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

Morning Folks!!

Every once in a while “Joe” as in Joe Biden says something that folks may laugh at but are true. Last week he said, “You have to spend money to avoid going bankrupt.”

That was one of the smartest things he has ever said. Another way to say it is “Go for broke.” That really is what you have to do when things are bad. Prime the pump. Make things happen. That is what my posts have been about this year. Don’t pull back. Those that pull back will be swamped.

As I write this I am negotiating more 6 and 7 figure domain deals than any time in 14 years. Offers are flying in. One after another. Real offers. Solid cash deals. Folks know this is the time to make things happen. To change their own destiny. To reach out. While some like Hershey’s are in retreat, others are just coming out of their shell.

Does this mean the recession is over? Hell no!! It just means we have reached a stage I have talked about for quite some time. This is a “Working summer” for most. Folks may get away here and there, but this is a summer where folks will be at their desk. Where they are fighting for survival. Where they are looking at everything that passes their way.

The TRAFFIC auctions in October will be the last time 2 major auctions happen at one show. I predict you will see a blowout. Each auction will do more than $2M. It could rival the biggest ones we have ever had. Why? Timing!! The amount of quality domains will be at an all time high and this may be your last significant chance to buy a premium domain at a down and dirty price. Whatever bargains will be out there this fall will be evaporated by next fall and I would imagine much sooner. This window of opportunity is open, but it will close in the foreseeable future and never open again in this lifetime.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Before I get started on the Neanderthals (Lighten up, I have been called much worse), I want to thank TechCrunch.com for following the Candy.com deal. They have written about it twice now and that is a good thing. Their articles have been good. So I have nothing bad to say about TechCrunch.com and want to thank them for following the sale. What this post focuses on are the comments, the readers, the closed minds in light of years of evidence.

Now what is funny is about 2 hours after I write this blog post and decided to sit on it for 24 hours to see how the comments developed, Mike Berkens wrote a great analysis that frankly I would find too frustrating to actually invest the time to articulate what he did in a pretty calm manner. So my tone is slightly different……but then again I am a lot more frustrated after 14 years and it shows. I really hate when folks ignore facts. I give them points when they make sense, we deserve the same.

You would think after so many years of the Internet, the booms and collapses, folks would actually progress. But one just has to look at the comments and see that the same ones were posted a dozen years ago. However in face of all that evidence and progress, they remain locked into their box and the only thing they can do is lash out. The difference today is instead of me fighting a lone battle, this has erupted into a great opportunity to educate by an entire industry.

I don’t see why it is so hard to grasp the concept of making more sales with a recognizable and targeted domain name. You pay a premium for a great location in the real world. Where is the disconnect? The great location provides more traffic and more opportunity to make sales. But it is important for domainers to keep things in perspective. These attitudes still exist and they are hardened. It does not matter that they are wrong. These type folks never look for answers. They are locked into beliefs as if both feet were in cement and they become prisoners of their own close mindedness. It illustrates why things are the way they are.
Now they make some valid points but have a bad habit of dismissing our valid points. So until that changes, we are stuck in 1997. Opportunity missed.

Imagine folks out there running businesses, marketing for corporations, in charge of sales and when you show them 500, 1000, 1500, even 50,000 customers lined up at the front door of your store (Domain Name) before you even open it and that happens with a different set of people each and every day, week after week, month after month, year after year and they don’t see GREAT value there, well what can you say? It would be like talking to a rock, a rock in a cave. They seem so proud to remain ignorant. How does one justify remaining ignorant in the fastest moving business environment the world has ever known? It would be laughable if it were not so sad that so many companies actually listen to these fools like they were oracles. They listen to them because they too are ignorant. Hey Mr CEO, Hey Mr. Owner, kick these folks to the curb and start LEARNING the Internet for yourself. YOUR survival depends on it. It is no longer okay to say so and so takes care of that part of the business. You best get involved because just like 15 years ago, TECHIES are making BUSINESS decisions and techies make lousy business people. They don’t get it. They don’t see anything but a screen and a keyboard and have no concept of consumers and human nature and sales and customer service. They need to be locked in a room and YOU need to tell them what to do not the other way around. Some folks hire lawyers and listen to every word they say. Others hire lawyers and direct them. Both have value given the situation. But if you don’t know the difference from one situation from another, GOOD LUCK!
A Great domain name does not guarantee success. It just puts the wind at your back and increases your chances of success. If you are successful, you won't be mildly successful, you will be wildly successful. How many of you heard of Melville Candy Company before the candy.com deal?? How does it affect their stature in the industry? Will it open doors that may have been closed to them before? Does it cary some heft? Does it give you some credibility? No guarantee, but if you tap into all the assets associated with a great domain name, you won't be at the mercy of an overpriced and underperforming media. I could go on for 2 hours and not repeat a single benefit. If you don't see all the benefits, take off the blinders and read some of the comments over there. I rest my case. Still not convinced? Go watch some GEICO commercials.
Have a GREAT Day!
Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

