Selling a "keyword" .com domain

[Furgen]

I am the owner of a "keyword" domain and am trying to gather knowledge to know how best to proceed in selling this domain.

I registered this domain in 1995 with plans to build a site but never got the chance to.

Around 1999 or so, offers started coming in for the domain and to this day, they come in pretty much every month. A recent one got us talking about this and with everything going on, we don't see ourselves using the domain for a long time to come so maybe it's time to sell it.

I have a ton of questions which is what brought me here.

First, I have some idea of value based on the countless buyers and brokers that have contacted me over the years. I've learned to spot the ones that want to low ball and the others that want to make a quick buck.

Some say sell it for what you feel you are comfortable with and others say it has a specific market value. I don't really buy on the second one because like a house, if someone wants it badly enough because it suits their purposes, they will buy it at what ever they feel they can pay for it.

We have been offered 5 to 6 digits in the past and never kept any contact information because we've always said no thanks.

While we had specific ideas for what we wanted to do with the domain, it seems that countless dating sites have contacted us to see if we would sell. Therefore, we feel our main market might be along the various uses of the domain name which is a word with multiple contexts.

We are in no rush to sell and basically just looking for information on how to best get the word out about this. I'm not sure if it might be best to try and promote/market this myself, contact potential buyers, trust a broker. Really not sure where to start.

If anyone can offer some suggestions, it certainly would be most appreciated.

Hope I'm posting this in the right place.

[edited by: not2easy at 12:47 am (utc) on Oct 9, 2016]

[IanTurner]

I would start by collecting contact info for those who make offers for a while.

This will give you a base of people to contact if/when you put the domain up for auction.

There are some domain auction sites out there where you can put the domain up for sale with a reserve price - you will have to pay a sale commission as with every auction.

[Furgen]

Thanks for your input.

The offers I consider to be serious offers don't come in as often as the others do but I've also never advertised the domain being for sale. Most of the contacts are brokers and buyers first wanting to low ball me then making a more reasonable offer. Some of those have been very serious but the domain was not for sale.

I have some idea of the value based on the offers I've received and know it is a premium domain and now just need to let the right people know about it since I've finally decided to actually sell it.

No contact details were ever kept since it was not for sale. Auction sites want an awful big cut for doing very little other than being an intermediary. Like selling a home, none of us want to give a huge cut of something the other didn't really earn but are willing to give a reasonable/fair cut. I figure up to 10% at most will earn anyone who helps me one very nice pay check.

Anyhow, for now, just trying to figure out the best way of going about this.

I understand what a broker can offer if I can find the right one.
If I did this on my own however is more along the lines of what I'm interested in learning.

I've read pros and cons about contacting people/companies/potential buyers directly.
Assuming I contacted people and got replies, what would be the best way of proceeding?

-Perhaps a closed private auction meaning buyers send their offer?

-Perhaps a private auction where potential buyers can bid against each other so that everyone knows how many others there are bidding? A simple app that is accessed by name/pass only online for example.

-Would/should there be a time period or should it be open for months?

[IanTurner]

Can you put a for sale notice on the domain? With contact details so that potential buyers can contact you?

If so you could indicate on the domain that the domain will be going to auction in the near future and then run the auction on the domain itself.

This could be very effective if the domain gets a lot of type in traffic.

[Furgen]

Yes, the price is not mentioned but the fact that it is now available for sale as the top page on the site/domain.
I like the idea of an auction on the site itself but then would need help from someone who really knows the game, knows how to contact the right players and doesn't try to gouge me.

To me, 5% to 10% at most seems fair but anything over that seems silly. I might as well do it myself even if I get less.