Owen had an article today regarding my comment to him over this “article“. It turns out my comment was longer than his post. Here is my comment:
Owen,
Really? At least put an article. You would have had a few characters left even if this was a tweet
But this isn’t about Owen. It’s about the quality of the Domaining feed. I admit, I put out some crap, we all do. Things that seem good or written in a rush. There are days when all I do is put out a list. But I have put out that list for 3 years and only missed 6 days ever. I didn’t get one dime of affiliate money for 2 years 9 months. I am one of the main reasons Namejet even has an affiliate program. Matt Overman and I have talked about it for 2 years. Because of that program every blogger out there does lists. And I don’t mind that.
What I do mind is two, three list per day. TNT is the worst. He doesn’t even write ANY other posts. Not one bit of opinion, information, or news. He adds no value in my opinion. If the affiliate money went away there wouldn’t even be a blog. Bill Eisenmann has a nice list each day but again, nothing else there. Hybrid Domainer, again, a great guy, has other solid articles but is writing two lists a day. This could easily be condensed into one list. But this is about money. The cookies need to be placed at the right time. Nobody seemed to have any interest in lists until the affiliates came around and now everyone is battling for eyeballs. I don’t think its good for the Domaining.com feed and if I owned it I know I wouldn’t let any site with just lists be a part.
I admit there are days when I have trouble writing additional articles. I do have a hectic schedule. But I do try and share and write when I have time. Are the all good articles? No. Are there some good ones? Yes. So who made me the police of the domain blogs? I’m not. I’m just someone that’s not afraid to put my name to my comments. Just like I did on Owen Frager’s article. I was mad. He had been writing some decent articles and then that one liner. I clicked the link, saw nothing on the post and wrote my feelings. That is what I am doing here.
Bloggers. Make some effort. You want to make money from the domainers that click your affiliate links then give them something in return. Your opinions, some interesting info, something you learned that may help others. Something. Yes, I realize that if I don’t like a blog I don’t have to read it. But I want to. I want to read something that will interest me in one way or another. I enjoy TheDomains, Elliot, Morgan, and Andrew, but I would love to have more. Some may say that I am only saying this because they are taking affiliate money from me but like I said earlier, I didn’t make a dime for almost 3 years so what do I have to lose?
Time is one and that’s where this post all started. Owen wasted my time by having me click and go to the one line post. He is capable of so much more and I told him so. I came because he was starting to write interesting coherent posts and I was enjoying them. Hybrid does as well. Bill probably is capable, and TNT? well…I don’t have a clue what or who he is.
thank you… it needed to be said. it was so sweet for the couple of months owen stopped posting. unfortunately he’s back on a tear.
For what’s it worth, the blogs that only publish lists such as tnt, Bill Eisenmann, Hybrid Domain I blog them from my domaining feed. Everyone else should do the same. Just navigate to the bottom of domaining.com and block them. I now never see their spammy posts.
I don’t get that guys blog, it is like reading jargon, this misleading headlines, and then like no content, oh did I say something wrong, is the FBI after me now?
Really FBI have time for this nonsense, that is what is wrong with this country…
I have had to remove 3 posts already blasting Owen. This isn’t about Owen in particular….although he started it 🙂 Try and be relatively nice and civil with your comments
Agreed. I know I would make a bad blogger because I would get sick of the consistency.
Of course, this is not an excuse for people to run “blogs” that do nothing by copy and paste infographics others created (unless the focus on the blog was redone to reflect that infographics are 95% of the posts).
I am sure blogging is a hard job. I’m glad it’s not mine.
Frager in interesting. If it wasnt for his good content, which makes up 20% of what he writes (I estimate) I would never waste my time to click over to his blog. My “Trust” for Owen Frager burned out years ago after the 100th headline that promised something interesting and ended up not providing. Owen learned the “how to catch peoples attention” lesson well, he just never learned “How to build a quality reputation and KEEP it” lesson.
