opinion Why I never give a time limit to interested buyers

[NameOffice.]

I recently had this discussion with a seller when he asked me to give an interested buyer a firm time limit to buy at his counteroffer price.

It’s rare that I give a time limit on a domain offer or counteroffers. And the few times that I have is because the sale has advanced for days and has dragged out for far too long, but even in these few times the language that I use is very subtle and somewhat flexible.

Here are a few reasons why I don’t feel this tactic works:

• A time limit can easily come across as aggressive and cause the buyer to put up his defense, possibly ending the discussion altogether.
• It’s not easy to come across as friendly and trusting when you put up a timer.
• Our job is to relax the prospect so they feel fully confident and comfortable in moving forward. A time limit only adds pressure and we all respond differently to pressure, not very often in a good way.
• It’s not always sincere. I’ve purchased many domains long after their time limit, at the offer they said would expire. Yes, I did purchase but certainly not because of the timer, which was no object because I knew the game, but many buyers don’t. How will my buyers react to another time limit set on a future domain if I didn’t honor the first? I certainly lost some of my credibility. At that point it just sounds like an empty threat coming from a pushy salesman. I want to be a businessman that stands behind the quality of the product and sell it on its own merits, not on some external force.
• When I do give my rare time limit, I provide a real reason (which is very important and has closed many sales). I use language along the lines of, “As per our policy I am unable to keep this offer open much longer. We would have to restart the negotiation process.” And maybe follow up on a reason why the price may be increased and the previous offer not possible.

I wanted to share one more thing, a bit unrelated. A question came up at Namescon this year:

“Is there a way to counteroffer without sounding too firm on the counter price but also not sounding too flexible on it either?”

To which the panelist simply said, “no, not really.”

I often find myself in a situation where I don’t want to scare the buyer away with a firm counteroffer but also want to sound firm enough that perhaps they’ll bite. There’s a difference between the following responses:

“It looks like the best we can do is $2500 on this name.”

And

“It looks like we would be able to do $2500 on this name.”

I use one of these two sentences often in my responses to offers. How I choose which one to use depends on the language of the interested buyer, the flexibility of the seller and the stage of the sale progression. “It looks like we would be able to do $2500 on this name,” conveys a sense of openness and is a great way to send a counteroffer without sounding closed to a possible counter. It has worked many times for me and has gone both way (receiving a counter or closing the sale).

I understand we all have our own strategies; I just wanted to share a couple of mine for anyway interested. Take it with a grain of salt.

It's gonna be great,
Michael Rader
Founder at Brandroot

 

[Bernard93]

Good points! They'll definitely be of use

 

[GoKaizen]

The no deadline idea began several years ago with a small grant program for instruments and facilities within the earth sciences division of the geosciences directorate. After making the switch in 2011, the program saw a more than 50% drop in proposals—and that number has stayed down ever since.

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016...ating-deadlines-halves-number-grant-proposals

 

[Nappy Bunch]

I always put deadlines on an 'offer' price as it adds some urgency to the offer and gives the idea that the buyer would need to act quick or miss out on potential savings.

Its a proven technique in good quality copy-writing as well.

 

[NameOffice.]

I always put deadlines on an 'offer' price as it adds some urgency to the offer and gives the idea that the buyer would need to act quick or miss out on potential savings.

Its a proven technique in good quality copy-writing as well.

Yes, exactly. I understand why it is used, which is why I explained why I don't use this. "Adding urgency" can backfire in a lot of ways.

 

[disaac81]

You have the time to post this but yet still waste time with your seller sign up form on BrandRoot. You never respond, which is a sign of a poorly run business that could not care less about anyone.

 

[DomainVP]

One must master the sales process before setting deadlines, otherwise it will backfire and make you sound desperate.

There should always be a call to action and a sense of urgency with every communication you send.

If there isn't, then one should go back to the drawing board and come up with a new delivery for their sales approach.

As with all domain sales the name matters as well, but a good sales pitch can make the difference between having a buyer on the fence and counting hundred dollar bills.

Good luck all.

 

[NameOffice.]

You have the time to post this but yet still waste time with your seller sign up form on BrandRoot. You never respond, which is a sign of a poorly run business that could not care less about anyone.

Wow, that's quite the assumption. The sign up form is not a sign up form, it's an application. We aren't responding currently because we are not currently taking on new sellers. If market control is a sign of a poorly run business I'm not sure why Brandroot has been so successful. We are very careful and deliberate about our decisions. We don't accept every seller because we typically get the garbage domains submitted to us that are rejected at other marketplaces. If you're interested in selling your domains exclusively with Brandroot, pm me.

 

[disaac81]

Wow, that's quite the assumption. The sign up form is not a sign up form, it's an application. We aren't responding currently because we are not currently taking on new sellers. If market control is a sign of a poorly run business I'm not sure why Brandroot has been so successful. We are very careful and deliberate about our decisions. We don't accept every seller because we typically get the garbage domains submitted to us that are rejected at other marketplaces. If you're interested in selling your domains exclusively with Brandroot, pm me.

Thanks for the reply. I understand you want to be careful with the numbers and selection of sellers names, but maybe it might be useful to at least get back to the applicant with an email somewhere down the line to update the status of the application.

ON a positive note, I enjoyed the original post, thanks for sharing.

 

[briguy]

I come across a few "Act now..other parties interested" ..which most times just turn me off.

Like your approach..thanks

 

[biggie]

when someone contacts me, i don't give time limits either.


why?

because i think about the time, when no one seemed interested.


imo....

 

[DnFolk]

even i am waiting for the response on application, there hasnt been any reply, is there a way through which i can join BR as a seller ?

 

[NameOffice.]

I come across a few "Act now..other parties interested" ..which most times just turn me off.

Like your approach..thanks

I agree. This is another sales approach that reeks of desperation.

 

[Haykay2005]

Good points

 

[AndyM]

Totally agree with you here. I've had a couple domainers give me a time limit on here and I've just walked away as they do come across so aggressive. It's not in my nature so I won't deal with people who are.

Next time I will be asking why they're putting a time limit on the deal.

 

[NameOffice.]

Totally agree with you here. I've had a couple domainers give me a time limit on here and I've just walked away as they do come across so aggressive. It's not in my nature so I won't deal with people who are.

Next time I will be asking why they're putting a time limit on the deal.

Since it's an act of urgency, might even consider using their time limit against them by going even lower. "Ok, I understand. If I have only 24 hours then I can offer you $300 less, otherwise I'll pay you in a couple weeks." In my experience nobody honors their time limits anyway.

 

[trelgor]

Thanks for a thoughtful post. My only issues with this reasoning are;

* If you discount your name and don't set a time limit, it is obvious that the name was priced too high to begin with, which would lead to a lot of negative stuff as described. Trust, credibility, and all that.

* Sales people are aggressive. It's their job. Acting otherwise would smell funny. (Aggressive does not mean "pain in the ass", which is also a common trait).

To me setting a time limit is just telling the interested party "look, I'll give you a discount, if you think it's a good offer you'll need to hurry up though".

All discounts in real life have a time limit. I just think it would be weird if domains where an exception.

This is not a dogmatic viewpoint though. If I knew I would net more never quoting time limits, I wouldn't.

 

[Bullock]

I agree in the way that time limit is suitable, and credible, for a "current offert", of course at discounted price.

 

[nomand]

Thank you for the information. A time limit can be a motivation or not. It's a risk to limit the time of the offer.

 

[NameOffice.]

Thanks for a thoughtful post. My only issues with this reasoning are;

* If you discount your name and don't set a time limit, it is obvious that the name was priced too high to begin with, which would lead to a lot of negative stuff as described. Trust, credibility, and all that.

* Sales people are aggressive. It's their job. Acting otherwise would smell funny. (Aggressive does not mean "pain in the ass", which is also a common trait).

To me setting a time limit is just telling the interested party "look, I'll give you a discount, if you think it's a good offer you'll need to hurry up though".

All discounts in real life have a time limit. I just think it would be weird if domains where an exception.

This is not a dogmatic viewpoint though. If I knew I would net more never quoting time limits, I wouldn't.

To address your point:

The domain isn't really discounted, it is negotiated. Similar to buying a home, you always make an offer, but that doesn't devalue the home. The owner either accepts, rejects or counters. While their counteroffer will likely include an expiration date, it is only so that the owner can accept an offer from someone else after that date; for legal reasons. As I mentioned, if a time limit is in place there needs to be a real reason, otherwise accept the offer and use communication strategies to close.

Although, you are right, reducing the price can sometimes devalue the product, which is why I try not to alway negotiate on a domain. I recently sold a domain to a buyer who had expressed interest several times over the past few years. He made an offer and I rejected. I told him that the domain would likely see a price increase in the coming months when it is up for review. He bought right away.

Sales people are aggressive, which is why I don't want to be labeled one. So far this month I've sold 34 domains, and non of them were under any form of duress.

"look, I'll give you a discount, if you think it's a good offer you'll need to hurry up though".

This statement may work some of the time but there's no meat for the prospect to chew on. It's weak and will often be ineffectual. We have to get him thinking. Every sales opportunity is a miniature marketing campaign. Pointing out the merits of the product is extremely important, but leading them up to those merits I believe is even more important - The why. They like the product, now get them to love it. I think of Apple's recent MacBook Pro ad. They mention their product for all but 5 seconds of the ad... and it's at the very end: