Outbound Can Help Plant a Seed

I haven’t done much outbound marketing to sell my domain names recently. I’ve done it on occasion, but it’s less frequent these days. The reasons I don’t do much of it is a combination of not wanting to seem like I need to sell a domain name and not having a ton of success with selling via outbound.

Perhaps I haven’t had much success with outbound marketing because I am mostly choosing domain names that have had less inbound interest. Without these attributes, there’s probably less intrinsic interest in these domain names. I have also typically chosen domain names I am okay selling for less money since most people tend to try to negotiate a better deal if they respond to an outbound email.

Create Trust with Corporate Website

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If you’re going to manage you own inbound sales inquiries, I think it’s a good idea to create a corporate website.  The website can be a simple HTML website or something that is more fancy, but it should have enough information to help build trust between you and a counterparty. You can also create an email address with the matching domain name to reinforce credibility and make it clear the inquiry is being handled by an authorized representative of the business.

I operate two professional websites for my business – TopNotchDomains.com and Embrace.com. The former is more of a corporate website and the later is more of a marketing website. Both of these websites offer details about who I am and provide background information about my business. The idea is to show counterparties I am experienced in the business of domain names and know I can be trusted to complete a deal.

Don’t Re-Upload Premium Atom.com Names

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I’ve had some decent luck selling domain names on Atom.com. I think their new AI review tool is useful for quickly getting domain names listed for sale at its “Premium” listing level. I tried something I would not suggest doing, and I want to share the result of this error so other people don’t make the same mistake.

I think people use Atom to find a brand name for a business or product more than simply buying domain names at a domain registrar. This has led me to add more domain names I think could become brands. Identifying these domain names from my portfolio of ~2,500 domain names isn’t a quick or easy task. The AI review tool at Atom is a good way to identify domain names that might have a better chance of selling.

Using a Toll-Free Number on Landing Pages

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I think it’s a good idea to have a phone number on a domain name for sale landing page. Some people prefer to speak on the phone when inquiring about a domain name, and having a phone number can lead to more calls. It can also serve as an additional data point when researching an inbound inquiry.

There are numerous services that offer toll-free numbers. I am not super familiar with that market, so I can’t really comment about which service is better and what different providers offer. I would caution people about using toll-free numbers that have a cost per call component.

Negotiating with a Price Discrepancy

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I received a $1,500 offer for a two word .com domain name I have listed for sale for $4,999 on GoDaddy. The offer came through Efty, where I use a smart lander I created a while ago. In looking at the lander, I noticed I have a $1,999 valuation listed, so the prospect likely assumed that’s what I am asking for the domain name.

One issue with listing domain names for sale on multiple venues is the challenge of keeping prices consistent across the board. I don’t do as well as I should with respect to that. I might change a swath of prices on Afternic but not update Efty or Spaceship.

Unique Searches as a Renewal Signal

As my portfolio has grown in the last several years, so, too, have my renewal fees. I’ve spent more time and money buying domain names I can add to my portfolio to sell as inventory. I think I’ve done well enough picking out enough quality names that sell that it’s been worthwhile.

A great deal of these inventory quality domain names were either hand registered or bought via the DropCatch domain discount club, where the price is just above the registration fee. I have been more willing to take fliers on these names to build my inventory that I can sell for anywhere from ~$1,000 – $5,000. Preventing portfolio bloat is something I’ve been actively doing as my domain portfolio has grown.