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

Morning Folks!!

Here is the combined results of all inquiries for the first quarter of 2011. I have left the duplicates intact so you can see which domains get offers each month and the ones with an 'asterisk' are multiple inquiries for that specific domain name. 399.com was the only domain that I received multiple offers during each month. Properties.com and 899.com were tied for #2.

These are basically unsolicited offers as I don't have my domain names listed for sale anywhere with a price. Most come from whois.

Offers are like fish. The small ones you take off the hook and throw them back. Even on my parked pages at Parked.com for example, my domains are not offered for sale. 'Lease This Domain as Low as $1000/month Please contact us for more information.'

The minnows are swimming by. But I am not fishing for minnows. I am fishing for whales. I am fishing for record setting catch. I am certainly not fishing for domainers. Don't take offense. I just don't sell wholesale. I sell retail and I sell retail only. Of the 12 domains I have sold, 4 have made national/international news. The other 8 averaged more than $125,000 per sale. Even some of those were SACRIFICED because I was out there turning theory into reality. You don't make a headline turning down a deal. You make headlines when you do the deal. Something that was FREE had now transformed itself into some of the most valuable property in the world.

The 20 year plan would land me in 2016 as when domain names will BEGIN to reach full potential. That period will likely last 20 years or more. Likely much more. But we are not immortal and for most, it won't matter what happens in 50 or 60 years. The earlier you make the $$$ the longer you have to enjoy them. You just have to understand that a Ferrari is way cooler to have when you are 35 than when you are 85. Something just a bit sweeter there if you know what I mean.

Frankly, I am insulted when it comes to domain values. Domains have MORE value than the physical property. At LEAST base the foundational costs on what a real world storefront would cost and all the associated expenses. Laugh. I could care less. It will happen in the 5 year period I am talking of now.

When it hits PAR......we can talk. Until then, there is not much to say. Just take 10 minutes and sit down with a spreadsheet and add up all the costs. ALL of them. Tell me how much even a modest store would pay in all those expenses, fees and such. Until folks do that, there is no reason to do anything.

And when it hits PAR, I will give you a barrel full of reasons why the domain is worth much much much more. Your ticket to the world stage. Your ticket to a dream. Your ticket to do anything with little to hold you back. Your ticket to fame and fortune. So just because it takes time, does not mean you have to give in or give up at THEIR calling.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning folks!!

The biggest mistake some of the auction houses are making is they don’t know how to ask the right questions, they don’t know what price points are attractive to domainers and then of course they don’t choose the right domains because they are not looking at it through the eyes of a DOMAIN INVESTOR.

And a domain owner is not looking at the audience they want to sell to. Therefore we have had some lackluster auctions over the last few years. We are investors not end users although eventually we might be both. Some already are. But they know the difference in a retail price vs a wholesale price.

I have a List of TEST of questions that must be met if a domain will be making it into the auction. The auction houses are not asking these questions and thus we see what we have seen.

Listen, we all want the end user to be there and buy. And generally 1 or 2 show up and a partly prearranged sale is confirmed in front of everyone. That sale saves face. But screw face. Let’s get to making a difference.

We are selling to domainers. What are domainers looking for? They are looking for an undervalued domain that they believe has a value at a minimum 10x what they are buying it for. But more than that they are asking the $1 Million test question. Can this $10,000 domain really have a $1,000,000 value? That’s what they want. They want at a minimum to know there risk is low. The best way to do that is having really good domains that everyone knows are really good domains. That can be developed if they choose. That mean something.

The domains for 6 figures still have to pass the minimum test or it is too risky and you can use you dollars better. So a $250,000 investment has to be easily worth $2.5M for it to be a bargain, for it to be attractive, for it to sit on the shelf for years while the value appreciates to that level.

There is a “Sweet spot” for selling domains to domainers. Buying a $10,000 domain that you could see being important enough to demand $1 Million is what the audience wants. To buy it for $10,000 and flip for $15,000 is all well and good but that part of the audience won’t be driving up the price to a real value. It will be undervalued.

Having multi-million dollar domains in an auction might look good, but unless there is a REASON to be in the auction, it’s wasting everyone’s time and the “Show-boaters” come out in droves.

