There are many things in this world that are fully obvious and we acknowledge personally yet leave it alone in public. It’s either just not that big of a deal or nobody wants to ruffle feathers. I on the other hand, like to say what I’m thinking. Usually I’m pretty on but half the time I should have just kept my mouth shut and let it be. We’ll see if these observations have the same ratio.
1. A high percentage of domainers still squat on other people’s traffic or name. It may not always be a flat out trademark squat but I’m always amazed how many people register the dot net or other tld of a popular dot com or a plural version or something of this nature. Celebrity names and tv shows are still big ones as well. I am not judging or saying it’s wrong, just saying it still happens quite often. I will say that the failure of .cm does say that there is a line that takes it too far and that was it.
2. There are only about 5 domain blogs that have any original thought. Not counting the sites that are supposed to be domain news sites, the rest must be struggling with time or writers block. Michael Berkens’ The Domains is the best when it comes to original thought….and the worst is…..you don’t think I’m that stupid do you? Don’t answer that
3. Nobody wants to upset Francois. He’s helped so many of us bloggers out by providing traffic that some business decisions have been made just to avoid pissing him off and losing the traffic. Traffic is what our advertisers pay for and every little bit helps. I’ve seen bloggers say that domaining.com provides a small percentage of their traffic and they don’t care but I’m pretty sure they do, or they’re foolish if they don’t.
4. Sahar and Jarred of Bido are some of the hardest working business people I know but they are junk dealers and I don’t mean that in a bad way. It’s like a scrap yard that makes their money by buying and selling in bulk. Occasionally, something very valuable will pass through but most of the time it’s common product. People that are looking for nice things don’t stop by but it works for people looking for a bargain or something lower end. Again, it’s not for lack of effort and if business success was determined by hard work and likeability then Bido would be a fortune 500 company.
5. DomainGang proves that comedy is in the beholder and many times just in the eye of the writer. I know, I know they are sponsored by Domain Tools and Howard Neu loves them but they single handedly have proven that it’s almost impossible to do domaining comedy every day. I love the effor and there certainly is a lot of good stuff there but there are also some head scratchers . Is it me or do other people not know if certain stories are supposed to be humor or a regular story? He and I both love ChatRoulette so we’ll always share that
6. Most people don’t make money in domaining and seem to have a 1 to 20 ratio of good to junk domains. I’m completely amazed how many shitty names are owned by people. I’m not going to say that all my names are great but they are certainly better than half the names I get offered. I put up a few “wanted” ads on the forums and I was inundated with one junk name after another with outrageous prices attached. If you have to explain why a domain is valuable and the explanation doesn’t involve traffic or money then it’s not quite as valuable as you think.
7. There will be less domain conferences next year and less the year after that. No way this many domain conferences can survive. I think the future will more likely involve regional meetups and small conferences than 3 day events.
8. Advertising dollars and spending on the Internet is growing by leaps and bounds and domainers, for the most part, are leaving it on the table by using the same methods that were used 5 and 10 years ago to monetize their domains.
9. The domain industry is heavily reliant on Sedo. We use them not only to buy and sell domains but to determine value. They are the heart and soul of the domain industry. Sure there are other very important players like namejet, snapnames, and godaddy but the open market model of Sedo makes it stand alone.
10. People LOVE the big sales. Nothing makes domainers more excited than to hear a story about a huge flip of a domain. It’s what keeps us buying. That 5K to 100K flip. That quick doubling of money. The hand reg sold for 10K. We live for that stuff. It’s one in a million but almost all of us think that one could be us. I make most of my money in domaining of the fact that human nature makes us think that we can sell that name for more…do better. As long as I can get someone to think that it’s worth more than I paid for it, I’m happy. Who am I to ruin someone’s dream?
Great post Shane and all excellent points! It is clear that one of the biggest issues we still have in the Domaining world is coming-up a better understanding of domain valuation.
I too get emails from people with nothing but junk domains and think a lot of this has to do with no consistent way for people to value their domains. In the beginning it can be easy for a new Domainer to become overly excited and go on the famous “Domain Buying Spree” only to find-out they’ve spent their time “Collecting” domain names rather than making an actual “Investment”!
Keep-up the great posts – your blog is definitely one of the top five you mention above!!
Thank you Morgan.
I think the great thing about the people you outlined in this article, especially numbers 3,4 and 5 is that these people are actively doing something in the domain industry.
Our industry is still relatively new and nobody is going to get it 100% right the 1st or sometimes even the 2nd, 3rd and 4th times. While you found something negative to point out about those individuals, I (and many others) see them as admirable and role models.
Not many people actually DO something in this industry to help further awareness of the industry itself.
Tia,
I am not a negative person, although this post WAS negative. If you read this blog regularly you’ll see I just as often post the positive aspects of this business. Effort should be commended but at some point effort is not enough. We all have our own role models and I have mine as well but that’s for another post. PS these guy ALL work hard. Francois is doing an incredible job and should be respected and followed, The Bido guys are incredibly hard workers and will get it eventually and Theo is a good guy and a intelligent domainer (who now hates me) who is facing an uphill battle of combining satire and domaining.
