Buying A Domain With A Buyer In Mind?

I’ve heard many people say, “I’m buying this domain because I know exactly who will buy it.” While it would be great if we could all buy domains and instantly match them up with a buyer, saying that you have the perfect buyer and actually landing the deal are two very different things. This is especially true when you think there’s one perfect buyer that will see the true value of the domain but many others who will not.

Here’s an example. Let’s suppose you own FranksTanks.com and think that the local fish store by your house, also called “Franks Tans” would be the perfect buyer. When you look online you see that there is only one “Franks Tanks” out there, so this might be the perfect buyer, but would likely also be the only other buyer.

Let’s suppose you bought the domain for $400 in an expired domain auction and you think, heck, I’ll do a quick flip and sell it for $1,500, surely it would be worth this to Franks Tans, right? Well that’s the $1,500 question in your case, which could easily turn into a $200 or $300 answer. It highlights the fundamental problem with buying a domain with one perfect buyer in mind. If that buyer doesn’t see the value in your domain, you’re left with a bunch of people who have absolutely no interest in your domain.

This is why it is so important to do research before making assumptions. It’s also a reason why Domain Tools is absolutely critical to have when researching potential domains to buy and end-users to sell them to. The first thing I do when trying to learn more about a potential buyer is to see how many other domains they own. If they only own one or two domains, you know they don’t have much experience buying domains so you’ll really have to explain the process and the value of the name. If on the other hand they have hundreds of names, they might be quite savvy which means showing comparable sales might be critical to show what represents a reasonable price for the domain.

I’m only scratching the surface here but my point is a simple yet powerful. If you buy a name with a specific buyer in mind, don’t assume that they’re going to buy. If they don’t you should have a solid list of other potential buyers ready to go, if you don’t, then proceed with caution or you could be holding onto the domain for years.

Morgan Linton

Morgan Linton