The Rick Schwartz Domain Name and Traffic Blog: RicksBlog.com – Home of The Domain King®

Morning Folks!!

I wrote about whois and privacy just last week. How DUMB can domainers possibly be?? I mean really?? I don't get it! Whether it is privacy or all your domains are no longer public it's YOUR choice. I can't even think of anything dumber a domainer can do.

If your info is not publicly listed in whois it may mean you no longer control the sale of YOUR own domain name depending on your registrar and your landing page. You may have effectively handed the keys over to each and every broker or registrar! You are keeping them in business and making $$$. Are you all BRAIN DEAD?? You may as well give your keys to facebook or twitter. It's insane! They have a new revenue stream and you don't!

Like a restaurant that is not on Open Table, does not do takeout, does not do delivery and is closed on weekends! And then complains about lack of sales and leads? DUH!!! Anyone need a CEO CROWBAR??

And then you complain about sales!? Really???? This has to be the #1 dumbest thing I have ever seen domainers do and there is a LONG list in my 23+ years!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

When it comes to my outlook on the value of a great domain, few have stuck to their guns like I have over the years. But there are reasons for that far outside the goal lines of domaining. That's just the surface to me. Buy let's drill a bit.

There are certain domains I would not sell without a piece of the action. They are akin to the flawless diamond. Rare and unique flawless diamonds. In demand and important diamonds. Diamonds that are large. Diamonds that represent and identify. Diamonds that no others have.

Originally my idea was simple, I bring the domain to the table, 50% and other entity brings it's knowhow to the table, 50%. Ok, did not work that way. That equation most likely won't work in MOST cases. It will in some cases.

What is the value of perpetual income? How many perpetual income streams can you create? How do you recognize a domain that fits in this class to begin with?

How do you recognize a domain that fits in this class to begin with? Let's start and end there. That's the single biggest challenge domainers seem to have. Most are no diamond experts and they should be. At this stage of the game those domains should be recognizable to the naked eye at a GLANCE. A glance at a list of 100 or 1000. It should jump out like a freight train. If that does not happen, and you are not making $$$, why are you here?

Domains are about advertising and branding and memorizing easily, and word of mouth or making a point, or having street cred in the eyes of consumers NOT techies. Drill down to see the importance and value and the vehicle it provides. There are more variables. Think of ALL of them.

And some truly great names may be invisible to the naked eye. In time advertisers will use FUNNY domain names to advertise. You'll see.

Yesterday I saw 2 different commercials by 2 different companies (possibly the same entity advertising the same credit card product) but you could see they were possibly TESTING two domain names and 2 commercials or they were competitors. Maybe you know. But the commercials seemed like they were done by same company . One was a generic 2 word, CompareCards.com and and one was a brandable, Nerdwallet.com. Maybe they are going to measure the different results!! They are testing. THAT IS THE WAY YOU DO IT!! BRAVO!! If true! That space also has KreditKarma.com.

So you have many entities advertising and competing. That's a big tipoff. There is something worthy of drilling down.

Ya know, when I talk about Sears or Malls or anything outside domains and domainers and sales prices, most domainers don't pay attention. They should! Their eye glaze over They are so busy talking to domainers that they have a domainer mentality. Good for you but not smart.

You need a consumer mentality. You need a manufacturing mentality. You need a retail mentality. You need a wholesale mentality. You need a business mentality. You need an end user mentality. You need a historical mentality. You need an attorney mentality. You need to be a student of Human Nature. Instead so many are stuck in either a pond or even a cesspool with other domainers and can't see the forrest thru the trees.

You can flip mobile homes or mansions. One is VERY hard and VERY unrewarding. The other is so easy and rewarding you wonder why everyone does not do it!? So if you want a truly GREAT domain name, STOP buying mobile homes and STOP listening to other domainers that have an agenda. How do you figure that part out? BE SMART!

Remember, the #1 game in domaining is not buying domains, it's buying time to afford to keep those domains until the proper buyer comes along. Domains have to be part of a revenue engine or you need a day job to support your babies.

