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How To Negotiate A Domain Name

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When a buyer is interested in a domain name, he will likely the seller what his budget is for the purchase. Most often than not though, this supposed budget is actually a lowball offera price thats way lower than what the customer can actually afford and is willing to spend. Negotiate a higher selling price then and enlist the reasons why the domain merits it.

Agreeing to a lowball price is a mistake that many sellers make with domain names that have been parked for quite some time and are still unused. It sends the message that you have no use for the domain, and that youd probably be glad to get it off your hands. It would come out as a favor, and whether this is true or not, reject the lowball offer if you know that the value of the domain is worth a higher price.

Tips To Negotiate With Domain Name Buyers For Higher Profits

Posted on 01.07.08|Bob Angus|

Are you selling a domain name? Did you put your domain portfolio up for sale through Moniker or post it on Sitepoint Marketplace? Do you have visions of big profits from flipping websites you have quickly built up? Great. Now, you need to be prepared to negotiate with buyers. Your negotiation skills help you get the price that you want or even higher. Plus, the buyer is happy with what they paid and are likely to do profitable business with you in the future.

Here are 5 tips that I have found invaluable when negotiating with domain name and website buyers.

Ask The Buyer To Name A Price First

Theres a bit of debate about this. Do you name a price to set an anchor, or do you ask the buyer to suggest a price? The benefit of asking them to throw out a price is that it might be more than what you were going to request! If someone contacts you out of the blue about buying one of your domain names, its fair to try to get them to suggest a price and then negotiate up from there.

Also Check: How To Get Domain On Squarespace

Why $10000 For A Domain Name Is Still Cheap

Domain names are now an integral part of any business. Whether the use is primarily for email, a company website, or part of a marketing campaign anyone starting a business must secure a domain name.

The difference between a domain name and other marketing expenses however is you are acquiring a presence which help future customers define you, not leasing one.

Owning a premium domain has become expensive with the average price of a domain name hovering around anywhere between $5,000 and $20,000 however how expensive is this?

If one were to compare the price of almost anything compared to its original cost could we not classify everything as expensive. A $3 bottled water costs how much to produce? Or a $300 pair of designer sunglasses which probably cost less than a mocha to manufacture?

Somebody has your name and they are squatting on it?

Unless you have a trademark on the domain or someone is intentionally capitalizing on monetizing a typo of your trademark no one really is a squatter in the domain name industry. Whats even more interesting is for those people who complain that somebody has their name, but lack a trademark or other legal form of similar use, is almost the equivalent to saying that your grandmother owns my dream home except now they are inferring that your grandmother is this evil natured women and not a smart investor. Real estate ownership is acceptable by public opinion and so should be domain name investing.

How much is a domain name worth?

Expedite The Process By Adding A Sense Of Urgency To It

Domain Name already has taken? Hire an experienced broker ...

This can be done using several different tricks such as mentioning that your boss has asked you to get a domain name within the next 5 days! Or that you have a $ 3000 budget and would like to acquire a handful of domain names, including the sellers, within the next 8- 10 days.

The chances are high that the domain name seller may respond quickly out of fear that he/she may lose the deal. In fact, many prospective sellers even agree to very low prices once they get to know that you have a soon-to-expire deadline.

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Get In Touch With The Owner Of The Domain Name

Use of email is the most popular way of communicating with the owner of the domain name. You can send an email that resembles this one:

Dear I would like to purchase your domain name: I would offer for the domain name. If you can willingly sell the domain at the price, or if we can do further negotiations, please email me back at or pay me a call on

Best regards:

Its important to note that your low bid price should be lower than what you can pay. However, caution should be observed here because a very low price might be an insult to the domain owner. The advantage of quoting your low bid price is that it gives you room for a bargain should the domain owner reply with an interest in proceeding with the sale of the domain at a slightly higher price.

Conversely, if you have enough resources to spend a relatively large sum of money for the dream domain name in that you are in dire need of the name, you can close the deal at once by making a hefty opening offer that will deny the owner a chance to think twice.

Sell Through A Domain Selling Website Or Broker

There are many domain brokers that can help sellers sell their domains at an advantageous price. The advantage here is that domain brokers like Sedo that will do its best to secure high prices because they have a vested interest in each sale .

Another advantage in partnering with brokers is they will help domainers monetize from direct navigational traffic , like Lawrence Ngs Oversee.net. Its going to be a double win for domainers. While the domain name is still parked, you can already start earning a little out of it. At the same time, you are building up its Google rating, thereby increasing its appraisal value when a buyer eventually comes along.

Also Check: How To Tell When A Domain Was Registered

S To Negotiating For A Domain Name

Let’s say you are the owner of a business, Sandwiches Unlimited. You are an established business and you’ve been operating under Sandwiches.net for years. As your company has grown, you realize that you should buy the “Sandwiches.com” top level domain name, as well. Why would you do this?

Your domain name is your home address on the internet. If someone is looking for you online, they can always do a Google search to find you if they can’t remember your exact URL. However, you want to reduce any friction in the process when it comes to your customers and prospects going directly to your website.

Another reason you might want to buy a new domain is to protect your brand. If someone else owns Sandwiches.com and your users accidentally land on their website to find $5 sandwich makers , you’ve just confused your brand.

In what other situations might you need to negotiate for a domain name? Perhaps you are a professional speaker and you want to use your name as your website, but it’s already taken.

Another reason might be that you have a really long company name and you want something shorter, snappier, and easier to remember. But the domain you like is already taken.

At this point, you have a few options before you need to start negotiations with the domain owner.

