
Want to Build a Side Business? Just Buy Great Domain Name - eightturn
http://www.deepsouthventures.com/build-a-side-business/
======
vtlynch
>I immediately gravitate towards the keyword descriptive dotCOM. It instantly
exudes trust & authority

Strongly disagree. As a result of this type of thinking, I find that the
majority of "keyword descriptive dotCOM" domains are usually click-bait or
shady content marketing.

Sites like "VacuumReviews.com" are almost always full of content focused on
SEO not quality, and questionable financial motivations.

But I guess if the general public still likes those types of domains it
shouldnt affect their value.

~~~
eightturn
I can see your point of view.. What I was trying to convey - albeit poorly -
was a more holistic view of the domain, ie. the domain on the side of a truck.
The domain on a tablecloth. The domain on a bumpersticker.

If I saw a plumber driving around Atlanta with www.AtlantaPlumber.com on his
truck, #1 - it'd be easy for me to remember, and #2 it'd be a more positive
than negative perception of that business.

~~~
louprado
This is even more important if your business uses e-mail to communicate with
customers.

I used to own a print business with a .net domain name. We'd often tell a new
customer our e-mail address at the end of our first phone call. But too many
times customers would just type .com in the e-mail address and then assume
that our business has lousy service.

After a few months I paid a cyber-squatter (if that is still the appropriate
term) $1600 for the .com version of our name and I never regretted that
decision.

~~~
eightturn
author here:

yes.. this..

side story, a friend of mine owns a city dotCOM name that also has a
university with the corresponding .edu..

He receives email regularly from students pleading (to teachers) for an extra
day for thesis completion or a gpa bump : )

------
hrayr
I sometimes buy domain names on my phone, late at night, in my bed. Usually
after hours of laying in bed building out a business in my mind and iterating
over and over to see where it leads. Buying the domain name seems to be the
last step in the processes, it helps me sleep.

I look at the list of my domains every once in a while and pick ideas to work
on, but sometimes I have no idea what drove me to buy them, like
parttimehuman.tips

~~~
eightturn
I do the opposite : ) I buy the domain, and then put myself to sleep skipping
through biz avenues..

A fun tool to use for hand-reg domains (if you didn't know already)

[https://instantdomainsearch.com/](https://instantdomainsearch.com/)

~~~
mezod
good trap tool for godaddy to get domains you are interested in

~~~
wavefunction
I use geektools, they've been around forever and I've never had any domain
I've looked through there sniped away from me.

~~~
mezod
same here with gandi.net, thanks for sharing!

------
chrishacken
Not to burst your bubble but I'm convinced we're moving into an era where your
domain name and TLD are becoming less and less relevant. Google and Social are
all that matter. Had you asked me 4 years ago if I'd ever consider building a
business on .io or .co I would have laughed in your face. Now I'm building
products on both of them.

FWIW, I used to buy/sell domains and I think it's a terrible investment
strategy now. I can't tell you how many thousands of dollars I've wasted.

Unless you're able to pick up one-word / 3L .com's for very cheap and know you
can easily flip them, it's just not worth it.

~~~
melvinmt
In the context of YC, here's what pg thinks about domain names:

"If you have a US startup called X and you don’t have x.com, you should
probably change your name.

The reason is not just that people can't find you. For companies with mobile
apps, especially, having the right domain name is not as critical as it used
to be for getting users. The problem with not having the .com of your name is
that it signals weakness. Unless you're so big that your reputation precedes
you, a marginal domain suggests you're a marginal company. Whereas (as Stripe
shows) having x.com signals strength even if it has no relation to what you
do."

[http://paulgraham.com/name.html](http://paulgraham.com/name.html)

~~~
chrishacken
How many companies have started without x.com that are now huge? Tesla was
TeslaMotors.com before it was Tesla.com, Square was SquareUp.com before it was
Square.com, DataDog was Datadoghq.com before it was Datadog.com; I can keep
going.. (yes, they're still .com's, but you wouldn't consider datadoghq.com
investable. In all likelyhood, Datadog only used that name because it was a $9
registration.)

The domains didn't make them succeed.

I mean sure, if you're going to invest in domains, I'm not going to argue that
buying turtle.com for $9 is a good idea, but those days are long gone.
Anything that's dropped or available now probably isn't going to be worth
anything; unless you're paying $8k on NameJet and flipping for $10k.

~~~
yellowapple
To add to this, Steam is still steampowered.com.

