When a prospective buyer makes a serious offer to buy one of my domain names, I like to ask a question like this:
When could you close on the deal?
When could you pay for the domain name?
These similar questions can help me determine if it is a bonafide offer or someone who is just trying to get a price. There’s nothing really wrong with the later if it is a genuine buyer, but my pricing may be different depending on how the buyer answers the question.
I was browsing through some recently filed UDRP cases, when a domain name popped out at me. A UDRP was filed against AmericansJourney.com by Chewy at the World Intellectual Property Organization. It is WIPO case #D2022-3876.
On its own and without initially doing any background searching, the AmericansJourney.com domain name sounds somewhat defensibly generic. I could see it being a blog about an American’s journey though the world or something like that. Compared to a more clearly infringing domain name like ChewyPetSupplies.com, AmericansJourney.com does not seem super-infringing on a well-known brand name. There’s often more to the story, and this case is no different.
For many of my domain names listed for sale, I have a “Make Offer” option next to the buy it now price. Domain name pricing isn’t science for me, and if I miss the mark by a considerable amount, a prospective buyer may simply choose an alternative domain name. I rely on domain name sales to fund the majority of my business, so I would prefer to give someone the option to make an offer rather than pass over an overpriced domain name.
Darpan Munjal, Founder of Squadhelp (a branding agency with a focus on domain names), shared an observation that domain investors may wish to consider when listing their domain names for sale:
Making money is the most important driver in a domain investment business. It is, after all, a business for most people. When I accomplish something special – like closing a big deal – I like to celebrate it. Making money is the goal, but doing something small to reward myself for an achievement is important.
No matter how great the achievement, I usually do something relatively small as a way of celebrating. I might open a nice bottle of wine with my wife or go out to a special dinner. When I achieve a more notable accomplishment, I might buy something to mark the occasion. I am not really a flashy person, so it might be a purchase I’ve put off for a while.
Rick Schwartz has long been an outspoken domain investor. From creating the popular TRAFFIC industry conference to writing Rick’s Blog to sharing on Twitter, the “Domain King” has never been shy about sharing his opinions and offering advice about domain investing.
I would imagine that most serious domain investors who are on Twitter follow Rick’s account. People may not agree with everything he believes or posts, but I look at Rick as an industry leader. Rick was an early adopter of good .com domain names, bought many great domain name assets, sold a handful for a great deal of money, monetized his portfolio with PPC advertising, and he retained enviable portfolio of domain names to this day.
This afternoon, Rick announced that he is going to cap his Twitter followers at 10,000 (he currently has just shy of 9,500. He plans to privatize his feed so only followers will be able to access what he tweets about. As you might imagine, Rick shared this on Twitter along with his rationale:
This morning while reading some UDRP decisions from the National Arbitration Forum, I came across a UDRP decision that had something I have never seen before. The decision listed the complainant as “Redacted” and the domain name as <[redacted].com>. The complainant won the UDRP and requested anonymity due to how the domain name had been used. The panelist, Alan L. Limbury, granted this request.
In the decision, Mr. Limbury discussed this unusual request and shared his rational for determining that this qualified as an “exceptional case,” which allowed him to honor the complainant’s request:
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