|
||
There are many companies on the web offering appraisal services for domain names. Some, such as SwiftAppraisal.com (which is free) perform this function entirely through automated software that checks for certain features, such as the presence of hyphens, total length, or an estimation of the market size. Other sites charge between $10 to $35 for a personal appraisal, which may be more nuanced. The problem with this approach is that every sale of a domain name is completely unique, and ultimately the value of a domain name is worth whatever a buyer will pay for it.
In general, it is worthwhile to look at sales figures for other domains in the same category, but even a cursory glance will reveal that final prices vary widely even for similar names.
However, a general guideline does exist. The most valuable domain names are the .coms, followed by .net, .org and .biz. Single word websites sell for the most money, though not all single words will have the same high value. Concatenated phrases are slightly less valuable than single words, and hyphens decrease the value further. Short words and phrases are preferable.
Not all words have the same commercial potential, and most domain names have no resale value at all. For example, Trucks.com might sell for more than a million dollars; GMCTrucks.com could sell for tens of thousands; Your GMCTrucks.com would be lucky to sell for a few hundred dollars, if at all; and YourSiteForGMCTrucks.com is commercially worthless. So before anticipating massive profit from the sale of your domain name, think about whether the domain name is unique and irreplaceable, like Sex.com (which sold for $12 million) or just a long concatenated phrase with dozens of variations that anyone registering a website could come up with. Also, replacing letters with number, "4" for "for", or using common misspellings lowers the domain name value.
However, long phrases are not always worth less than single words if they are frequent web search terms with commercial value: for instance, FreePhoneService.com is worth more than Grammer.com. Commercial potential is a subjective value, and often not considered enough by domain name appraisers, who may not know the size of the industry covered by the name.
One sure indicator that you have a valuable domain or website is unsolicited offers to buy it. Clearly, if customers are so eager that they make offers without the domain even being listed for sale, it has great commercial potential.
Also, content and links add value to niche-market domain names, and if a site is producing income, it can be sold as an internet turnkey business. This is similar to commercial real estate, where a business with clientele and inventory will sell for much more than an empty storefront. Not only will this increase the value, this method will provide you with income while waiting for a buyer. In addition, the more popular your site is, and the more visitors you have, the more chance a potential buyer will see it.
Still the world has come a long way since Ken Olson, president & founder of Digital Equipment Corp. etched his name in history, when he proclaimed less than 30 years ago, "There's no reason why anyone would want a computer in their home."
How technology has changed our lives within a span of a single generation. Sooner rather than later, more and more businesses will want to go online and cater to a global market instead of being content with the local neighborhood. And one of the first steps after deciding what business you want to do, is getting a good domain name for your business.
A domain name can make or break an online venture. A domain name is a company's identity online. It is your brand, your personality, your trademark. So, choosing the right domain isn't easy.
BuyDomains.com argues that:
"Today .COM and .NET names have established recognition and can identify your company on the Internet forever. For this reason, they have considerable resale value and serve as excellent investments.
Over time, most, if not all companies will conduct a considerable portion of their business over the Internet. A domain name that is easy for your customers and prospective customers to remember is the key factor in generating new business and conducting business on the Internet.
Having relevant "keywords" to support your domain name is also an important consideration and will enable customers to find your online business effortlessly through Web based search engines.
Another excellent marketing tactic you should consider is to have multiple URL addresses (including your domain name) point to the very same Web site. This is very simple .....This will allow you to keep your legacy domain name, while multiple new e-business names conduct commerce and are listed in the search engines, significantly increasing your Web site's overall traffic."
A web site is a worldwide advertisement that runs 24/7. For the price of one print ad, or one-tenth of a 30 second commercial, you can have a solid web site designed and running every single minute of every single day. Show a company how a few thousand dollars invested in a domain name & a web site now can translate into 100 years of sales and effective promotion, and they will all be scrambling to get in line.
Most companies, even small ones, will tell you that having a web site is no longer an option. It offers the business owners the opportunity of having potential customers view their products or services day or night, without needing to an outlay of huge sums of money.
But then, many small and medium sized businesses that are already online have poor or difficult sounding domain names. Names that they would readily change in an instant if they had the right domain name. So there will always be people and companies who will be looking at the domain resale market for a better name for their business. This is key.
When Anysoft, a Massachusetts company, acquired any.com for $30,000, their vice-president, Emily Shain, said it was worth the money because the domain name was such a vital marketing tool that would help customers find them easily.
If you are at the right place at the right time with the right name, you could find yourself pocketing some nice cash.
Even governments are getting in on the act. The New Zealand government shelled out NZ$ 1 million for newzealand.com. As a result, there was understandable criticism in the NZ parliament over the purchase as being a waste of tax payers money.
What was the government's response? Mark Burton, the NZ Tourism Minister had this to say, "There is no question that this domain will provide an invaluable portal for... commercial entry into New Zealand for those interested in tourism, commerce, and industry.
The South African Government offered US$10 million for southafrica.com. It has also been reported that korea.com was sold for US$5 million to True Net, Korea's largest Internet service provider."
Author, Tariq Ghafoor writes, "I feel that there's still reason for optimism in the domain aftermarket but in order to profit there's a crucial need to alter one's perception and strategy just like our brethren have been forced to do in other web-based businesses."
It's true. The heady days of the domain gold rush has seen its final sunset. We are seeing shifting trends in the arena. To cope with the changes, a domain speculator needs to see himself as a domain entrepreneur and begin to organize his domain names and increase their value and prepare them for prospective buyers.