So you own a few domains and have come across Netfleet? However, you haven’t planned on selling your domains so there’s no point in listing… or is there?
1) Every domain is for sale…. at a price! Even if you didn’t have the slightest intention of selling your domain, if the right buyer came long you might be persuaded. If you value a domain at $1,000 and someone comes along and offers you $10,000, would you sell? You could potentially replace that domain for your original valuation of $1,000 (on this very site, perhaps) and be a clear $9,000 ahead. And if you think “No one’s going to offer me $10K for that name” then think again. Domain valuation is a very subjective area and one man’s trash can be another’s treasure. One thing is for sure, if you don’t let buyers know it’s for sale by listing it, you’re many times less likely to receive that offer.
2) If the domain is parked, unresolved or generally languishing, let someone else have a go! If you’ve run out of time, money or enthusiasm then don’t let the domain go to waste but accept a reasonable return and sell it to someone who will do it justice. An attitude like this can help improve the overall webspace for everyone.
3) Do it for the industry! Most people involved with the internet would like to see an active market in Australian domain trading. More sales will help raise the profile of the industry which will in turn steadily increase the value of our assets. The first step to a sale is listing.
4) Do it for cash flow. If you are a domainer for investment’s sake don’t hang on to all your domains because you’re chasing that distant 5-figure sum that you’re sure will come along one day. Honest truth is it might never come and even if it did, what income could be generated by selling the domains for a lesser (but still reasonable price) years earlier, reinvesting that money in another domain, selling that domain, reinvesting that money… you get the picture. Properly done, each transaction releases a profit which in total may be much bigger than that distant speculative target set years earlier.
5) Reduce risk. As we’ve seen in the share market, all asset classes carry some sort of risk. You could lose the domain via a formal domain dispute (whether fair or unfair), you could simply forget to renew it, your registrar could go bust, auDA may delete it from you without notice or release a new series of extensions (.aus, .co.au, .au (direct)) diluting all existing domain values. These scenarios are all probably very unlikely but they could happen and have happened elsewhere.
And two reasons not to
1) You have registered the domain less than 6 month’s ago. Whilst it could and has been successfully argued to the contrary, listing the domain within this time period could be taken by auDA as an indication that you “…registered the domain for the sole purpose of resale…” which is against policy. And you can’t transfer it within this time period anyway so there’s no point listing it anyway.
2) You are not prepared to go through with the sale following acceptance of a buyer’s offer. Just like on eBay, non-paying bidders and non-completing sellers ruin it for everyone. They will also be dealt with ruthlessly.
Happy trading,
The Netfleet Team
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