A GREAT domain will end in .Com. A GREAT domain will be easy to spell. A GREAT domain will mean something whether it is short or long. A GREAT domain has so many attributes that it blows me away that PIGEON SHIT rules most portfolios. A GREAT domain can be a phrase that people know and can remember. But the GREATEST domains are one or two words. Matter of fact, DNJournal.com has only ONE reported sale of anything more than 2 words since at least 2015. UsedCarsForSale.com and sold for $100k. In 2014 there were two sales of 3 word domains. Going back to 2006, I found only NINE other 3 word domain sales.

To recap, their has not been a 3 word domain make the top 100 list since 2015. In TOTAL from 2006 thru 2018, we are talking about 15 total domains more that 2 words to make the list. Only ONE with 4 words. That said, even 2 worders are not in as much demand as they were in past years. However they still retain great value when they mean something! Nouns, Verbs and Adjectives!

Now that does not mean a 3 word domain does not have value. It just probably does not have GREAT value unless it truly means something special or common phrase. I own ShopTilYouDrop.com. But it's a common phrase. Has some value and has demand which means I get offers. But I focus on 1 an 2 word .com domains. That's my bread and butter. Tried and true.

Listen, the IDN guys were and are much smarter than me. Really. They and techies have a much broader and deeper understanding of the Internet. I am just the common man using the Internet.

Even the GTLD guys I assume must be much smarter than me. They have money to burn, I don't. Not only can they pick the winner in a 1000 horse race, they can go on to pick the winner of the winner in an infinite collection of .whatever and then they are so smart they can figure out and rely on the demand for that particular domain of that particular extension that FEW even know about. WOW!!! I am IMPRESSED!!!! Pure Genius!! (with a few pitfalls that they don't want to talk about and turn a blind eye to)

Focus on one and two word domains that mean something or are brandable but they MUST pass a set of guidelines that YOU form yourself. If it does not pass YOUR TEST, pass on the domain.

My list includes: Easy to spell. ALWAYS! Easy to communicate without confusion. ALWAYS! .COM ALWAYS! One or two words. ALWAYS.

There are other factors. Size of the audience. If all you have targeted were domains for the domain industry, to sell, you targeted a TINY sector. Good luck with that. The audience, the size of the market. The size of the market that is still up for grabs. Is it an emerging market? A saturated market? A competitive market?

How much do they advertise? Where do they advertise? Who do they advertise to? What is their advertising budget? Is the budget growing? Is the sector growing?

I talk about digging deep and drilling down. This is all part of the process. And the more expensive the domain, the more you drill down. These are MY processes that I still use and have never varied from. This is the path I use. This is a safe way to buy domains. This is the way to always have domains that others want and are in demand. This is how I sleep comfortably at night knowing I have assets that are among the world's most sought after! Buying one domain at a time when I see one worth getting.

Did I mention is MUST be a .com name???? Not sure. I am very inconsistent and very forgetful. Well, in case I did not mention it, stick with .COM ONLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

I like "Home Grown" CEO's. Not a huge fan of "Hired" CEO's unless you are Lee Iacocca or Jack Welsh. Don't know the difference?

Here is a hint. I like CEO's that have been with the company since inception or has been promoted many times to get to the top. Not a fan of CEO's by headhunting. It may be a necessary evil for growth etc, but better choose really well.

I guess what I am trying to say is I don't like "Carpetbagging" CEO's. The ones with a company for a very short time. 3 years or less. Mostly 2. I guess it takes the board 2 years and double digit sales declines to figure out they hired a moron.

Remember the Proctor and Gamble CEO?? How about the Sears CEO? Put in his own bid. Interesting! Who is your least favorite CEO? Most favorite? Great choices for most favorite. Branson, Bezos, Cuban, Musk, Gates, Jobs? Ford? Edison? Carnegie? The list goes on and on. But the loser list, the illustrious loser list, goes on and on and on and on much much longer but most are not very famous.

