
How do you go about acquiring a parked domain? - jsmcgd
I was wondering what the best approach to aquiring a parked domain is. What  is a good initial offer? What techniques or tactics are there, if any, etc? I appreciate that the situation can be different for different domains and different vendors but if there is any generally applicable wisdom it would be much appreciated. Cheers.
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carpal
1) Send email to ask them if the domain is available for sale.

2) Receive email back saying that it is for sale, for $40,000, despite the
domain not being a dictionary word or a combination of dictionary words or
anything anyone but you would ever likely be interested in.

3) Send email back with a reasonable offer (say, $500).

4) Receive email back saying that the price is $40,000. Firm.

5) Look for a new domain name. Repeat.

(Actually happened to me. After that, I usually don't even bother)

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Shooter
I was quoted $275,000 for a domain last January. It's a very good name in a
competitive market (mortgages.)

I say, "Oh? Well, gee, I only had $1000 budgeted."

They said "We're willing to negotiate." They offered it for $100K...then all
the way down to $25K. They won't budge from there, though.

[Four months went by]

They contacted me to see if I'm still interested. I ended up paying $1300, but
I had to wire the money IMMEDIATELY. Turns out they had an unexpected expense
come up. I almost felt bad...

That will NEVER EVER happen if the domain you want is owned by a professional
domainer company, though. They won't even usually talk to you, no matter how
much cash you have to throw at them. They consider it too 'time-consuming' to
even field the offers.

If you want to hear a sob story...I used to own SI.com. I was planning on
using it for a Spanish language portal. I sold it for WAAAAAAY too little
money. Now, of course, it's Sports Illustrated. It would have made a better
Spanish language portal, dammit!

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pg
Offer the owner what you think it's worth, and if you don't have a deal
immediately, give up on that one. Otherwise attempts to buy domains drag on
interminably, which a startup can't afford.

Trying to buy domains is such a time-suck that it's usually less work to think
of an untaken one.

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jsmcgd
Sounds like good advice. Any tips on evaluating what they're worth?

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Shooter
You can look at various services to get a very rough guesstimate at how much
traffic the domain gets...Alexa, Comscore, etc. You can also check the number
of backlinks, etc. That's basically all the domainers do. Ultimately, you just
have to judge what it is worth to you, though. It is rarely worth paying the
quoted price.

Most "appraisals" from domain companies aren't worth the paper they're printed
on. Everyone massively overestimates the value of 95% of domains...especially
if they own the domain in question. Inflation of domain prices is so pervasive
and out of control that it is almost humorous. There is a reason that most of
the domains in the world are just 'parked' by squatters...MASS PSYCHOSIS.

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edw519
Why bother?

Surely you can find an appropiate domain name that isn't taken.

Make an app people will want and find a way to reach them. Your domain name
should be the least of your worries.

~~~
jsmcgd
I could look for another name but I've thought of one that is particularly
appropriate and its being squatted on. However I think you're right; investing
time thinking of others names is more effective.

~~~
gscott
tdnam.com; click on advanced search; click on Expired Name Auction checkbox
and .com checkbox; type in a keyword to search on then click search. Give it a
chance, do a lot of searches. I found some really good domains the most recent
one I bought was "askshare.com" I paid $20.

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nailer
godaddy has a service where they negotiate on your behalf with the domain
owner - they're usually in a stronger position than you are because they're
regarded as an expert authority on the subject. They also have an appraisal
system.

I've used them.

Do I think they're good at providing this service? Yes.

Would I use them again? No.

Godaddy are fine, but the chances of getting an owner who wants to sell at
market value are slim. Better to invent a babyword (bebo.com) a letter agging
(digg.com) or a domain hack (deli.cio.us).

Or just get a good domain (not a great one) and be at the top of the search
results, like 37signals.com is when you google for 'basecamp' style.

~~~
Shooter
I've never used GoDaddy's "negotiation" services, but I have used them to
"backorder" a domain. If the current owner lets anything lapse, you have a
chance of getting the domain. It rarely works out, but I have gotten a few
good domains that way. I think they charge around $18 to backorder a domain.
There are, of course, other registrars that provide the same service...or you
can just build your own script to monitor for changes.

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boucher
When my company started, our company's name was already registered (and
parked). After following a bunch of links to find the owner though, we came
across a small paragraph stating that if we had some claim to the name, they
would forfit the domain. After we incorporated, we sent out an e-mail, and
then when they asked for proof, we faxed a copy of our incorporation papers.
Only had to pay a $20 transfer fee.

~~~
Shooter
I'm impressed you were able to do it with just incorporation papers! That
would normally just make the squatter see dollar signs.

I've only SEIZED CONTROL of a squatted domain once, and I had to send
trademark documentation. [Since most squatters are just speculators they don't
bother to register the names as trademarks. If they are redirecting within
your industry (and the class you got the trademark in), it is easy to get
control of the domain.]

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DanielBMarkham
Worst-case is when you get some get-rich-quick guy with dreams of gold.
Domains are so cheap there is a lot of speculation in the market by average
Joes looking for the next Google to make them a 7-figure offer on their
property. An appraisal service can help. I don't have a lot of faith in the
third-party brokers, but I've never tried them.

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ALee
Since many of the other members of community suggest looking for your own
domain name, I would suggest you read:
<http://www.thenameinspector.com/10-name-types/>

It will help you think creatively of the domain name. I've used GoDaddy's
service before as well as just negotiated it on my own, and the GoDaddy
service increases the total cost of the transaction, but either way, chances
are always slim.

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ochiba
<http://www.sedo.com/>

They also have a domain appraisal service
[http://www.sedo.com/appraisal.php3?tracked=&partnerid=&#...</a>

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Shooter
The last time I tried Sedo they had a minimum transaction amount. And just
their FEE on that minimum transaction amount was more than I was willing to
pay for the actual domain I was interested in! I've never seen anything I
would consider a "deal" on Sedo.

I'm assuming they still have that minimum transaction size...?

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extantproject
Do a "whois" on the domain to get contact information for the owner, call them
and ask them if they'd like to sell it.

or

Get Go daddy or another service to do the same thing ("Domain Buy Service"):
<https://www.godaddy.com/gdshop/broker/landing.asp?ci=8995>

