Snowy Sunday Updates

It’s another snowy Sunday in Massachusetts! No complaints here because I love the winter and especially the snow. We’re going on a ski trip to Killington this week. It’s my first time skiing Killington, and hopefully they received some of the snow we’ve received over the last couple of days.

Here are some of my thoughts this weekend, as well as some other random BS I want to share. Hope your year is off to a good start and that you have a nice week. If not, perhaps it’s time to figure out what is working and what isn’t, and try to make some plans to do more of what’s working. Of course, it is far easier said than done, but sometimes a reminder is good.

• I’ve mentioned this in the past, but if you have issues with a company in the domain space, discussing them in person at a conference like NamesCon or TRAFFIC is a good idea. If you have a face to face conversation, it is very likely your concerns will be taken more seriously, and you’ll likely meet with someone senior enough to either address your concerns or make sure the right person handles the issue. Don’t forget to follow up with the person you discussed your issues with and ask them when you can expect the issue to be resolved. It’s really business 101, but with this small “industry,” you really can connect with the decision makers at conferences / trade shows.

• I don’t know about you, but I still dedicate a lot of my time to inquiring about domain names for purchase. On about 90% of my inquiry emails, I will include an offer and the other 10% is asking about the domain name’s availability. I compose and send each email by hand to avoid spam filters and to add personalization. I think this helps separate my inquiries/offers from automated offers, and I probably get a much better response rate as a result.

• This shouldn’t be a surprise, but I bet it will be a surprise to some. If you look up my name in Google, my Elliot.CO mini site and my About.ME page rank in the top 10 results. Despite a whole lot of mentions in other publications, Google still returns these 2 ccTLD domain names in the top of results. For investment purposes, I am (and have continued plans to be) a .com guy. From a search perspective, it seems like relevant content will get ranked with less of a focus on the TLD.

• The AFC Championship (NFL) is today, and my New England Patriots are playing the Denver Broncos this afternoon, with the winning team making it to the Super Bowl. If you need me for the next several hours, I’ll probably be busy. After the game, I’ll either be toasting the Pats or drinking away my sorrows. Either way, I’ll be MIA later today 🙂

• According to a  tweet I received  this morning, I’ve been on Twitter for 5 years today. It’s interesting to know that I’ve been active on there for so long. I think it’s brought great value to my blog over the years.