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...]

 

[Recons.Com]

We would have to agree to disagree. Someone who is savvy and is trying to get a steal, just needs to know I'm ready to sell if they change their mind.

He is risking to lose a deal of a lifetime. If someone else buys it, he will have to settle for .co and leak sensitive emails and potential sales. For a 100mm business he is hoping to turn into a billion dollar one. All because he wants to save 5k.

I had one greedy or savvy one who didn't take a deal, came back in 3 months, but the name was gone forever to another enduser.

I had another once who agreed 12.5k then tried to lower the price to 10k, then further, while another company came in, inquired, negotiated from 15k to 14k, paid and rebranded and went live, all within 1 week. Now that is savvy.

 

[Abdullah Abdullah]

I dont actually get offended when I receive a very low offer for a name I believe can fetch a lot more. The idea of setting minimum offer is also very interesting cause some buyers believe that it is the minimum the name will be sold for. It happened before.

An offer is an offer and it should be a way to start negotiations without thinking about it being lowoffer or not. I always say, reply to every offer, regardless of price, and make sure you give youself a room for negotiation of atleast 30%.

 

[NickB]

If you are one of the lucky ones to own a premium name why not charge $20? Cuts out all the time wasters and people who can't afford it. A serious buyer will not be put off with this request and it sends a message to everyone else not to waste your time or mine.

 

[Bob Hawkes]

I think not everyone shares the opinion to compare domain names, truly one of a kind to cars or houses.

Agreed.

But having a professional style should apply to all businesses, in my opinion. And in my view going to social media or a public forum to complain, even anonymously, is getting close to a line (not making reference to this case, but the many times on Twitter and here that I see people complain about low ball offers). Also I hate it when people call potential clients low ballers. @Silentptnr expressed it very well:

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.

If there was a NamePros 100% agree button I would have used it!

Thanks for initiating to an interesting discussion on a relevant topic, @equity78, and to all who have contributed. I try to see both sides, but on this one, despite the points well argued, my personal opinion is not changed. IF the situation was that a lander clearly expressed a minimum amount, and they were working around that through other forms of contact, I can see the complaint.

Anyway, I think I'm out, having already taken up too much of the space in this discussion.

Bob

 

[Silentptnr]

He is risking to lose a deal of a lifetime. If someone else buys it, he will have to settle for .co and leak sensitive emails and potential sales. For a 100mm business he is hoping to turn into a billion dollar one. All because he wants to save 5k.

I had one greedy or savvy one who didn't take a deal, came back in 3 months, but the name was gone forever to another enduser.

I had another once who agreed 12.5k then tried to lower the price to 10k, then further, while another company came in, inquired, negotiated from 15k to 14k, paid and rebranded and went live, all within 1 week. Now that is savvy.

Of course. I know what you mean. There are always going to be buyers that dont pull the trigger.

How would that buyer that didn't buy have felt if they also lost an upfront fee just to make an offer?

 

[equity78]

I think the question you are posing relates to a handful of people in the industry and really shouldn’t even be asked. You’re talking to a crowd of people, of which maybe 1 has domains that warrant upfront payments to receive offers.

Personally, I wouldn’t pay money upfront to make an offer on anything. It comes off as arrogant and starts negotiations off on a bad note imo.

I think questions should always be asked, and if someone doesn't have the quality of portfolio, they might still like the option to do that, I am not going to tell someone they can't. Will it work? Probably not but people like as many options as possible.

 

[equity78]

Agreed.

But having a professional style should apply to all businesses, in my opinion. And in my view going to social media or a public forum to complain, even anonymously, is getting close to a line (not making reference to this case, but the many times on Twitter and here that I see people complain about low ball offers). Also I hate it when people call potential clients low ballers. @Silentptnr expressed it very well:

If there was a NamePros 100% agree button I would have used it!

Thanks for initiating to an interesting discussion on a relevant topic, @equity78, and to all who have contributed. I try to see both sides, but on this one, despite the points well argued, my personal opinion is not changed. IF the situation was that a lander clearly expressed a minimum amount, and they were working around that through other forms of contact, I can see the complaint.

Anyway, I think I'm out, having already taken up too much of the space in this discussion.

Bob

Right Bob I think complaining is one thing, to the best of my knowledge Nat Cohen and Web Magic have never complained about "lowballers" it's just their set up for the vast amounts of inquiries. George on Twitter that might have been seen as a complaint, but look there are people that despise lowballers, I have read some quotes over the years that were way over the top, some cannot even be repeated.

 

[Keith]

And btw, most people that make initial contact don’t even make an offer. They are more interested to know if the asset is even for sale and the asking price.

Imagine charging a fee to someone that genuinely has interest in your domain and just wants to know the price. Not everyone are “domainers” that know better, and inquiring about an asset with good intentions shouldn’t require payment to basically ask a question.

 

[Sutruk]

In my opinion, charging the possible buyer just to get a quote, would drive away a 90% of your possible deals, even the BIG ones. IMO, it's a very bad idea. But hey, everyone is free to do what they want with their assets.

If any shop wants to charge the people just to enter and see the clothes or material, they are free to do it. But then they will see how many sales they get.

Althought I doubt that even a Ferrari store would do this.

 

[Silentptnr]

I'd always be wondering about the offers that I didn't get because of such a requirement.

That would be far too stressful.

 

[NickB]

In my opinion, charging the possible buyer just to get a quote, would drive away a 90% of your possible deals, even the BIG ones. IMO, it's a very bad idea. But hey, everyone is free to do what they want with their assets.

If any shop wants to charge the people just to enter and see the clothes or material, they are free to do it. But then they will see how many sales they get.

