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SwiftRank Rebrands as TravelShark & Uses Creative Videos to Spread the News

Elliot Silver
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9

Travel SharkSwiftRank has been one of the most active domain buyers in the last couple of years, purchasing what is likely millions of dollars worth of domain names in public and private sales and auction. The company owns thousands of the best geographic hotel and travel related domain names, all of which operate independently but in conjunction with each other.

I believe the company’s largest publicly reported sale was SydneyHotels.com for $100k, and the company has spent significantly more in private. The company now owns names like LasVegasHotels.com, BostonHotels.com, CapetownHotels.com, VancouverHotels.com, HongKongHotel.com, and even NewYorkRestaurants.com. Do a search for large city hotel/s .com names, and there’s a good chance the company owns it.

I just learned that the company has re-branded itself as  Travel Shark, which in my opinion, suits them much better and is a stronger brand name. The company has launched a creative way to announce the re-branding effort and I want to share the four videos with you.

Get Targeted Traffic From Wikipedia

Elliot Silver
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23

Here’s another tip to get traffic to your developed websites, and the cost is virtually free, aside from the time it takes you to actually do it.

We all know that Wikipedia is one of the most highly trafficked websites online. One reason is that it has a ton of content about millions of topics that cover just about everything. Another reason is that it has great search engine rankings, which is likely due to the amount and breadth of the content on the site. I often find Wikipedia outranking some of my own sites for certain topics.

If you review Wikipedia pages associated with the topic of your website, you can add external links to the bottom of Wikipedia pages. For instance, if you own a site that covers Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, you should add a link to the bottom of the main Philadelphia page. You can either call it your domain name .com or embed your link with anchor text. It’s no follow, so you won’t get search engine benefits, but you’ll likely receive traffic.

I would also recommend adding a link to relevant internal pages of your site on “deeper” Wikipedia pages since there will be generally less outbound links on those page than on the main page. For instance, you might want to add a link to your Independence Hall page on the associated Wikipedia page, again with the Philadelphia theme.

In addition to adding links to the external links section, your website can also be used as a reference if you can add information to articles. If you have information on your site that would enhance an article and you happen to be considered an  authoritative  website, you can post the info and link back to your website as the reference. This is great for traffic, too.

You don’t have to be a registered Wikipedia editor to post links, although they will give you more ability to have links stay on the site if you do register. You can’t add too many links all at once, or you’ll be banned for spamming the site.

It’s a good way to get free traffic to your sites.

Good Advice from Kevin Calder of Mills & Reeve, LLP

Elliot Silver
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1

There was a good article today in the UK edition of Business Weekly, and although it wasn’t targeted to domain investors, it’s advice that should certainly be considered by domain investors when purchasing domain names. The article was written by a lawyer named Kevin Calder, a partner at the Mills & Reeve, LLP law firm.

Essentially the advice that Mr. Calder gives is that business owners who want to use a particular domain name would be well served to research the trademark database in their country and perhaps others to ensure that the domain name will not infringe on the trademarks of others. While some people purposely purchase infringing domain names to generate PPC revenue, others may unwittingly purchase a domain name that infringes on a trademark.

Not only could a domain owner face a UDRP dispute for a domain name, but there’s the potential for severe financial penalties. If the name is bought in the aftermarket and legal action is taken, the domain name can’t be sold during the proceedings, which will tie up the investor’s funds, add costs to his acquisition with a defense, and could put the investor at risk to lose up to $100,000 in the US on a ACPA case.

As the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Doing some research before buying a domain name can save you the hassle and expense of legal action, especially if the domain name is of the “brandable” nature and not descriptive/generic. Some resources you can use to research a trademark are the USPTO in the US and Intellectual Property Office in the UK.

Venture Beat: Foodie.com Sells for $100k

Elliot Silver
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0

There’s an interesting article on Venture Beat today discussing the recent sale of Foodie.com. According to the article writer’s sources, it was confirmed that “Glam Media CEO Samir Arora purchased the Foodie.com domain last week for over $100,000.”

I don’t know the article’s sources so I can’t say for certainty that the sale price is legit or factual, but it seems to be a good price for a very good domain name. The domain name appears to have been previously owned by publicly traded Marchex, and it appears to have been a part of the Ultimate Search portfolio it acquired several years ago.

As can be seen in the 1st quarter earnings report from Marchex, the company doesn’t appear to break out its domain sales individually. For this reason, unless someone from Glam goes on the record to confirm the purchase price, it may never be reported as factual.

Glam Media also owns several other descriptive domain names, and it apparently has a valuation of close to a billion dollars.

Thanks to  David Bleaman for the tip.

Have an Industry Association “Broker” Your Domain Name on Your Behalf

Elliot Silver
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10

I am about to try something fairly unique (at least for me) with one of my domain names, and I wanted to share this idea with you.

I had reached out to a number of companies regarding a domain name I own in an attempt to sell it. I also reached out to an organization comprised of members that offer the type of service described in this exact match .com domain name. The organization offered me $2,500 for the domain name, which I didn’t accept. I also turned down an offer in the $10,000 ballpark from another company.

I reached back out to this organization and made them an offer. I asked if they would send an email blast out to their membership offering the domain name for sale. If the name sells, they will get a 10% commission for the sale. If it doesn’t sell, I won’t have to pay for anything.

From my perspective, it’s win/win/win for everyone involved if a sale is consummated.  I will make a sale, the organization will make a nice profit for sending an email, and a member of the organization will be able to acquire a great domain name. I may not have been able to connect with the decision makers on my own, but the organization has the contact information and the attention of industry executives.

I believe the key considerations are the quality of the domain name and the price. This won’t work for a secondary domain name or if your price is significantly higher than its value. This is something I’d likely pay for if they charged me, but under these conditions, there is very little risk for me.

Sedo Seeking Global Communications Manager

Elliot Silver
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0

SedoAlthough this position likely doesn’t require a background in domain names since a communications or marketing background is more important, I wanted to post a Sedo job listing I saw in case it’s of interest to you or someone you know. Sedo has offices around the world, and I believe this position is in their Cambridge, Massachusetts office, although the location is not listed.

According to the LinkedIn job posting:

“As the Global Communications Manager you will be responsible for corporate communications in the English language via the web and print in addition to PR for our products, events and features. In this hands-on role you will be charged with collaborating closely with leadership teams across our three offices (UK, Germany and USA) most importantly product management and sales to develop long term marketing communication strategies, design expertly targeted communication plans and coordinate the timely execution of all outbound communication campaigns. With this exciting position you will have the opportunity to become a major impact player through your definitive contribution in creating and managing global communication efforts This dynamic role calls for excellent marketing skills imagination, ingenuity, urgency and passion. Our ideal candidate will not only contribute on a strategic level but also possesses the marketing and communication savoir faire to write fresh and insightful content and copy in a way that inspires action in our users.“

All of the job requirements and necessary experience are listed on LinkedIn, as are the benefits (but not the salary). If you know of someone that might be interested in applying for this position, you might want to send them the information.

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