As I’ve said numerous times, David & Michael Castello are two of my mentors (whether they know it or not!), and I have received great advice from them as I have developed my geo websites – at conferences, over the phone, via email, at dinner, and over cigars and ice wine at The Breakers…etc.
Every time I am with David and/or Michael, I learn something new, and I try to adapt their advice into what I am doing, usually with Burbank.com and Lowell.com. I’d like to share how I have used some of the tips and strategies the Castello Brothers were kind enough to share on my blog on Tuesday with my two geodomains. If you have questions, please ask because I am happy to share. Much of their tips and what I have done can be adopted and used for non-geodomains.
(I recommend opening another tab or window to follow along – I didn’t want to paraphrase or re-post from Tuesday – sorry.)
1) I enjoy traveling and I enjoy history, so geo domains were what I wanted. I grew up 30 minutes north of Lowell, and the city has a rich history. Burbank was more of a lucky buy (right time/right offer) and I love southern California.
2) Easy, although expensive. With all of the time and effort I put into building Burbank.com and Lowell.com, I wasn’t going to do this on anything but the authoritative domain name. Sure, I could have done it on .net or .org, but it would have only increased the value of the .com down the road. Also, it would have been more difficult to introduce myself as the owner of the .net or .org because consumers seem them as being less valuable and secondary.
3) When I set out, I decided I wanted to be more than just an info hub. I wanted my sites to become the place for people to get city information. That meant building many more pages, adding more features (such as reservation capabilities and a calendar), and building a business directory. Essentially, I built these sites for people who need any type of info about these cities. If I don’t have it or can’t provide the info, I have phone numbers, email addresses, and websites of organizations or people who can provide the info. I also was picky about the design, navigation, and look/feel. I wanted these sites to be THE brands for the area.
4) I probably write 2-3 pages per day and add several event listings. I signed up for nearly all local organizations’ newsletters, I get Google alerts for a variety of terms and keywords, and when I get new information, I post it. I also contacted UMass Lowell, and they send me the same sports articles they send to every major newspaper, so the site stays fresh and updated. New and important posts are added to the home page under “News” and I update the sitemap every day. This is good for search engine placement, good for visitors, and it drives traffic.
5) I have the advantage of owning the authority domain name, so people already trust what is posted. Based on keyword searches and other research, I have information about just about everything people want to find in each of these cities. I also continue to update the pages with relevant news articles. For example, the Lowell Spinners announced a Fantasy Kids’ Camp, and you can see how I integrated it on the Lowell Spinners page. Another neat thing I just began to do is interview well known people in the city of Lowell. I will continue to do this, and I plan to add this feature to Burbank.com very soon. This will help drive traffic to the site and hopefully lead to link backs on the organizations’ press websites.
6) I had Adsense up when I first started out with Lowell.com. I thought, “shoot, I might as well make a few $$ a day.” DUMB DUMB DUMB!! Not only is it asking people to leave my site, but they won’t even remember they visited it! I would rather be a source of information, and as I grow, I will be able to increase the technology to provide better services for visitors. I use WC Travel for the hotels in Burbank, so visitors can easily make a reservation, and it looks like my site. Everything from the site design to the confirmation email to the credit card bill says “Burbank.com.” Ideally, I will have the capability to make reservations without an affiliate, coupons for local businesses, and other things to build brand strength and make it more sticky.
I also don’t think Adsense really looks good, although I use it on other less developed sites. Adsense is a very short term and short sighted option. For websites with longterm potential, I think it’s best to forgo Adsense.
7) I have an events calendar, and I LOVE when I receive event submissions from local organizations and people. It’s a bit of a pain to keep it updated, but I know it’s used A LOT. This is a reason people visit the sites, and even if it’s the only reason they come back, I am okay with that. I don’t have a forum because if people don’t post, it could look stale, and I don’t want to moderate a forum and deal with disputes. I also built my own feeds and added them to my RSS reader (iGoogle) so Google adds my articles more rapidly.
8.) This is my most difficult obstacle. I get a considerable amount of submissions from people who want complimentary listings, but it’s tough for me to sell via email or over the phone. I will say that having THE BRAND makes it much easier, and it is easier to get in touch with decision makers when I call and say it’s Burbank.com or Lowell.com. David Castello is one of the most charasmatic people in our industry. David is the master.
9) BIG problem for me. I live in Manhattan. Burbank is a 6 hour flight and Lowell is a 3.5 hour drive. I just had a media kit put together, and as soon as I can, I will be spending several days in Lowell going door to door. Burbank is next in April. I wish I could hire David for this… or his team 🙂
10) I spend 5+ hours a day writing content, researching articles, and finding news stories for Burbank.com and Lowell.com. You have to be passionate about your project. I probably like Burbank and Lowell as much or more than most people who live there. I feel like I am the number one fan, and I am the biggest promoter. I am like the Chamber of Commerce. I speak with the local organizations, I happily promote their events, I am the “happy news.”
The local news has to report the violence, crime, and crappy stuff that happens. I don’t. I can talk about the good stuff.
The live auction list for Aftermarket.com’s Domainer Mardi Gras auction has been released, and there seems to be some pretty good values in the list. The auction will be held live and simultaneously online on Saturday, February 21, 2009 at 2:45pm (EST).
Below is the most updated list that I have, and the names I like are bolded. As a FYI, PortableDrive.com is a domain name I am selling, and I priced the reserve much lower than my clearance price to drive interest.
If you can’t make it to the conference, register to bid online ASAP.
