Domain Name Price Guide for Startups (Infographic)

Elliot Silver
-
28

Having dealt with a variety of people and companies that have tried to buy my domain names over the years, I believe that price expectations for domain names vary wildly. Some people have absolutely no idea how much domain names are worth, and others seem to have a general idea about value but don’t know much about specifics. This could be a negotiation ploy, or simply, they know they need a good domain name but don’t know how much good domain names are worth.

Bill Sweetman of Name Ninja produced this handy illustrated domain name price guide for startups (shared below). Bill and his company have experience consulting with startups and other companies who need to acquire domain names, and I think the infographic is a fairly accurate assessment of current domain name market conditions. It is in an easy to understand format, making it a great tool to help people understand what domain names are worth.

Along with the infographic, Bill wrote a blog post with details about the infographic and some color commentary about the domain name marketplace.

One thing to keep in mind is that individual domain name values can vary considerably depending on the owner of the domain name, how the domain name is being used, and the owner’s future plans for the domain name. The domain name market is

Read More

Brand Names Are Important for Startups

Elliot Silver
-
4

This may seem like it should be obvious to people who operate startup businesses, but brand names are important. This is especially true for startups that are seeking outside funding to grow their business. Not only does this seem intuitive, but there is a study that shows the importance of choosing a brand name.

Check out this tweet from Evergreen, a domain brokerage and consulting firm:

The tweet links to a Business Insider Australia article that cites an industry study with insight about how brand names can impact the funding a startup receives at different stages. From the Business Insider article:

“Names are are easily pronounced, such as Uber and Lyft, are preferred by both early and late stage investors. They tend to be offered more money, whether its through crowd funders, angel investors, VCs or IPO investors.

Uniqueness is also virtue, but only with early-stage investors. The study found that since very little is known about a company in the early stages, unique names give the impression there is something special about the company.”

Evergreen and others in the domain consulting space could probably share more insight than I can, but when it comes to naming, I believe

Read More

Made In America: Smart Domain Strategy

Elliot Silver
-
3

I noticed that people were mentioning this is “Made in America week” , as described by the President. When I saw this, I was curious about what I would find on the exact match MadeInAmerica.com domain name. I presumed it would be unrelated to the President’s initiatives, but I wanted to see what was there.

It looks like MadeInAmerica.com is currently in its beta phase and under development. According to the website, it has a pretty substantial mission:

“Our long term goal is to have a noticeable effect on U.S. GDP. This will be through partnering, promoting, and manufacturing highly innovative products Made in America.”

Aside from the cool looking logo, I was also impressed with the domain strategy that seems to have been employed. “Made in America” is a pretty common phrase, dating long before the current

Read More

The Dumbest Response to a Domain Name Inquiry

Elliot Silver
-
33

I have to share what I think is the dumbest response to a domain name inquiry that I have seen in a very long time. I asked about the price of a domain name that had a “for sale” message on its landing page, and here is the response I received:

“If you have to ask then you can’t afford it.”

Let that sink in for a second. I simply asked the domain owner for the price of his domain name, and this is the answer he gave me.

I think this is a pretty dumb response. First off, how is anyone going to know whether or not they can afford a domain name without the price? How else is someone suppose to get the price of the domain name without asking what the owner wants for it?

A buyer may be able to afford to pay 6 or 7 figures for a domain name, but being willing to pay that much depends on the purpose of the acquisition. Having the ability to pay a price for a domain name has little to do with whether they value the domain name at that price.

I can’t imagine going into my local

Read More

Mike Berkens is “Ready for More”

Elliot Silver
-
26

On occasion, I have read comments that called early domain investors like Mike Berkens “lucky” for getting into the domain investment business at an early stage. Some people have even said that those early birds couldn’t replicate their business if they started today. Well, those people are wrong.

Mike Berkens famously sold the majority of his company’s domain portfolio to GoDaddy for tens of millions of dollars in 2015. Mike could retire and/or live a life of luxury, traveling the world with Judi and never buy or sell a single domain name again. Mike is still buying and selling domain names, and he is continuing to prove that he is one of the smartest people in the business who could start over today and still do better than 99.9% of everyone else in the business.

Case in point:

Mike acquired the domain name ReadyForMore.com a little over a year ago at a public auction on DropCatch.com. Anyone could have bid against Mike and beat his bids, but he prevailed in the

Read More

One Way I Come Up With Domain Name Ideas

Elliot Silver
-
16

I took my first long 2017 Pan-Mass Challenge training ride yesterday. It was a beautiful day, and I rode for about 3 hours.  These long rides give me time to think about business without having a computer or iPhone in front of me, and it is a time that I brainstorm about domain name acquisitions.

During the ride, I thought  about a couple of ways that I come up with domain names to inquire about. I presume many people do this already, but for those who don’t, it might offer a nugget of insight that could be useful. I want to share some thoughts about that with you.

Most of my rides are through the back roads of the MetroWest region of Boston (I own MetroWest.com). I pass the beautiful Charles River (I recently sold CharlesRiver.com) at several points throughout my ride. One domain name I own and am surprised hasn’t sold is NeedhamRealEstate.com. There have been a ton of teardowns and redevelopment in Needham during the past couple of years, and I am surprised a real estate agent from Needham hasn’t made an enticing enough offer yet.

Maybe you see where I am going with this?

Read More
1...343536...98Page 35 of 98