It’s all about the upside and what I see in most auctions are domain names that can’t pass this test because nobody understands this test. Sure it is exciting to see a 6 or 7 figure auction. But what is better is watching genuinely great names at domainers prices being put on the table and letting the MARKET drive the value. If you want end user prices you need to go to that industry and have that auction. Domainers are not going to bite unless they see a HUGE upside. Especially now. Money is tight and every purchase is important.

What’s exciting is seeing a GEM come to auction with a low reserve and starting low and letting the market give it a great value. Great value because 1 or 2 saw a great use.

There was only a handful of magical moments in auctions. The first live auction in 2005. I still remember the line that broke the ice that made the audience feel comfortable. Somebody yelled out a ridiculously low bid and the auctioneer responded, “That’s for the bid Mr. Rockefeller”. That had everyone laughing and THAT was the MOMENT history was made. We had lightning in a jar and then we had a damn good run culminating with the 2007 June Auction in New York. $12.5M

Coincidentally, this was the only auction I had hands on input. Not taking away anything from Monte and his crew. They did the heavy lifting. It’s tough work and I know what a pain in the ass it is. But Howard and I had everything at stake because the show itself was going to lose $250,000. New York is expensive and the math did not work. But I also knew the industry needed to get there. There could be a real opportunity bringing domains to New York. The entire show rested on a successful auction. A bad auction and we were out of business and $250k in the hole. Game over. This was the moment and we had to go “All in.”

So when I tell you that everything rested on the auction, I am serious. It was the entire enchilada. I was banking that domains in New York would create a stir. Would be well received. But it was only what I believed in my gut because the spreadsheet let me know what a risk it was.

$12.5M later we did it. The big gamble paid off. I just wanted to break even and get New York under the belt of an emerging industry. Mission accomplished and we had some walking money. Point is, that was the model to copy and because of one thing or another it never was.

That auction was carefully crafted as to what domains would appear when to get momentum and excitement to build. It was done methodically. We had the right domains at the right price points for domainers. We had each domain in those slots for a reason. It was done with a lot of care. Once auctions became like every day events, that type planning never returned.

This October will be the first time I am personally picking the domains along with each auction house. Each auction house has a responsibility to meet the basic guidelines we set. What you will see is a completely open auction with almost every major auction house participating with a small group of GREAT domains at GREAT prices.

And the biggest difference other than those, we won’t look like fools by starting an auction at $1M and then dropping until somebody bids $1000. Each auction will start at $1 or $1000 and quickly bid up. Even if it does not sell, we will establish “True market value.” Reserves will be handled differently as well. This will prevent showboat bidding to look cool in front of everyone or to do somebody a favor. We won’t take non existent bids. If there are no bids there are no bids and we can just move on.

The auctions will be much faster moving and exciting because we will quickly establish a new way of doing business. We have no favors to keep. We have no direct selection of the domains only REJECTION of domains that don’t fit the audience. And we are starting the push for those domains in the next few weeks.

So why pick TRAFFIC as the venue for your domains and commit early? Because our audience means business and we have demonstrated over the years that given good names at good prices the names get sold and we are capable of having a record setting auction.

It takes time to really market a domain. Each seller has a duty to HELP market their domain. Howard and I will do what we can. The auction houses will each be doing what they can. We will all be rowing in the same direction for the first time and you will see RESULTS when that happens.

There are other pieces to the formula that I don’t want to talk about right now. But I think you will see a huge difference. We will have but one auction to do in 2011. We have already begun the process behind the scenes. But the focus on one project to get it right will yield great results.

And here is a little secret. The “End user” will show up because there is enough time to do this right and not hastily putting names together. The sooner we assemble the final list, the sooner we can market.

So we are serious about fixing the auction process and we are serious about increasing all value by doing it right and restoring some credibility to the process. We won’t get it all right, but you are sure as hell going to know things have changed.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Morgan Linton did an interesting article yesterday on developing. He looks at domains the way I do and many others. As Real Estate because of all the parallels. Like I have always said, for everything in the virtual world, there is an EXACT real world parallel that holds many of the answers. For domains it is Real Estate but there are many others as well. Once you make the connection and study things you will find answers. If you don't have the time or pateince than you will work in the blind.