AirlineRewards.com
Babefest.com
brightenteeth.com
BusinessProblem/s.com
CandyCane.com
CashForSites.com
Couple.org
Credenzas.com
CustomSites.com
DCW.com
Decor.net
Discretion.com
DNSales.com
DownAndDirty.com
Dreamy.com
ElectronicToys.com
ExerciseGuide.com
Favorites.com
FinancialBailout.com
GasCash.com
GoCart.com
GolfSet.com
Heal.tv
ItalianHoliday.com
Jobless.com
LowFare.net
Mahogany.com
MardiGrasTube.com
MedicalTextbooks.com
MovieBuff.com
NurseCollege.com
PetHospitals.com
PHO.com
PortableDrive.com
RapidMoney.com
RentalVillas.com
Resolve.net
ShowMeYourBoobs.com
SongDirectory.com
StorageFacility.com
SunTanning.com
TextLinks.com
TheFrenchQuarter.com
TicketBooth.com
Titillation.com
Trays.com
VirtualServer.com
Voodoo.com
WorkPrograms.com
XXXFilms.com
Rick London is the owner/operator of National A-1 Advertising based in Philadelphia. National A-1 owns some of the best domain names, including Free.com, Girls.com, Boys.com, Babies.com, Antiques.com, Fun.com, Teens.com, Divorce.com and many other great domain names. Additionally, National A-1 was the company who purchased Pizza.com after an auction involving another company fell through on Sedo.
The closely held company is very private, and I appreciate them granting an interview. I look forward to a future conversation with Rick about the current market situation and how his company is coping.
ES: What was the first domain name you ever purchased, do you still own it, and what is your most recent acquisition?
RL: Do not recall. Most recent better domain Pillows.com
ES: When did you first realize the value of domain names, and when you began to purchase high value domains, how did you finance your expensive purchases?
RL: We have been in the business of marketing vanity telephone numbers for over fifteen years. The business model for vanity telephone numbers and domains is the same. We have the funds from our many past and current business endeavors.
ES: How is your company coping with the decline of pay per click revenue?
RL: Revenue and business of all types does not always increase or stay the same. We earn less money on our traffic domains but almost all of the better domains are not purchased based on their revenue.
ES: Do you regret ever buying or selling a domain name and why?
RL: Of course, but in the general course of any business this happens. The less mistakes one makes the more successful they are.
ES: Is there anything you would trade your entire domain portfolio for?
RL: We would sell anything or everything for the right price.
ES: What is your end game with your domain investments?
RL: There is no exact “end game”. You never know what the future holds. We would sell any domain to someone who needs it for a specific business and who would pay substantially more than the revenue dictates. We are developing certain domains into what we hope are key sites that will generate substantial income for years to come.
The Castello Brothers Top 10 Suggestions For Successful Site Development
My brother Michael and I have done well financially (is there any other way?) developing our sites. Nevertheless, we’re both on a lifelong learning curve and after 10+ years in this wonderful business we still feel like we’ve just begun. Here are ten suggestions we’d like to share with you so you can unpark your names and start making some real money.
1) Choose a domain name that reflects a topic you’re madly passionate about. Don’t do this and your site will become the worst thing it can be – work.
2) Stick with dotCom or the ccTLD of your country. If you don’t agree, please visit our portfolio, choose one of our names and develop the dotNet.dotOrg or dotInfo version into a huge site. You’ll quickly become our best friend and we’ll buy you a bottle of 1995 Dom as we toast the direct nav traffic you’ll be giving us.
3) Don’t build a site, build a brand. There’s a difference. Anyone can build a site.
4) Write at least a page of original content a day (in a year you’ll have 365 pages). What would motivate you to do this? See suggestion #1.
5) The content you write must turn your site into an authority or “reference site” about its topic. This is important for site credibility, SEO, return traffic and selling to advertisers. Remember, the last thing you want is someone having to go somewhere else for info about your site’s topic.
6) Do not put Adsense on your site. Why would you send valuable visitors away for pennies on the dollar? Who thought of this? Google (and that’s why they’re rich and you’re not). Furthermore, you need these people to tell you why they’re on your site so you can continue to build the user experience and discover their expectations (and you’ll also meet somebody else – potential advertisers). This will not happen when you keep sending them away. On a developed site, Adsense is the equivalent of opening a store on Madison Avenue and guiding customers from the front door straight out the back door as they hand you a quarter along the way.
7) Add a forum and blog that is monitored daily. Forums and blogs instantly turn an inorganic site into a living, breathing thing with a heartbeat. They add excitement, personality and lots of loyal, returning visitors. Also, add a Calendar of Events that is relevant to your topic.
8.) After you’ve developed the traffic and SEO rankings start selling static advertising to people who would profit from being on your site. Who are these people? By the time you’ve developed the site and achieved high SEO rankings they’ll be right in front of your face. For example, we’ve met many who were giving us listings to be on our Calendar of Events and didn’t know they could be on the front page for a fee.
9) Never, ever email a potential advertiser. This is Sales 101, but most people don’t know this. Get them on the phone or, if possible, meet them in person. If you won’t do this get someone who will and share the revenue with them. Don’t ever try to sell someone something you wouldn’t buy. You’ll come across as disingenuous and nothing will kill your reputation and credibility faster. On the other hand, if you believe in the power of your site that passion will be instantly communicated and selling is a cinch.
10) During this whole process, make the site an extension of your personality. It’s got to have your creative fingerprints all over it. Your site is your baby and never hand the reins over to someone else unless you’re selling it.
