Think of Internet domain names as property, and one begins to understand what a “Monetizing Domain” seminar covers. A domain name is considered “intellectual property” in cyberspace, and it is as unique as a piece of prime real estate in the physical world—no two people can separately own the same domain name at the same time.
The seminar, which was moderated by Moniker.com Chief Executive Officer Monte Cahn, focused on considering domain names as a marketable commodity, as intellectual property that can be sold, traded, or leased for a fee. As long as it generates user traffic, each domain name has economic value, and many companies will pay fees or a percentage of sales to individuals who own certain advantageous domain names.
“Domain names are considered assets” that can account for almost “15 to 20 percent of all Google traffic,” Cahn said.
To give an idea of a domain’s worth, panelist Rick Schwartz—president of eRealEstate.com—mentioned he “bought Porn.com in 1997 for $47,000.” At the time, people thought his buy was foolhardy; however, within that first year “the website generated almost a million dollars,” Schwartz said.
Earning big money like Schwartz is not the only way to become successful. Panelist Sevan Derderian, senior account manager for DomainSponsor.com, said, “We create wealth of $20 to $30 per day” for clients who buy less-valuable domain names.
“The No. 1 thing I do is buy domains at a good price,” offered panelist Eric Rice, a domain consultant who owns Media LLC.
GEC Media founder and President Gregory Dumas established Hustler.com for Larry Flynt, but, like his fellow panelists, he moved away from creating content. Dumas said he now believes “the domain business is a better business than the content business,” because there is more opportunity. “[I’ve] never seen an easier business to get into,” he said.
Some of the issues that apply to website owners who develop content also affect website real estate investors. Concepts such as “traffic” or “conversion rates” apply to domain names—but they are predicted based solely on the domain’s name’s inherent value. A basic question one should ask oneself when choosing to buy or register a domain name is “What kind of user interest will this specific domain name generate?”
Schwartz advised to stick with purchasing “dot-com names” because that is where the traffic is. “Dot-com is king—don’t kid yourself,” said Schwartz. Other panelists concurred, citing that buying the same domain name in dot-net may generate up to 25 percent more traffic. Derderian added to “cover the bases, register dot-net and dot-org as well.”
Panelists also suggested registering common misspellings of words in order to pick up additional traffic.