------
rcymerys
Personally, I think of buying a domain as a form of procrastination rather
than the first step of starting a business. It gives a feeling of achievement
while staying in your comfort zone (seriously, it's just choosing a name and
paying ten bucks, how difficult is that?).

What I noticed to work is reaching out to people, telling them about your
business or project and getting their interest. Getting the first clients puts
more pressure on you, but also gives a huge motivation to continue working on
it.

~~~
dplgk
Buying a domain makes you pick a name and I think having a name helps with
morale and motivation. Buying the domain also helps because you've spent some
money and you have this thing there, waiting to be used.

~~~
eightturn
agree.. and I've found the more I invest, the more dedicated I am to the
project.. spend little, and it just turns into, 'eh, I'll start that project
next week'..

------
benmcnelly
This is rubbish.

I am (was) a serial domain buyer. Now, I guess its somewhat true that buying a
domain to go with your idea can really inspire you, I have a lot of domains I
let expire or still hold on to because I haven't yet or never did anything
with them. I don't think its a good idea.

~~~
eightturn
thanks for the feedback.. it works for some folks, not for others.. true. I
wanted to simply try and shift the thinking for anyone out there dabbling.
Once I saw domain names in this light, it really helped me focus and
concentrate on building..

------
azdle
Maybe it's just that I lack follow through, but I disagree. I have a horrible
habit of buying domain names thinking that I have this great idea, I play with
it for a day or two and then abandon it.

Actually, in the spirit of this article, if anyone here is interested in any
of these, let me know:

addressauth.com -- Was going to be a physical address verification service
using lob.com's postcard sending API.

atomicthings.com -- something vaguely iot related

[http://blankpage.press](http://blankpage.press) \-- a news site that only
posted things that were important (but I realized that would mean I'd need to
read all the news and figure out what was important).

[http://commn.co](http://commn.co) \-- an inventory tracking system for DIY
entheusists that allowed you to track your crap, but also see other peoples
crap and trade/sell to others if you don't need it anymore.

[http://difftos.com](http://difftos.com) \-- a tool to watch service's ToS for
changes and easily see what actually changed.

hydramatic.net -- ifttt, but for programmers (it's the name of the first
automatic transmission)

[http://shit.land](http://shit.land) /
[http://shit.foundation](http://shit.foundation) \-- "The Society for a
Homogenous Internet of Things Foundation", an obviously dumb name for a
website that I was going to setup a wiki to track IoT stuff, mostly protocols
and maybe eventually something with security vulns.

virga.link / [http://virga.space](http://virga.space) \-- My plans for a fully
decentralized IoT 'protocol', there's actually a couple blog posts on here
that lay out what I was thinking.

If you have an existing project that's not in risk of dying that one of these
would fit, I'll gladly give it to for free. (I just ask that if the project
does die you'd give it back to me and not sell it.)

Also, slightly unrelated, but since I'm listing domain names,
[https://knock.ninja](https://knock.ninja) was another one of these, but I've
actually gotten myself to keep working on that on, if a bit slowly. I actually
am pretty proud of coming up with that name. (Although the content on that
site it pretty shit, btw. I need to come up with better ways of describing it
with fewer words.)

~~~
OJFord
> _I need to come up with better ways of describing it with fewer words._

How about: knock.ninja automates your building's phone-based access system.

It omits some detail, but to be honest I didn't get it until I read the
features anyway.

Depending who you want to appeal to, I think it might be better to call it a
'smart' phone-based access system instead of 'automated'.

Sounds great, by the way. Unfortunately my building's access is just fob-
based.

~~~
azdle
Yeah, I think I need to get away from the term 'access system' everyone I've
asked didn't get it and I think that was the main part of the confusion.

I'm thinking something more along the lines of

"Can your front door call you? Let the ninja get it instead.

Knock.Ninja can open the door for guests and deliveries automatically in any
building that uses phone-based entry request systems."

That still gets too technical at the end, but I think more people would
understand.

Edit: It also now occurs to me that that's actually more word, ah well.

~~~
throwaway729
_> Yeah, I think I need to get away from the term 'access system' everyone
I've asked didn't get it and I think that was the main part of the confusion._

Have you looks through condo/apartment amenity listings and figured out what
words they're using to describe these systems? I imagine people would probably
pick up on and use those names?

