely quick to review them.

BrandBucket set the standard for wait times, and I thank them for that. Namerific will have some improving to do, but their policies are on point. Invest for the future, not just for today.

 

[Chris Hydrick]

Namerific 'non-exclusive'? That's funny. My acceptance rate at Namerific was about 3% and I had to wait as long as a month or more to get my domains reviewed. I don't call that non-exclusive.

Keith, I say this with all due respect, but I add this because I don't think you understand the definition of nonexclusive.

That means, because Namerific is nonexclusive, that I could have sold my 1 BrandBucket sale this year via WHOIS directly to the buyer without $XXX in fees. How do I know the buyer didn't find the domain on it's own? Namerific is the only brandable marketplace where I can opt to sell this domain via WHOIS and it's not against their ToS.

Let's not be naive. Some BrandBucket sellers get contacted via WHOIS and decide to undercut the marketplace. I know several loyal brandbucket sellers who have done this and not felt bad one bit because they believed the domain would have sold itself regardless of BrandBucket. I asked some of you for advice when I was contacted via WHOIS and the advice given was they did. It would have been nice to cut BB out, but I adhere to the ToS even though I disagree with their policies. It's unfair for those who play by the rules, to receive scrutiny for promoting change, by those who play by a differnt set of rules.

I am not saying you don't play by the rules Keith. All I know about you or your perks is that you've written for BrandBucket's blog before and that during your first year of BrandBucket you benefited significantly by the voting system and the free listing fee's it rewarded you for training that helped give you a better feel for made up brandables. Were there many keyword domains in there? I remember mostly made up brandable domains.

 

[Keith DeBoer]

OK, @Grilled Now I see you meant non-exclusive in that sellers can list their domains at Namerific and also at SEDO at the same time. OK. That's correct and its different from BB and BR. That wasn't clear to me in your original post about publication fees.

My point was that in terms of acceptance and publication Namerific is just as exclusive as any other marketplace.

And yes each marketplace has their own terms of use. We agree to play by those rules when we submit and publish our names on that marketplace. That's how business is done. Every website has a terms of use. Even NamePros. We agree to abide by those rules when we become a member.

Thanks for clarifying your point.

Cheers!

 

[Chris Hydrick]

My point was that in terms of acceptance and publication Namerific is just as exclusive as any other marketplace.

Thanks for clarifying your point. The domains that were accepted for free, I assume they also provided you with a logo and description. This is the point of the policy I'm trying to promote. They're confident enough to approve your domain for free.

They have a lean marketplace, they have to be selective of what gets accepted for free. If your domain, and type in traffic has value, they reward you accordingly. If they don't sell it in the first year, then it becomes a pay to play game if you don't think the domain will sell anywhere, and decide to renew it anyways to give it another year at Namerific, Sedo, Afternic, Flippa BIN, and more :D

 

[Hypersot]

@Hypersot It's questions like this, that will get others to begin questioning, marketplaces to listen, and industries to change. I certainly have.

Thank you so much for asking these questions. They were by no means stupid questions, and I can't thank you enough for raising these questions. I'm sure Namerific has answers to your questions about what they do for your domains, to the point of commission fee's, and how they reward those who forward their domains to Namerific. If they don't, I'm sure competition can force their hand to adhere to incentivizing their sellers who do. They already provide free listing fee's for premium domains, but this does not mandate your type in traffic.

Thank you. I wish NP got more 'positive' posts like yours, it seems the forum is getting a lot of poison lately.

regarding the brandable markets,
there is actually more to it than what I have asked on that post.
You see, at some point in the past, I started wondering that question, ie. what do the brandable market offer us exactly?

What I did to answer my question was that I 'simulated' the behaviour of someone that starts a company and looks for help in the search engines, just to get a small understanding of how much traffic those markets get.
I didn't get any 'solid' results so I moved even deeper,

I used my 'parking' experience when searching for domains to analyze the traffic of the 3 most well known brandable sites, ie. BR, NR and BB.
One of the first things I did was to get the keywords they tried to rank for and used SEMrush and SearchMetrics to see what I'd get... that was a year+ ago btw.

anyway, I won't go much into the details but all in all I realised that people mostly arrive on those marketplaces by other means than search or social media; maybe word of mouth or traffic from all the other domains that are parked with them.
Surely they couldn't compete with the traffic that the major marketplaces got though (ie. GoDaddy, SEDO, etc.)

