Reselling domain names can be a very profitable experience. I stumbled upon this little known money maker a few years ago when deciding to sell off my first domain. I knew that I would not have the time to develop it, so I listed it at eBay for a starting bid of $9.00. (I figured I could at least make my money back from it!) I hardly did any prep work. I did open up my Paint Shop Pro program and create a simple logo for the site, and included the logo in the auction description. Creating the logo took about 10 minutes, and another 10 minutes for the auction description.
I listed it as a 5 day auction. The first few days went by with no bids. The fourth day my starting bid was met. (Remember, I went into this NOT trying to profit.) I figured I would wake up the next day with the $9.00 in my Paypal account and I would start the domain transfer. Well, to my surprise, I awoke to a BIDDING FRENZY and the final bid at OVER $160.00! All for a simple domain name! I half expected to not receive payment, but the winning bidder happily zipped over the $163.00 payment via Paypal, which thus started my new money-making (obsession?) venture.
Now, I can't promise you a profit pull of that much, but it IS possible to take one domain name and turn it into easy cash.
First, choose your domain wisely. I focus on mainly mom-based domains, but there are HUNDREDS of topics you can think of. Think of your own interests, hobbies, etc. I try not to choose domains with numbers or hyphens, although sometimes I do when it makes sense to (i.e. mom-to-be.com). I normally only buy .com domains, because these are worth much more.
Secondly, get yourself a free or low cost photo editing software. I use Paint Shop Pro, which costs about $70, but you can get yourself a free trial at www.jasc.com. There's plenty of other software that's just as good and free; just do a Google search. Get familiar with the software. Spend time making sample images, banners, and logos.
Write a catchy auction ad! Be sure to include possible uses for the domain name. I've found this to increase the bids by up to 200%!
Post the domain sale on relevant message boards or discussion lists. Notice that I said "relevant". Do NOT spam your ad, or you'll find yourself unwelcome when returning. Read up on "ad posting days", or dig around to find a forum where it's okay to post your sale. You can also post a short blurb about your domain for sale in your "Signature File" and post useful messages. (Useful!)
Remember that it's almost pure profit, so don't be afraid to start your bid price low (if you're auctioning off your domain). You can get a GoDaddy domain for $9.20 (or even lower; check my domain page for the newest coupons I've found). Starting your auction at $14.00 won't break you, and chances are (as long as you found yourself a pretty good domain name), a few bidders will raise that price pretty quickly.
If you're outright "selling" your domain name, pick a fair price. Trying to get $1,000 for my-pickle-farming-biz.com seems a little crazy, right? Believe it or not, there are sellers who actually start at such a crazy starting bid! (And FYI, I just made up that domain. I sure hope it's not a real one!) What would YOU pay for your domain? Factor that in when deciding on a fair price.
That's all of my domain selling tips for now!
For more hints on domain name selling, be sure to visit my domain selling section at MomCash.com I've sold literally dozens and dozens of excellent domains, and have many more priceless tips to share!
Related Articles
- Buying and Selling Domain Names for ProfitBuying and selling domain names for profit is something that many people are figuring out can be done and can even be quite fun when approached in the right way.
- Simple DesignSimple web design delivers huge benefits to designer, client and user. When a design doesnt seem to work, ask what should be taken away before asking whats missing.
- Choosing a Domain Parking ServiceDomain parking has become quite popular because it allows people to buy domains that they do not have content for, but still profit from them. Then, if the domain is successful, one can expect to sell the domain for 6-96 months worth of revenue!
- Focus On A Well-Defined Niche Market For Greater SuccessYou should now have a good idea as to why Niche Content Sites are the way to go.
- Javascript ClockThis will create a nice JS clock. You can change the color of it too.
- Minutes AgoGrab minutes ago with unix time.
- Web Hosting in 2005There is no doubt that this year was a good year for the wild and wacky world of Web hosting. Due the popularity of blogs and many other factors, it would seem that everybody and their grandmother has a Web hosting account these days...
- Pay Per Click AdvertisingAdvertising your services or products on the Internet is both extremely effective and extremely competitive. There are several ways to go about attracting traffic to your website; Pay-Per-Click is one of the options you can choose from, along with developing an SEO, or search engine optimization cam...
- Pay-Per-Click Advertising - The BasicsSearch engine optimization can take a long time to show results. The Google sandbox alone can delay optimization results by 6 to 8 months. So, what can you do to get traffic while you wait? Pay-per-click [PPC] campaigns fill the time gap. This article discusses the basics of PPC advertising...
- How Your Website Will Get Better Ranking through SEO CompanyIf you are someone who intends to endeavor into an online business to make more money, website promotion is an important element to deal with....