I always had a vision that I would come to the table as a landowner by owning the domain name and I would hook up with a developer or end user and together we would make money. So on July 18th one more distant vision became a close reality. With the opening of Candy.com a new era has begun. Days of selling category killer domains for just cash is over. We have reached the point where an “Equity stake” will become common place. How do you find partners like that? By saying “no” an awful lot of times. No to this, no to that and no to everything in between. Candy.com joins Property.com as a non-ending sale.

Candy.com represents something special as together we will watch this most basic of domain names blossom into a major powerhouse. Melville Candy Company has been in business for some 38 years. However it was July 18th that will be the day of their re-birth. In the same month that Hershey’s decided to put their tale between their legs and close their online operation, Candy.com opens their doors. WOW!!!!! WOW!!! and WOW!!!!! What a vivid picture of the future and the past. How a company like Hershey’s can fail online is absolutely mind boggling. I would love to grill the CEO of Hershey’s. I would turn up the heat so high I would chase him out of his own office. At the end of the day, he is the one responsible for their failure. Responsible for keeping them in the last century.

So we have the Hotel industry that failed by not figuring out Hotels.com and now we can add the candy industry big shots who failed for missing out on Candy.com. I see these failures as inexcusable. Not one exec at any of these companies could figure out why they needed such a domain. Why that “Strategic Asset” will prove to be their biggest collective failures. Make no mistake the candy industry has failed in the vision category. Two guys from Mass. are going to clean their clock.

Let me take it even further………none of the founders of these companies would have screwed up like this. Today, corporations are just not in sync. Few have strong leaders. CEO’s come and go. The rack and file is caged in their cubicle. Decisions are hardly made. Dare they speak out? No way! Let's have a MEETING!!

Have a GREAT Day!
Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Many folks in the industry don’t think Bing will be a big deal. I am going to explain why they are completely wrong. Bing is the first TRUE challenge to Google. Bing is good for the domain industry. Bing is good for the consumer. The only ones Bing is bad for are Google and SEO guys that have yet to figure out Bing.

Make no mistake, Bing is here to stay and Goggle is going to suffer. The first indication will be visible to the “Insiders” when the 3rd and 4th quarter numbers that show Bing eating away at Google. Now it is time to explain why Bing is going to hurt Google in a BIG way.

First of all when I hear the guy that washes my car talk about Bing, I know this is more than just another search engine. A waitress. Four retirees eating dinner. This is meaningful. When I hear commentators and people just talking about Bing, that matters. But besides that let’s look at who is behind Bing.

Of course Microsoft with a few billion to invest. But mightier then them is Weather.com who boasts the Bing logo on all their home page maps. Why Weather.com? Well then you have to follow and since NBC now owns weather.com you can add NBC as they are in bed with Microsoft with MSN. Then of course General Electric owns NBC and when you have established players like this with DOLLARS……you are going to see a serious challenge. That challenge will produce a bidding war in all types of directions. This is as big a challenge as one could get.

So those that think Bing is not here to stay and not going to take substantial market share, will be proved wrong within 18-36 months and indications will be obvious much sooner. Bing is an alternative and Google is going to have a huge fight on their hands. This is a battle of Titans. Those that think Google will walk away unscathed will be proved very wrong. Those folks don't understand numbers. The numbers prove this just a fact yet to happen. Every point that Bing gets as market share is a costly one for Google.