That's where I also got another question, ie. what those marketplaces do when a potential buyer lands on them?
The only time I sold a domain with BB I first got their representative asking me if I wanted to sell lower.
I said 'no' and after a few days the domain got sold at the price it was originally set.
I still wonder why I had to answer to get that domain sold at the price I wanted. Wasn't that part of the representative's work? ie. the 30% we're talking about?

anyway, I'm pretty sure there are people with way more knowledge than me who understand how things work.
In my 2+ years in this business I still feel like I'm in my first week -as in totally newbie- so all I can do is wait and get more experience and try to adapt instead of see things negative... that doesn't stop me from still having an opinion though

 

[Chris Hydrick]

Mike at Namerific is too busy traveling the world and posting pictures on Twitter so that leaves you with BrandBucket if you're serious about these types of names.

Namerific has more than just Mike running their marketplace. Let's give them a chance and see what comes from it... At $0 investment for premium domains, what's the risk?

Based on thread discussion It seems best brandable marketplaces are BrandBucket and BrandRoot. But they take long time to select and list domains.

It's a marathon, not a race. IMO, Namerific is the marketplace of the future because they don't lock you down to selling exclusively on their marketplace nor do they charge listing fee's for premium domains.

Great thread @muttus ... Following!

Namerific - They are currently my favorite brandable marketplace due to their progressive policies. I can list with all marketplaces. They are not exclusive. They do free listing fee's for my premium domains. For the domains they estimate will need extra help selling, they discount my initial listing fee because I forward my domains.

BrandRoot: 1 of 24 domains sold in the last 3 months. I would like to list more with BrandRoot, but after feeling ripped off by BrandBucket, I am hesitant to invest in $10 listing fee's. I'm waiting to hear more about their designer/domainer and paid renewal program.

BB: They were the original marketplace, and a company I once placed a lot of faith in based off of the communities support, and their best sellers / managing director @michaeljkrell reported sales. A few months ago my issues were minor. They failed to fix the hole in their leaking ship, and now I'm coming at them like a wrecking ball... see links in my signature for more.

 

[Chris Hydrick]

@Grilled May I know why you disliked this post ?

Absolutely I was asked this same question by another member this morning, so thank you for asking, and allowing me to clarify the dislike. I'm short on time, and have already discussed this via private conversation.

It's Saturday, and a beautiful day in Minnesota, so allow me to copy and paste an exert of something I wrote earlier today.

**Correction to the screenshot. BrandRoot is exclusive. Namerific is NonExclusive**

I'll be happy to answer any questions :D

 

[Abdullah Abdullah]

Absolutely I was asked this same question by another member this morning, so thank you for asking, and allowing me to clarify the dislike. I'm short on time, and have already discussed this via a private conversation earlier this morning.

It's Saturday, and a beautiful day in Minnesota, so allow me to copy and paste an exert of something I wrote earlier today.

Show attachment 31129

**Correction to the screenshot. BrandRoot is exclusive. Namerific is NonExclusive**

I'll be happy to answer any questions when I return from the lakes. :D

Also, I believe you were referring to Namerific in your comment directed towards those marketplace who reject your domain for free listing, but accept your domain for a listing fee. Feel feel to move these posts to the BB vs vs BR vs NR thread if you'd like.

lol I dont know if you explained anything there but it is ok and ahead we move

 

[Chris Hydrick]

lol I dont know if you explained anything there but it is ok and ahead we move

My point is I support marketplaces who's policies and transparency I agree with most. If NR likes your name enough, they'll spend their resources writing a description and create a logo for free without asking for exclusivity in return.

In order for businesses with better practices to thrive in a industry, I believe competition needs to respect these companies accordingly. There are of course other technical factors to consider, and that's when, I believe size of marketplace and dilution by insiders should be looked into when the only route of selling an exclusively listed domain is through the company who double dips through charging listing fee's for some and with commission fee's higher than major marketplaces such as AfterNic and Sedo.