Top obnoxious things about Owen’s blog.
1. Always talking about how great he is.
2. Always talking about how he saw value in things that no-one else saw
3. Promoting others products/businesses for money without telling us he is doing so(I have learned he can’t be trusted because of this).
4. Posts that constantly praise Frank Shilling (not that he should not be praised, but tone it down a notch)
5. His constant moaning about how everyone is out to get him without his realizing that he is a good chunk of the problem.
6. His constant attempt to include himself in the “Good-ol-boys” club of domaining without realizing that none of the “Good-ol-boys” every talk about him.
7. Headlines that promise MUCH more than the post delivers.
8. His constant beef with anyone that disagrees with him.
9. Posting “breaking news” style posts that tell people something big is happening and to check back for more info, then never returning to the post.
10. Constantly bragging about his traffic without ever verifying (I estimate very little traffic due to the complete lack of engagement his post result in).
Holy crap, I didn’t think I would pop out ten and now I realize I could go on.
To clarify, I do not dislike Owen Frager. I think in the right conditions I would enjoy listening to him, hearing his opinions (some are really insightful), he has just poisoned the way I feel about him by constantly telling others how great he is, his blog is, his marketing ablilty is and so on.
If you would cut that crap out Owen I would sincerely enjoy reading your blog.
I think Bill Eisenmann’s blog is wonderful. The blog is titled “Available Domain Names” so you should accept the fact that that is all he does is publish available domain names. I have bought 10+ names off his blog posts over the last few months. Please don’t stop Bill, you’re great!
I’ve come to the conclusion that a blog is only as good as its worst content.
A blog (or any publication) can have wonderful content, but if some of its content is poor (or worse, incorrect), then I distrust all of its content.
Not saying I myself haven’t published varying degrees of quality, but I try to adhere to this belief.
Hello Shane,
I am all for freedom of expression, and use a Branding Handle that you have seemingly mocked. I hope you have the chops to let this comment be seen. Many in our Industry believe that censorship is good. I disagree, and have stated so.
The reason I use a branding handle is SMART whether or not you think so. All you need do is have your Branding Handle Signature in Qutations on a google search and you can check out that persons CONTENT of CHARACTER as to what he is saying.
“Gratefully, Jeff Schneider (Contact Group) (Metal Tiger)”
Try it out and see the Content I am proud of as compared to some of the Gutless Wonders posting trash comments under phony names.
Gratefully, Jeff Schneider (Contact Group) (Metal Tiger)
Jeff,
Just having little fun with your handle. You have to admit Metal Tiger is kind of funny. I give you credit for consistency. PS Didn’t take much chops to post that comment.
Sorry Troy, I would have to disagree I have blocked Bill from my feed. These are affiliate filled posts that offer nothing to the domain world.
I for one make heavy use of Francois’ blocking feature. And it comes as no surprise that Owens’ is the most blocked feed, followed closely by the nitwits of DomainGang.
You can bash Owen about everything, but the “lists”, that would be like the kettle calling the pot black. If it had been child porn, you might have a reason to be upset, but nobody held a gun to your head and forced you to click on that “link” to his site. Owen is notorious for baiting people with his headlines, and will stoop to any depth to increase his rankings. Anyone who has read his blog should know that by now.
Dean,
I agree there is certainly some hypocrisy in my statements but I feel that I have somewhat been grandfathered with over 2 years of consistent lists.
DUDE ! Please pay attention to Rule 1 . . Rule 1 is always in effect. http://domainshane.com/10-more-thoughts-from-a-middle-aged-man/
Dont make me remind you again or I’m going to go all fuckin bat shit crazy on you.
Richard,
I knew I would get this response for you. Owen has emailed me and said he had a very special post about me tomorrow. My skeletons are pretty limited so it should be interesting.
