domains Would you like to charge a domain inquiry fee?

[equity78]

Would you like people to pay to make an offer on your name? Would you like to pay to make an offer on someone else's domain name? I read a tweet from George Kirikos about low ballers (someone offered him $500 for Orderly.com) George wrote: What sucks is the time wasters trying to buy domains at 1% of the floor price, spamming their lowball offers. I think Webmagic has it right, charging … [Read more...]

 

[DaveX]

Also, I have successfully nurtured a buyer or two that really wanted a name but just didn't have the money, to make a deposit that I would put towards the purchase if they paid it off within 60 days.

I refund half if they cant follow through.

 

[Recons.Com]

There is already a tool not to deal with lowball offers: set the minimum amount

Although it comes with 2 downsides: loses the potential sales via negotiation and persuasion; anchors the price expectation at a low point.

 

[NamePrime]

I think Inquiry Fee is a bit of overreaction to low ball offers. I'd just set the minimum offer to fend low ballers off. I'd never ask for a fee for an inquiry.

 

[Keith]

There is already a tool not to deal with lowball offers: set the minimum amount

You’re making the assumption that all sellers use listing sites like Sedo to field offers. In that case, yes, setting a minimum price works. It does not work if you sell directly on your own, which I do for example.

That said, the idea of charging to receive offers or paying to make an offer is appalling to me. It takes seconds to review an offer via email and delete if need be.

 

[DaveX]

I dont like letting leads get away. Period.

I'll even try to offer alternative names that are similar but priced lower. Sometimes that can get them to take the one they want and pay up.

 

[Bob Hawkes]

It does not work if you sell directly on your own, which I do for example.

Would it not be possible to make the form processing require that the offer field have a minimum offer, and have that field filled in (or else pre-fill it with the minimum amount)?
Bob

 

[Keith]

I dont like letting leads get away. Period.

I'll even try to offer alternative names that are similar but priced lower. Sometimes that can get them to take the one they want and pay up.

Good point. I’ve had $200 initial offers turn into $20,000 sales on multiple occasions. Sometimes a low offer is just an attempt to establish contact.

 

[biggie]

I still don't understand,

​

if you had the type of domains that are getting frequent offers/inquiries

do you have the type of domains as described above?

if, yes, then you'd understand
if, no, then....

i knows that reads bluntly, and not trying to be critical of you or your ability to understand,
but you have to be in those shoes, to feel what i'm saying.

and, regardless to if they set a minimum here or there, that doesn't stop lowball offers from being submitted via email inquiries, pm's, dm's or phone calls, etc,

just saying...

imo...

 

[DaveX]

Good point. I’ve had $200 initial offers turn into $20,000 sales on multiple occasions. Sometimes a low offer is just an attempt to establish contact.

Damn dude. I havent had that yet.

I think I read your piece about that one.

 

[NamePrime]

I dont like letting leads get away. Period.

I'll even try to offer alternative names that are similar but priced lower. Sometimes that can get them to take the one they want and pay up.

Agree!

Some end users doesn't even know how the pricing of domain works. Some of them based it on registration fees but once you interact with them they eventually understand.

 

[DaveX]

do you have the type of domains as described above?

if, yes, then you'd understand
if, no, then....

i knows that reads bluntly, and not trying to be critical of you or your ability to understand,
but you have to be in those shoes, to feel what i'm saying.

and, regardless to if they set a minimum here or there, that doesn't stop lowball offers from being submitted via email inquiries, pm's, dm's or phone calls, etc,

just saying...

imo...

I dunno Biggie. I guess everyone has their style. Its partly psychological too.

There have been debates about which way is more effective.

 

[Keith]

Would it not be possible to make the form processing require that the offer field have a minimum offer, and have that field filled in (or else pre-fill it with the minimum amount)?
Bob

You could certainly set up a customized page to field offers and set minimum amounts. Thats really the best angle to take if you own several high value domains.

There are several ways to target serious buyers, without charging a fee, if that’s what you’re after.

 

[NamePrime]

I can't argue with @biggie 's point because I haven't got "that" kind of domain :D

 

[DaveX]

I think if you're Mr Nissan, you'd get tired. Or if you own a personal domain with absolutely no intention of selling, then unsolicited offers might get annoying. But me, I'm in a business that is all about offer/counter offer.

 

[Recons.Com]

You’re making the assumption that all sellers use listing sites like Sedo to field offers. In that case, yes, setting a minimum price works. It does not work if you sell directly on your own, which I do for example.

