My favorite kind of domain name to buy is one word .com domain names. I have done well selling this type of asset, and I think they enhance my portfolio. I don’t own many non .com domain names, but I think one word non .com domain names sell regularly as well. Not all one word domain names are equal, and I want to share some advice I picked up a while ago that serves as a helpful guideline to me.
Last week, I kiddingly posted a tweet illustrating what happens when a domain investor shares a sale publicly. Many people reply with congratulatory messages, but there are almost always people who reply pitching their (typically less good) domain name they seem to think would be comparable to what sold:
Domain investor 1: “I sold https://t.co/teAKVWiv9i for $50,000!”
Domain investors 2 – 10: “Congratulations, that’s great!”
Domain investor 11: “I am selling DomainNameAwesum.garbage for $5,000. HMU if u want to buy it.”
— Elliot Silver (@DInvesting) August 14, 2020
When you have an inquiry or make offer form on your undeveloped but valuable domain names, you likely receive a substantial number of inquiries and offers. The vast majority of these come from unqualified prospective buyers. These people either do not have the budget to afford the domain name, or they do not value the domain name at the level it is worth.
Over the weekend, Rick Schwartz shared some advice about not wasting time negotiating with people who are unqualified:
Yesterday morning, I wrote about the need for GoDaddy to add 2 factor authentication (2FA) at Afternic to enhance account security. While we are discussing account security, I also think it is important for Escrow.com to offer its customers a form of 2FA for account logins.
The potential security issues at Escrow.com and Afternic are different, but the ramifications are serious on both platforms. If someone would gain access to my Escrow.com account via the password, they would have access to all of my domain name sales and acquisitions that have been transacted via Escrow.com. Similarly, if someone gains access to a domain broker’s Escrow.com account, they would have access to client domain name sales data.
Domain name theft is a big issue for domain investors. I strongly recommend that investors and other domain registrants enable 2 factor authentication (2FA) on their domain registrar accounts to help secure them. Most domain registrars offer at least one form of 2FA, and several offer multiple forms of 2FA, including text message, authentication app, key fob, Yubikey, among others.
Many people struggle to find a domain name that not only resonates with their business but is also affordable for them to purchase. It can be a challenge to buy a domain name that will not only last the test of time but won’t break the bank. I am occasionally asked by friends and family to assist with their domain name needs, and I thought I would open the floor to see what readers think. I will share some of my thinking, too.
