With an exchange price of $3,074.45, mattressesmelbourne.com.au was our highest selling domain from the last fortnight. The name was secured by a domain investment company, who also scooped up one of the other names to feature on our list. The name is likely to appeal to end users who are involved within the retailing of mattresses. Thus, with a target keyword included in its name, as well as a geographically pointed domain, the domain could attract notable web traffic if aligned with an SEO optimised website.

Skipping down the list for a moment, and it’s easy to see why the same owner opted for melbournemattresses.com.au. This name was acquired for the slightly lower value of $2,249.45, however, the owner is well positioned in that they are able to offer the two domains as a bundle to prospective end users. As with the aforementioned name, this one will service a targeted market, and captures traffic from an alternative search flow.

Slotting in between these two names was the acronym domain bnb.com.au. The name was secured for the modest value of $2,425.45. Considering the surge of activity for P2P accommodation provider AirBnB, this name could look to leverage the increasing trend towards bed and breakfast accommodation options. Alternatively, the name could appeal to those who intend to use it as an acronym for their business and make their website easier to find for customers. Accordingly, there would certainly be a lot of keen eyes monitoring this name if it were to be on-sold in the future.

Another acronym caught the attention a high profile client, with lnp.com.au registered for $1,897.45. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the new holder of the name is the Liberal National Party. Given they already own the .org equivalent, naturally this was the next step for the party to protect its branding. Currently, with a .org domain, some web users may have difficulty finding the site because the TLD is generally less known about. Thus, capturing an additional TLD will help capture an abundance of previously ‘lost’ web traffic.

Our fifth and final name is retainingwalls.com.au, which was the subject of a transaction worth $1,040.55. Securing the name was a related business, Earthworks.com.au Pty Ltd. Given the similar aspects these two names share within the same industry, it is foreseeable that the name could be used as either a replacement or supplementary service for the company. With the value of the name driven by its informative keywords, users who search for retaining walls are likely to see this domain as one of the leading search results – provided the new registrant capitalises on the name with strong SEO.

That’s it for this occasion, stay tuned for the latest updates in our next post.

Best wishes,
The Netfleet Team

http://www.netfleet.com.au

Portfolio Management

Like with any investment, domainers often consider spreading their risk across a diverse range of holdings. In this particular context, that means several domain names. While some consider a portfolio comprising exclusively of short domains (which are generally valued dearer) as desirable, the reality is, some domainers find value in also holding keyword oriented domains (e.g. geographic locations combined with services) and international domains to ‘balance’ their portfolio.

With that said, some domainers try to capture lots of  domain names rather than focusing on acquiring good ones which retain their value. Although smaller, cheaper purchases tend to assist domainers with their initial cashflow position, there is a risk that these domains are not favoured by others. In these instances, domainers are forced to either, write off the domain, or pay ongoing registration fees which add up across an entire portfolio.

Cash Flow

As we detailed in our last educational article, flipping domains within a short timeframe (for a profit) is not as easy as it once was. Domainers often sit on a particular domain for a lengthy period of time before selling their name. In the meantime, some elect to monetise their domains by parking them and displaying advertisements.

However, relying exclusively on domains to generate sufficient working capital is easier said than done – this sort of success is usually reserved for domainers who hold a high quality and large portfolio. Making a living from domain name investing is certainly the exception rather than the norm, and even then, many domainers only use the capital they can afford to tie up, or in a worst-case scenario, lose.

Know Who You’re Selling To

While high quality domains are more likely to sell themselves, for most domain investments domainers try to identify who they will sell their domain to – that is, another investor, or an end user.

In the case of an end user, domainers often try to foresee how the domain (including any keywords) might contribute towards the end user’s business, and what impact (if any) there might be if they are unable to attain this – for instance, a competitor gaining an advantage, or lost web traffic.

Another aspect considered by domainers is the likelihood of any preference a buyer may have towards a particular TLD. A business owner who is second to market might be open to acquiring a .net.au domain, however, a domainer may be privy to the lower liquidity level often associated with the .net.au TLD. Domainers who understand future trends and their potential customers often positions them well at the negotiating table.

That’s it for this occasion, stay tuned for our next educational article. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Best wishes,
The Netfleet Team

http://www.netfleet.com.au

This information on this website is for general information purposes only. It is not intended as financial or investment advice and should not be construed or relied on as such. Before making any commitment of a financial nature you should seek advice from a qualified and registered financial or investment adviser. No material contained within this website should be construed or relied upon as providing recommendations in relation to any financial product.

It should come as no surprise that few people, if any, visit www.google.net.au or www.facebook.net.au. After all, .net.au domains are often perceived as playing second fiddle to .com.au in Australia. Not only are web users less receptive towards them, people are typically less likely to remember or click on them. Whereas a good .com.au domain exudes authority and credibility to prospective customers, a .net.au domain suggests the website is unlikely to be the leader in their field, and may be a late entrant.

More importantly, if you use a .net.au domain to run your website, you are likely to leak traffic and potential customers. The extent depends on your industry and how you use your website, however, such a choice will have a significant impact on any offline marketing that you do – whether it be word-of-mouth, print, or radio. Tell 100 Australians to go to www.yoursite.net.au and 15-20 of them will go to www.yoursite.com.au. That’s 15-20% of potential customers not finding you but even worse, they may be going to a competitor instead!

Then there’s email – how many emails are you likely to miss because people make the mistake of typing .com.au out of habit? It’s unlikely you’d ever know the number but you can bet it happens – a lot!

Running a site exclusively with a .net.au domain can cost you opportunities year in, year out. Of course, having strong keywords in the title, or optimising your SEO, can mitigate these losses. However, even then, it’s like owning a great shopfront but you’ve leased a property out the back of Bourke! Therefore, should you have a personal preference for .net.au, run with that by all means – but at the very least, make sure you also acquire the .com.au equivalent and point it at your existing website.

The same can also be said for .com domains, particularly if you are operating a site that is targeting audiences outside of Australia. By capturing the major TLD variants, this will help you establish a unique and unified brand. Users searching for your website via Google, or looking for your presence on social media, are less likely to be confused, and more likely to remember you.

In terms of less common TLDs, these are typically restricted to niche users, including: .org.au for non-commercial businesses, associations, unions, and sporting clubs; .gov.au for government bodies; and .edu.au for educational providers. Meanwhile, localised domains, such as .melbourne or .sydney, have had little traction in gaining popularity thus far, and have their own difficulties because most users are unfamiliar with them.

Given the ease of redirecting multiple names or TLDs to the one site, there’s really no reason why you shouldn’t seek to protect your brand. And in today’s day and age, where premium names are becoming increasingly scarce, you have every reason to do so.

That’s it for this occasion, stay tuned for the next of our educational articles, where we’ll cover the importance of domain pointing.

Best wishes,
The Netfleet Team

http://www.netfleet.com.au