As for Yahoo! They will fall a distant third unless they field an aggressive team awfully fast and team up with other giants to make it a 3 way challenge. In TV it was NBC, ABC and CBS. Are we about to see the same thing online? As they say.....'Stay tuned.'

Have a GREAT Day!
Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Do you realize that in time the Domain Industry will surpass the Real Estate industry in several categories? The first one may have already happened. The number of total domain registrations vs. parcels of property on planet earth. I know, you probably never even thought about it. But now that you have……

The second number that will fall and again may have already fallen is the number of domains transactions vs. number of real estate closings. I don’t know the numbers, but I sure as hell know that one is gaining on the other at warp speeds.

The third number is the big one. The one we may never surpass. Then again, who knows? That would be the total dollar volume of domain transactions vs. the total dollar volume of real estate closings. But even here we are in a race that started thousands of years ago for real estate and only a decade or two for domains.

The parallels with real estate have always been very real. Except the domain can be much more powerful and has unlimited expansion possibilities. The domain has natural resources that have yet to be discovered. The difference is now the world is beginning to see what we see. Even if only a few.

Real estate is just one of the parallels. I see many others as well. The world will see many others in time.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

When Microsoft finally entered the search arena they did it in a big way and Google was unexpectedly surprised and put back on their heels. The proof is Google announcing an operating system that is a year away at best. What else could they do? Looks like Google was caught flatfooted and their bottom line is going to suffer at the worst possible time. They underestimated Bing. Microsoft is going to hurt Google and it will take at least a year for Google to get off the mat. They have been hit with a body blow from the mighty giant. In the meantime, Bing is taking market share as it improves and gets some pretty good reviews. Sit back and enjoy the show. It's the one bright spot in a lot of bleakness.

Add the mountain of trademark suits being filed against Google and I would say that Google is in for some very rough days and their stock will start to reflect that once folks figure out that Google is losing market share and is vulnerable for the first time. Personally I think Google will bow in light of all these lawsuits, however they will make many millions each and every day they delay.

So if the saying is “As GM goes so goes the Nation” and GM is belly up, what is the future of the newest biggest company on earth? What will a real challenge to Google do to Google? When it comes to search engines, I just have 2 words......'Alta Vista'.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

The USA is in the midst of the biggest waste of 1 TRILLION dollars the world has ever seen. The latest is the $18 MILLION dollar contract to redesign recovery.org that will track wasteful spending. $18 Millions for a website???? I want to be friends with the government and get a contract like that. Of course that is in ADDITION to the money they spent on the site in January. So $18+++ MILLION to do a WEBSITE!!! This is not wasteful, it is criminal. This is a PAYOFF. A BRIBE! To add salt to the wound, they will probably exceed their budget!

Numbers, Numbers, Numbers. They don’t lie, people do! Politicians do! The USA is heading into the abyss. The NUMBERS say so, not me. The numbers spell out the path we are on and it is a lesson in insanity.

Personally I think everyone in Congress who voted for any of these new programs without reading the bills should be removed from office. There are things in there destined to destroy the economy, the country and our futures. Special interests have put things in YET TO BE DISCOVERED! This is dangerous!

Folks, start paying attention. The standard of living throughout the USA is going down for the first time in my life. The government now owns the auto industry. Now owns the banking industry. Now owns and controls the mortgage industry. Has their eyes on the Insurance industry. The government has basically destroyed the corporate bond market when they told the GM bondholders they would not get their money.

Madoff’s 65 billion is a drop in the bucket to the trillions the government is taking. You won’t see an immediate impact. But I can tell you that the NUMBERS prove that everyone’s taxes will be raised significantly and in all types of different areas.

Sorry my friends, but once a government takes more than 50% of your earning as taxes, you are no longer free. You are a slave or an indentured servant at best. If you had the NERVE to sit down and do the NUMBERS, you would already see we are just a hair under 50%. That will change in the coming years and the standard of living likely won’t recover for many decades.