I just call it a "buzzer" and explain to friends "enter the code or find me in
the directory and it'll call me"

~~~
azdle
I've never seen any that actually specify it as an amenity. I think it's
assumed that buildings will have that these days.

In searing for how they're actually sold, I've seen mostly "Phone Entry
System" and "Phone Access System", but I felt like that was super generic
without context.

~~~
OJFord
> _I think it 's assumed that buildings will have that these days._

I've never seen it in the UK; hadn't heard of it until I visited Boston, MA.

------
garysieling
I built [https://www.findlectures.com](https://www.findlectures.com) entirely
without having a domain; my experience has been that having a domain too early
locks you too much to the concept it references.

~~~
yardie
But at the same time not having it soon enough means someone else can swoop in
and keep it from you.

Domains are cheap. I buy them for $10 before discounts. If the concept changes
spend another $10. You'll spend far more than that trying to negotiate it
back.

------
neoterics
I would pick a third option: SojournBikeTours.com

-There would be a high likelihood of that domain name being available as opposed to buying the KEYWORD domain from a squatter for thousands.

-Having a brand or name would give it more authority and a feeling of a mom and pop store.

-It is still descriptive.

Not to mention that if you do decide to go through the KEYWORD domain route
you will be competing with a lot of people that are scouting for KEYWORD
domains to build spammy affiliate websites or if by any chance the website has
some history and backlinks then you will be competing with people who want to
snatch it to build PBNs.

~~~
eightturn
An article I tend to share when folks consider longer or too descriptive
domain names:

[https://blog.nuts.com/were-going-nuts-dot-com/](https://blog.nuts.com/were-
going-nuts-dot-com/)

------
bootload
_" The next big step is combing through the 100k domains that expire every
day. And creating a process to scan and filter so you don’t go cross-eyed."_

For me the title gives away the idea of the post. I read it. Not impressed.
[0] The following line gave me the impression the writer didn't realise the
value of the above statement. Want a ^potential^ business, build a tool that
allows you a better way to solve the above problem.

[0] read "Before the Startup" 'Game paragraph' on playing house ~
[http://paulgraham.com/before.html](http://paulgraham.com/before.html) cf _"
We saw this happen so often that we made up a name for it: playing house.
Eventually I realized why it was happening. The reason young founders go
through the motions of starting a startup is because that's what they've been
trained to do for their whole lives up to that point."_

------
settsu
I've been casually interested in small time domain name "investing" (with and
without intention to develop) since the early days and when it so happened
that during a stint at GoDaddy, I was charged with the UX of the domain
auction product, imagine my surprise to discover were a handful of very big
players, some of whom ran bespoke software (not unlike a Bloomberg terminal)
and were so profitable for the company that they essentially had their own in-
house concierge.

That certainly dampened my enthusiasm when I realized it had long since become
more like commercial real estate investment than the American West land rush.

Similarly illuminating was working at a regional bank and learning how much of
their growth was based on investing in a patch of dirt as it was in the
operation of the branch location that sat on that dirt.

Made me realize how uninformed I was about business in general.

~~~
markdown
> Similarly illuminating was working at a regional bank and learning how much
> of their growth was based on investing in a patch of dirt as it was in the
> operation of the branch location that sat on that dirt.

Reminds me of McDonald's founder Ray Kroc's famous quote "We are in the real
estate business; not the hamburger business."

~~~
eightturn
Sears has a somewhat similar story I believe..

------
wessorh
wow, I've run a domain registrar since 1999. Most domain name purchases are
crap, domains are not assets but for a tiny tiny fraction of the top sites.

don't be a fool and give your money to a registrar. Build a business by
solving problem that many folks have. After you solved a problem buy a domain
to market your solution.

~~~
eightturn
author here..

why not find a domain that addresses a problem? then build business around it?

~~~
noway421
What some of the posters here have pointed out is that buying a domain name
early scopes your idea and limits the possibility of you adjusting the
purpose/audience/main concept of the start up.

Scoping is not bad per se, but starting up an idea is more of a creative
process than concrete problem solving. You might not know what problem you're
yet about to solve.

------
dmoney
I like the idea of using expiring domain names to generate business ideas
(especially domain names that are fetching a good price).

But what if, instead of buying the domain name, you... didn't buy it? What if,
instead of dropping $5K on an exact match, you spent $10 on a B+ domain name,
where you can set up a landing page to see if there's interest in the business
idea you've generated?

That way, if you are getting signups, or even actual customers, _then_ you try
to get a better domain name; but if not, you're not out $5K.