 

[loredan]

I might be late in the game but Im still trying to understand the seller newsletter I received!
I believe the sell through rate is relatively straightforward regardless of whats written within.
They sold 801 names
They have in average 25,000 names throughout the year
The sell-through rate for BB is 3.2% in average for all sellers within that.
Looking at this rate its fantastic and it makes me wanna return to the platform, coz I will have around 600 names there! Does this mean I might sell 19 names a year with BB? Hell NO!!!

That's a lot of names you had with BB, surprised you haven't made more sales. Have you tried BR or NR (if you don't want to go back to BB)? With 500-600 names you should sell at least 1-2 a month imo...

I don't think Krell sells 400 names a year as you said...it's like 15-20 / month so probably around 200/year but hey, he's got 5000+ listed !

 

[Chris Hydrick]

That's a lot of names you had with BB, surprised you haven't made more sales. Have you tried BR or NR (if you don't want to go back to BB)? With 500-600 names you should sell at least 1-2 a month imo...

BrandRoot is exclusive just like BrandBucket so @bazabizo wouldn't be able to broker his own domains without incurring a 30% fee as suggested.

Namerific is the only nonexlusive brandable marketplace that will allow sellers to list, and broker their own domains. Granted, they don't accept domains simply because they're BB/BR invested or approved, they will accept domains without charging a listing fee if you have premium domains and/or provide a high quality logo with your domain.

 

[Chris Hydrick]

Interview with Mike Navarini,

An interview with Mike Navarini Namerific.com. Mike gives us some insight into why Namerific is better than their competitors and tells us the top sale so far on Namerific for 2016. 1) How long have you been buying and selling brandable names and how did you get involved with Namerific ? I bought my first domain as a teenager, and have been collecting them ever since. I met my co-founder, Zane … [Read more...]

Thank you Ray, and Mike for taking the time to do this game changing interview... HERE

Question #3:

 

[Simon Taylor]

Personally I'm a strong believer in not having all your eggs in one basket.
Why not spread domains amongst all markets, I've noticed each has their slants on names they accept I find quite often bb names aren't accepted at nr and vice versa.

 

[Billy Wagner]

So I believe this is still on topic, if not mods please let me know, have you sold more domains on BrandBucket, BrandRoot, or Namerific?

I currently have all of my domains listed at BrandBucket, and all those that are rejected I wholesale. I'm toying with the idea of using the "trickle-down" method @Simon Taylor mentioned, but not sure if it would be worth my time if domains don't sell on BrandRoot or Namerific. And I of course know it all depends on the domain, keyword, niche, ect ect, but just asking for a ballpark range of where fellow NP members have sold more domains.

 

[Simon Taylor]

I have only recently been listing at Namerific however had a good sale back when I only had 5 published.
Was a bb reject too, $2k inc fees.

 

[Keith DeBoer]

That seems to be Grilled's strategy. He has names at both BrandBucket and BrandRoot.

 

[JimJammy]

Keith, Grilled has left BB.

I will humbly bow down from this thread until one last final good bye on April 25th, when I officially leave BrandBucket..

from here: https://www.namepros.com/threads/brandbucket-experience.793278/page-217

 

[WebInceptions]

This is one of those discussion threads that I just don't understand.

Why is no one discussing whether or not any of these 3 brokers actually do their job and sell domain names? Isn't that the goal?

Not sure why these discussions are always just about company philosophy, listing fees, etc... I really don't care about those things, if any of these companies actually SELL then I'll happily pay the fees. If not, I don't care about the other details.

So... what is the success rate of any of these companies? If I give them each 10 different domain names for 1 year, what are the odds at each that I'll sell half of them?

 

[Chris Hydrick]

Why is no one discussing whether or not any of these 3 brokers actually do their job and sell domain names? Isn't that the goal?

Amen! When we agree to list exclusively, we surrender the rights to broker our domains. This is why I'd like to see an affiliate type program. This will, hopefully, discourage those who sell exclusively listed domains via WHOIS around the marketplaces back.