@George,
it tells you a lot about the state of affairs in the domaining world when a blog like Domain Gang get’s nominated for best blog at TRAFFIC. Than again, I am not sure how serious I would take the TRAFFIC awards.
Shane,
no worries all the domain blogs do it. It’s about increasing readership. Most bloggers have some sort of agenda, even if it’s not immediately apparent. Yours is one of the most transparent of domain blogs. I’d rather that, than those who try to obfuscate the truth or facts masquerading as reportage.
Domain gang is just a different type of humor. It’s ok not to like it but it certainly is silly to feel like Theo is not putting a lot of effort into it.
Troy,
I agree, Acro works hard. It’s not my style either but I give him Kudos for the amount of time he puts in. Sometimes I feel he puts in too much time. And its certainly original content. Can’t argue that.
“Owen has emailed me and said he had a very special post about me tomorrow. My skeletons are pretty limited so it should be interesting”
I’m so excited to read it=)
I can imagine the headlines already…
@ ShaneCultra says:
July 27, 2012 at 4:54 pm
Jeff,
Just having little fun with your handle. You have to admit Metal Tiger is kind of funny. I give you credit for consistency. PS Didn’t take much chops to post that comment.
Actually Shane, I have quite a sense of humor once you get to know me.
But cross me and you see another very protective and fierce side of me. Actually (Metal Tiger, is my Birthright Horoscope Chinese version. It fits me to a Tee.
Getting back to the point we were both making, it is extremely important that we as a domaining and businessmen coomunity stop infighting. It is a weakness that Institutional Investors sense about us and this is not a Good Brand.
I will be writing CONTENT on Ricks Blog meant to strengthen our positions. I would appreciate your support on this,instead of ?
Thanks for clearing the air. Cheers
Below new rules for bloggers we are showing their feed in domaining.com:
– Maximum 1 post per day showing a domains dropping list or available to register list, and only authorized if the blogger comment his selection or if his previous post was not a domain list.
– No headline linking to a post with no personal content or poor content.
– No reposted headline.
– No “abusive” promotional headline.
As I don’t plan to do the cop and be always checking, if someone is not following these rules then drop me an anonymous note in our contact form and we will remove the headline not following these rules. After 3 headlines removed the same month the feed will be dropped for 1 month.
I hope you will find these measures positive for reward hard working bloggers and give to our readers content of higher quality and interest.
To have a very good and solid 26K in Alexa ranking putting up expired domain names at the most, its an envy situation for some people.
Keep it up Shane!
..I’ve got a good few names because of you 😉
Really Shane? Your gonna go after us? I haven’t done anything to you buddy. If you look at our blog we have only been putting out one list per day since Francois sent out the email to all of the domain feeds with the new rules. Also if you read our site there are a number of blogs written that are not lists and give good information about domaining. We are a new blog and its a shame that your attacking us when we have only been around for 3 months.
Dave
Dave,
I call it like I see it. I see lists. I don’t see any other posts. I saw posts written solely for affiliate links with no other posts offering personal views or information. If I am wrong then I apologize.
Dave
Really? Really? Your blog is 100% spam affiliate related posts. Shane calls it like he sees it and so do I – You have been blocked by me so it really does not matter.
*
I agree with Troy; I like Bill Eisenmann’s list–I have snagged a lot of nice domains from it. He doesn’t pretend to be presenting news or opinion (except his opinions on the dropping domains he lists).
When I go there, I know it’s a list, and I know that he’s an affiliate. I can deal with that.
What I DON’T like is someone pumping a service, only to see a big fat ad for that service or product splashed on the blogger’s page.
I just tend not to believe those kinds of “pumper posts.”
*
Ms. Domainer
I think Bill’s lists are VERY good as well. I’m not saying they are bad as long as its not more than once a day or aren’t published to “cookie fight”
We are a brand new blog and we are learning. We have only been around for 3 months. If you look we have written numerous stories about domaining. Since you have blocked me how would you even know that? Also why even worry about it if you have blocked me? I just don’t get it. If you dont like it block it or dont read it. We have hundreds of people that love our lists. We also have hundreds of people that enjoy reading our domaining news stories. We are just getting started and love the comments to make us a better site. We also love what we do and will not let anyone get in our way. Thanks for the comments!
