Use Google Alerts to Monitor Content

Elliot Silver
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0

Content theft is annoying if not harmful. I am sure Google can tell what website posted an article first, but when someone steals content and uses it on their own website, it’s frustrating. As a website owner, why should someone be able to take something I created in order to line their own pockets?

Because I use WordPress for this blog and several other websites I operate, I receive pingbacks when other blogs take my content and provide a link back to the source. Unfortunately, there are plenty of other times that websites steal articles and content without a link back, and it’s much more difficult to detect.

One thing you can do to find out about content theft is to set up Google Alerts for sentences on your static pages and your high traffic driving posts. As soon as Google notices the same sentence in another article that is posted online, you’ll get an alert email to let you know about it and let you know where it is posted. With this information, you can file a DMCA takedown notice with the thief’s hosting company, or in the case of an accidental post, you can request a link back to your website.

This can’t really help prevent content theft from happening, but it can help remediate it when you do find that someone lifted an article or something important from your website.

Most Important Thing Learned in Domaining

Elliot Silver
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5

I want to share the link to a post on DNForum that I think is interesting to read and has some good insight from a variety of sources. A user named vinsdomains.com asked the question, “What’s the most important thing you have learned domaining?”

As of right now, there are over 30 responses in the thread, and I think there will likely be more replies over the next few days. I know there are a number of people reading my blog who are new to the domain industry and are looking for good advice from others. I think this DNF thread should be subscribed to and read to get some ideas.

With all of my projects and my blog, I don’t spend much time on domain forums (or any forums for that matter). However, one of the things I like about DNForum and Namepros (and a reason why I think people who are new to the domain industry should become members) is the variety of members on the forums. There are people who have been involved in the domain business for 10+ years and people who just started. The range of experience and experiences runs the gamut, and a lot can be learned by visiting and reading threads like this one.

When you have a moment, check out the thread. If you can contribute to the thread, even better. The more knowledgable domain investors, the less spam we’ll see, fewer UDRP cases involving obvious domain names, and the more positive dealings we will all have in the business.

Misconception: To Be Successful, You Need to Have Bought Domain Names Years Ago

Elliot Silver
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27

 

I had a conversation via Twitter today that I want to share with you. The conversation piqued my interest when the other person said, “Facebook’s amazing global popularity makes domains less relevant than they’ve ever been.” I mentioned that I was in the midst of a very good sales month, and his reply to that is embedded above.

In my opinion, one needn’t have bought domain names in the 1990s or early 2000s to be successful in the domain investment space. I started buying and selling domain names in 2003 (late compared to many pros), and I don’t own a single domain name from when I started. Just about all of my domain sales are on names I’ve acquired within the prior few months, although I sell a “legacy” name from time to time.

I would imagine almost all of my domain name holdings have been acquired by me post-2006, and if any were bought before 2006, they aren’t of high value. I do think older names may be worth more (depending on the name of course), but I don’t think that a person has to have started back in the 90s or early 00s to be successful at this business today.

Almost every day, I buy domain names in the aftermarket, many with the hopes of re-selling in the short term at a profit. I risk my own capital to grow my business, and nothing is handed to me on a silver platter. My experience guides me, and that is what helps make me determine when to buy and sell.

Although many companies are using Facebook urls in marketing campaigns, nearly all have their own websites and domain names. Perhaps some companies may be more inclined to spend marketing dollars on Facebook advertising campaigns than on domain acquisitions, but I don’t think Facebook has made domain names less valuable. It’s more likely that Google has devalued domain names to some extent, but even that is debatable.

It is my opinion that someone just starting out in the domain investment space can still make a lot of money. I don’t think investing in domain names is a way to make quick profits unless you have the experience and are willing to risk large sums of money. However, for someone willing to learn the intricacies of the business, there is plenty of money to be made.

When NOT to Use LeadRefs.com

Elliot Silver
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22

I’ve written an article about how I used LeadRefs.com  and a second article about another way to use LeadRefs.com, but today I want to discuss when NOT to use LeadRefs.com to sell a domain name.  The tool provides the email addresses of people and/or companies that  might be interested in buying your domain name based on a number of (proprietary I assume) factors.

