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I’ve Become a ccTLD Investor

Elliot Silver
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35

For the last few weeks, I’ve been learning about ccTLDs. I received feedback from a number of people, some of whom gave advice about investing in ccTLDs, and some who told me to stick with .com domain names. A couple people even specifically advised me not to invest in .US domain names right now, because my money could be better spent elsewhere right now. I really do appreciate all the advice, as it has given me an idea of how I should proceed with the ccTLD market.

I just recently became a ccTLD investor with my first .US purchases (an investment rather than a protective measure as I did previously). While I don’t think Americans or American companies will begin using the .US extension very soon, I do think its a great way for American companies to target Europeans who are more inclined to use local ccTLDs.

Because of this, I decided to buy many second tier .US domain names for registration fee, where I would be very happy to pay a significant premium if it was .com. I might not be jumping in with a huge splash, I am slowly wading in to this and am being strategic about it. Once I think my acquisition phase is initially done, I will reveal what I have been buying, but I don’t want to say what they are yet, since there are a number of similar names I am considering 🙂

These aren’t short term investments, and I will probably begin developing directories on a couple of them to see how Google ranks them and to do some experimenting with regards to traffic, return visits, time on the site, and other things that will help me evaluate whether consumers trust a .US and to see where visitors come from.

I will write a more comprehensive review of the TRAFFIC show on the return flight home on Sunday, but in short, the show was excellent, and it gave me the confidence to invest in something that wasn’t previously in my comfort area.

CounselingJobs.com on Sale

Elliot Silver
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3

CounselingJobs.com is now for sale for just $5,800. Job-related domain names are very popular, and this is a targeted name that can be used for alcohol counseling jobs, drug counseling jobs, marriage counseling jobs, financial counseling jobs, debt counseling jobs…etc. I would create subdomains for each field and enhance your online presence.

There’s a Sedo auction for job related domain names coming up, and I have a feeling this type of name is going to be even more coveted after the auction.

First person to post “sold” will get it. Name is registered at Moniker.

ccTLD Auction Todat at 10:00am EST

Elliot Silver
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0

Rick Latona Auctions Announces the complete inventory for TRAFFIC ccTLDs, and a continuation of a trend: Every domain name has the actual reserve price posted with it.

Atlanta, Georgia USA – June 3, 2009 – The Featured Live Rick Latona Auctions T.R.A.F.F.I.C.   ccTLDs auction is on June 4 at 16:00 CET / 10:00am EDT / 7:00am PDT.   The Extended Rick Latona Silent Auction will begin on June 5 and go until June 11.

Registration for both the live and extended auctions is at www.proxibid.com/ricklatona.   You may also view our catalog and view the auction without having to register at this site as well.   You will be required to download an applet to view the auction.

For any technical questions related to Proxibid, please call them: Inside the US: 877.505.7770.   Outside the US: +1.402.505.7770.

See the Final Auction List.

Microsoft’s “Bing” Travel Mistake

Elliot Silver
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7

One of my favorite travel websites is Farecast.com. The website makes predictions about the price of airfare for major airlines, and it advises whether consumers should purchase their tickets or wait to purchase them, based on a proprietary algorithm (which is based on historic trends and other factors).

From a branding perspective, Farecast is a great brand. Fare from “airfare” is combined with “cast” from forecast, creating a “farecast,” which is a forecast of airfare. The brand is short, unique, and memorable, a powerful branding combination.

A few months ago, I noticed that when I typed in Farecast.com, I was redirected to Farecast.Live.com. The site was still branded as Farecast, but it was redirected to a Microsoft URL. Based on this, I assumed Microsoft had purchased the company, but nothing had really changed so I didn’t think much of it.

Yesterday I received an email from a sender called “bing travel,” and the email notified me that, “Live Search Farecast has joined forces with MSN Travel to become Bing Travel.” I visited Farecast.com, and noticed that the header said “Bing” and there doesn’t seem to be any mention of Farecast. In my opinion, this is a HUGE branding mistake.

Not only has Microsoft killed a great unique brand in Farecast, but it rebranded as a still little-known brand, “Bing.” I understand what they are tying to do – get people familiar with the Bing brand, but it just seems too risky. IMO, “Bing Travel” sounds like a small family travel agency rather than a powerful airfare comparison tool. I think this is a “bing” mistake.

The other (smaller) mistake Microsoft is making is that BingTravel.com doesn’t resolve. They were smart enough to buy it back in July of 2007, but it currently goes to a dead page, despite being on MSFT nameservers.

Only time will tell if this was a smart move, but at least in the short term, I don’t think it wasn’t. This is especially true because I would find it strange to recommend Bing Travel to friends, especially because BingTravel.com doesn’t work!

One ccTLD Lesson I’ve Learned

Elliot Silver
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5

I’ve been learning quite a bit about ccTLD domain names (before and during the TRAFFIC conference), and I wanted to share one quick lesson. Registrants for each country’s ccTLDs have their own unique registration quirks. This makes it quite important to do research about the country and the registration habits if investment is the primary goal (as opposed to development).

Some examples:

  • Hyphens may be very popular
  • English may be preferred over the native language
  • Abbreviated words may be common
  • Call to action domain names are popular

It’s important to learn about the ccTLD and the country before you make an investment. You don’t necessarily need to spend time in the country, but it certainly would help to see how the businesses are using domain names to enhance their brands. After all, most of the bigger ccTLD sales are to end users, and if you are investing, you should research what will be most valuable to your potential buyers.

Why I Enjoy Domain Conferences

Elliot Silver
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0

I am sorry if it seems annoying or contrived when I post articles about how great domain conferences are, but I really enjoy attending our industry and related industry tradeshows.   I wanted to talk about why I really enjoy them and why I try to attend as many as possible, despite the significant fees for attendance and other associated costs.

When I worked for AIG and Wunderman, I was surrounded by people who had different positions within the company and contributed differently to the teams in which I participated. As an Account and Program Manager, I worked with creative staff, legal and compliance staff, accounting staff, database team members, interactive managers, clients, and others on a daily basis. There were meetings each day and camaraderie in both workplaces. Whether I enjoyed what I was doing or not, it was frequently enjoyable to go to work, although that eventually wore off when I started spending more time domaining.

As a domain investor, I spend hours in front of my computer doing research, developing a few websites, chatting on the phone/AIM with friends and colleagues, and reading forums and blogs. Although I am passionate about what I do, there are times where it gets a bit lonely being by myself for most of the day. I enjoy discussing domains, but my friends and family probably get pretty tired of hearing about it, so I try to keep it to a minimum.

Domain conferences give me the opportunity to get together with other like-minded people who are all doing a variety of things within a similar scope. Most people with whom I meet and see are in a similar position as me and can relate. There are people from across the country and throughout the world who meet at these events, and it’s a great time to talk, share stories, and get to know people in a more personal setting.

I am writing this from the air as I am flying to the TRAFFIC ccTLD conference in Amsterdam (although it will be posted on Tuesday). I am excited because I don’t know many ccTLD domain investors, but I know when I get to the conference, I am going to meet some great people, learn a lot about this vertical in the domain industry, and perhaps I will do some good business.

I enjoy having the chance to meet with likeminded people. This is why I have planned a few casual dinners and cocktail hours in New York City, and I hope to continue to meet great people. Maybe I will see you at a domain tradeshow in the near future?

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