Dave
Entertaining post. Definitely will grab some eyeballs. Good or bad it’s nice to hear everyone’s opinion.
Reminds me of a quote:
“Let me tell you something you already know…
The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it.
You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit… it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!”
Scratch that. Evidently, it is all sunshine and rainbows at sunshineandrainbows.com which has been taken since 2001 by a real estate investor. 🙂
I was staying out of this entertaining exchange as I’m hosting a BBQ, until I read some “George” comment about the “nitwits” of DomainGang.
Post your full name, email and web site, so that we can judge what you have done better “George” because if you don’t I will assume you are nothing but a pathetic excuse for a man, with no testicles and definitely no footprint in the domain community. Asshole.
Whenever I read a post like “I FEEL THREATENED BY WHAT YOU WROTE! YOU’RE BULLYING ME! BULLYING IS A HATE CRIME! I CALLED THE FBI ON YOU! I’M GOING TO SUE YOU!” its impossible to take that person seriously about anything.
@Acro: quod erat demonstrandum.
I’m starting three blogs tomorrow.
First blog is five to ten lists a day. Some lists might only have two domains.
Second blog is live “Owen Frager” style commentary of every DomainGansg.com post. I might even post two or three times covering the intricacies and depth of each individual DomiansGang post, which is a God-sent blessing to the domain industry.
Third is daily commentary regarding Owens daily coverage of the domain industry. I’ll be wearing an FBI hat in the photo.
Great post Shane. You said and pointed out what so many have been wishing to discuss or see discussed. The same two blogs that post 3-5 times a day with their ‘click up may stats and see if this headline is real or not!’ Plain weak!
@Francois –
Thanks for the new guidelines. I hope you enforce them stridently!
@David TNT – “Since you have blocked me how would you even know that?”
You only have ‘one’ headline, not hard to know what your content will be. again.
I met Shane in person in TRAFFIC 2010, Las Vegas. Great guy. We don’t always agree, nor share the same sense of humor. That’s fine. I have yet to meet Owen and most likely will meet him in TRAFFIC this October. A lot of us project a type ‘A’ personality through blogging. In person, we’re the nicest in town.
@George – Assclown, Latin won’t save you from being a mediocre sycophant.
There is no doubt the quality of domaining blogs has declined somewhat, but at the end of the day quality will win out … simple
I have opinions but do not wish to inflame a volitile post any further .. regards
Francois finally gets it…Owen’s blog never made it to Domainsville from day 1.
You guys are too funny. If it makes you wiser, richer or more interesting to invest so much time debating a blog you have long ago determined not for you, be my guest. Bash away. I can only tell you that blogging is a time consuming and thankless job and unless you have an exit plan or another business interest you can bundle it with and sell off, you might want to stop now rather than reach that conclusion a year from now and regret what else you could have done with all that time. You know the most successful businesses started with an average-joe recognizing a need they had that none of the solutions out there filled. For example when Joan Lunden had to decide where to place Mom, she couldn’t get all the information and resources all in one place. So she started a placeformom.com. If you see a gap in the blogging space why not step up to the plate and fill it?
btw, Re: FBI issue this is very serious and very real and has nothing to do with people who disagree with me or critical of my product. It’s about one or more very unstable individuals hijacking my comment function to get hateful and threatening messages spammed into my email stream. They reveal just enough personal information not publicly known to take this as a threat. When you have clients to answer to and employees held up until you give them direction, an email check on the iPhone needs to be swift and uncluttered. Not only do these messages distract from the real business, they zap all the passion and enthusiasm I need to win the day, The reason I posted that message is because there have been some regular, valuable commenters who may be wondering why their comments haven’t been posted and what happened to previously posted comments. No one should have to go through this. It makes putting yourself out there even less attractive.
