After I complete the sale of a domain name to an end user buyer, I try to find similar domain names for sale, in an effort to close additional deals with the buyer. I am especially keen to do this when I’ve had multiple offers and significant interest on a domain name from several end user prospects.
Let’s say I sold CollegeApartments.com to an end user buyer. I would do some research to try and find similar domain names that might be for sale. I would search Google and the soon to be killed off Google Adwords Keyword Tool to find terms that are similar to “college apartments.”
This research would probably lead me to names like UniversityHousing.com, CollegeHousing.com, OffCampusApartments.com, CampusHousing.com…etc. Whois searches would show the owners and the statuses of these domain names, and if I saw that the names were not being used or listed for sale on Sedo, Afternic, or Aftermarket.com, I would negotiate in earnest. Knowing a buyer and their budget would allow me to strike a deal that could be profitable and within their budget.
As with all types of investments, there are risks to this strategy. The buyer might not have a desire for any of the other domain names that you buy. Similarly, the buyer might not have the budget for more domain names (this could be overcome by leasing it or offering financing). Additionally, you might believe a domain name is similar, but perhaps it’s not as similar to the buyer in that particular field. Finally, in my end user email, I mention that I will only email prospects once, and I adhere to this promise, making the solicitation of subsequent domain names impossible unless they have expressed an interest.
I haven’t had a ton of luck selling multiple names to end user buyers, but it has worked well on a few occasions. This is why I said it’s good to try when you have interest for a domain name from several parties. It’s a bit of a risky strategy where you could lose your profit from the first sale in the hopes of closing additional deals, but depending on your buyer, it could be worth doing.
In my point of view, buying a domain name is easy but selling a domain name is tough. How are you selling your domain name? Give me some tips on it.
No comments?
This is one of the best posts Elliot you done this year!
1. After first sale, it builds a future relationship up.
2. I do this or try too but puts some money in my pocket.
3. I just sold a domain name for $500 today as a hand reg and now second order. First order was back in april and my second largest sale ever.
4. Dont announce things and have people guessing what your up too amongst our domainer peers, LOL. Ride the momentum as long as you can. After its done, its ok to announce after you cornered things with repeat sales.
I wish this area will improve for me. All part of the plan, point a to point b.