I got a great question from a reader yesterday that I thought I would share with the broader group. The reader asked, “Where do you buy most of your domains?” The answer to this question has changed a lot over the years as my business has grown and strategy has changed. If you went back in time 2-3 years ago the answer would be a solid split between hand-registered domains and expired domains, now the balance has changed based on my experiences since then.
In 2012 a majority of the domains I have purchased have been directly from their owners. I’d venture a guess that around 60% of the names I’ve bought this year are from end-users or directly from other investors. I used to just use Droplists as my source of quality .COMs however after a few great flips from domains I purchased directly from end-users this has become the norm for me.
This also means my process of finding domains has changed, and it’s another reason why Domain Tools is the tool I use the most on a daily basis. Now most of my time buying domains revolves around researching a particular domain, understanding who owns it, what’s been done with it, and what they might be willing to sell it for.
There are a lot of intricacies here that I will probably go-into in a future post as every domain is different, as is ever domain owner. I also buy in higher price ranges now which is pretty necessary when you’re buying from an end-user and when you’re focused on one and two-word .COM names.
Expired domains do offer a lot of opportunities and I’m definitely not dissuading anyone from buying expired domains. There are great opportunities in the expired domain market, but by doing a bit of research and combining that with a dash of patience and a commitment to negotiate you’d be surprised what amazing names might be within your reach.
Now it’s your turn, where do you buy most of your domains?
re: expired domains
If there’s one thing to learn in life, it’s that you rarely get a good deal as a buyer in an auction setting. Typically, the seller wins, especially when there’s emotion and ego involved amongst the bidders as they bid higher and higher. In the end, the ultimate buyer may have paid too much and the seller may have received more than he otherwise would have outside an auction setting simply due to human emotions.
Applying that to domaining, NameJet.com, SnapNames.com, and GoDaddy.com are the true winners in most expired auctions. What a wonderful franchise they have!
In support of Morgan’s approach, better deals can and are found outside the expired auction setting. Plus, Morgan gets to feel that little zip in his step as he works more like a wheeler dealer striking successful deals than just another user sitting at a name drop site. 🙂