Althought I doubt that even a Ferrari store would do this.

Don't think it would scare off a multi million/ billion pound at all.....

If you own the only one word .com in existence then if someone wants it they will have to pay for it, you charging $20 to open a dialogue will not dissuade serious buyers, it will save you time and energy by not dealing with people who want it on the cheap

 

[Recons.Com]

Of course. I know what you mean. There are always going to be buyers that dont pull the trigger.

How would that buyer that didn't buy have felt if they also lost an upfront fee just to make an offer?

I am against the fee. Most my sales are at bin with zero negotiation. Most buys are on impulse, I am not going to make it more difficult.

But I can see those trying it potentially making more, because of escalated commitment. You pay even peanuts, you try to buy the name at even higher than budget.

 

[capybara]

I absolutely support people who are doing this. The more sellers create barriers for their incoming communication, the greater the odds for other sellers who do not.

 

[Abdullah Abdullah]

I absolutely support people who are doing this. The more sellers create barriers for their incoming communication, the greater the odds for other sellers who do not.

Interesting, I can see that.

 

[Silentptnr]

Most buys are on impulse.

Exactly

 

[Ategy]

If people are tired of $20 offers, then just increase your minimum offer threshold.

That being said, I do think the process of paying could filter out a wave of tire kickers as some people call them, while at the same time serving as a minimum level of authentication of the potential buyer/broker.

Just make it $1. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but at least people won’t feel ripped off when you refuse their offer, and the fact they made the effort to pay anything I feel would weed out a good percentage (although not all) of disingenuous offers.

That being said .. I personally wouldn't use it.

Also .. depending on the fee, there are situations where I wouldn't bother making an offer if I had to pay first. Depends on several factors .. namely ratio of the fee vs value of the domain .. and my trust that the domain is even legitimately for sale, and not just a domain that isn't for sale with an extra revenue source from the offers.

 

[Sutruk]

Don't think it would scare off a multi million/ billion pound at all.....

If you own the only one word .com in existence then if someone wants it they will have to pay for it, you charging $20 to open a dialogue will not dissuade serious buyers, it will save you time and energy by not dealing with people who want it on the cheap

In this case, why charging only $20 bucks? why not $500? or more?
I mean, really, even if a multi million/billion company see that you are charging $20 bucks to get a quote... well, maybe that would not sound very serious even to them.
What do you think a multi million/billion company would think about you, trying to get $20 bucks to get a request? That sounds.. a bit cheap! At least for me

 

[Keith]

I’ll make one last comment and then leave it.

Charging someone to make an offer shows your weakness and inability as a negotiator. It basically says, I don’t have the skill to turn a low offer into a worthwhile sale. Anyone can sell a domain for $100k when that’s the opening bid. Very few can get $100k when the opening bid is $1k.

The ability to negotiate is what separates successful people from lucky people.

 

[Silentptnr]

Let's ask some bigger domain investors how they would vote on whethere an upfront fee just to make an offer would be advisable...

@EJS @Kate Buckley @Rick Schwartz @Mike Mann @Domain Shane @MediaOptions @Bill Sweetman @AbdulBasit.com

 

[NickB]

In this case, why charging only $20 bucks? why not $500? or more?
I mean, really, even if a multi million/billion company see that you are charging $20 bucks to get a quote... well, maybe that would not sound very serious even to them.
What do you think a multi million/billion company would think about you, trying to get $20 bucks to get a request? That sounds.. a bit cheap! At least for me

Charge what you like then....People are not stupid....... they should know why you have this price in place, if they don't then tough sh*t you have asset that is not going to depreciate in value and will only increase over time so you can set your own rules if people don't like it they can go and and get the .co or .top or whatever.....

 

[Sutruk]

Charge what you like then....People are not stupid....... they should know why you have this price in place, if they don't then tough sh*t you have asset that is not going to depreciate in value and will only increase over time so you can set your own rules if people don't like it they can go and and get the .co or .top or whatever.....

Yes, people are not stupid, I agree. Maybe this is more than a $20 bucks question. I see this more like a way of doing business. And charging $20 bucks just to get a quote, I don't think is the proper way to go.
But as I said, everybody is free to do whatever they want with their assets. Cheers.

 

[Sutruk]

I think that a better question for this thread would be...
If you have a $1Million domain name, would you like to charge an inquiry fee?
Because charging an inquiry fee for other or less valuable domain names, would be bad, for the seller, and for the general view of the domain industry.

Anyway I would not do that even in the case of a $1M domain. Just put a lander stating "Minimum $1M offers" or whatever you want to put your minimum offer.

In my opinion

 

[Silentptnr]

Maybe you could have a "Lowballer Test"...like a captcha. The prospect could put in an offer amount and get an instant rejection or redirect to the economy section, or be forwarded to the inquiry fee page.


Call it a price compatibility check.

 

[Abdullah Abdullah]

Maybe you could have a "Lowballer Test"...like a captcha. The prospect could put in an offer amount and get an instant rejection or redirect to the economy section, or be forwarded to the inquiry fee page.

Epic, I liked that economy section reference. I imagined like a plane lol.

 

[Abdullah Abdullah]

I registered a domain and sat a minimum offer of 700 something. Within 14 days of registration, someone offered me the minimum offer through the landing page. In the same time, I had a BIN double that price. I said the name is not for sale for that price and his argument was I thought that was the minimum you would sell the name for. I said not selling it for that. I had no plans for the name actually and I could have taken that but wanted to make sure this buyer would not have the notion that a minimum offer is what can get you the name. I reduced my BIN like 300 and he increased his offer the same amount and then I said what the heck accept. He did not change the nameservers so far, and no, he is not domainer.