So for all those CEO's and Board members everywhere that are clueless and destroying good brands and companies faster than I can write this, here is a CROWBAR, the rest is up to you! :-)

*Please note: Instructions for crowbar use should be read before insertion. Failure to do so may void crowbar warranty. Do not share crowbars. Call our hotline for any related issues. 1-800-ITS-STUK or if you are outside the USA, call 01-305-CROW2GO

:-))))))))))

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Plenty of people were in domaining YEARS before me! They got domains for FREE!! That FACT never ever ever affected how I look at domains. Never ever did I say I can't do this or that because I came in late! YEARS late! But so many TODAY do! So many in 2000 did! in 2005! Name your year! When you are wired ass backwards that is the resulting flawed thinking process. You want to argue and be right?? Go ahead!! Tell me all the reasons you must lose and not win.

Just look at all the fools that were around in 2000 and told themselves it was too late. SCHMUCKS! Would you not agree now that you have 20/20 hindsight nearly 2 decades later? Or would you still be the same loser even if we set you free back in 2000 and did it right now? If you argue NOW, you would have had the same argument with me every single year. If it was 1995 you would complain about them not being free anymore and that it is over cuz domains, ONE WORD DOMAINS, are $10 a pop! It it was 2004 you would complain that Frank has all the good domains. STOP IT ALREADY!!

I have had better results than some and not as good as others. But all in all, I have had very satisfying results. And yes, I got in before many, but that has nothing to do with nothing. I love how people try and use that against me. Yeah, I saw it and I acted on it. PERIOD!

See how that thinking process is the difference between winning and losing. Between progress and being stuck. Between success and failure. You want to win the argument? Go ahead! Prove you can still be a loser every day when you wake up. YOU WIN!!! LOL

Not only did I start domaining in 1995, I restarted again from scratch in 1998 after I leased out all my domains, So I went out and repeated 1995. I was being paid $1.5 Million a year for my domains. ALL my domains. So what was I to do? I started buying more domains. And by sometime in 1999 I leased all those new domains to the same company. Now I was getting $3 Million a year. But I am not done yet. I repeated that one more time around 2005. And then starting in 2016 thru mid 2018 I started once again.

Go ahead, argue with me! Challenge me. Belittle me. But you will look like a fool doing it. Being a coward you won't post your real name and in this post, if you don't publish your REAL name or have a known moniker, I have decided not to publish your worthless and condescending comments. You people are worthless and have no value. Anyone that wants to make a point whether valid or not (usually a pointless, mean and nasty one) that won't put their own name on their own words are COWARDS! PERIOD!! It also prevents legit comments from thoughtful domainers actually wanting to engage in a serious discussion.

But I may make this a new policy going into 2019. Who needs these weasels? I and my readers have taken their crap for many years. They are bitter, angry and not making the money they need. This is their only way of feeling important. What do you think??

Unlike many blogs from News Networks, to Social Media, to tech and going on since DAY ONE , I publish everything! I don't protect my friends by removing negative comments or threads when they look like fools. When others call them out they get protected! I have seen it countless times over the years. It's an ethics and honor issue as far as I am concerned. So those blogs that pick and choose which comments to post don't have value to me. They are skewered and that means they always have an agenda. Sorry guys, IT'S THE TRUTH! They censor, I don't.

So to those that want to always complain about when they got started......STUFF IT!! LOL Your flawed thinking process is poisoning YOUR future, not mine! WAKE UP! Making money is never easy. It's never the wrong time to start on the RIGHT PATH! Got it?? Want proof? Just look at all the people that came in thru the years and found great success. Some just started TWO YEARS AGO, FOOLS!

If your ass itches, it's your fault not mine pal!! :-) Try Charmin!!! lol

It's a New Year, start it off taking those mind shackles off and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Go out and MAKE IT HAPPEN! aka, MOVE MOUNTAINS! Buy quality. QUALITY starts and ENDS with .COM not .Whatever! Square wheels make life difficult. But hey, if you like to fail and never going to where you want to go to, I can't stop you.

