I have bigger ones, but gave that to illustrate the point about how to market brandables.
I think some people would be quite surprised to know that brandables routinely go for more than $100K.
@Rob Monster .. how many domains do you and/or Epik own personally?
If .COM is the Gold standard, and I believe it is, and also that it is becoming more so as the other extensions bow down to it, e.g. even the .AI and .IO trendies eventually get .COM envy. True story.
So, if someone decides they want the .COM, they will look to see who has it -- often just by typing it in to see what is there. That is where a convincing SSL lander is quite helpful.
I agree with the root of what you're saying. But most of the time when a .ai or .io sells, it because the one-word .com they wanted simply was not available or not within their budget .. so then they ask .. do they still want the same TLD or the same SLD.
There are some advantages to having a one-word non-.com over a two-word .com. But ultimately the more important disadvantages only become more apparent after the fact (namely missing emails and lost traffic to the .com). Having that one-word "name" also is initially easier to market .. and it's only afterward that most companies realise that in terms of marketing, one-word domains are actually two words including the .TLD (and two-word domains are actually three-words) .. so .. the initial illusionary advantage of one-word vs two-word is big .. BUT .. effectively the difference should have been measured between the full one-word domain (2 words including TLD) vs the full two-word .com domain (3 words, but with a significantly more powerful TLD) .. so 1:2 appears big at first .. but then they realise that effectively it's 2:3 PLUS the 2 has significant technical disadvantages ... all of a sudden that two-word .com looks a whole ton more appealing .. and/.or .. that huge pricetag of the one-word .com seems a lot more justified/realistic.
Well I started 18 months ago and over the next 6 months my portfolio was 360. After a lot of reading on namepros and also bad feedback from members, I dropped over 200 to tidy up the portfolio a bit. Mostly dot coms now. Still never had a sale, lowball offer, enquiry or get spam. It's like they are invisible grrrrr.Anyone can see my portfolio from my signature.is there anyone else who has gone 18 months without a sale, enquiry, or even lowball offer ? I can't be the only one. Or can I ?
I just took a peak at the first few pages .. and I'm really sorry to say that I'm not surprised you haven't had any sales. Unfortunately I think it will likely be a while if ever before you see any sales. Most of them simply do not have realistic end users .. even less who would pay more than regfee. The one or two that weren't bad were way overpriced.
Tots1 has many different uses but my idea for that one was (team of the season) division 1. And then there could be division 2,3,4 ect.
The hardest fact people need to face as new domainers is that as fun as it is to come up with great imaginitive ideas for domain uses (it's usually why we initially fall in love with domains), in the end it's the wrong approach. You need to focus on domains where there are existing AND in demand AND profitable uses for the domains you acquire. You really need to clear your head and ask yourself .. who is out there today who will pay more than regfee for Tots1? I can't think of one ... and you'd need A LOT to compensate for the fact it's fundamentally not a great domain plus there are likely tons of alternatives. Good luck with them all the same .. there are certainly the occasional one-off lucky sale .. but I really advise you focus on good strong quality two-word .com domains with existing end-users in profitable industries.
Sorry for being so negative .. but hopefully it will help you shift to the better direction!
Let's say you set up a $10 Taco stand -- very nice tacos, and a nice location off the highway with no other dining options around. It is just you. I bet you do just fine.
Contrast that with the guy selling $10 tacos on the street corner, right next to an intersection that has a McDonalds, a TacoBell, a Burger King, a WalMart and a Costco.
I don't know about you, but I would rather be the lonely guy with the premium taco stand.
Not necessary .. lol .. just as important as the competition is the traffic ... there's probably a reason there's a McD's, TB, BK, etc in that area .. it's traffic (either quantity or/and quality). In most cases you're better off getting 5% of traffic from the best intersection in town than you are getting 100% of traffic at the worst intersection.
HOWEVER .. if you tacos are damn good .. good enough that people will come your tacos (instead of you needing to be where they are) .. then moving to a quieter location makes more sense so that nobody is distracted by the 2 Whoppers for $7 promotion!
While I don't totally agree with your Taco analogy .. ultimate it doesn't really matter when it comes to domains, because we aren't about just a few competing restaurants ... we're talking about thousands of competing domains to distract potential buyers. So many that in fact most people who would likely love your tacos, unltimately never even see them or know you're there.
So yeah .. agreed .. brandable marketplaces are bad for good domains .. but they can be better for domains that don't really stand out or that won't be specifically searched for (don't have at least one meaningful keyword). That being said .. bad domains still won't have a good likelihood of selling either way! lol
The one positive thing about the brandable market places, is that attract BUYERS .. there are people there who will buy the best domain they find .. so they aren't particularly useless .. but listing your domains there is a lottery for the most part ... with very low chances. The math was just stupid when they were charging $10 to list your domains there (and also demanding exclusivity) .. seems most have dropped to $1 .. I haven't really analysed the new math .. but it's not a place for the better quality find-able domains.