Some will agree that type in traffic and the domain itself is more important than a concept logo and marketplace positioning. However, this is not always the case. Some made up brandable hand reg domains were only available for hand reg because they needed a brandable marketplace and competent broker to sell a $8 domain for $X,XXX+

Not sure why these discussions are always just about company philosophy, listing fees, etc... I really don't care about those things, if any of these companies actually SELL then I'll happily pay the fees. If not, I don't care about the other details.

So... what is the success rate of any of these companies? If I give them each 10 different domain names for 1 year, what are the odds at each that I'll sell half of them?

Personally, I was unhappy with the brokerage services I was receiving, and that's what triggered me to speak up and begin questioning company philosophies, listing fee's, etc. I care because if I'm required to pay an upfront listing fee, I'd like to know where that money is going and /or how it increases the chances of selling at enduser prices vs marketplaces who don't charge upfront, and are nonexclusive.

Basically, if I'm going to agree to list exclusively and pay 30%, I want to ensure the marketplace brings just as much, if not more, exposure to my domain than my type in traffic / marketing efforts.

 

[Billy Wagner]

Personally, I was unhappy with the brokerage services I was receiving, and that's what triggered me to speak up and begin questioning company philosophies, listing fee's, etc. I care because if I'm required to pay an upfront listing fee, I'd like to know where that money is going and /or how it increases the chances of selling at enduser prices vs marketplaces who don't charge upfront, and are nonexclusive.

Basically, if I'm going to agree to list exclusively and pay 30%, I want to ensure the marketplace brings just as much, if not more, exposure to my domain than my type in traffic / marketing efforts.

When you questioned them, did you receive any answers as to where the listing fees go, what they do to promote the domains, ect?

 

[Chris Hydrick]

When you questioned them, did you receive any answers as to where the listing fees go

Have you questioned where bb listing fee's go?

As for Namerific, I defer to a post / email from earlier this year.

It would seem they care more about commissions than profiting from listing fee's.

The Brandable industry is evolving into a sellers market. I thank Namerific for making strides towards bettering the industry.

Does anybody have any suggestions for Namerific in regards to how they can improve as the leading nonexclusive marketplace charging free listing fee's?
​

AND / OR
​

Does anybody have any suggestions for bb in regards to how they can improve as an exclusive brandable marketplace charging $10 listing fee's?​

 

[WebInceptions]

For 30%, I would expect proactive marketing for each domain name, so I would want to be able to log in and see an activity log such as:

2016-06-01 3:00pm Agent ___ emailed a prospective buyer at ____ Inc.
2016-06-01 3:10pm Agent ___ called a prospective buyer at ____ Inc.
2016-06-01 4:00pm Agent ___ received returned call from ____ Inc., they will be making an offer on Monday
2016-06-01 4:30pm Agent ___ placed ad on 1,000 member photography newsletter.

 

[Chris Hydrick]

For 30%, I would expect proactive marketing for each domain name, so I would want to be able to log in and see an activity log such as:

2016-06-01 3:00pm Agent ___ emailed a prospective buyer at ____ Inc.
2016-06-01 3:10pm Agent ___ called a prospective buyer at ____ Inc.
2016-06-01 4:00pm Agent ___ received returned call from ____ Inc., they will be making an offer on Monday
2016-06-01 4:30pm Agent ___ placed ad on 1,000 member photography newsletter.

Great suggestions! Thank you very much for sharing!!!

@Shane Bellone and I once discussed a similar transparent marketing campaign...

 

[WebInceptions]

I was about to sign up for Brandroot and try them out until I read their slimeball threats in the TOS. You want me to give you permission to harass ME if YOU suck? Oviously Brandroot fails to sell often if so many people cancel that they have to chase them down. F___ you, Brandroot.

When you want to unlist one or more of your domains at Brandroot you may do so by using the "Unlist" option on your Published Domains page. You area required to state your reason for removal and this will not remove your domains immediately. Exactly 30 days from your request the domain will automatically be deleted from Brandroot Requesting the removal of a domain will also result in a review of your account, a close monitoring of the removed domain(s) and may or may not result in the permanent disabling of your account.

 

[campout]

To BrandRoot's defense, they need to make sure people aren't selling their names out the backdoor. I think that's the basic gist of those terms.