Good Advice from SevenMile (Frank Schilling)

On a whim, I decided to visit Frank Schilling's SevenMile blog and discovered this breath taking March 21, 2008, gem:

With 6+ billion would-be “sellers” on our planet and just 10 to 18 million “meaningful” domain names across “all extensions” good enough to do the selling, this might just be the right time to put your feet on your desk and triple your prices - or to not sell at all.

Actually the entire article is worth reading, although it's long and flies in the face of conventional wisdom.

But when a master domainer speaks, maybe one should listen.

I thought Frank had retired from blogging (?)

Ms Domainer

Aftermarket Domains: Are They Worth Premium Prices?

Answer: Sometimes.

The obvious goodies generate a lot of interest; I was involved in the SecretAgent.com auction at Snapnames, and it eventually sold for the low to mid $xx,xxx.

On the other hand, domains like bonuscasinoplay.com are questionable. I own this domain because I forgot to delete it from my backorder list, a mistake I won't make again. From now on, nothing will go on my preorder list unless I really want the domain or if I know that it will generate competitive bidding. Sixty bucks is a lot for a domain that doesn't have much going for it.

On the surface, bonuscasinoplay.com looks good: three great keywords, well put together, but here are some indicators that suggest it won't be all that profitable:

1. It's not a direct navigation term.
2. No Alexa or Compete rank.
3. Traffic: About 30 hits per month.
4. It's a gambling domain, and online gambling is illegal in the U.S., thus no U.S. adsense.
5. It's a long domain: three words and 15 characters.
6. A casino is not likely to be an end user of this domain. For example, if Ace Casino wants to run a promo, it is not likely to set up a separate website for that purpose. Instead, it will create a link to the promo on its homepage, such as AceCasino.com/bonuscasinoplay.
7. The domain is relatively new: created May 16, 2005 (see Domain Tools).
8. All of the major TLD's are still available--on a truly valuable name, the other TLD's would have been snapped up as well. (Even if all the major TLD's are taken, it would be a good idea to make sure that the name is not regged by the same person/company).
9. No Keyword Discovery or Overture rank.
10. Google search with quotations: 685

One positive: the term is generic.

On the other hand, SecretAgent.com would be a good aftermarket buy (Five figures? I just don't know. Obviously, I did not bid to win this domain):

1. This is probably a direct navigation term, which has a long tradition in the entertainment and literary businesses.
2. Alexa rank of over 3,000,000; Compete rank of over 850,000.
3. Traffic: about 1,000 hits per month (surprisingly low, in my opinion; see note below).
4. "Secret Agent" has a lot of advertising possibility.
5. It's about mid length: two words, 11 characters.
6. This would be a fantastic opportunity for an end user; if this were my domain, I'd be looking for a development partner (especially if I had paid xx,xxx figures for it).
7. The domain is middle-aged: Created July 29, 2003 (Domain Tools).
8. All of the major TLD's have been snapped up, including .tv and .mobi. The plural versions (in all TLDs) are also registered. The singular hyphenated versions are also regged (I own the .tv and .mobi). Some plural hyphenated TLD's are available, although the dot-com is regged.
9. Keyword Discovery: 5; Overture: 200.
10. Google Search with quotation marks: over 4,100,000 with two sponsored ads.

A note on traffic: my Post Foetry blog receives 500 -1500 hits per month (see my counter). From a domaining standpoint, this isn't exactly a tear 'em up domain name, but it is a developed site with a small following, especially when I post regularly. Just imagine what kind of traffic a developed SecretAgent.com site would attract...

Before placing a backorder on an aftermarket name, it is important to do some basic research before joining a backorder auction.

Otherwise, one could end up with a version of BonusCasinoPlay.com.

If you are an experienced domainer with anything to add to my comparison list, feel free to comment or email me.

I'll add the info to my list.

Best,

Ms Domainer

Elliot's Blog and Good Advice

I am a faithful fan of Elliot's Blog; he offers a lot of good information to domainers who are still fairly new at this profession. I appreciate his insights and his patience. I do like the other blogs, such as Domains Tools Blog, but I'm sure that I sometimes come across as a royal pain in the arse, with all my newbie, naive questions and insights.

Elliot's post today discusses protecting one's brand by registering generics, associated domains, and TLD's; once a business or entity becomes known, speculators could snap up the other TLD's and try to sell them to you.

It was a wake up call for me; I have grown rather fond of my Ms Domainer moniker, but I had only regged the dot-com. Today I fixed that problem by regging the major TLD's: .net, .org, .info, .org, .biz, .us, .mobi, and even .tv (after some agonizing, but if .tv takes off like some think, I thought I'd better have it--cheaper getting it now than having to go after it in the aftermarket).

These domains are now permanently redirected to this blog. I don't expect my traffic to pick up dramatically, but this defensive move could help avoid traffic being siphoned off from this site. Never underestimate the power of .net and .org--the few .orgs that I have are kicking serious butt. In the future, I may branch off, and these domains could be directed to other projects; for example, I may set up a Ms Domainer foundation, and .org would be used for that purpose.

It was an expensive day, but I think I made some good decisions that will impact my future in this biz.

Thanks, Elliot.

Best, Ms Domainer