Let’s say you own a nice parcel of land outside of town. But right now that parcel, that property is surrounded by nothing. Just more land and a few farms and such. But then you get information that in 5 years they are building a huge mall directly across the street from where you have your parcel of land. Do you:

1. Sell it to the first guy that will double your money?

2. Build a competing Mall?

3. Open up a sporting goods store right now even tho it may be 5-10 years before that mall is fully done?

4. Do nothing?

5. Charge the workers to park their cars there.Sell them Hot dogs at Lunch?

6. Listen to offers of interested parties. Maybe even wait and do nothing until the mall is all built and you can see if there are any voids you can fill to find your own niche?

In Domaining, most folks do #1. That’s what domain flippers are doing when they let a great domain slip thru their hands. The first 3 answers are the wrong ones from my vantage point.

Developing for the sake of developing because of peer pressure is folly. I have done enough of it. Lost enough time and lost enough money. Have little to show for it.

First of all to really develop let’s start at the end of the story. A SALE IS MADE. Nobody is making anything until a sale happens. So you need a cash register for the money. No register, than you did not develop. You made a better parked page, but until the cash register comes, The “D” word is not apropos.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Everything we do and discover already happened in another medium and your job is to find that parallel and connect the dots by finding the corresponding components. That's how you get ahead of the crowd.

I will tell you what I see because it is bigger than the first 20 years put together. The difference between the pay Babe Ruth got and what 'A-Rod' gets.

Except I see the years condensed. Per the chart below, it took 50 years from Babe Ruth Until Catfish Hunter making 10x more. Compare that to a domain name that may have only taken 5 years for it to go up 10x in value. Maybe even 100x in value. Maybe much more. So in this medium things are accelerated and always has been. But the start is slow. It always is. The bigger, the slower. But now we are past slow. We are rolling. Rolling along. Rolling along and gaining momentum.

With top baseball salaries It took only 20 years for the next growth of 10x. 1975 to 1995. So I have always used THIS model below melted in with the history and growth of TV, the survival of Radio and the phenomenon of the Hula Hoop along with all the advertising dollars spent and how long it takes the masses to adjust to something new and big. Then ending up with a sale somewhere because nothing happens until a sale is made. In other words, study the past to see the future. It all happened before. Just with another medium or with a different vehicle.

The 1994 NBC clip that has been going around TV and the Internet this past week is a PERFECT example of how FAST we are moving to change the world like that in less than 20 years. It accelerates from here in an exponential way. Facebook is the beginning not the end. An exit for your domain an on ramp to your domain a window into your domain. All roads still lead to the domain regardless of the stops along the way.

And while $70,000 was a lot of money in 1927, it did not have the buying power that $33 Million has today. Where are we today in reference to that graph and the ultimate value of domain names? I would say somewhere between 1972 and 1975. The upside is something incredible.

YEAR SALARY/YR PLAYER TEAM/ORGANIZATION

1927 $70,000 Babe Ruth New York Yankees

1930 $80,000 Babe Ruth New York Yankees

1949 $100,000 Ted Williams Boston Red Sox

1966 $130,000 Willie Mays San Francisco Giants

1972 $200,000 Hank Aaron Atlanta Braves

1975 $740,000 Catfish Hunter New York Yankees

Major League Baseball's reserve clause was struck down in 1976, beginning an era of free agency and thus market-value player contracts

1979 $1,000,000 Nolan Ryan Houston Astros

1981 $2,000,000 Dave Winfield New York Yankees

1985 $2,130,300 Mike Schmidt Philadelphia Phillies

1986 $2,800,000 George Foster New York Mets

1990 $3,000,000 Rickey Henderson Oakland Athletics

1991 $4,700,000 José Canseco Oakland Athletics

1992 $5,800,000 Bobby Bonilla New York Mets

1993 $5,975,000* Ryne Sandberg Chicago Cubs

1995 $9,237,500 Cecil Fielder Detroit Tigers

1997 $10,000,000 Albert Belle Chicago White Sox

1998 $14,936,667 Gary Sheffield Florida Marlins

2000 $15,714,286 Kevin Brown Los Angeles Dodgers

2001 $22,000,000 Alex Rodriguez Texas Rangers

2005 $26,000,000 Alex Rodriguez New York Yankees

2009 $33,000,000 Alex Rodriguez New York Yankees

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest_paid_baseball_players

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

Yesterday I emailed this out to everyone on our mailing list. Hopefully you got this, but if not...

