By service provider I mean people who work in a vertical market like "web developers" (not one of mine unfortunately...)
I also have a very good product domain eg. examplewidgets.co.uk
These domains are currently parked but I know that they could be doing so much more...
What I would like to know is what do you think is the best way to start developing them in terms of ROI?
Perhaps the best way to put this is, if you had a generic service provider domain and a few thousand dollars, what would you do?
I'd make a point not to "just build something" but to "build value". Keep it clean. Research your keywords. Work on your info architecture. Add content that will be of actual value to a visitor. Make a little topical directory part of the site, but not the whole site. Maybe limit your service provider listings to a few that don't rank well. (Why favor those who already are "winning". Make them jealous and charge them a fee - for a marked "Sponsored Listing".) You might even be able to tie-in a lead affiliate program.
What works for any given situation will require a bit of location and "service related" research.
From the domainer perspective I'd say what you most want to be careful about is to not "damage the domain". Stay on topic and stick to wearing your white hat.
[edited by: Webwork at 9:53 pm (utc) on Aug. 1, 2008]
I definitely want to build something of value to users and I want to do it using the best methods available today. One of the issues I am concerned with though is where to start and to ensure that the systems I use are scalable and will allow for the sites to grow and new features to be added over time.
To clarify, I envision a "service providers" site having 2 groups of users, the service providers themselves and those looking for their services. The site might contain articles/ a blog, a directory, a a forum etc Revenue streams might include contextual advertising, some affiliates and hopefully some direct advertising. Perhaps the directory section could have free standard listings and paid for premium listings.
One of the first questions I am therefore faced with is what CMS should I consider using?. Is it better to look for one CMS that can handle all of these things eg joomla or drupal or should I go for different systems to handle different parts of the site? eg WP/blogger for the blog and VBulletin for the forum and something else again for the directory? Is off the shelf software even the right way to go or would I be better off with something custom?
I have a reasonable idea of what I want to end up with but I am not sure of the best/most cost effective methods to achieve that today (as opposed to say the best way of doing it 3 years ago).
