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2023 Pan-Mass Challenge

On August 5-6, I will embark on my tenth Pan-Mass Challenge ride to raise funds for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dana-Farber is one of the leading cancer organizations in the world, and they are at the forefront in the fight against cancer. It is an honor to support Dana-Farber’s critical mission of providing exceptional cancer treatment while conducting advanced cancer research.

With the help of domain industry friends and colleagues who have sponsored and supported our PMC rides, John Berryhill and I have raised more than $142,000 for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Although John is unable to join me this year, my 2023 fundraising goal is $15,000. Without the support of domain investors and domain name industry companies, we could not have supported Dana-Farber to this extent. You are appreciated.

This year, Dana-Farber and its mission are hitting closer to home. A family member recently began cancer treatment with Dana-Farber. It is going to be a long battle. In addition, a domain industry colleague recently shared his cancer diagnosis. Cancer impacts just about every person. I am dedicating my fundraising and PMC ride to these two strong individuals.

I will soon reveal the design for my 2023 domain industry supported cycling jersey that will be created to raise funds for Dana-Farber, as I have done nearly every year. My company will be the lead sponsor of this year’s jersey, and I hope to have domain industry support again this year.

If you are interested in adding your logo to the back of my jersey this year in exchange for a $500 donation to Dana-Farber via my PMC fundraiser, let me know. If you would like to support my fundraiser with a donation in any amount, my fundraising page is here. All domain industry supporters are listed below.

Thank you so much to friends and colleagues who have always generously supported my Pan-Mass Challenge fundraising.

2023 Domain Industry PMC supporters:

Taking a Blog Break

I have been writing articles on my blog since 2007. I have been fortunate to have the advertising support of many domain industry companies over the years, and I appreciate that. By accepting advertising revenue, I have felt obligated to publish articles on a daily basis. I usually take the weekends off from my blog, but that’s about it.

For the past 15 years, I have spent many hours each week searching for interesting topics to write about, writing articles, responding to comments, and performing general website upkeep and maintenance. I have made great friends and gotten to know many colleagues because of my blog. By publishing this blog, I have forced myself to stay up to speed on the latest industry news and trends. All of this has helped me become a better domain investor.

The new year is a good time to make a change, and I am going to take a break from this blog.

As advertising renewal dates have come and gone since last Spring, I haven’t offered the opportunity to renew banner placements. The remaining advertising commitments expire on Saturday. With no advertising commitments in place, I am comfortable to take time off. It may be a month or two – or it may be longer. It is an open-ended break.

Besides the income, the thing I like the most about domain investing is the flexibility it gives me. I can take my kids to practices or classes in the afternoon. I can play tennis or go for a bike ride or a run during the day. I can have lunch with my wife or do errands. I am able to travel anywhere in the world and still operate my business. Domain investing is an ideal business for me.

Despite having this flexibility, I have never felt completely free with the blogging obligations I put on myself. No matter where I am or what I am doing, I feel the constant need to publish content that will interest readers. I enjoy writing about domain names, but the commitment has become a burden.

This is not a “goodbye” post. My full focus will be on my domain investments. I thoroughly enjoy buying and selling domain names. Spending more time on my domain names should help me fine tune my business. Maybe I will pick up some more hobbies or do some community service or volunteer work. I will probably write an article from time to time. Perhaps I will return to my blog in the future.

I wish you continued success with your business. I will be working hard to continue growing my business, and I hope you continue to grow yours as well. I appreciate many of the interactions I have had with readers and commenters, some of whom I call friends. I am grateful for the friendships and connections I have made with other investors around the world.

Until next time…

Chat.com Profitably Resold for 8 Figures

In March of this year, I reported on the sale of Chat.com. The domain name was acquired by HubSpot Co-Founder Dharmesh Shah for more than $10 million USD. The exact acquisition price wasn’t revealed by either party. That deal had been brokered by Hilco Digital’s Andrew Miller and Larry Fischer.

This morning, Dharmesh revealed that he resold the domain name for a profit, and he is donating $250,000 to Khan Academy:

First Look at my 2023 Domain Industry PMC Jersey

This August, I will be riding in my 10th Pan-Mass Challenge ride to raise funds for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. I will be riding 162 miles over two days, from Wellesley, Massachusetts to Provincetown, Massachusetts. I’ve been receiving great domain industry support, and I appreciate it. So far, we have raised more than $9,000 when all donations are posted. My initial goal is $15,000.

On the second day of my ride, I will wear a custom jersey featuring the logos of domain industry sponsors who donate $500 or more. Historically, this custom jersey has generated the largest amount of donations for my ride. This year, Theo Develegas helped me design my jersey, and I think it looks great so far.

As of right now, there are at least 8 sponsor spots remaining. Three donations were secured after the design was sent to me and those logos aren’t on the jersey yet. I hope to send this off to the jersey maker (Jakroo) next week, so I can wear this throughout my Summer training rides.

Update: I think all spots are now taken. I will be sending this back to Jakroo to add the remaining logos. If there is anymore space, I will mention it on Twitter. 

Thank you!

2023  domain industry PMC jersey sponsors (in ABC order):

Just Add “The”

I went to the post office the other day to buy stamps. I had a brief conversation with the person working at the counter, and he asked what I do. After telling him a little bit about my business, he told me he had a funny story to share with me.

He is an artist and he created a cartoon character. He told me he tried to buy a domain name matching the name of the character, but the owner wanted $2,000 for it. He then pulled out his phone and told me he wanted to show me something funny. He found a screenshot of the email he sent the owner telling him he added “The” to the domain name and bought it for $.99. He also told me he turned down a $1,000 offer for that domain name from someone else.

Uni-Parked Domains Now “may be for sale”

When GoDaddy announced the Afternic to Uni transition, I was notified I would need to change any Uni-related nameservers I use. I was curious about what would happen to domain names utilizing the InternetTraffic.com nameservers that didn’t get changed.

Several domain names I previously sold maintained the nameservers I had been using after their sale. Obviously, the buyers of these domain names would not receive these notifications. I presume some wouldn’t care considering they did not update the nameservers on their own following their acquisitions.

Best Domain Name from my Trip

We went on a quick trip to Chicago this weekend. I am always on the lookout for good domain names, and traveling is as good of a time as any to see something eye-catching.

I was surprised to see that Abt.com is owned by a local appliance and electronics retailer. Before seeing their signs, I would have guessed this nice 3L .com domain name was owned by the pharmaceutical company that uses the ABT acronym for its stock symbol. While ABT.com was good, it was not the best domain name I saw.

That honor belongs to NA.com, which I saw in a peculiar spot. As I was heading back home yesterday via O’Hare Airport, I made a quick stop in the restroom and saw the great NA.com domain name.

Two letter .coms aren’t necessarily the most valuable domain names, but it’s always neat to see a great name like NA.com when I am not expecting it.

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