It’s no secret that I like using Dan.com and have found success on the platform. A large percentage of my portfolio forwards directly to Dan.com pages. I use a combination of BIN, BIN+Make Offer, and LTO options shown to prospective buyers. As we seem to be headed into a recession, I decided to test something different with many of my inventory domain names.
Instead of having the domain names forward directly to Dan.com landing pages, I am utilizing my own Embrace.com make offer landing pages once again. Doing so allows me to control the leads. I can communicate directly with them, and importantly, I can follow-up with them over time if a deal is not struck.
When I receive an inquiry or an offer for a domain name, I have an evolving templated email response. In it, I share some information about why the domain name is valuable and will be invaluable to their business. I then direct them to the Dan.com landing page where they can buy or lease (LTO) the domain name. I mention that Dan.com is a GoDaddy-owned company to give them some level of reassurance. I also let them know they can use Escrow.com to secure the domain name.
Domain name pricing is dynamic, and I don’t tend to update pricing regularly across my portfolio. Being an intermediary gives me time to change the price before replying if that is necessary. It also allows me to engage the buyer if the price and Make Offer minimum is too high.
With the success my business has seen in the last 18 months, I have been pricing domain names pretty high. This makes sense for irreplaceable domain names – like one word .coms or 3 letter .coms. It doesn’t make as much sense for replaceable inventory I have no problem churning. I wouldn’t want to lose a prospective buyer who sees a $2k name priced at $20k with a $10k minimum because I was in a very ambitious mood the day I acquired the domain name.
There are multiple downsides to using this approach. I am going to get many more leads and phone calls with people who have tiny budgets. I am also going to have to deal with confused people who think they bought something on my domain name or think they landed on another company’s website. I am also going to lose out on spur of the moment purchases if/when it takes time to reply to an inquiry.
As we head into a recession, I think flexibility on my pricing is going to be important. The more inventory-quality domain names I sell, the more great domain names I can buy and the fewer great domain names I need to sell.
Curious to see if buyers would rather remain anonymous on Dan, Afternic etc.
as opposed to talk to the domain owner directly and you find out who they are.
From my experience I received more offers where buyers are anonymous
than with my owner landers.
Granted… small sample. I only own 10-12 good names at a time.
Something to think about, although prospects may not see that Embrace.com is operated by the company that owns the domain name they are inquiring about.
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