Business is galloping along as we start 2011 so I will be brief and to the point. Today I would like to announce that the new T.R.A.F.F.I.C. website is open during our makeover and that below is the price schedule. With a year to work on this show and at the Ritz Carlton I think you will experience a TRAFFIC with a focus like never before. The first 50 registrants pay just $995. That's called 'Opportunity' and a call to action in one thought. Those tickets will not last long. (23 left as of this writing)
T.R.A.F.F.I.C. means business. We don't waste your time. We just provide you with a great venue and assemble an audience that makes it impossible not to do business. Our formula is perfected. It works. We give great bang for the buck because we know what domainers want and need and sponsors know the sluggers will be in attendance. It's like it has been since day #1....a WIN-WIN situation for all that participate. Sit on the bench at your own peril. In article after article what happened in the domain industry, happened at T.R.A.F.F.I.C.. Who you met in the domain industry you likely met at TRAFFIC. You can't rewrite history. We mean business.
As you will see below we have limited space at the Ritz. We have decided to sell a limited amount of tickets at the early level. The capacity of attendees for this show is 335-350 and there are 192 hotel rooms. So we will be taking over the entire hotel.
Show dates are Sunday October 16th until Wednesday morning the 19th 2011. But the Cabana Networking Weekend Party starts on Friday October 14th. Rooms at the Ritz Carlton are $254 for a 5 star hotel right on the beach and in the center of the Ft Lauderdale strip. Almost every room has a balcony with a fabulous ocean view. Our GROUP CODE is AULAULA but if you want a suite, those codes are listed below.
https://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/FortLauderdale/Reservations/Default.htm?nr=1&ng=1
Ticket Pricing:

$995 Early Bird Until Jan 31(Limited to the First 50 registrations. Whichever happens first)

$1295 February 1 - April 30^th (Limited to 75 registrations at this level)

$1495 May 1- June 30^th

$1595 July 1- August 31^st

$1795 September 1- Show (As space and seats allow)

Spouse....Early Bird $299 until January 31st. Spouse $399 thereafter

5 Pack Group Passes

$4900 Early Bird (As available)

$5900 Until April 30^th

$6500 thru June 30^th

$7500 thru August 31

If you act right now, you get a huge savings. As much as $800 off your ticket and $100 off the spouse rate. We wish we could give that price to everyone, but we can't. So act early and get a great deal. Simple as that. Save $4,000 for your company with our '5-Pack' But you need to act now.
We won't let you down. The best TRAFFIC is always coming next. We're never satisfied. We always want to make it better and add more value for your dollar. And as we have proven, we work on the agenda until Stage Time. Say what you like, TRAFFIC Means Business because so much business is done at TRAFFIC. Our focus is growing your business by putting you in touch with serious people looking to do serious business. We would not waste our time so you know we won't be wasting yours. See you at the Beach!!
Rick and Howard

All Hotel Codes:

AULAULA- Run of House- $254

AULAULC- Partial Ocean Double- $294

AULAULE- Ocean Front King- $274

AULAULF- Ocean Front Double- $294

AULAULI- Intracoastal Junior Suite- $354

AULAULK- Ocean Front Suite- $579

AULAULM- Intracoastal One Bedroom Residential- $454

AULAULN- Intracoastal Two Bedrooms Residential - $779

AULAULQ- Ocean Front One Bedroom Residential- $629

Morning Folks!!

After selling Candy.com just 18 months ago for $3 Million and other considerations, I got my first Royalty Check a few weeks ago. As Jackie Gleason used to say…..”How Sweet it is!”