@Abdu
And why Owen should not be part of domaining?
Domaining is part of his daily life maybe before you ever know what domaining was (it’s the case with me).
Who I am to say: Owen you are not part of the domain industry?
He has good and bad posts like anyone and I can tell my favorites has many of his posts.
That Owen fragerize his headlines to attract attention is a true fact.
That he multiplicates daily posts to improve his exposure it’s another true fact.
But he’s not the only one using such techniques to try to get more attention.
I don’t like to set rules, ideally I prefer everyone be reasonable.
I just remember that every blogger has access to the “HIDE” button below his domaining.com’s post to auto censure him. This way he can follow our guidelines without worry about what he post on in his own blog.
I like the domain lists and Im an OG in the domaining world. I get pretty lazy and rather have someone else do the work for me…
When bored I look over lists and bid if I want to.
As for Owens blog…well, it seems 9 times out of 10 hes trying to gain traffic by using Frank Schillings name or some other giant in the biz…gets annoying…
Shane, good work going against the grain.
Why didn’t you remove his blog from your Domaining.com feed in the first place?
ok. Positive comment add your name. Blast someone hide your name. Cause really it is all about being nice….. not selling domain names. It’s funny that personalities become bigger than the potential gain of a domain. I ain’t like that. Call me anything say anything just transfer that fucking name today asshole…Fun read guys…
Domaining 101: Being a drama queen is the first requirement of being a domainer.
Shane, not for nothing but while for 2 years 9 months you made no affiliate commissions the list is the only reason i (and probably many others) ever visited your blog. So your list got you traffic and from that you sold ad space. Take away your list and a flower enthusiast had as much reason to visit your blog as a domainer would. Seems like you dislike the competition you are getting now. Nobody likes a crybaby.
Tim,
I’d like to think that my list was PART of the reason people come to this blog. “a flower enthusiast had as much reason to visit your blog as a domainer would” is an idiotic statement. I have never talked about plants, I talk about business which happens to be about plants. People know me for that as much as they do for my NNNN.coms. That being said, I can live with crybaby. I’m a big boy. Thanks for stopping by
Owen,
An objective critic from a one year old domainer.i spend at most 3 seconds in your web site but i read all the posts of Shane.At first i thought you were really blogging but stopped to follow you when i “got” it.
Coming to your “if you do not like mine just do not click” comment.
Everyone has the right to publish crap my problem is with its being published on Domaining.com.If Francois lets everyone publish crap on his site i am sorry that he will lose being a reference site for domainers.
Why should Owen’s post be censored?
It appears to me that he focuses his blog on the major corporations, the ocean, instead of the pond, the domain name industry.
Every facet is important. The name industry cannot be viewed in isolation. I personally do enjoy seeing what Apple, Google, Microsoft, is doing, and Owen covers that area.
There’s room for every blogger, since we can block what we don’t want.
Let us all take a deep breath.
Uzoma,
Can’t believe I’m saying this…but I agree with you.
Thank you, Shane.
Ho do I see comments 1 – 50 ?
James,
Sorry. First time I had over 50 comments. I had to change some settings. Should be up now
@Francois
Everyone knows that Owen is part of the domain industry. But when 9 out of 10 posts are totally irrelevant, then I don’t call that a domain blog.
First I seen this so I apologize for being late to comment.
First off, I have no problems with your comments Shane. The reason why some days there are two lists is because someone else writes the NameJet list, that list was written for a long time without any affiliate link.
I write the Go Daddy which has never been an affiliate link. I have been talking here about making it one list so I have no problem with what Francois wrote.
We produce animations,curate infographics that make sense for the topics we cover and are increasingly looking to run more contests.