Your Domain Name And Branding

How To Buy & Negotiate A Domain Purchase

People often think that the word brand means a company name.

However, a brand is much more than that, your brand is the overall company image that you present to the world.

Its important to make sure that everything in your business, from the company name to the domain name to the website design to the content to the tone of voice, works together and conveys the image that you want to convey.

Imagine that you are conducting a job interview and you think that the candidate is great.

She is professional, she has the relevant experience, she seems like a great fit in terms of the company culture

But when she leaves, you take another look at her resume and you notice that her email address is .

No offense to the sk8ergurls out there, but lets keep it real: an email address like that would make you question your original impression of her.

Well, its the same with branding. If everything about your company conveys a certain image but your domain name doesnt fit that image at all, it will put potential customers on guard.

And the last thing you want to do is give them a reason to be suspicious.

Recommended Reading: Can I Transfer My Domain Name

Tip #: Contact The Domain Owner

If the domain name isnt listed for sale with a Namecheap partner, youll have to contact the owner directly. Sometimes the domain name will have contact information listed on the website if you type the domain name in your browser.If theres no contact information on the website, then its time to search Whois. Whois is like a directory for domain name owners. Type the name into Whois search and youll get the owners phone number, email and postal address.Reach out to the owner by whatever method you feel most comfortable with. If one doesnt work, try another.Ive tried to buy domains in the past and the owner didnt respond to emails or phone calls. When I finally sent a snail mail letter I got a quick response!

Your Domain Name Should Be Easy To Type On Mobile Devices

Do you know what happened on June 29th, 2007?

Ill give you a few hints: Apple. Steve Jobs. iPhone. Yes, you guessed it: on that day Steve Jobs presented the first iPhone, which changed the world forever.

Now, a little bit more than a decade later, we are all struggling with smartphone addiction, and we got to the point where dumbphones are making a comeback. But what does this have to do with domain names?

Well, in the first quarter of 2019, mobile traffic accounted for 48.71% of global website traffic and its safe to say that this number is only going to increase.

This means that its best if your domain name is easy to type on a mobile phone.

Read Also: How Do I Find Out My Domain Provider

Remember: Pigs Get Fat Hogs Get Slaughtered

If you get too greedy, its possible that the potential buyer will get fed up and decide not to buy your domain. So negotiate wisely. Of course, you want to negotiate for as much as you can get. But if this person doesnt buy your domain name, how long will it be before you get another offer on the domain?

With these five tips, we hope you have success negotiating the sale of a domain name. If our tips work for you, let us know!Have an idea for a domain name that might be worth a lot of money? Register it on Namecheap!

Andrew Allemann is editor of Domain Name Wire, the longest-running blog covering the business of domain names. Domain Name Wire has covered the business of domain name investing for over ten years.

Have A Clear Value Of The Dream Domain Name

How to Negotiate a Domain Name Purchase

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The amount of money you have for the domain name should be a reflection of the worth of the site to you as well as how much you can willingly spend. The domain name might be highly worth to you especially if your plan is to use it mainly for pending online business. Capital might be a problem when purchasing it if youre starting from scratch.

You should be well prepared to bargain in order to obtain the dream domain name without allowing the seller to know how much you want it. This should mainly be for situations where you want a very specific, must-have site name.

There are 4 main ways by which you can determine the value of the domain name

Also Check: How To Warm Up Email Domain

Dont Fall For The Poor College Student Trick

Big companies know youll try to charge them a lot for domain names, so sometimes they send an email with a story designed for you to take pity. Im a college student working on a project and I think this domain name will be good for it, but I dont have much money. Oh, if I had a dollar for every time someone said this to me in an email. Dont fall for it. Do your research and ask questions.

Look The Domain Up Directly

As mentioned, sometimes people buy domains and keep them parked for later business opportunities, to flip them with a reseller, or, to try and sell them on their own. If the latter scenario is the case, you may be in luck. Its possible that when you type the domain name into the browser, you may land at a parked page with a message from the owner to get in touch if youre interested in purchasing the domain. If its been sitting on a reseller website for ages with no takers, the owner may be much more willing to accept your offer after all something is better than nothing.

If you type in the domain name and only find a parked domain or a link to a third-party seller, its time to move on to the next step.

Recommended Reading: How Do You Obtain A Domain Name

As Is Said In The Legal Industry When It Comes To Buying Domains A Person Who Represents Himself Has A Fool For A Client

The domain you use for your website says a lot about your business. The more relevant and short it is, the better positioning you will receive, under most circumstances. Every business wants to acquire a good domain, but it’s often much more complex than simply registering a new one that’s never been used.

While there is a wide selection of new gTLDs available like .LAWYER and .SPORT, the dot-com extension continues to be the most desirable. Domain investing and flipping can be a huge business, and oftentimes startups and businesses have to pay a pretty penny for the domain they desire. For instance, Clothes.com sold to Zappos in 2008 for $4.9 million.

While a lot of large domain sales come down to what the buyer is willing to pay, there are still some other factors that come into play. I recently discussed that with entrepreneur Adam Boalt, who just launched govWorks — a domain name that was originally used starting in 1998 before the business using the URL failed during the dot-com bubble but not until after raising $60 million.

Boalt says he spent $50,000 on the govworks.com domain name and, in a recent conversation, he touched on 6 factors that should be considered when coming up with a value for a particular domain and negotiating a purchase price.

1. Never represent yourself.

There’s an old saying in my profession that I think of on this point — a person who represents himself in court has a fool for a client.

2. Always use an escrow service.

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