Buying Domain Names

Use The Phone to Verify a Seller

When you buy a domain name in the aftermarket, it’s critical to be sure the seller has the right to sell the domain name and that the transaction is above board. Performing due diligence is critical when buying a domain name.

I use a number of tools to do my due diligence, with DomainTools being among the most useful tools I use, specifically the domain history tool. With this tool, I can see the provenance of a domain name, and this can help me see if anything looks fishy with the ownership.

Once in a while, something will look funky to me, and I

Being a Follower Can Be Difficult

In the game of American football, the wide receiver generally has the advantage over the cornerback because he knows the route he has been assigned to run and catch a pass. If speed, skill, and football intellect are equal, the wide receiver should be able to get open to catch a pass from the quarterback.

Last night, I was reviewing FreshDrop’s NameJet list of expiring domain names to back order. I came across a domain name that is in the same vertical a company spent tens (maybe even hundreds) of thousands of dollars acquiring a few years ago. I think the company would have paid

Can gTLD / nTLD Pre Registration Lists Help You Find Good Domain Names?

With the new TLDs coming soon(ish), domain registrars like 101 Domain, 1&1, Name.com, and others have been taking pre-reservations. While these are non-binding, it gives the registrars and TLD applicants some decent data about what the demand will be like when these TLDs come on the market. I wonder if this data would be helpful to domain investors today who want to find domain names that will be in demand in the future.

Rick Schwartz posted an article today that got me thinking about something related to these pre-registrations. He mentioned that he was surprised that .Online appears to be popular because of the little traffic his various -Online.com domain names receive. I am sure that will change once .Online domain names are available and used.

That said, I wonder if there’s an opportunity today for

Place Your Backorders Everywhere

On occasion, an exceptional domain name will expire and enter pending delete status. Most often (from my perspective), one of the leading auction websites, like NameJet or Snapnames, will catch the domain name, and it will be entered into an auction with many bidders.

Sometimes, neither one of these large auction houses will capture the domain name, and it will be caught by another auction house, by a private company, or by a drop catching service that awards the domain name to the first and only backorder. This happens when the

Have Numeric Domain Values Peaked?

 

Just before the summer, I wrote an article about the increase in demand for (and value of) numeric domain names. It seemed that just about every domain aftermarket and broker newsletter had 3 and 4 number .com domain names for sale at prices that continued to increase week in and week out for quite some time.

I just saw the above embedded tweet from Ryan Colby, a seasoned domain broker and founder of Outcome Brokerage. It seems that Ryan may have observed that the numeric domain name aftermarket has hit its peak and may be in a decline (possibly short term). As a domain broker, he would likely be in a good position to observe this, as he is in contact with buyers and sellers all day.

I personally do not own any numeric domain names and haven’t been looking to buy any. I have seen auctions and sales posts for them, and it seems the prices continue to rise. Perhaps more are coming on the market as a result of domain owners wishing to cash out a high prices?

Whatever the case is, it is interesting that Ryan has made this observation. I am interested in knowing what you think about the market for numeric domain names right now. Has it hit a peak? Is it “resting?” Is Ryan wrong?

What are your thoughts?

When Bidding on an Auction, See Comps to Find Better Deals

One of my primary domain acquisition sources is NameJet auctions. I have found some good deals when buying on NameJet, and I am involved in many auctions each day. I want to share a tip that I use to help guide some of my purchases.

When I am bidding on an auction, I use comparable sales and comparable sale listings to help guide my purchase, in addition to my own gut feel for names. If I notice other recent sales have been for much more money, I might be willing to spend more on a particular domain name.

Comparable sale listings on marketplaces like Sedo and Afternic are also important data points to consider, and I will share my rationale with you using two of my company’s domain names as an example.

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