Any FOOL that wants to argue the point TODAY, WINS! You win. Happy? Instead of challenging ME, why don't you challenge YOURSELF! Challenge yourself to do better and think WISER! Or are you going to piss away another year telling yourself what you CAN'T do??!! I don't care either way. Does not change my life one way or the other. But it sure can change the life of many that read this and change their losing attitude into a winning one!!

Your success or failure depends on your reactions in life to life. Failure is a choice. Success is a choice. Which would you like to choose? Your reaction holds the key.

And big Props to Bobby in comments below for bringing this to my attention. The guy in 2000 saying it was TOO LATE!! LOL! Someday people WISH they could go BACK to 2020!!!!!!!

http://www.ricksblog.com/2007/11/time-capsule-se/#.XCy0sWgzbnF

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Is Social Media about to implode? Well, Yeah, yeah it is. Growth is GONE! GONE! It's over! The bleeding has begun and is in full progress. Will they bleed out? Probably not, but they may look like a deflated balloon.

To me this was the #1 Story of 2018. As you may recall, I left twitter on December 31, 2017. Most thought I would be back in a few weeks. Well 52 weeks later......And I did the same with Facebook. As I wrote recently, "Social Media is no longer Social, it's Dangerous".

Many thought I was exaggerating and over reacting. But look back a year later. Folks are leaving these platforms in droves! Facebook stock down $100/share in months. There is true danger there and people and parents are starting to recognize this as a very serious issue.

The winner is US. Great domains. Needed, wanted, desirable and important domains. We are all responsible for the portfolios we have. No one is to blame for a worthless one other than ourselves. I have tried to point this out for decades. Now we really do enter a new period of domains. A great one.

It will still take YEARS for the average Joe to figure out he has made a huge mistake in promoting his or her social media pages and not have them eventually (ASAP) funneling to their own domain name.

And remember, I am EXCLUSIVELY talking about BIG LEAGUE .COM domains. PERIOD!!! ALWAYS!! I may dabble in Minor League extensions, but I know that a lottery ticket likely has more value. All other extensions sell for a fraction of a .Com. A SMALL or TINY fraction. And demand is so much lower! Does anyone even think about that?? Demand?? 

I am bullish on GREAT .Com domains. I am NOT bullish on anything else in domains. Some extensions will benefit from a rising tide. It will benefit more in demand than in increasing prices.

And as far as I am concerned, GTLD's are NOW DEAD and eventually someone will bury this stinky carcass! Bury it right next to those IDN's and Emoji's. A waste of time, money and effort. Cause of Death: Too many to list!

HUGE deals are coming in 2019 and 2020. We are entering a sweet spot and you have the downfall of Social Media to thank! You have Retail Mall Sales to thank.

But it starts, NOW. It already started in the last few months. But you will see an increase in domain activity in 2019 like never before and for a REASON. Most of these deals will be under the radar. Especially the deals that are north of $10 Million. And I think that you are going to see a rash of sales between $5 and $10 Million.

I am going to restructure my pricing. I am going to call it Sraes. That is Sears spelled backwards. Sraes. No, I don't need the domain name. lol And not really going to call it this. Just want to demonstrate how ass backwards Sears and many others are. How they missed such a huge opportunity to buy EVERY relevant domain name for LESS THAN the cost of ONE FAILING SEAR'S STORE!! 

Not one genius there could figure it out? Really?? Malpractice! Go dig up the founders and I bet THEY would have figured it out. How sad!

It is now time for me to price a domain equal to greater than the cost to build a Sears store in the real world including gondolas etc. The finished product. I won't even count the 300 employees each store has. Or the cost of insurance and security and trash removal and electric and it just keeps going. Did I mention the land itself. Or maybe just a 99 year lease?

So I have been researching the costs. It's mind boggling. I can't even figure it out yet. I need help. What is the cost in New York or Hong Kong? What is the cost in Iowa or Wyoming?

Happy New Year's!

Rick Schwartz