question What makes you think that YOU will make money doing this?

[comati]

What is your main skill or your main advantage that sets you up for success in this industry?

Plenty of people here interested if value of domain names will increase over time or if new GTLDs will catch up or if one can still make it starting today, but a better question is can I make it? and why?

People make a ton of money in the horse trade and that has been around for thousands of years so I think is safe to say that people will continue to make money from domains in the foreseeable future, but do you think you gone a be one of them? ... and ... why?

 

[Kuffy]

I have in the past, and I will do in the future. At the moment I'm looking at pruning and building my portfolio. Application and specialisation is the answer in my opinion, and I'm trying to bring myself up to date with the current Internet and the changing environment.

 

[comati]

I have in the past, and I will do in the future. At the moment I'm looking at pruning and building my portfolio. Application and specialisation is the answer in my opinion, and I'm trying to bring myself up to date with the current Internet and the changing environment.

a specific niche or a specific TLD?

 

[Kuffy]

a specific niche or a specific TLD?

Only .coms

Health, Brexit and politics, Green issues, Forex and banking, vintage and modern vehicles and machinery, gardening and cooking, off-grid living

and probably some others if they appeal - I quite fancy metal detecting for example.

 

[shorterwinters]

What is your main skill or your main advantage that sets you up for success in this industry?

That's an interesting question that I have not got an answer for myself.
Only been doing this a few months and have made some money already. Something tells me I can do it is all I can really say and I always just kind of thought I could. I did not want to get to a point in my life where it was too late and it was a woulda, coulda, shoulda, why didn't I, kind of thing.
I also know I have lots and lots to learn, there is lots and lots of advice to consider, and that I really don't think that selling names in itself is where I will make or break it. Actually that part may be the part that makes or breaks it but that the steady stream is going to come from developing stuff and pulling in $$$ that way.
Skill? Hell. I don't know. I like to think I am creative enough and smart enough to do this. Advantage? Does English as your first language and a good understanding of it set you up for an advantage in this vs. someone who does not have a real command of English? I don't know, I would think so but just because you are smart and know English does not necessarily mean you can or will be successful. There are plenty of examples of people who did not grow up in English speaking households who are successful doing this. There has got to be something else there I think.
I am curious to see what others think is an advantage in this game. Knowing lots or having experience about certain things will give you an advantage in that segment of it for sure I think but in an overall sense of it I not sure what would give you an advantage.

 

[DanBingham]

If you are already making money and making profit, why shouldn't you be one of them?

 

[shorterwinters]

If you are already making money and making profit, why shouldn't you be one of them?

Just buying and selling names?
For myself it would be that it has to be a little more steady income. Perhaps after some more time my answer would be different but for right now at this early stage I don't have quite enough confidence in it to make it my only source. I feel with developing some things I can make that something steady for certain.

 

[comati]

Does English as your first language and a good understanding of it set you up for an advantage in this vs. someone who does not have a real command of English?

it most definitely does.

 

[comati]

If you are already making money and making profit, why shouldn't you be one of them?

i agree, don't want to discourage anybody. just curious about the reasons behind success

 

[Want2learn]

This is a great question. A great conversation really. If you have heard the expression, Chess not Checkers, then this will make sense. Currently I am playing checkers. The pros are playing chess!

Can I make it? Absolutely yes. Before I say why let me identify the likely why NOTs . . .
1. I am prone to impulsive buys. Because hand regs are cheap it isn't as devastating as say buying a 4L for 2k, and it being worth 300.
2. The industry isn't new per se, it is new to me! I have lots to overcome by way of industry understanding. For example, I look at BrandNames.com and the 65k sales price, and it makes absolutely NO sense to me whatsoever how RebrandNames.com could be available as of a day ago, and there to be no value in it. No one has said no value, but no one has said value either The thing is, rebranding is big business now. Industry understanding . . .
3. I love gadgets, but am not technically savvy. I literally can throw some info on a web page, but that isn't exactly building a web page. I hear/read people talking about building out web pages and I am not sure what their goals are? They aren't the end user. This is probably sad to say and admit, but if I had love.com I wouldn't know how to monetize it. With that name I would feel much better asking for help because it is a slam dunk. But what should I do for findflings.com? So there is the technical building of pages (how), there is the why to build a page, and the when and why to keep a domain on a sales page vs building it out.


