In today’s digital world, domain names can be rightfully considered hot commodities. Buying and selling the right domain names at the right time is far from an easy task, but the rewards can be outstanding. Considering domains purchased for $8 can be worth millions in just a couple of years, it’s hardly a surprise everyone wants in on this action.
Is Domain Name trading profitable?
If you’re interested in records, Insurance.com still reigns as the most valuable domain name of all time. Back in 2010, the California-based marketing company QuinStreet bought this domain name for a cool $35.6 million. As you might have guessed from the name, Insurance.com revolves around offering services for car, life, home, health and motorcycle insurance.Before QuinStreet made its move, the title of the most expensive domain name in the world was held by Vacationrentals.com. In 2007, HomeAway acquired the domain for $35 million in order to gain an edge against its travel company competition.
Even when it comes to ccTLDs (or country-code Top Level Domains), you can get some pretty decent returns on your investments. For example, this year saw the German coffee distribution company OPAG GmbH buy the Caffee.de domain for $238,000. Considering “kaffee” is German for coffee, this was probably a shrewd purchase.DNjournal reports on the biggest domain name transactions every week.
What is there to know about it?
Buying and selling domains can be a profitable business, but you do need some sort of direction to succeed at it. To that end, here are three tips that should help you get started:
- Narrowing your focus.The main thing you should know is that there are endless possibilities of domain names you can register. If you’re buying a domain with the intention of reselling it later, it might be a good idea to focus on things you’re familiar with. If you know a lot about pets, try thinking about possible domain names related to that industry. Understanding your audience’s needs is the first step towards coming up with a good domain.
- Finding value.There’s a big chance that domain names you want are already taken. If that’s the case, you can always try to purchase said domains from their current owners. Start by going to auctions.godaddy.com and using the advanced search options to locate the domains you’re interested in. There are a lot of filters that should help you sort through the many available domains, such as price, keyword, TLD and so on. There are apps now that allow you to search for domain names even when you are on the go.
- Estimating the price.Once you’ve found a good domain name, it’s time to think about the costs. A good way to make sure that you’re buying the domain at a reasonable price is to compare it with similar domains that have sold recently. Websites like namebio.com offer this kind of service free of charge. Entering the keyword will get you a list of related domain names, along with their selling date and price.
- Use coupons.When buying domain names try to save money anyway you can. Many times domain name registrars issue discount coupon codes. For example, Domain.com coupons may save you up to 25% at checkout. This can be a considerable amount of money if you are buying a big number of domains.Wikigains has some of the latest discount coupon codes for Domain.com, Hostgator, Bluehost and many other domain name registrars.
Is it worth your time?
These days, most domain names sell for two or three-digit sums. However, that doesn’t mean that domain name trading is not a decent way to make money. If you’re familiar with upcoming trends or certain industry specifics, there’s no reason you shouldn’t be able to make a tidy profit.
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