There is still some work to be done, but I am happy to announce that I have launched Lowell.com! While my developer and I are still working out some of the kinks, we are at a point where we are able to release the first version of the Lowell.com website. I know it’s not perfect and many tweaks will need to be made in the coming days, but this is all a learning process for me, and I hope the launch of the site encourages others to develop some of their domain names.
There are still some grammatical, SEO, linking and other various issues, but I am comfortable enough with the presentation to launch it. If you notice anything funky – be it grammar, punctuation, spelling, links…etc, please be kind and drop me a note. This is my first “real” website aside from my blog and corporate site, so the learning curve is still pretty steep.
I would like to thank everyone who helped me by giving fantastic advice and recommendations. I really appreciate it. And to those people whose emails I haven’t responded to in the last couple of weeks, I apologize. Feel free to send them again and I will try to respond more quickly.
Lowell.com is Launched
DomainingTips: Making Money from Domain Names
Some solid advice on DomainingTips.com on how to turn average domain names into valuable revenue-producing domain names. People often complain that they were too late in the game to get the “good names,” but this proves there is no such thing as being late in the domain industry. The successful entrepreneur will learn how he can make his domain names profitable rather than lamenting about what could have been had he only known about domain names years earlier.
Timing is important, but it isn’t everything. There is no easy money in the domain industry, but the article gives a step-by-step guide to one way to make money – even if you started today. If you want longevity in the industry, you need to find a niche that works for you, and there is some good advice in the article.
Deal of the Day – TaxGuide.com & TaxGuides.com
TaxGuide.com and TaxGuides.com have sold at the BIN price.
In 5 Years… My Perfect Portfolio
I was having a philosophical domain discussion last night about the future of the domain industry and where domain investors stand. This got me thinking about “my perfect domain portfolio” and my plans for the future. While we all tend to focus on the short-term, I think it’s important to think further out and set some long-term goals. I know this well help me stay focused on the bigger picture when dealing with present issues.
With that in mind, I would like to share what I think is “my perfect domain portfolio” in 5 years time. I cannot say whether this will still hold true in 5 years, but it is what I am visualizing at the moment.
I will have 2 fully developed city .com geographic domain names that are benefiting each community and the advertisers. I would like both domain names to be cities of between 100-150,000 people, as I believe a city of this size will benefit from a well-developed website. I think it would be much more difficult for a website to have an impact on a larger city, and as much as money is important, I believe a nice living can be made in the mid-size cities. I want to establish strong relationships in both cities, and I want each website to be well-received and beneficial to each city. I believe I have started this with my Lowell.com website, which is still being developed.
I will have 2 developed product/service based websites. They won’t necessarily be full businesses, but they will be in a niche that I find particularly interesting. Perhaps a wine or travel related website would be one of these. I hope this could be a fun website I will enjoy managing and be able to work on as more of a hobby than financial endeavor. Hopefully the geo-domain names will generate enough revenue to be able to do this without worrying about generating revenue on these pet projects!
I will have 15-20 domain names of friends and family. Some of my friends don’t really understand domain management, but they know they need (or will need) their domain names in the future. I am holding a few domain names for friends at the moment, and I imagine I will hold more in the next few years as friends get married or take on new challenges in life. For example, my brother is a law student, so I own a domain name that could be relevant to his law firm down the road.
I will want to own 10-20 speculative .com domain names. These are pure speculation that the topic would be of interest to someone or me down the road. These could all be names I keep in the hopper for my own development needs if I wish. They will all be in areas of interest, and I won’t be inclined to sell them.
As some people have seen, I have been selling names from my portfolio more quickly than usual. One reason I am selling them is because I acquired a large geographic domain name a few days ago (that I have been looking to acquire for over 2 months). This new name fits into my 5 year plan, and I need the funds to offset the high acquisition cost. A second reason I am selling is because I know I won’t ever get to develop the names. It’s not a matter of not wanting to develop them, but rather the time it would take.
The opportunity cost of keeping these domain names is greater than if I sell them and use the funds to pay for other expenses. Sure, I am probably getting much less than I could get down the road, but I know the funds I use from the proceeds of the sale will be more beneficial today to help position me to reach my goals in 5 years than they would be if I held on to them. As domain owners, we need to look at the costs of selling vs. the cost of not selling and see how that will affect our 5 year plan.
Why Companies Are Selling Domain Names
I have seen various blog posts and forum commentary discussing the recent listing of large quantities of domain names by various domain companies and individuals. I can’t speak on behalf of anyone else, but it looks like many domain owners are in the midst of evaluating their portfolios. Companies and individuals have been sifting through their portfolios, choosing names for development, names that are earning their keep in PPC revenue, and trying to sell the other names that aren’t performing well and have little intrinsic value to them.
In the past several months and years, many companies and individuals made large portfolio acquisitions. When a portfolio of thousands of domain names is purchased, there is relatively little control over what is included in addition to the gems of the portfolio. Oftentimes a domain owner will include swaths of unprofitable names in a domain sale, as it will help increase the overall sales price of the portfolio. As these domain names come up for renewal, the buyer has to make a business decision about whether to keep the underperforming names, let them expire, or try to sell them.
A domain owner needs to decide if an underperforming name is worth keeping, as it could be worth quite a bit if developed. There are many fantastic generic domain names that are parked, but they don’t generate a ton of revenue because traffic is light. When there is tremendous competition for certain keywords, parked pages might not yield significant traffic if there aren’t links or type in traffic, but the name might be strong nonetheless. For some companies, a valuable domain name on paper isn’t as valuable as cash in the bank. Therefore, selling these domain names is the best option – especially for second tier names that might be great for a smaller portfolio.
With the cost of full-scale development being expensive, it makes sense to be picky about which names get developed. Some names (like typos) get great traffic and generate revenue, but would be silly to develop. In this case, it’s better to keep them parked and possibly list them for sale at a generous revenue multiple. The worse case scenario is that a link is created on a respected website (like Afternic), which could be of passive value to the name.
With tremendous uncertainty in the domain market as well as world economic markets, many domain owners have been using this time to evaluate their holdings. If a domain name wouldn’t be good for development, doesn’t generate PPC revenue, costs $7.00 per year to renew and may possibly be a legal liability, there really isn’t a reason to list names for sale. One person’s junk could be another’s treasure. I think it is a great move to sell names that aren’t worth the expense.
Deal of the Day – UnemploymentLine.com
I just bought a mega geo domain name, which is currently in Escrow and will be announced the acquisition next week. I am looking to raise capital to fund this purchase. Therefore, I am selling UnemploymentLine.com.
UnemploymentLine.com is for sale for $5,750.
Here are a couple of things to think about. Unemployment continues to rise across the United States, and it will probably be worse before it gets better. People will be seeking unemployment benefits and information, and I think this is a fantastic domain name for an informational, Adsense supported website.
This is posted in a few places today, so first to respond gets the name.