Hi Shane,
No hard feelings, we appreciate your insight as to what sells on Bido.
I think your point #6 ties into your point #4 that I’m responding to.
In point #6, you mention that people on the forums are touting junk for sale with outrageous prices.
This is a common problem that buyers face (lack of quality, well priced inventory), while on the flip-side for sellers, it’s why its hard to sell domains for a price you want, and want it now (buyers may not agree with your justification of value). Both buying and selling were not easy with the tools and platforms that existed. We built Bido to crowdsource the selection process to filter out domains that are junk or outrageously priced. We assist buyers to find pre-screened inventory. We assist sellers who are in need of liquidity – and have realistic expectations, those that which the community of voters we have will validate.
With these formats and the fast paced flow of inventory that we built, a favorable percentage of the inventory actually sells on a basis that has proven nearly as reliable as gravity.
Each item that goes to auction on Bido requires between four to ten unique people to agree that it’s likely to sell (in 30 days of voting). And of course, the quality of the inventory is dependent on what gets submitted.
As more people realize that they may submit their inventory with a reserve price (we call it a BidoPrice), higher priced items (this is correlated with quality) will be listed.
Many people still think Bido is auctioning domains at $1 with no reserve, like we had branded ourselves when we launched. We changed that and sellers can list at whatever price they feel. As we get the word out there more and more inventory is being listed as sellers want to take advantage of our high likelyhood for a sale.
So give it time, the average sale price will increase as we process more and more transactions.
We would rather run many auctions than few high priced auctions. This way we help more people do business rather than a select few. We are in the top domain marketplaces in terms of volume of sales, day in and day out, and we aim to continuing to grow those numbers.
If you have some specific suggestions on what you feel would improve Bido, we value it and would love to hear them. We can discuss here in comments on your blog, our idea and feedback portal: http://feedback.bido.com or over email: [email protected]
Regards,
Jarred
Thanks Jarred for taking the time to respond. That’s why I like you guys, you always make effort
I agree with Morgan, this is a great blog (and I was not expecting much when it first started). These are all great observations and I agree with them.
Thank Troy for setting the bar so low for me. 🙂
I will only respond to #5 because Shane, you clearly chose the day of a DomainGang downtime to kick dirt in my face. But that’s ok.
(the rest has been removed because we handled our disagreement like men, talked it out over the phone, and all is cool. Nothing more to see here, move along.
Of all the things I said this was the one that I knew would piss somebody off. But I didn’t even know the site was down. I only knew it was down in readership. As I have always said Theo, I always thought you were a decent guy but it was next to impossible to do a domain related satirical blog and you proved it. It’s not your fault, it’s very hard to come up with original comedy domaining content. I hate to see you go but originally I blocked your blog because I thought for the most part it wasn’t funny but as an intelligent adult I realized not to dismiss the entire blog but to come read when I saw an article that might interest me. Sorry to see you leave and I completely understand.
Well let’s be honest Shane, #1 is bad, its why CADNA is out getting laws written to go after domainers. SO regging tm typos and similar names in Bad faith is wrong.
I never understood the hero worship in this industry either. I read people and have met people who I like and think are good people and good business people. I just don’t have that “OH wow you are so awesome.”
This was a good post and I think there are probably another 10. But like Tia said so few actually do.
The point about junk on forums is probably true, although a lot of domains wanted posts are a joke too. I have read looking for product keyword in .com ONLY, budget $30. I know you not like that but a lot of threads are a joke. Domain wanted threads IMO are the true comedy of the domaining world.
I think the Bido guys are great, they “do” more than anyone IMO to help provide liquidity for the average domainer.
Again great post.
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Keep on telling it like it is, Shane.
😉
If I want to read a humor blog, I’ll go to The Onion or some other similar site; when I want domain news, I know where to go, and it’s not at the so-called domaining “humor” blogs, one of which is just plain nonsense and the other bordering on p0rn.
One thing I have realized about this industry: there are only a few true originals. The others are just lemmings who try to imitate the “Big Boys.”
No, I do not fear Francois at all. He has his own way of doing business, but it’s not my way.
Enough said.
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I suppose it’s a good fit; at least if you control it, you aren’t the one being satirized and it is positively H-I-L-L-A-R-I-O-U-S that when you get a tablespoon of your own medicine, you assume the defense and start sniveling and attacking.
@Acro – someone offers you free exposure by mentioning your service (good or bad) and you kick them away… makes me wonder about what you do… and how you deal with your clients. You lost me and a few other readers I’m sure, with that attitude of yours. Read, learn, grow and move on. These are your readers comments and you should take it like a man (or a woman who ever you are).
@Shane – Keep up the great work.