Or am I missing something? I guess you can still sell the domain if you don't
end up doing something with it, but what if it declines in value?

 _edit:_ punctuation

~~~
prawn
_" I like the idea of using expiring domain names to generate business ideas
(especially domain names that are fetching a good price)."_

Personally, I think buying domains that seem good, and then brainstorming
ideas for them is risky. You're more likely to end up with a questionable
foundation ("Maybe it could be a site about dogs with funny socks?") or
something outside your area of interest/expertise. IME, it's better to set
your idea and then find the domain.

By all means, speculate on domains and collect a few strong ones (I do), but
I'd be wary of picking ideas based on the domains you can grab.

You used to be able to make easy money from SEO-oriented sites based on
keyphrases, but that's dried up a lot and content/concept is king again.

~~~
dmoney
> _Personally, I think buying domains that seem good, and then brainstorming
> ideas for them is risky._

Your ideas have to come from somewhere, but I think it's risky too. That's why
I suggested buying a cheaper domain to vet the idea before buying an expensive
one (if at all).

------
k__
I still haven't figured out how to make money with butt.ventures

~~~
swalsh
I own meatgalore.com, I thought it would be a cool idea to have a business
that sold rare meats and cuts online... but never really got the supply chain
worked out.

We should link to each other.

~~~
erikb
Have you heard of the money making machine called "gay porn industry"? Just a
suggestion.

~~~
swalsh
Something tells me I need more than a great domain name to get into the
industry.

------
wineisfine
Have a bunch of good domains in my portfolio and this article is just crap.

Content is king, and always will be.

Also, even his first example is inadequate, I would actually have chosen the
Spanish sounding website, when going to Spain.

------
gewa
Sorry, but i really dont like the style of the article, i always feel like the
author wants to tell me one little trick, doctors hate him for, which enlarges
your penis by two inches.

~~~
erikb
And it is exactly this kind of content, too.

------
run4yourlives2
For the amount of money he's spending on auctioned domains, wouldn't it make
more sense to find a 'related' (eg. backyardziplines.com vs ziplines.com) name
and do exactly the same thing (set up a site, contact a partner, etc) and
spend the thousands of dollars on advertising?

Maybe it's just me, but google doesn't really put that much stock in the url
itself, does it? A non-scammy site and some good lead ins will put you high in
the search results regardless, no?

~~~
eightturn
Author here..My focus isn't a google seo play, it's a 'build a business' play
that leverages all forms of marketing.. word of mouth, bumper stickers,
billboards, search, social.. A neat, easy to remember domain can do lots of
good when building a brand..

Related domains can do as much harm as good.. a good article to read:

[https://blog.nuts.com/were-going-nuts-dot-com/](https://blog.nuts.com/were-
going-nuts-dot-com/)

------
sunseb
In the long run, I tend to think it's better to have a good brand name rather
than a descriptive domain name with keywords.

We all go on amazon.com to buy books, not on bookstore.com.

~~~
FilterSweep
+1 for promoting an idea that a single-noun (such as Amazon or apple) could be
purchased as a domain and be worth lots of money.

However, while the bottom statement is a truth, are you sure you have the
cause and effect right?

We buy go on amazon.com to buy books because of a _plethora_ of other reasons
that Amazon does better than a bookstore.com that comes before an affinity for
the Amazon brand. This ranges from ubiquitous options to their cost-cutting
operational and source efficiency to their shipping options to Amazon prime
benefits.

------
mikejarema
> I’m talking about viewing domain names as an asset

Another way to read this, which the author indirectly touches on in his
listing of expired domain auction results, is the $$$ value of the domain
itself.

It's kind of insurance for the situation where your _side_ project/business
either fails to materialize or goes nowhere. A solid domain should at least
retain its value so you can view the perceived authority/trust as free (or a
dividend) on the initial investment in the domain.

This is the basis I've been using for some of the prospective side-projects
I've been mulling. I've been buying some decent domains as investments both in
the domains themselves and the value they would bring to my projects.