I think there are plenty of subjects covered on Hybrid Domainer, the focus of the blog has always been about, Domains,SEO,Mobile,SocialMedia,Affiliate Marketing and development. I have always thought the small to mid domainer needs plenty of avenues since they will not sell at the level of the big guys.
There are some new people being added to the site, who won’t write many articles but have an expertise in an area.
Bill has been around forever his lists I check out, I check yours out, I think the other thing that gets left out here is that everyone is not just writing for Domaining.com. If you don’t cover certain stories other readers wonder why ?
RH,
I think your blog only gets better with time. You merely have to see the number of times you have been on the Domaining.com email of top links. I had no idea that you produce the infographics yourself. Keep up the good work
Thanks for the comment Shane. No I have only curated the infographics. I have always tried to find ones that were related to domains,search,social or mobile. A lot of people have told me they like the infographics and I do try to add my own commentary to them as well. Many days I look through 100 infographics and not one is fit to post because the readers would probably have no interest in the content.
I am working on some proprietary ones but I do not have the Graphich skills of someone like Theo.
I also want to say good on you if you were the driving force behind the NameJet affiliate program. Evan running it makes it even better as I think essociate is the best.
“Everyone knows that Owen is part of the domain industry.”
Imho Owen is irrelevant and not part of this industry in any way shape or form. He’s ridden on the coat tails of the leaders and contributes little more than curation and rehashing. Some might find value in that but he is not part of the “industry” 2cents
Shane,
There are lots of eyeballs for them type of post. I think you are on to something. Now think of a way to monetize. 🙂
Shane: Love you bro! Keep doing what you are doing. You are an asset to this industry and your commentary is always fun to read. Don’t let the naysayers get you down. Would be great to meet you in person one day.
Regarding Bill: I find Bill’s lists very interesting and have made money off buying select domains featured in them. I like what he does and hope he keeps on doing it.
Regarding Owen: Can’t stand the attitude, but I check his blog on a wekly basis. Some of his article offer interesting insight, while others are grandstanding or pure bs. It is what it is.
Troy: I’m not sure who you are, but I agree with a lot of what you say above and elsewhere.
Thank you Spike. If you’re ever in Chicago or better yet, in the middle of Illinois, let me know
Abdu says:
July 28, 2012 at 11:45 am
@Francois
Everyone knows that Owen is part of the domain industry. But when 9 out of 10 posts are totally irrelevant, then I don’t call that a domain blog.
Abdu my blog is not a domain blog its a marketing and branding blog. That’s been my life’s work in the big leagues with a proven track record and I have advocated for 20 years that’s where the gold lies in domains. Now Frank Schilling is proving that.
When you make a statement such as 9 of the last 10 posts- here’s a list of the last 10 posts- tell me what’s not relevant
Domain Shane Writes to Me, I Respond
Healthy Night For Frank Schilling
Big TV Ad Campaign Running for 1&1- Websites
New TLDs: “Grant me the serenity to accept the the things I can not change” Interview with Rob Grant
Goldman Sachs Buys GS.com For The Reg Fee
Coupon Industry & Retailers Set to Battle Over Coupon domain names
David Cohen: “How my 18 Year Old SEO Intern Generated $35,364 in Revenue in 30 Days”
Moron Alert: Sony Screws Up Again- Goes To Market
A rare “backdoor” to the iPhone 5’s coming BILLION
Marketing Experts Think New TLDs Will Cause Brand….
“I have advocated for 20 years that’s where the gold lies in domains. Now Frank Schilling is proving that.”
That must be one of the funnier things I’ve ever read. If you’ve been advocating “that” for 20 years, why are you Owen Frager the “blogger” while Frankie has only been doing it for 13 years or so and is clearing seven figures a week?
You can hitch your blog-wagon to Frank Schilling and drop his name every day, but that does not make you, Owen Frager, a fragment of being Frank Schilling.
Nothing like a little controversy to get everyone all motivated again 🙂