I believe LeadRefs.com is a good tool to use if you have a very good domain name and are willing to sell it for a fair price.  If you have a crappy domain name, LeadRefs.com will not magically find you a buyer for it, no matter what your price is. Please be realistic when you use the tool. I assure you, nobody wants to receive emails for domain names that are either unrelated or just a crappy/hacked up/worthless domain name (they will consider them SPAM).

When you are the one approaching potential buyers, you must have a fair price. A pie in the sky price will probably not yield the best results with this tool. Generally speaking, domain owners get the best prices for their domain assets when a buyer approaches them to satisfy a need on their part. When a domain owner is seeking a buyer, the owner usually needs to make price concessions. I would be sure you have a fair price.

I strongly urge you to look through the email addresses of the lead results before emailing them. I recommend removing email addresses of known domain investors and others who would likely not want to receive your email. Although domain investors may want to buy a good domain name, you must keep in mind they likely receive other unsolicited emails and it’s annoying, especially when the domain names are crappy (see second paragraph).

You need to use some good judgment when using LeadRefs.com. Sending unsolicited bulk emails is likely not legal. If you are sending bad domain names, over priced domain names, or sending domain names to leads that won’t want to receive email from you, it’s a big risk.

Tip to Make a Fair Purchase Offer

Elliot Silver
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9

As a domain investor who flips domain names for a living, I think that making a reasonable offer for an acquisition target is one of the most challenging things I do. If my offer is too low, I likely won’t receive a reply from the owner. If the offer is too high, I won’t make a profit when I try to re-sell the domain name.

Making a fair and reasonable opening offer is the best way to close a deal. For me (and from my perspective), knowing what is a fair offer and what is a lowball offer is mostly gut feel, but it’s also knowing what the market is and has been for similar domain names.

One thing I recommend doing before making an offer on a domain name, especially if you are talking high 4, 5, or 6 figures, is doing some market research on that domain name and other, similar domain names. I recommend checking out NameBio.com or DNSalesPrice.com to see if they have sales in their database you can either use to determine a fair offer or even justify your offer when you receive a response. I recommend checking for the actual name, synonyms, and variations of the name – like -ing, -ed, -es…etc.

Both NameBio.com and DNSalesPrice.com have sales archives for domain names you might not have heard about selling. For instance, you might not see a full sales report on domain sales under $1,000, but they might have been archived on one of those websites. It’s also a great way to learn about other names that sold, and perhaps if you see a name that sold for a great price, you can target that name as an acquisition in the future.

I recommend doing your market research before making an offer because that will help guide you on making a fair offer. Should the domain owner tell you that your offer is way off, you can reply with a link to a sales report justifying your offer amount and telling the owner that you think it’s fair when compared to a recent sale.

After a Transfer, Make Sure Whois Information is Accurate

Elliot Silver
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3

The other day, I received an email from Go Daddy telling me that action was required for a domain name I had sold months ago. The email I received was the standard email that is sent when a transfer is initiated for a Godaddy-registered domain name, and it contained the security code and password needed to transfer the domain name.

For whatever reason, when I sold the domain name and it was transferred to Godaddy, my contact information was retained for the domain name. If you do a Whois lookup for this domain name, you will still see all of my information listed, as if I had never sold and transferred the domain name. Since the DNS had been changed by the buyer, I know it is in his account and he has control of the domain name, despite the Whois information.

If I had nefarious intentions, I could possibly transfer the domain name out of Godaddy, put privacy on it, and pretend to know nothing about it. Of course, I don’t have these intentions, but it is conceivable and that is problematic. At the very least, it would make proving an ownership change difficult if Escrow.com was used and the buyer decided to not acknowledge the transfer.

When you buy a domain name and transfer it to a new registrar, I strongly recommend you do a Whois search to be sure that you actually are listed as the registrant. It can take up to 24 hours for the new information to be reflected, but it’s important to note. If the information is not accurate, you should change it in your account as soon as possible.

One would hope your business colleagues are honest, but there are plenty of people that wouldn’t think twice about screwing you over and claiming it was an accident “oops, I forgot that I had sold the name!”

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