Here's a specific example:

I've got a few ideas related to energy, eg. a system that'll let IoT
devices/smart appliances/software base decisions on the cost and environmental
impact of the energy required for an application. So I bought
[http://energy.io](http://energy.io) as the eventual home for this. It carries
the authority/trust that the author describes, at least as a developer-focused
business, and in the worst case I'm sure I can resell it for an amount
comparable to what I paid.

~~~
eightturn
spot on Mike..

If your domain idea fizzles, there is still value in the domain name itself..

------
joshstrange
Descriptive URL's like "BikeTours.com" convey the opposite to me. It's going
to be swimming in ads and malware and full of BS reviews hoping for some
affiliate link clicks.

Also buying domain names ("great" or not) is a bad way to get started. There
are a million things that need to happen to launch a side business and a
domain is literally one of the least important things. You can always buy
getX.com, Xapp.com, Xnow.com, etc and buy X.com when, if, you make it big.
Buying domain names is fun, I used to do it regularly but it just gives a
short rush where you play through different scenarios and then you forget
about it until you get the notification to renew it a year later. You want to
build a side business? Then build a side business. Want to fantasize? Buy a
domain.

~~~
eightturn
>There are a million things that need to happen to launch a side business and
a domain is literally one of the least important things

Different strokes, different folks.. My thought is, why not come out of the
gate, guns blazing, with a killer product/service and the exact match domain
of the industry.. Instantly compete with the leaders of your market. No ramp
up needed.

------
na85
Aren't there bidding networks for expiring domains that practically guarantee
you won't get the domain unless you pay one of them?

~~~
eightturn
bidding networks, yes.. those four links I included at end of article grant
you access to those networks. Those sites will attempt to grab domains when
they drop. Not all expiring domains truly expire, though.. some are what they
call 'pre-release', and are auctioned before the drop at a selective
marketplaces.. Namejet is a popular one..

------
rcarrigan87
If you're buying expired domains you'd be wise to learn a little bit about how
to spot google penalties.

It would suck to buy a domain where a bunch of shady SEO had been done by the
previous owner. It will make ranking in google that much harder.

~~~
mikejarema
What's the process to assess whether a domain is on the naughty list?

~~~
eightturn
something simple..

you can simply go to google and type

site:domainnamedollarstore.com (example)

if google returns no results = no bueno

~~~
mikejarema
Thanks... but is that the extent of it?

I'm familiar with this syntax but thought that Google's punishments take the
form more of a sliding scale (which diminishes general authority or prevalence
for certain searches) than a binary system (good/show, bad/hide). And that
simply checking the index as above wouldn't reveal too much actionable info.
Eg. if a domain is categorized as having adult content.

~~~
eightturn
possibly helpful: [https://www.semrush.com/blog/tell-site-hit-google-
penalty/](https://www.semrush.com/blog/tell-site-hit-google-penalty/)

------
knodi123
Offers.com (at the time a record-breaking price paid for a domain name) is
still getting peanuts in traffic compared to retailmenot, which has the
_dumbest_ name ever. And I'd argue offers.com has marginally superior content,
except for the odd exclusive deal that retailmenot is able to swing based on
their identity. But retailmenot got there first, and it hit the ground running
building marketshare, and that has made all the difference.

~~~
eightturn
>Offers.com (at the time a record-breaking price paid for a domain name) is
still getting peanuts in traffic compared to retailmenot, which has the
dumbest name ever.

Is it possible to spend lots of money and build a brand on a junky domain and
drive lots of traffic, yes.

------
intrasight
I agree that if you think of a good domain name and it is available, then you
should buy it. It's a very cheap investment. But be sure to write a super
brief business plan explaining what this is for. You might forget by next
year.

Even if you don't end up using it, you may be pleasantly surprised (as has
happened to me) that in a few years someone offers you ten or twenty thousand
for it.

I do not agree with the "just" buy a great domain. The domain name has very
little to with the success of your business. I also, as others have said,
disagree with "keyword descriptive" names. I don't think that search engines
reward your for descriptive names, and they are poor choices for brand names.
You want people to be able to Google your brand, and have your page come up
first.

~~~
eightturn
Just to be clear, this isn't an seo play.. this is a 'build a side business'
play..

And no, you're right, you don't 'just' buy the domain. I'm sorta suggesting
that the domain be the inspiration for the business you create.. Maybe I
shoulda said 'Start with a Great Domain name'..

Your grit and hustle will determine the success of your business, not a
domain. If you have a great name, though, success is a little more in reach, I
feel..

~~~
intrasight
A great domain name can be a great personal motivator too.

------
diego_moita
Wrong, very wrong. Generic names say that you are generic, not special.

