Words of Advice Request for Domain Sale

[f4jock]

Hello and Thank You for Your Time,
I am really new to this game and wanted to get some advice from some of you experts. I have a dot com domain that is the name of a major industry, sort of like kleenex, coke, insurance, etc. It always pulls up first or second on every search engine, even though the site is parked and undeveloped. I have been told that despite, the fact that several companies have approached me to purchase the domain (one even tried to steal it and lost to me in court), it is only worth a few thousand dollars. Keep in mind that the domain is an entire section of the yellow pages in every major city of the US. Anyway, I am considering selling it through Moniker or Sedo, but worry that the real players in the industry will not be involved in the bidding process or that affiliates of the auction companies will lowball the auction for resale at a later date. Moniker charges 15%, which seems steep for an auction. Any words of advice from some of you pros out there? Thanks for your words.

 

[Rich_H]

I have a dot com domain that is the name of a major industry, sort of like kleenex, coke, insurance, etc.

kleenex & coke are trademarked names, insurance is a category.

It's hard to give any advise without knowing the name.

Just because it's a yellow pages category, doesn't mean it's valuable.

If it's an internet-friendly category like real estate, restaraunts, attorneys, loans, etc., it may be very valuable. If its land surveyors or septic tank services it won't be.

If it's a valuable domain, the buyers will find you.


Rich

 

[RJ]

Pretty vague description, but from what you say it sounds like it could be a very valuable name. So if you've turned down some 4 figure offers already, I assume that means you already have an idea of it's worth, or at least what you'd be willing to accept? How long have you owned the name?

If it is a highly generic name, and even moreso one with traffic, Moniker could be a good company to deal with in auctioning it off. Some great sales have come out of the TRAFFIC auctions they've conducted. They allow you to set your own reserve price for it, so you don't have to worry about a lowball bid taking your name for cheap.

Your other option is to do the negotiating yourself. You can seek out the best end users and contact them, or take the passive approach like Rich said and wait for them to come to you.

RJ

 

[f4jock]

Thanks RJ. Yes it is a very valuable name that I have owned for two years. One company tried to steal the name, but lost to me in court. It should bring six figures. The problem I am having is finding a competent broker. I may have to do the leg work myself, since most just list it on their auction site and send out a few emails. There are specific companies who are more interested in protecting their market share and would pay a good deal to keep the domain to themselves. Any ideas of outstanding brokers in this field?
Thanks again for your input.
F4jock

 

[Rich_H]

Thanks RJ. Yes it is a very valuable name that I have owned for two years. One company tried to steal the name, but lost to me in court. It should bring six figures. The problem I am having is finding a competent broker.

I'm not trying to stir anything up here but this doesn't make sense. How do you know it's worth 6 figures, did you have it appraised?

If you have a 6 figure name, the buyers and brokers should be contacting you. Daily. In two years, not one broker has contacted you or decent offer been made? You stated in your OP that you were afraid the "real players" wouldn't be involved in the bidding. If you have a 6 figure domain the real players would have already been in touch.

There are specific companies who are more interested in protecting their market share and would pay a good deal to keep the domain to themselves.

Why?

Any established company that would pay 6 figures for domain probably doesn't need one. They already have their own branded, trademarked name.

You've already been sued and you state that "specific companies" would want to protect their market share. Sounds like you have a borderline (at least) possible trademark infringement and noone wants to get involved. But we can only guess because you haven't disclosed the name.

Sounds like you need a professional appraisal.

Just MTCW,

Rich

 

[f4jock]

Thanks for your reply. While I have had the domain for two years, I have only begun to explore the possibility of selling it. My original intent was to develop the brand in a partnership. That idea has not panned out at this point. I guess the question is this: What is a domain worth that always pulls up number one or two on every major search engine? Since I am not a domain broker, I am looking for a service that actually brokers domains, not just puts them on auction and hopes for the best. At this point it appears that true, old fashioned brokering has not been established to any degree. Siince the domain is industry specific, it would require a broker with at least a little knowledge about the business. It wouod be hard for me to sell insurance.com since my knowledge of insurance is quite limited.
As to the appraisal, the site itself is undeveloped and parked for development. The appraisal would be of little use at this point, sort of like vodka.com when it was just established.
I do have several requests to auction the domain from various auction companies, none of which appear to have brokerage services.
Thanks again for your response and best of luck to you.
F4jock

 

[Albino]

i'm curious, if this is now worth 6 figures, what price did you pay for it in the first place?

 

[f4jock]

I paid a registration fee over a decade ago and have been the original owner of the domain. The site is only a couple of years old and has not been really developed at this point. Do you know of any true brokerage companies that might be interested in doing the deal?
Thanks for your interest.
F4Jock