Shane, i’m gonna stick my two cents in here though i’m relatively new to blogging. first off though, i wanted to point out, when I was at DMG a couple months ago, Ron Jackson name checked your blog during a panel discussion, so it goes to show you are getting some admiration and respect from the domain commuinty. (as an aside i tweeted this out during that panel from my phone but the tweet got lost … generally about 1 in 2 to 1 in 3 tweets from mobile dont make it for some reason. anyway i kept meaning to email you to drop you a line as I thought you would appreciate hearing about it, but kept forgetting)
anyway, I agree with your favorable comments about the guys at Bido 110%, I’ve seen this about them for a while, it is not hard to tell from the way Jared replied in this thread.
regarding DomainGang, i dont see why all the hate, but to each their own. but moreover i’m not sure i understand why you say, unless I am misreading you, that DG is a failure. I think a lot of people enjoy it, I for one. Its the Onion of domaining. Satire believe it or not can be a powerful tool, much more so than hitting people with direct logic. humor and laughter, etc. relieve psychological tension and break through mental barriers. well i’m getting tangential here …
as regards to Theo, in response to some of the other comments here, I’d like to say in his defense, that I spoke to him over the phone for the first time about two weeks ago, and we wound up chatting for about 2 hours about all things domaining, and I’ll say it was about one of the most pleasant conversations I’ve ever had talking business with anyone on the phone before. take that for whatever its worth. I mean I understand why some have the opposite impression but at heart I believe he is truly a good guy.
last thing, i almost hesitate to mention it. its always good to speak your mind and i can easily appreciate the point of your post. but i’m becoming aware of what seems to me this new trend on the interwebs. its this idea of coming off as the quintessential iconoclast and saying what everyone else is afraid to say or won’t admit, no matter how many toes you’re stepping on, everyone else be damned. to be honest I dont really buy it, unless its doped with a huge dose of humility. otherwise it just comes off to me as more or less a tool for self-promotion and thats how I see it being used more and more these days, with intent, by marketers (who as a class ultimately learn how to exploit everything ..) for attention grabbing, as a promotional vehicle, etc.
again, I am not trying to accuse you of this Shane, I don’t know you that well (at all really) and I always try to suspend judgement. So far from what little i’ve read you seem like a decent dude who’s head is not too far off his shoulders. I’m just saying, ruffling feathers is becoming like this way to differentiate yourself and go against the grain for the sake of building some sort of personal equity around the internet, and generally when i see it now I feel like those that do it are sometimes walking a fine line.
but as I said I do appreciate the point of your post. it can take some guts to stick it out there. in the end everyone should call it like they see it. if thats all it is then please carry on! and I’ll try to read up more of your blog these days 🙂
Mike,
I appreciate the comment and it’s obvious you put some thought into it. I promise I didn’t write it to ruffle feathers. I do admit I wrote it because they are my thoughts and I wanted to see if anyone else had those thoughts. Many did. Many people emailed me saying I wrote EXACTLY what they were thinking. I do regret saying my feelings on DomainGang. They ARE what I think but I forgot that behind the site was a real person. A real good person that was attacked personally and I feel bad. I will talk it over with Theo but it will be done in private from this point on. I vent through my blog. It’s not marketing, it’s not self promotion, just a way to express myself. Some will like it, some will call me an ass. As I can dish it out, I can take it. I’ve been using this style of writing for 8 years and if it’s become popular then it’s nice to know I’m finally cool. Thanks again for the comment
After talking with Shane on the phone and discussing it all in more detail than anyone will ever need to know, I have nothing else to add here, except that real men (or women) don’t hide behind anonymous comments and when one wants to criticize something or someone, they don’t blow stuff out of their virtual ass (this is for “what?” and other anonymous cowards). Some people simply don’t understand, like or appreciate the humor of others. Others, have hidden agendas.
For example, Jennifer aka MSDomainer is a mod at NamePros with a known bias against me and my outspoken way of questioning any authority that doesn’t obey its own teachings. But that’s beyond the scope of my comment here; just wanted to show how hypocritical the commentators can be.
To the rest of the commentators that either like or dislike what I do, the challenge is to be different, and if you can be better than me, go ahead and do it. Hatred and jealousy is a sign of minute, little men or women. Prove what you can do, don’t try to bring down others that owe you nothing – especially when you don’t have to pay for their service.
Shane, thanks for keeping the mob under control – we’ll catch up soon.
Shane: Don’t edit peoples comments to reflect something short of what they said. Either publish them, or don’t publish them.
Now that you and Theo have entered a mutual circle jerk, your opinions seem to have changed. Funny, though, the rest of the worlds opinion about him hasn’t. I know you won’t publish this- so consider this a direct message to you. Delete my other comment all together and don’t fall into the belief that just because it’s your blog and you have the technical authority to do so, it’s good practice to editorialize peoples comments in terms of edits.
I’ll do whatever I want. If I want to try and talk things out between two people then I will. My opinions have not changed and I said them again when we talked. The difference is we talked over them, he explained his side and I gave ideas of how I think they can be improved. You want your comment deleted, you delete it. If I want to add words and turn into your declaration of love for gay porn then I will. You don’t like it don’t comment. I normally don’t EVER mess with comments unless they are complete spam, or in your case came from a fool.
Shane- you’re a nobody in this industry, just like Theo. You have a blog- and not even a particularly good one…
Yep- your blog, you can indeed edit comments to reflect things that weren’t said. Just let it be known that in doing so, it really speaks to what sort of retard you are.
I hope you and Theo have made friends. It seems you’d make perfect company.