Al Ries[0] describes this as the "The Law of Generic": a brand dilutes itself
when it tries to refer to a generic category because it doesn't distinguish
itself from competition. He gives 2 examples. There was a company making
biscuits that called themselves National Biscuits Company. They abbreviated
that to Nabisco and became a brand. There was a company making electrical
appliances that used to call themselves General Electric Company. They
abbreviated that to GE and became a brand.

[0] [https://www.amazon.com/22-Immutable-Laws-
Branding/dp/0060007...](https://www.amazon.com/22-Immutable-Laws-
Branding/dp/0060007737)

~~~
xapata
That hypothesis is difficult to falsify and therefore difficult to believe.
Can you give an example company that can serve as a proxy for the
counterfactual National Biscuit Company that never changed its name?

~~~
diego_moita
> Can you give an example company that can serve as a proxy for the
> counterfactual National Biscuit Company that never changed its name?

If I could then it would be an evidence that the thesis is false. Look around,
among most successful sites and companies in the world which one as a clearly
generic name?

~~~
bildung
Minnesota Mining and Manifacturing (3M)?

Industrial Business Machines (IBM)?

~~~
xapata
No, the other way. A company that kept the long name and thereby failed.
Specifically because of the bad brand and not for other reasons.

------
erikb
Now that we know for more than 15 years that domain names are a crappy
business we are back at it? Why? I mean in the 90s it makes sense because
there were still reasonable domain names not taken. But everything is taken
now, despite a few creative ideas that only work for a short time. And domain
names are also not as important any more since people tend to click on the
first google link more often than the second, and they don't switch that
pattern because the second link is dotCOM.

I would say having a random string as domain name that ranks highly for
certain keywords is a much better investment than a cool, creative domain
name.

So, why start the whole thing again? If you have money to lose, I can also
give you my paypal ID and you just send it to me.

------
bjourne
The exact keyword match domain name business tanked years ago when google
updated their algorithms. Back then, if you had the domain freepoker.com and
someone googled for "free poker" your site would get a huge ranking boost due
to the domain name.

~~~
eightturn
this ain't an seo play, this is a 'build a side-business' play. A keyword rich
domain carries a lot of weight when you're knocking on doors, cold calling,
meeting folks at conferences..

------
ThomPete
Great domain names are not going to save most. It's going to save one
depending on how great the domain name is. But figuring out what is great is
as hard as figuring out what products are great.

~~~
eightturn
>But figuring out what is great is as hard as figuring out what products are
great.

I gotta introduce you to the Google Keyword Planner..

~~~
ThomPete
I know about that it doesent really change things imo.

------
77yy77yy
I own over 50,000 domains, mostly generics or short 3-6 letter .com. Sales
revenues last year was few millions US$ and we had over 20M in offers, offers
which we decided to wait on. Good .Com domains aren't cheap, anything decent
is over 10K and anything good is over 50K. You can always start with .Junk
(that's what they really are) but when you make it, in all likelihood you'll
end up upgrading to a good .Com. I know because I see it every single day.

------
zanecodes
I made [https://istodaywednesday.com](https://istodaywednesday.com) for the
express purpose of a joke, and I have no regrets.

~~~
duderific
I got a really nice chuckle out of that, thanks!

------
markstos
There are still some good domain names out there for niches. For promoting
practical cycling, I bought
[http://familybikecamping.com](http://familybikecamping.com)
[http://bikemove.org](http://bikemove.org) (move you house by bike) and
[http://bikes-as-transportation.com/](http://bikes-as-transportation.com/)

------
LeonB
It's a zero sum game. You're not creating value, and you're paying rent to
play the game. For most people the game is, by design, a losing one.

~~~
eightturn
I think people simply like saying 'it's a zero sum game'..

So, I'm not creating value if I build a real business on a neat domain name?
If I bought MilkDelivery.com and launched a nationwide milk delivery service,
I'm not creating value?

------
mxuribe
I like this idea! Yeah, I could see some folks using it to get into shadier
practices. But i could also see it as being a trigger/catalyst for prompting
me to get into a decent-enough business that I (might be good at but) would
never have gone into otherwise. I think i'll give this a try.

Side note: Kudos also to the author for a lovely, and humorous writing style!
(I've subscribed to your mailing list because of it!)

~~~
eightturn
you're too kind.. thanks. This amazing world introduced me (a city boy) into
the dude ranching industry.. it can truly open up doors for you.

------
Animats
And put ads on it? That's so 2005.

