Yesterday afternoon, someone posted a question in the Sedo weekly sales article, and it’s something I’ve been asked quite a bit so I want to give the question and my reply more exposure in its own post.

The summary of the question was this: Why do domain names sell for so much on Sedo or Afternic when they wouldn’t even sell at a fraction of these prices on domain forums?

To answer the question, I used physical real estate as an example:

“There’s a big difference between when someone specifically wants to buy one name in particular on Sedo for a project vs. when someone wants to sell a domain name to other domain buyers.

Picture it this way.

Say you live in a penthouse apartment in New York City and you’ve given the listing to a broker in the event he/she finds the perfect buyer. You don’t necessarily need to sell it, but if someone comes looking for a $20 million apartment, you’d consider selling it. That’s what it’s like when a company wants/needs a name and goes after it on Sedo.

Now imagine you own a piece of real estate and you need to sell it ASAP. Instead of trying to connect with a real estate agent who has buyers or listing it for sale, you decide you want to call the number on billboards you see across town announcing that they will pay immediate cash for homes. That’s sort of what it’s like to sell on a domain forum.

Most domain investors won’t pay full retail price for a domain name, and most who would, don’t spend much time on forums.”

I would be interested in knowing your thoughts on the question, especially if they are different than mine. I am traveling today, so comments that aren’t automatically posted may take additional time to be approved.

Every time a new domain extension becomes available for the general public to purchase, domain investors always want to know where they can sell the domain names they just purchased. This morning, someone asked “Where/how can i sell or auction a .xxx domain that i don’t want?”

Here are a few suggestions:

Sedo.com   – There’s an adult section called “XXX – Adult,” and I am pretty sure they will permit .XXX domain names to be listed in that section.  I am awaiting confirmation.

Afternic – Although .XXX is currently not included in the drop down menu of extensions, I would imagine Afternic will permit .XXX domain sales, since there are other adult related domain names on the site. I am awaiting confirmation, since they currently do not permit .XXX listings.

DN Forum – There is a section on DNF for adult domain sales, and there may be a separate .XXX section opening up. Perhaps Adam Dicker will open DNForum.XXX 🙂

NamePros – There is an adult sales forum and there’s also a .XXX domain discussion forum on NP.

Domain Brokers – My bet is that a number of private brokers like Andrew Rosener, Toby Clements, Justin Godfrey, and Rob Sequin will allow premium .XXX domain names to be included in their newsletters and via their brokerage.

Adult Webmaster Forums – I know many adult webmasters are not in favor of .XXX domain names. However, the sale of .XXX domain names may be permitted on an adult forum.

Do you have any suggestions for sales venues for .XXX domain names?