How Can You Get Tons of Publicity?

Elliot Silver
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16

With the recent launch of the Domain Guardians, there were a number of articles written to announce the news. A  couple of people privately wondered why so many blogs and sites announced the launch of a private business.  Perhaps there was a bit of jealousy since most other product and company launches don’t get the same amount of coverage as this particular launch.

The reason I wrote my article was two-fold.

First off, Mike and Jen have been fantastic at what they do. I mean no disrespect to anyone else at Fabulous or DBS, but to many of us, they were the face of the company. They always attend domain conferences, and whenever I needed anything at Fabulous, Mike was very responsive as my account representative. In a small industry, personal relationships are critical.

Secondly, I believe Domain Guardians offers a unique service that has been discussed by many but not really offered on a large scale. I know some people have individually endeavored on domain name estate planning, but I think this offering will prove to be beneficial for people like me. I can’t afford to spend thousands of dollars on estate planning with numerous experts, but this service would be perfect for someone like me.

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Please help me raise funds for the  Ronald McDonald House

Contest Final: 5 Worst Domain Names – VOTE NOW!

Elliot Silver
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21

Thanks to everyone for submitting what they believe are their worst domain names. I got a lot of really terrible names, so it’s no wonder domain registrars stay in business!  Only kidding… I have plenty of crappy names in my portfolio.

Anyway, after careful consideration, I have selected the 5 domain names I personally believe are the worst based on the rules I listed. Please vote for the name you think is the worst, and the leading vote getter by Sunday night will win a $50 payment from me and will push the domain name to me.

  • Balck-Porn.com
  • Talebanistan.com
  • Free-Dialup-ISP-Internet-Access-Provider.com
  • LennyDudes.com
  • TripDGogglesGlasses.com


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Please help me raise funds for the  Ronald McDonald House

NamePros Removes High Priced Sales Forum

Elliot Silver
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43

If you’re a frequent NamePros visitor, you’ve probably been to the High Priced Domain Sales section on the popular domain forum. Although you can still directly navigate to this section, a link to it has been temporarily (I assume) removed from NamePros.

I have not been given an official reason for its removal, but I did receive a private message about it’s disappearance when I attempted to list a domain name for sale there the other day.

There was also a public thread on the topic.  According to forum administrator NPQueen,  “We have hidden that forum while RJ is working on improving it. It will either come back improved or there will be another avenue for them. In the meantime they can be listed in another appropriate forum.”

I always thought this particular sales venue was well-moderated, and I look forward to seeing what’s in store for it in the futute.


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Please help me raise funds for the  Ronald McDonald House

2011 Prediction Comes True: Monte Cahn and Mike Berkens Start New Venture

Elliot Silver
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9

At the end of 2010, I posted three predictions for 2011, and it looks like one of those predictions has already come true just a month into the new year. In that blog post, I wrote:

“Monte Cahn will be back in the domain space in some way, although it probably won’t be for a large or well known company.”

According to a press release I received today, Mike Berkens and Monte Cahn have started a new venture called Right of the Dot. The company will “help registries determine launch strategies and auction plans for their new TLDs, but the uniquely experienced consulting firm can also perform high-end corporate domain needs assessment and establish a business domain strategy to compete in the future.”

It’s good to see two of the smartest guys in the domain space start this new venture, and I wish them all the best.

John Ferber from Domain Holdings on ABC’s Secret Millionaire

Elliot Silver
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10

One of ABC’s more popular and touching television shows will be back on the air on March 6, 2011. Each week, Secret Millionaire features a millionaire who interacts with others that may be down on their luck, without them knowing about the millionaire’s wealth.

John Ferber, co-founder of the company that sold Advertising.com to Time Warner for $500 million, and one of the founders of Domain Holdings, is one of the millionaires featured on Secret Millionaire this season.  Ferber is a familiar face to those who have attended a domain conference, and it’s likely that you’ve seen or met him if you’ve attended one recently.

According to Ferber, “It was an amazing experience that I will never forget and I feel incredibly fortunate to have been able to help such wonderful and deserving people who work hard to make their community a better place for everyone, the real stars of the show r the folks doing great things in their community, my role was just a bit part compared to them, the show in my opinion was mis-titled.”

One of Ferber’s big projects is Microgiving.com, a crowd funding website that lets people raise money online to fund a project, cause or entrepreneurial idea, and give a percent of what you raise directly to a charity, cause, individual or family in need. At the moment, Ferber is involved in his MrManuary competition, raising funds to fight prostate cancer. Check it out when you get a chance.

It’s great to see someone as successful as Ferber giving back to his community and the Internet community at large.

* Thanks to Charlie for the tip.

Reuters: FB.com May Have Cost Facebook Up To $8.5 Million

Elliot Silver
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23

As reported late last year, Facebook was able to acquire the FB.com domain name from the American Farm Bureau Federation. The Farm Bureau now uses FB.org for its website, and Facebook uses FB.com for the company’s internal email system.

At the time of the deal, the price for the domain name was not released by Facebook or the Farm Bureau. According to a report on Reuters, “Facebook paid $8.5 million to acquire the Internet address ‘fb.com.‘” Reuters cites the Farm Bureau’s annual meeting as the source of this information.

The article further stated that the Farm Bureau had sold two domain names that netted the $8.5 million, although they were unable to state which names were sold by them. It is quite likely that FB.com was the bulk of the $8,500,000 in domain sales.

Assuming an $8.5 million sale, it would rank in the top 4 all time domain name only sales behind Sex.com ($13m), Fund.com ($10m) , and Porno.com ($9m).

Goes to show that the combination of a great domain name and a buyer in need with significant cash can lead to a monster domain deal.

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