I really should do more with "downside.com". It had the first search engine
for companies that returned financial data from SEC filings, back in 2000. But
now everybody has that. The SEC data updater stopped working at the beginning
of 2017 because the SEC shut down FTP access in favor of HTTP, so I either
have to fix the ancient Perl code or turn that off.

------
ClayFerguson
It speaks volumes about human psychology. The fact that sometimes all it takes
is a catchy name to build a company from nothing that has not one single
innovation.

Just look at one of the most hilarious examples: "meundies.com" It has a cute
little name that people like, so it's gaining traction. Is there anything
innovative or good about the product or business model? Nope. The catchy name
is all.

~~~
slavik81
Probably more important than the name is that I hear countless ads for
meundies. I assume they're spending a fortune on advertising.

~~~
ClayFerguson
Right, and if it was called what it is: "Online Polyester Underwear" their
sales would be precisely zero units so far.

------
i4i
But could we all agree that a shorter, easily spelled, 'radio-friendly'
(unambiguous) .com domain can save a load on marketing costs? I work backwards
from my startup ideas and check the drop daily for domains that match my
keywords. It doesn't take a lot of time and occasionally I find something
perfect.

------
marsrover
This is exactly what I do. It might not be for everyone but when I find a
domain that I subjectively really like, I instinctively know what I'm going to
build on it.

~~~
eightturn
Same here marsrover..

William Faulkner always spoke about the characters in his books, and mentioned
that _he_ doesn't decide their personalities, _they_ do.

I sorta think my domains do the same thing.. I see them, and they tend to
present business opportunities for me to consider..

------
rawoke083600
Sometimes they sit there as unfinished side projects and you wonder if you
should just sell it ? searchlint.com (going going not gone yet ) :P

------
egfx
I bought qkbuck.com as a compliment to my web app
[https://qKast.com](https://qKast.com)

What should I put on it?

~~~
dmoney
Ad-supported site where people vote on ideas for making a quick buck.

------
vortico
Halfway through reading, I was going to criticize the author for lack of
quantitative evidence, but he partially redeemed himself by using actual
numbers in the Expired Domains section. Anyone can write an article saying "X
is important!" but a business owner will not give attention unless dollar
values are assigned to the importance. Still, I'd like to see some more
evidence in this article than the Bobblehead case study that using keyword
domains actually increases sales in that market.

~~~
eightturn
author here..

all I can say regarding building businesses on keyword descriptive domains..
it just makes everything easier..

Easier to communicate your biz. Easier to get your foot in the door somewhere.
Easier for introductions. Easier for consumers to remember your name
([https://blog.nuts.com/were-going-nuts-dot-com/](https://blog.nuts.com/were-
going-nuts-dot-com/)). Just easier all around. All those things added together
can directly impact sales..

~~~
vortico
Yes, I believe it has an effect, but I think everyone knows that valuable
domains are important. But when purchasing a $200k domain, is there any
quantitative method a business owner can follow so determine whether the
domain will be worth 200k?

Kind of off topic, but if someone has a domain as valuable as "nuts.com", why
ruin it by putting a subdomain in front of it? Why isn't the URI scheme
"nuts.com/blog/were-going-nuts..."? There's no significant technical reason
anymore for splitting multiple services into multiple subdomains.

~~~
eightturn
Everyone has their own quantitative method..

Me personally, I simply look at how long it'd take me to pay off the domain. I
like to pay them off in 1-1.5 years. So effectively, I'd need my company
throwing off enough profit to pay off those domains in that time period. That
rough guide keeps me on track so that I don't overpay at auction. But since
most folks I compete with are speculators, and need to flip for a profit,
versus me who wants to build a legit business, I can typically pay more as my
profits can cover the extra expense..

And I'm with you on the subdomain on nuts.com. A really bad idea, imo.

------
swalsh
This feels like advice from 2010. I'm just not sure how much of it is relevant
any more.

~~~
eightturn
Building a business isn't relevant anymore? And finding a unique way to
promote it?

------
mzzter
"...so cut out some vices and divert that cash..." GOLD

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untoreh
until google stops marking keywords in the domain and urls as bold I won't
believe domain names (and paths) matter less than page titles and contents.

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cuca_de_chumbo
Waiting to do something useful with: go0gl3.com

~~~
biot
Perhaps online resources for trademark law with information on defending
against claims of infringement in court?

~~~
cuca_de_chumbo
thanks for the suggestion.

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baumgarn
This is ignorant and does not help anybody. You do not create value.

~~~
giarc
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