But that is not the story today. Today I am just making sure that I am first to post the headline about the sale of Candy.com that will eventually happen and it will be for hundreds of millions of dollars. I believe $300 Million will be the eventual sales price as Candy.com has been transformed from a parked page to a world class business doing millions of dollars in online transactions and poised to do tens of millions and beyond as they continue to do a great job of marketing and growing their company in a 21^st century way using 20^th century basics. The only question I see is WHEN will it cross the $300 Million threshold?

Before you think my price is out of line, let me take a moment to say that by all standard accounting numbers, the value has already gone from $3M to in excess of $50M in the first 18 months. When you factor in growth over the next decade, Candy.com will be $500 Million and more. That is why I believe that it will sell for $300M and it may be sooner than even I think. 2011? Doubtful. 2012? It will be at the 9 figure mark. 2013? They'll be taking a good sniff. 2014? BINGO!! The only snag in that is in 2014 when it will be mathematically be worth $300 million, they would be crazy to sell it at that point because the trajectory would be much greater than anything one can even fathom right now.

Now I am not without motive. If and when Candy.com sells again, I get a “Kings Ransom”. So why not try and get the ball rolling? If asked I would tell Greg and Joe that $300 Million would be the price to take if you were going to sell today. But sales are a moving target. Every day of growth by Candy.com, every day of dominance, every day of getting new customers, is a day that the value and importance just increases. They also become harder and harder to compete with. But sshhhhhh…..don’t tell their competition that they are about to eat their lunch. Let’s just keep it between us girls. The accountants will tell them soon enough.

Why? Because it is Candy.com, the domain, is only a little of the story. When I look back at the deal we made, I saw the perfect image of what I was looking for all these years. Knowledge, passion, smarts, energy. All that back up by a company in business for many decades. And it is exactly that when MATCHED with a great domain name that truly makes the difference. It has to be next to perfect. Al things aligned for it to work. This one in in align and it is just so much fun to watch and be part of.

Candy.com with a Thanksgiving Day Float? Candy.com with new divisions? Candy.com with retail outlets? Passion does BIG things.

So if the domain sells in 2014 for example, $300 Million would be the number. As time goes on that price will approach $500 Million. Growth, dominance and a category leader domain before you even peel back the business plan. Candy.com will show the world what is possible selling PENNY candies and doing it worldwide and in bulk. Wholesale, retail, gifting, this will do nothing but expand and when it does it will demonstrate the true power of a domain name when married to a great business run by energetic and determined individuals. Nothing will be able to illustrate nor magnify what I have been saying all these years better than following this sale. To me the ONLY variable is WHEN it happens. Generally it happens when you become a thorn in the side of a giant or you see a company in an allied field that would like to expand and want to do it before it becomes out of reach. Out of reach varies with different people. That's why sales like this will happen sooner rather than later.

Now I have not run this by the guys at Candy.com and I hope they don’t fall off their seat when they read this, but fellas, $300 million should at least get you to the table.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

I am seeing something historic starting to develop. The day after Christmas is a mammoth of a retail day. But it was a Sunday and may not have been like normal. Then factor in the biggest blizzard to hit the Northeast since the Internet has really become what it is. A snowstorm that has parlayed the south all the way to Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia. Europe still getting back to normal. Freezing temperatures reaching deep into Florida making the millions here for the beaches go do something else. Schools throughout the world closed for the holidays and many BILLIONS just taking the week off.

I am looking at the early numbers today and I am starting to see something HISTORIC developing. I may be wrong. But I am on the hunt and if it happens I may be the first to see it. The first to report on it and you folks the first to understand it. How incredible it would be to have it happen on this special anniversary for me.

Stay tuned and let us know what YOUR numbers look like today.

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!

In 1996 I never dreamed there would be groups just devoted to 3 number domain names. But there are and I have 3 number domain names.

In 1996 I never dreamed there would be groups that focus on 3 letter domain names. But there are and I have 3 letter domain names.

In 1996 I never dreamed there would be groups for this and that and the other thing. But there are and I have this that and the other thing.

For almost every sub-group, I have domains that match that group. Even 3D.