The evidence is mounting. This is my FIRST doom and gloom post. The seeds that are being planted are poisonous. The fall will be a disaster. The question becomes what is their answer in January 2010 when things have deteriorated and are much worse than they were in January 2009?

btw, the North Koreans have been hacking into the State Departments computers for the past 5 days. This is where we keep many of our most closely held secrets. The government said yesterday that the department with the job of protecting our national security only has the budget for 100 people. Are they kidding??!! Maybe some of that $18 million could have hired another 100.

Fine, you can think I am nuts! But California is INSOLVENT as I write this. California represents one of the top economies in the world. Much bigger than Iceland. lol. Larger than most countries. Insolvent!!!! Think about that. Think it can't spread??? Prepare for the worst, hope for the best and stay one step ahead of the masses.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

You can talk about religion, you can talk about politics, you could talk about everything that you are not supposed to talk about. But when it comes to numbers, the WORLD has Attention Deficit Disorder. (ADD)

I don’t know what it is. Numbers are an exact science of which there is no equal. There is no hiding from. There is no personality or political affiliation or religious one either. I can never hold somebody’s attention long enough to follow the numbers and see the result. The bottom line, they think miraculously they can WISH and make the answer different than it is. Well, good luck!

Numbers are the roadmap of the universe. WTF is wrong with folks that shy away from the absolute reality that a number provides? This to me is the most puzzling human nature phenomenon that I see and deal with. Are you scared of numbers? Do you know folks that are?

The bottom line is if you don’t KNOW numbers, embrace numbers, follow the numbers, then you will work life in the blind. With misinformation because you will be forced to swallow other peoples numbers because you have no idea about the real numbers.

Folks bastardize numbers to suit their cause. If you don’t know the numbers, if you don’t know they are full of shit, you will go through life being gullible and making bad deals. Believing anything anyone feeds you because you can’t figure it out yourself. The result will be many unnecessary failures. Very costly ones. They won’t improve your life. That is also an EXACT science.

There is no more satisfying feeling than when someone presents their numbers to you and you look them in the eye and say….”You are full of shit.” Then proceed to destroy their NUMBERS because it is based on nothing. And even if they get it all right, it is easy to go in and list all the things they just conveniently omitted They omit it because it is small and does not count. First of all believe me, it counts! Second of all be sure to multiply all the little stuff because amazing as it is, it always adds up bigger than the big stuff.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Good Afternoon Folks!!

In April I ran 2 contests so domainers could show off their appraisal skills. Many posted their guesses but only 2 were able to win.

The first contest was for how much SmartPhones.com would sell for at TRAFFIC in Silicon Valley this past April. The actual selling price was $95,000 and Edwin Sherman came closest with his entry of $92,000. Edwin receives a free ticket to the New York Show in October. Congratulations!

The next contest involved a total of 6 domain names. 3 auctioned by RickLatona.com and 3 auctioned by Moniker.com.

From Rick Latona

Shows.com NO RESERVE and Sold for 102k
SmartPhones.com $50k Reserve and Sold for 95k
WaterPurifiers.com $15k Reserve and did not sell.

From Moniker.com

Exhibiting.com $1k-$5k Reserve and Sold for $5000
HotProducts.com NO RESERVE and Sold for $9000
GolfCaddy.com $1k-$5k Reserve and Sold for $5500

Total $ 216,500

The winning entry was submitted by Andrea Mignolo at $215,000 and thereby being named 'Appraiser of the Year.' The award will be given at the New York TRAFFIC Show during our Awards Luncheon. And of course Andrea will also receive a free ticket to the show as promised.

Congratulations to both our winners who had the gut and guts to call the numbers in front of their peers!!

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

What can you say….we are about to see one of the most outrageous scenes ever unfold and it is going to happen before all of us at the same time. With a lot of people, a lot of things can happen. Is this going to be OJ with an MJ twist? They say 1 BILLION people are going to watch this spectacle. A celebratory memorial filled with celebrity wrapped up in a concert and beamed worldwide. Wonder if there will be any sponsors?

So let’s just hope this day goes smooth and safe. No matter how it unfolds, we will long remember this day. We will long remember what unfolds today. This is a story that is just starting, not ending. Arrests, trials, an under ground unmasked, a racial component and more is what is to come. This could turn very ugly.

Either way, today and what is to come is a study in human nature. Look at it closely. The good news is new music will be released and some of it will be great.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz