What I deem noteworthy and newsworthy is the scale of the live auction compared to past TRAFFIC events. I read the reports of auctions at past events and typically the sales only involved a handful of domain names and net sales figures that were a small fraction of those sales reported in the latest event.
And now, here's Monte...
[edited by: tedster at 4:34 am (utc) on May 22, 2006]
DomainPrice Paid
SEX.net$450,000.00
CD.com $275,000.00
POS.com $250,000.00
HUGE.com $105,000.00
WaterfrontProperty.com $ 80,000.00
Promote.com $ 70,000.00
Programmer.com $ 65,000.00
Claim.com $ 62,000.00
Improve.com $ 60,000.00
Bubbles.com $ 55,000.00
FixedRate.com $ 50,000.00
Tablets.com $ 50,000.00
Buy.net $ 45,000.00
ReverseSearch.com $ 40,000.00
CarWax.com $ 40,000.00
DebtRecovery.com $ 33,000.00
OLN.com $ 30,000.00
OffRoadTires.com $ 29,000.00
Gamedesigner.com $ 29,000.00
Brackets.com $ 25,000.00
Record.net $ 25,000.00
LastMinuteTravels.com $ 21,000.00
HairLossTreatment.com $ 18,000.00
Congratulate.com $ 14,500.00
CreditTips.com $ 12,000.00
hoetls.com, hoyels.com, $ 11,000.00
DiscountShows.com $ 9,000.00
VegasTravelDeals.com $ 6,000.00
WineSupplies.com $ 6,000.00
CopyServices.com $ 6,000.00
FreeOnlineQuote.com $ 5,400.00
NonFictionBooks.com $ 5,200.00
FutureHealth.com $ 5,000.00
CASHNOTES.COM $ 4,600.00
CommercialBankers.com $ 4,600.00
FaxService.com $ 4,200.00
USImmigration.us $ 4,000.00
ONLINEGAMERENTAL.COM $ 3,600.00
SAVEACHILD.COM $ 3,200.00
CREDITREPAIRFIRMS.COM $ 3,200.00
WaterPicks.com $ 3,200.00
AmericanCreditCard.com $ 3,000.00
VEHICLES.US $ 3,000.00
DESK.US $ 3,000.00
DESKS.US $ 3,000.00
Glockenspiel.com $ 2,900.00
ChristmasRingTones.com $ 2,600.00
CHILDRENBOOKCLUB.COM $ 2,200.00
VegasVacationRental.com $ 2,200.00
CREDITCARDLOWRATE.COM $ 2,000.00
TEACHINGREADING.COM $ 2,000.00
BUSINESSRULES.COM $ 2,000.00
BARGUIDES.COM$ 2,000.00
HAWAIIANSOUVENIRS.COM $ 2,000.00
LiveEntertainers.com $ 2,000.00
10Year.com $ 500.00
CofeeMakers.com $ 400.00
This event and the results again validate the value of domain names and their attractiveness to the industry. Sex.net sold for the highest price ever reported for a .net name.
Let me know if you have any questions about the event or future events.
Marketing, ultimately, is about reaching a targeted market. Domains appear to do that. Do you see evidence of a broader industry interest in these events - beyond industry reps sending lawyers, guns and money to protect their brands?
[edited by: tedster at 4:32 am (utc) on May 22, 2006]
Yes also part of it was the hype and excitement of the auction, the sense of urgency created in the room and much more. The next auction we are holding will be at TRAFFIC East in Hollywood, FL at the Diplomat Hotel. There are more than 600 expected and more of the best names in the industry going up for sale at that event.
People are paying up for brands
I can only see 4 in the above list that could be "brands". The majority of them are actually keyword and keyphrase domains.
These are for SE's and type-ins, not traditional brand marketing.
Interesting...
TJ
The owner of domain "lent" it to him, Scott thought he owned it but he didn't.
One of my first clients in '98 had the domain visalawyer.com and let it expire.
Yikes, if I only knew then what I know now.
Another intersting thing I noticed a few days ago... 2 domains I sold to the same company have been left to expire. I was thinking I should buy them again and sell them back to them all over again lol.
I do need to trim down my collection and could do with a sale. Wish I'd known about that auction.
[edited by: Webwork at 7:46 am (utc) on May 21, 2006]
[edit reason] Charter [webmasterworld.com] [/edit]
1. Are there benefits to the live auction model that are unique? Sedo and Afternic are, in a sense, a live auctions. How is a live live auction better?
2. Live auctions work best only if there is suitable advertising, calculated to reach the widest and best funded market. I'd say the best marketing would have to reach the end user community, yet it appears these events are focused on the domainer community. How do you propose to improve your reach into the enduser community - the business world at large?
3. Is the auction a "take all comers" event, where anyone can list their domains? If so, I would think that would impair the process - as too many inferior domains would bog the process down. If it isn't a take all comers event then how does someone "get in with their domains"? Is there an application process?
4. On the seller side, is this really the best way to maximize value? If not, then why are people signing up? If you say it's the best way to maximize value then hos is that so?
5. Why not simply run a live online auction of prime domains on a periodic basis versus the live-live auction model? Any real benefit to live-live that cannot be matched by a promoted 1-day online event?
6. What's the auctioneer's fee? Is it a sliging scale or negotiable?
7. Is there any "post sale" claim to a fee if a domain is sold within 10+ days of the auction? How is that handled? Is there a contract that is signed as part of listing domains?
8. Who is the ideal candidate for posting domains at a live auction? Someone seeking fast cash? Someone simply seeking to expose their portfolio? Who is this process best suited to?
9. What's next? Portfolio auctions?
1. Are there benefits to the live auction model that are unique? Sedo and Afternic are, in a sense, a live auctions. How is a live live auction better?
This is a live auction in the sense that there is a live audience, a lincensed and professional auctioneer conducting the auction, names presented are those selected by the audience to bid on, reserves are set in advance, and sellers can reduce reserves to make sales if they are present. There are huge advantages than what takes place via a web based internet auction with delays.
2. Live auctions work best only if there is suitable advertising, calculated to reach the widest and best funded market. I'd say the best marketing would have to reach the end user community, yet it appears these events are focused on the domainer community. How do you propose to improve your reach into the enduser community - the business world at large?
In this case, the auction was for the attendees of the TRAFFIC conference. It was not for those that did not attend from a buyers standpoint. We did sell domains from our inventory along with those submitted by the attendees of the conference. It was advertised to the attendees and everyone on the TRAFFIC mailing list.
3. Is the auction a "take all comers" event, where anyone can list their domains? If so, I would think that would impair the process - as too many inferior domains would bog the process down. If it isn't a take all comers event then how does someone "get in with their domains"? Is there an application process?
see above - we had about 5000 names that went down to about 190 at auction time based on popularity of the attendees.
4. On the seller side, is this really the best way to maximize value? If not, then why are people signing up? If you say it's the best way to maximize value then hos is that so?
I think that this format is good for both buyer and seller as there is an audience wanting and willing to buy domains at or above the reserve price. This is not a market to corporate buyers but domainers, investors, and speculators. In this last auction, most names sold well above reserve price.
5. Why not simply run a live online auction of prime domains on a periodic basis versus the live-live auction model? Any real benefit to live-live that cannot be matched by a promoted 1-day online event?
The live auctioneer and Sotheby's/Christies format creates excitement, challenges egos in the room, and is part of a history making event that folks want to be a part of.
6. What's the auctioneer's fee? Is it a sliging scale or negotiable?
We paid him for the day.
7. Is there any "post sale" claim to a fee if a domain is sold within 10+ days of the auction? How is that handled? Is there a contract that is signed as part of listing domains?
We charge 10% to the seller and about 1% to the buyer for escrow, legal, and transfer.
8. Who is the ideal candidate for posting domains at a live auction? Someone seeking fast cash? Someone simply seeking to expose their portfolio? Who is this process best suited to?
anyone with good names with good branding potential and especially those with traffic and earnings through PPC or other.
9. What's next? Portfolio auctions?
There are portfolios in the current format.
anyone interested can contact me via email