The big difference is I went wide and some drilled deep.

I only drilled deep in adult because that has proven over time that nothing you can do will kill the appetite for adult.

Soon, many new tld’s will come online. New opportunity for some and a black hole for others.

My only point in EVERY post I ever make is that a newcomer can get in the game on January 1, 2011 and make a lot of money IF he gets the FIRST buy right. The FIRST buy. Luckily you can make your FIRST buy right now even if it isn’t your first buy. Fool yourself! Pretend!!

You have experience that the guy coming on January 1, 2011 does not. You are light years ahead. You should whip his ass!! But, if you are not having the results you want and don’t do anything different, you lose. If you are losing, the last thing you want to do is the last thing you did again.

And, you don’t have to have money to make money in domains. You have to have a plan. You have to be smart. You can create opportunity! Did you read that? You can CREATE opportunity.

I have nothing to prove so the easy way out is the loser turning it back on me. That is why you are a loser. Want to change that? Get you mind thinking. But it is more than just trying to make $$$. Calling you a 'Loser' is not name calling. I would much rather call you a WINNER! But if you lose, that by definition is loser. Not personal!

If I was penniless and needed to change that today, I could name a few things I could do. The easiest and lowest entry bar is brokering a domain name. Just find a great domain name. Contact the owner. Get an agreement for a period of time to allow you to market and sell that domain.

A sale gives you seed money. A start. A direction. Of course you have to know how to sell, who to contact and how to talk to them intelligently. You also need to really know what a great domain is or you will be pissing in the wind. It takes the same amount of energy and time and expense to market gold as to market pigeon shit. Read that again. Please! Plus when you market “Pigeon Shit” you get frustration as the reward instead of a cash reward. Why would anyone in their right mind keep choosing Pigeon Shit?

And let me be 100% clear. It is not Pigeon Shit because I say so. It is Pigeon Shit because the MARKET says so. It may just be your timing. It is possible for Pigon Shit to turn into gold. But then wait until it turns to gold and THEN sell. Because right now, it is yet to be transformed. It is still Pigeon Shit.

I have Pigeon Shit. Yes, me too. The difference is I don’t try and sell Pigeon Shit. I let them drop. They are worthless. It is not worth my time to do a $25 transaction for something with no value. Nor would I feel good about it. The only reason I had the Pigeon Shit to begin with is I don’t chase yesterday, I predict tomorrow. When you do that, you may only hit 1 in 100. But for $800 in hand registrations, that 1 will pay that $800 bill dozens of times. It’s a formula that has proven to work for me for 15 years.

There is more opportunity in domains than anything I have ever seen in all my life. There are so many ways to climb the mountain. So many ways to approach things. So many ways to do whatever. Life changes ever minute and every time that happens a new domain opportunity is born.

My only point is that if you are not succeeding, it may not be comfortable, but do something different and try again. Don’t repeat failure, repeat success. You can only repeat something you did. So in January, grab a success and then repeat that success as many times as you can and do it as fast as you can for as long as you can.

The opportunity in domains is just beginning. It is not ending. It won’t end for anyone reading this while you are on this side of the dirt. Your only job is figuring out how to harness SOME of that power.

I was making well into the 7 figures before I ever quit my day job. I urge folks not to quit their day jobs until the time at work interferes with their domain business and ability to make money and grow their business. Then and only then would I have made the leap. So domaining is a natural part time entry until you ramp up.

So it all boils down to whether you have time, patience and a keen understanding of business and what is important to business. Don’t chase yesterday. It seldom works. Predict tomorrow based on history not yesterday. And of course……..stop playing with Pigeons! The same energy to play with Gold. I am rooting for your success. I don’t know if you have Pigeon Shit or gold. The only one that does…..your savings account. Or you can use this test. If my Pigeon Shit category offends you………

And of course it is one thing to buy Pigeon Shit for $8 and another thing to buy Pigeon Shit for $8000. I know. I have done both. But I admit it. I know the difference. I try and not repeat what does not work. The only thing I have repeated over the years that only has marginal success is trying to reach those in domaining reading this without the true success they want and deserve and only have anger and frustration banked up instead of happiness and dollars. But I figure with every post.....maybe, maybe, I sway one willing mind and they get to transform their lives. I may or may not know the result. That is good enough for me! We all have a way of giving back. Some donate to charity. I donate my time and words to willing minds and hearts. I just plant the seeds of thought and know some will germinate. Some with anger, some with greatfulness, some with nothing at all.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz



Morning Folks!!

One of those moments. I don’t want to get political here so I will stop and just focus on the numbers. So bare with me as I make my way through this political mine field and try to make my point that is not political.It is hard to ignore the Juan Williams Story. If you are not up to speed, take a moment. Read both stories and others. Was he unfairly fired after 10 years with NPR without so much as a hearing? Was what he said so over the line that it merited firing or is something else going on? Free Speech on attack? Did he say something that perhaps the majority agree with? Shut him up, you are shutting up too many too keep quiet. Lots of people and groups between a rock and a hard spot.

Juan said something that many feel. They won’t take a poll on what he actually said because the number they would get would be unsettling and the media does not know how to deal with it nor want to. But they are about to be forced to and it will unfold in front of all of us. This is a BIG story about to get bigger. About to explode. NPR will be the biggest loser. Juan Williams a big winner.....but more important, read on.

There are watershed moments in history or at any point of time that shifts people in a real and effective way. Jolts them! Here is what I see because of the Juan Williams episode. I am a numbers guy. Just follow the numbers.

With the U.S. elections just days away, there is a significant number of Americans that remain undecided. On the fence. Can go either way. Like a feather and a breeze. That is in the midst of a huge change and it will be the Juan Williams story that may do it. I don't want to go any further or get political. All I do is follow the numbers and RARELY do you see numbers when 75%-90% agree about his firing. That cuts across political ideology. Just the numbers. And to have it play out over the days preceding the election is could be powerful and the impact could be absolutely stunning. If it happens, it will never even be reportrd on. It's invisible.

That's what I see and I am sharing it with you because it is an invisible wave. This time it may play out in votes. Other times it can play out in sales. But picking these points in time out are vital to benchmarking your gut. Right or wrong the answer calibrates that gut.

When you focus on the numbers you can predict a reaction. In domaining, we predict reactions before the event even happens. There is a connection. Predicting human behavior after they are exposed to a catalyst can be rewarding. That is why there is advertising. But things like this is an advertisers dream and a political dream all rolled into one at exactly the most important time. Invisible to the naked eye. But that is what THESE eyes see. I am simply sharing what I see and how it may play out based on the numbers with a keen gut for the current pulse of things.

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz

Morning Folks!!

New products and new companies will be unveiled at T.R.A.F.F.I.C.. That s what T.R.A.F.F.I.C. is, your first glimpse at the future as it affects you and your business.

If you have had second thoughts about not signing up at the lower levels, we will give you one last chance to reconsider and be where everyone else will be when we talk domains.

So, TODAY only, until 6PM EDT, We will roll back prices to the $1495 level. Shake the trees one last time and then right back to $1795. For those who have already paid $1795, we will issue you a full credit for the difference. But this is for TODAY ONLY! Just send a return email for further instructions.

Now a few notes. The hotel has filled all of our room block and then some. If you have a problem booking a room, we have 5 rooms set aside. But they may not last long. Check this link first.
On the very first morning before brunch, there is a special Speed Networking session. You must sign up before the show to participate. We have long heard that putting the speed networking early on would be helpful so folks can meet others they need to talk with and focus on that early on. The early bird gets the worm. Sign up here.

Lastly, all further updates will either be emailed or appear on our FaceBook Page. Since Facebook is the quicker method, most updates during the show will be there.

That's it folks!! Safe travels. Come ready to network. Come ready to have the time of your life. Seize opportunity when it comes and TRAFFIC brings a lot of opportunities all in one place at one time. Best bang for the buck in the universe if you really work TRAFFIC to the degree you can. Make things happen or read what you missed and regret missing out. You will see that not only is TRAFFIC back, but it never left! Once again just facilitating the course for the future. Your course, your future, should be in your control.
Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz