10 replies to this topic

[ImVickieB]

Hi Everyone

I am not sure if this is a place to post this so feel free to move to the correct forum if needed.

This is our current dilemma:

We have a domain name which is in use, but makes us no money at all. It is not a site which we do anything with either. It was sort of a value added service that we never expanded upon.

A lawyer contacted us about two months ago asking us if we were interested in selling the name. Well, if the price is right, we are interested

We wanted to him to make an offer on the name and we didn't hear from him again on the matter. Today, he contacted us today saying that his client is still very interested but they want US to name a price.

Are there reputable reliable domain name valuation services out there? I read an article on SitePoint about the various services out there and the experiment they did netted valuations ranging from $200 - 160,000!

I want to make it fair on all sides of the equation but don't want to give the domain away for pennies.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
Vickie

[OldWelshGuy]

Hi Vickie, I would do the research. In business the market value of a product is whatever the market allows to be the maximum paid. So I would check out the company (if you know them) check out the marketplace that the domain is going to be used in, and set the price from there.

OR you could just say that you want $5,000 (or whatever) and be damned.

[ImVickieB]

Thanks for the feedback OWG.

Unfortunately, we don't know who the client is.

We do know they have enough funds to hire a law firm to do their business for them though (Unless they are relatives which is highly possible)

We have a feeling that the domain will be used for email marketing. The domain name is great for this purpose and the demographic of parents is pretty broad

I don't have much to go on to do the research I don't think. I know, if done the right way, email marketing can be a huge money maker though.

We are leaning towards getting a professional domain name evaluation done but aren't sure who is to be trusted to give realistic evaluations.

Vickie

[Martin C]

I think I would either tell them - 'No' we are not interested and see if they come back with an offer; or as OWG suggested - just ask for $5,000. You could spend a lot of time and effort coming up with a value only to find that they aren't that serious after all. The value is only what someone is going to pay for it so even if someone tells you it is worth $10,000 it's only worth that if someone wants it and is prepared to pay for it.

[rohgan03]

I think I would either tell them - 'No' we are not interested and see if they come back with an offer

That sounds risky. I'll go OWG suggestion of 5k

[madams]

Firstly, the domain name is obviously important to the company that wants to buy it.

The fact that they send a lawyer to nagotiate, in my mind puts a higher price on the name.

The lawyer, by not contacting you for a while is trying to put pressure on you to sell.

I would turn the tables on them. Next time he contacts you, tell him you have had a firm offer from another source. don't tell him the price, of course. He will have to go back to the company and report, thus possibly pushing them into the position you feel your in.

If they are serious, and I guess they are, they will be banging on your door.
You can then play the price game.

Forget being "fair to all sides" - You have something they want and the fair price is the most you can get or they will pay.

Incidently, how much is the lawyer getting per hour for his time?

Good luck

[sellinbiz]

Try the appraisals section of Namepros.com, Domainstate.com, and DNforum.com. There are a lot of experienced domain sellers who would be happy to weigh in. Let them know you have been contacted by someone who wants the name. That's a big plus.

[Jill]

I would turn the tables on them. Next time he contacts you, tell him you have had a firm offer from another source. don't tell him the price, of course. He will have to go back to the company and report, thus possibly pushing them into the position you feel your in.

I don't think lying is really a good business tactic, imo.

Jill

[madams]

I don't think lying is really a good business tactic, imo. Jill

OK

I´ll offer ImVickieB 50 Euros for the domain name.


Now she can say with her hand on her heart she´s had a firm offer.

How´s that...

[profitability]

I have purchased and sold several domains. Usually it is easy to spot "positioning" tactics such as "there is another offer on the table" ...

I think any average company that sends an attorney to negotiate would pay $5K to $20K for a domain if it is a decent multiword name. You can always decrease your price so set a clear starting point and then set your low price before starting the negotiation--this tends to keep emotion out of the process. If they balk at a large purchase price upfront offer to lease it to them over 5 years with a buyout at the end. If you lease --make sure you retain full control of the domain ownership and contacts and get your attorney involved to draft or review the agreement.

Regards,

Aaron

[ImVickieB]

Thanks for all the thoughts and suggestions.

I have sent the attorney an short and sweet email with a proposed price and we will see where it goes from there. If they balk we will just keep it ourselves and hope that we will have time in the future to learn more about email marketing and have time to create a website that will bring in a decent income. I know it's possible, we just don't have time to do it right now with the work load we currently have

I'll keep ya'll informed of how things go!

Regards,
Vickie