That said, the idea of charging to receive offers or paying to make an offer is appalling to me. It takes seconds to review an offer via email and delete if need be.

Why can't you have min offer feature with your own?

 

[Bob Hawkes]

Just out of interest I went to the specific name referenced in the article. It goes to a general contact page for the domain investor company rather than a specific lander page. I suspect that if had a lander saying something like "Minimum offers of XXXXX (or whatever) being considered" many of the lowball offers would not happen."

I tried to put myself in the position of an end user. Even if I knew about NameBio there are only two sales ever involving this word in the record (none exact, and the two sales are just mid $$$).

If the end user knew how to use Dofo, would see the word is taken in 53 TLDs and that the .org is for sale low/mid $$$$, so that probably would signal that the .com is not going to go for less than 5x that. But is it reasonable to expect an end user to know all of this when there is no lander at all, it seems, when it would be like a few minutes work to have a lander with a minimum offer?

Now it was not obvious to me from the tweet, which I also saw, whether the reference was specifically regarding offers from domain investors. If so, I agree that unreasonable offers from experienced domain investors could be objected to, although even then the possible range in price in most domain names is large.

But the solution proposed as trial balloon of a fee to make an offer, would apply supposedly mainly to end users and would in my opinion be highly negative (while it would drastically reduce low and all offers). And people would still work around it anyway.

Bob

 

[equity78]

You make good points @biggie and I agree that unreasonably low offers from domainers is a different situation (and one I had not thought of when I was making my remarks). And I also agree with you about not biting their heads off, even if domainers do make low offers, though !

But re the following....

I still don't understand, if the seller does not want to consider anything less than say $10,000, why not set that as the minimum to submit an offer. When the minimum is set to $100 (or even less) then don't complain if people submit bids of $$$ to $$$$ level.

Even if an offer is well off, it really is trivial to respond with a short message like. "Thank you for your offer, but it is well outside the range of what I can consider for this domain name."

Bob

People like Nat Cohen and Web Magic Bob are not able to do this on Sedo obviously they are doing it when people contact them directly going to their websites, which are not marketplaces.

 

[equity78]

Hi

if you had the type of domains that are getting frequent offers/inquiries on, then you might be more sympathetic, to their complaints.

I can see someone not involved in domaining, submitting a low offer.. even if just to get the ball rolling

but there are many low ball offers submitted by domainers, who know or have good idea of value for the domain, that they making the lowball offer for.

some will say "sorry, wasn't trying to lowball you" but most won't say or even make a counter offer.

and these are some of the same folks who boast of 4 and 5 figures sales, so if that's true, then they must have the cash.

but I don't bite their heads off, I just say "no thanks or thanks for your inquiry".

imo...

Spot on.

 

[DaveX]

Last thing I'll add is this...

Personally having over 25 years in business, an Inc. 500 recipient, and a corporate turnaround consultant, I have always been successful through education and positive energy and culture.

I can tell you that the term "lowballer" is very unproductive and insulting. In all circumstances but particularly in a business dealing.

I would refer to those as "uneducated". I will take time to educate a prospective buyer if an opportunity exists.

Perhaps that education involves explaining domain values. It might involve explaining that I am an educated, fair investor that is somewhat firm on the price.

Point is, in my book, there are only educated and yet to be educated buyers.

I'll want all offers!

 

[Bob Hawkes]

obviously they are doing it when people contact them directly going to their websites, which are not marketplaces.

Your article starts off with the following question. Which seems to apply to more than a few individuals who, for whatever reason, shun landers. So my answer to that question remains, no .

Would you like people to pay to make an offer on your name?

Let's consider the real estate analogy here. So you have the funds and financing in place to purchase something. Would you deal with a real estate company that refused to give you any indication of the price of any of their listings? If you, despite that, make an offer, they complain that it is too low not to you but to others. Real estate agents I have dealt with over the years don't operate that way.

Many brokers and investors with valuable portfolios provide some indication like "offers above xxxxx being accepted". Even though some choose not to operate a marketplace, or use one, it does not seem to me that they are precluded from making a lander that indicates the range of offers being accepted, and how they are to be made. Yes, that might box them in, and is why some don't do it, but if they make that choice, imho they should not complain about unreasonable offers.

Back to your original question, would you deal with a car salesman or real estate professional that asked you to pay a non-refundable fee just to make an offer for something with no indication at all of the price ranges being considered?

I perhaps, in a few cases, can see the approach @Silentptnr made of some sort of minimum refundable deposit to make an offer.

Bob