Those are some big obstacles. I do not think most of the domainers here have problems 2 or 3 for sure. I am sure most of the successful domainers have budgets for hand regs as opposed to impulsive buys!

But can I make it? I still say yes, absolutely.

1. This is a part time hobby to supplement teacher pay. How I measure success isn't by XXXX sales, but ROI. Making it as a full time job looks different than a hobby. As an aside, and I will not mention names, there is one poster here that is selling domains all over the place, and he looks so desperate to me. I would buy from him yes, but I would never pay him any premiums. When you look desperate it is probably because you are desperate. If you are desperate and I know it, I won't pay up to my own max internal number! My point is full time domaining is a beast, I couldn't do it bc of desperation!
2. I think I have a very solid grasp of the English language. I don't remember who said it or the context, but I took it complimentary though it was a slight admonishment . . . and it was something to the effect that the issues I was having were due in part to my excellent grasp of the language!
3. I am creative.
4. I am analytical.
5. I have a wide wide wide range of interests.
6. I am the Idea King.
7. I walk the beat of a different drummer.
8. I think differently than most people and domainers . . . which can be a negative if I go nuts
9. I will take some risks that many others won't . . . can be negative as well.
10. Because I am not familiar with the biz I may do some unorthodox things. For example, under requests some time ago a poster requested some outdoor hunting kind of domains. It is hilarious to me because I went to town doing what I do, found BeyondHunting.com, submitted it to him . . . Probably would have taken 50-75 that day for a fast flip . . . he passed . . . and now I wouldn't even consider less than 5XX, and most likely will hold out for XXXX. I suppose we will see if I still find it funny in 2-3 years if I get no offers I don't see many people here doing that sort of thing. I think that helps me to focus if get in hand reg mode

 

[Kuffy]

A lot of people say "think outside the box", but they don't ever seem to think about the box. If it's just bare wood, then you are losing money - put some advertising on it. That's the neglected side of domaining. It's not just about buying and selling, but about making money from the asset whilst you own it.

 

[Domaniak]

I have in the past, and I will do in the future. At the moment I'm looking at pruning and building my portfolio. Application and specialisation is the answer in my opinion, and I'm trying to bring myself up to date with the current Internet and the changing environment.

What @Kuffy said! Spot on! Same here. Easy money. Just working on radically expanding the portfolio and scale of the business, while making allowances for the changing environment

 

[Want2learn]

A lot of people say "think outside the box", but they don't ever seem to think about the box. If it's just bare wood, then you are losing money - put some advertising on it. That's the neglected side of domaining. It's not just about buying and selling, but about making money from the asset whilst you own it.

Nice point. Many directions to go to make money!

 

[Smiles76]

Money is a reward for solving a problem for someone. Most domains don't solve a problem for end users and thus there is no reward. I think in the future, domainers will have to do a better job of solving problems for end users. Whether it's including web design in the price of the domains or 2 months of free SEO service, I believe that at some point the domainer to domainer sales market will become stagnant and only those adding value in the eyes of end users will be profitable.

 

[comati]

How I measure success isn't by XXXX sales, but ROI.

ROI is a tricky metric. In theory sounds perfect but soon you will discover that you tend to buy the cheapest domains that you can find and that's always a bad idea.

 

[Want2learn]

ROI is a tricky metric. In theory sounds perfect but soon you will discover that you tend to buy the cheapest domains that you can find and that's always a bad idea.

Fair enough! My broader point really was just to say, I may not purchase any $5k domains and flip/hold-sell for $15k . . . But I hope with what I do have I am able to have a nice % return. And if I did buy that $5k domain, and sold it a year later for $5100, I probably would be more excited about the $5.99 hand reg going for $35. And Im not trying to be technical with escrow and other fees . . .

If you were brand new and hand reg some domains, don't you think you would feel some personal satisfaction selling it for 10x cost? There again though $60 might not even pay the light bill

 

[Domaniak]

...If you were brand new and hand reg some domains, don't you think you would feel some personal satisfaction selling it for 10x cost? There again though $60 might not even pay the light bill

Satisfaction comes a distant last to putting food on the table. And I'm not talking any 10x cost either. Try $1 handreg turned into an $1,300 paycheck... but not often enough!

 

[4pm]

If you were brand new and hand reg some domains, don't you think you would feel some personal satisfaction selling it for 10x cost? There again though $60 might not even pay the light bill

your ROI should be calculated on portfolio basis, not per every single domain
otherwise you will soon find yourself holding 1,000+ portfolio paying 10K yearly in renewals and bragging all over the forum about a couple of 10,000% ROI sales you made in a year - $1,000 sale of a $10 handreg does indeed give you 10,000% ROI on each sale while you are still at $8K loss for the whole year

think about it

you are losing money on your 1,000 domains if you don't have at least $10K in sales for any given year, plus marketplace fees and other expenses
if you plan to mainly do low-mid $xxx sales and it makes you gay and happy - you'll need to sell like 50 domains per year to break even. that's 1 sale every week, or 5% turnover rate...
if you have not yet got close to that performance are you sure you can do this with your current strategy? this is what i would be asking myself thinking about the thread subject...

...and yes, do not forget light bills and NP business account fees

imo

 

[JayT]

creative
foresight
passion
understand value of simplicty and / or balanced with creativity.
ability to value complex, dynamic/abstract things, quickly, naturally.
ever-growing market with relatively few speculators/investors atm.

There is a wide spectrum in quality of domains I would consider owning. however, there's a definite line in the sand regarding what is worth having and what is not. Extremely mindful of where that line is.

 

[Want2learn]

your ROI should be calculated on portfolio basis, not per every single domain
otherwise you will soon find yourself holding 1,000+ portfolio paying 10K yearly in renewals and bragging all over the forum about a couple of 10,000% ROI sales you made in a year - $1,000 sale of a $10 handreg does indeed give you 10,000% ROI on each sale while you are still at $8K loss for the whole year

think about it

you are losing money on your 1,000 domains if you don't have at least $10K in sales for any given year, plus marketplace fees and other expenses
if you plan to mainly do low-mid $xxx sales and it makes you gay and happy - you'll need to sell like 50 domains per year to break even. that's 1 sale every week, or 5% turnover rate...
if you have not yet got close to that performance are you sure you can do this with your current strategy? this is what i would be asking myself thinking about the thread subject...

...and yes, do not forget light bills and NP business account fees

imo

You raise a great point about renewals and fees. I don't mean hand reg for a buck, sell for 1XXX and flop on other 400 domains! That wouldn't be success to me. To flesh it out a little more for me personally. While there is some debate as to the quality of domains I have recently purchased and or registered . . . there is no debate about how bad many of my first regs were! As it is right now due to a COSTLY MISTAKE on my part, many of my original domains were registered for two years! Within next 16 months or so I plan to non renew about 120 domains. Possibly more, perhaps less. As of right now I would not renew about 120 names. If I registered a name May 1, it has 8some time before I have to make a judgment!

There are renewals coming and there are non renewals coming. The non renewals will be calculated and notated as losses! That will come out of any sales. And then I see where I am at.

I do think I ought to start treating this like an actual business. (I know I know) As an aside anyone incorporate their business? I think I am going to, because I am going to write off expenses and losses along with PROFITS Yes this might be the best advice Ive given me . . . Treat it like a business not a hobby!

 

[comati]

Yes this might be the best advice Ive given me . . .

lol, i think want2learn is actually short for "I want to learn from my own mistakes", nothing wrong with that ... best of luck!