How to Promote a Domain Auction

Elliot Silver
-
13

Let’s say you are selling a domain name at auction and want to make sure it receives maximum attention from the best potential buyer(s). I want to share some tips on how to let people know that your domain name is up for auction. Not that it matters all that much, but I didn’t do this when I had my own auctions at NameJet, and I regret it.

The first thing you should do is perform a Google search for the keyword or keyterm pertaining to the domain name. Much like you would do if you are selling a domain name in private, you’ll want to contact potential buyers to  gauge  their interest.

When contacting buyers, I personally wouldn’t include a link to the auction in an email. While this might not make all that much sense, it’s probably best to find out if the buyer is interested first because you’ll most likely need to educate them on the auction process. I would send an email telling them that the domain name is for sale, and they should reply if they are interested and want more info. If the domain name is good (or better) and relevant to their business, they will reply.

In your reply email to them, give them all of the auction details. Mention

Read More

Update: MD.org Hits $500k on NameJet

Elliot Silver
-
13

The NameJet auction for the MD.org domain name has surpassed half a million dollars, and it is continuing as I write this (each bid adds an additional four minutes to the auction). The auction has met its reserve price, and it will sell to the highest bidder. The auction is a private auction, so only bidders who placed a backorder can participate.

As of the time of this posting, the current high bid is $506,600, with the bidder handle “freedotcom” leading the auction. The underbidder in this auction goes by userid “winters.” Assuming the leading bidder is someone associated with the Free.com domain name, it’s almost certain they are legit. I also recognize the second place bidder’s nickname, and that person is also a legitimate buyer.

Assuming the MD.org sale is completed, it will be

Read More

Forms.com Domain Name Broker: “Ebay Won’t Raise Seller Limits”

Elliot Silver
-
16

I read a Letter to the Editor in Ecommerce Bytes concerning eBay’s apparent refusal to raise a seller’s limits on an auction for a domain name. The letter was written by Scott Newman, who is the broker of record for the Forms.com domain name, according to a press release in February.

Here’s what Scott had to say about eBay in the letter:

“I sell fairly expensive items on eBay, both for myself and as a consignment dealer. eBay declined my request to raise my limit from 2 million to 7 million. I need the 7 million limit to sell the premium domain name, ‘Forms.com’.”

It’s interesting that Mr. Newman wasn’t able to have the limit lifted by eBay. If you have a look at domain name auctions on eBay right now, there are more than 50

Read More

Contest Results for My NameJet Auctions

Elliot Silver
-
10

I held a contest to see who could guess the value order for my seven domain names I had up for auction this week on NameJet. Unfortunately, not one person guessed that PortStLucieRealEstate.com would be the highest valued sale, so nobody won the $200 contest.

The auctions didn’t do as well as I hoped, but as with all no reserve auctions, it can be a bit of a gamble. In retrospect, I should have practiced what I preach and reached out to end users about the auctions. Stupidly, I turned down a higher offer for one of the names in January, and I didn’t contact that person to let him know about the auction. Pure laziness and I lost out on a couple grand in profit. Live and learn.

Ultimately, I came out about even, with some profitable deals and a couple of losses. I think the buyers grabbed decent names at good prices, and hopefully, they will make money on their investments.

Here are the results of the auctions:

Read More

Afternic Domain Auction Results

Elliot Silver
-
2

Afternic held a domain auction on Snapnames that ended a couple of weeks ago in March. The results of the auction are listed below. The highest value domain name that sold was GFA.com, which closed at $15,100.

In addition to the listed results, I was told the company closed an additional $24,000 worth of sales after the auction closed. This is something to keep in mind for the next time you have a name in auction that doesn’t meet reserve. You might want to ask the auction house or brokerage to reach out to the high bidder to try and close a deal.

The results of the Afternic Snapnames auction are listed below:

Read More

March Great Domains Auction Ending Soon

Elliot Silver
-
0

Sedo’s Great Domains auction for March is ending in about an hour and a half. There are 121 domain names up for auction this month, including a number of short domain names like OAL.com, MHJ.com, and VOF.com. At the moment, well over half of the domain names have bids, although many don’t seem to have met reserve yet.

Here are the 5 domain names I like best in the auction, with the reserve price range taken into consideration:

Read More
1...747576...112Page 75 of 112