Teen Domainer

The Benefits of Building Out Related Sites

TeenDomainer — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 16:13:12 +0000

Many of my domains that I choose to develop are about camping and outdoors related domains. I do this for a few various reasons.

The first is that I love camping and I therefore enjoy building out sites about my passions and I have no problems writing content or looking up information about my sites. I know all of the bigger websites in the area and also know what my visitors want to see. You can tell when you visit a website that is just put up by someone to make money and you can tell when you visit a website that has been made by someone who knows what the website is about. Yes my sites are built to make money, but they provide useful reviews that help people. I have built sites on topics I know nothing at all about too, and my top preforming sites are the ones I know the most about.

Another great thing about building sites in related areas is the interconnection you can do between them. On many of my sites I cross promote my other sites and drive traffic between all of the websites. Often people interested in one piece of camping gear might want to look at another item of gear. There is also a nice SEO benefit of being able to create back links from your sites to each other.

Lastly when you build sites in a network I keep an eye on other names that might drop or be for sale on the after market. For example I developed 3 seasontent .com last year and its is a steady revenue earner, earning on average around $10 a month. I saw that 4seasontent.com a much better name in terms of search volume and item selling price was set to expire and I was able to pick it up on snapnames. I am almost done with finishing up the site for 4seasontent.com and I can't wait to make it live. I already have a perfect place to get links and traffic from; My other related sites!

Building out sites in related areas that you have knowledge about has many benefits. Take something you are passionate about and throw up a few sites, you will enjoy doing it and the extra revenue they bring in!

Weekend Update

TeenDomainer — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 14:16:35 +0000

So much has been going on lately I just wanted to give everyone a short update on a few things going on with me.

- School just started again, Senior year which is very exciting but I feel that all I talk about is colleges and all of the stress that the application process entails. But it is nice to be back in school and see all of my friends, but I really did not miss the homework and test over summer!

- I am working on finishing up a batch of 10 new minisites. The previous 6 I made are now generating over $100 a month using EPN, adsense, and affiliate programs. I was able to pick up some related domain in the outdoor / camping are and a few other domains. I am very excited to see how the new sites do in the coming months. I want to finish them up by the end of the weekend.

- My Indian Domain eBook is almost done. I a working on the last few chapters and editing my writing. If you want to learn about the Indian Domain Market I would say my eBook would be a great place to start I can't wait to share it with you all.

- In the area of end user sales I am trying a few different things. Phone calls are working great for me now its just hard to find any time to call during hours because of school. I am also trying some things with ebay auctions and emails. I am also working on sending some physical letters soon to see how the response rate is.

- Cross Country season just started down here and I have been running twice almost every day and this week I ran 56 miles. Trying to break 16 in the 5K by the end of the year.

-I have ad spots open on the blog if anyone is interested the price can't be beat!

Have a great weekend! and as alway if you have any questions feel free to email me.

Greed Cost Me a $250 Domain Sale and 3025% Return on My Money

TeenDomainer — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 13:45:07 +0000

A week ago I hand registered a domain that I found while randomly surfing the web that I thought had some good potential end users. So the cost was a little less than $8 using a coupon code at godaddy.

I had not done anything with it untill yesterday when early in the morning I sent out 3 emails to businesses that I thought might have interest in the name. Two hours later I returned to my computer and I had no replies from the emails I sent out but there was an email from the Network Solutions Certified Offer System. I had never had any experience with the Network Solutions Certified Offer System so I googled it and quickly skimmed over the details.

In the email I had sent out listed an Buy It Now price for the domain for $350 which I thought was a fair price considering the number of possible end users. The email from Network Solutions Certified Offer System stated the offer was for $250. I thought about accepting the price which would have been a return of 3025% on my $8 investment, but I decided to counter with $325 and a few seconds later I got the dreaded email that states the buyer refuses your offer this negoiation is over.

Well I lost out but I learned a good lesson. For me there are plenty of names to sell for $250-$750 to small end users it is better to take the $250 then sit on a name for a few years waiting. Where else can you take $8 and turn it into $250 in less than a week?

Another note I did not love Network Solutions Certified Offer System I like to talk directly to the buyers but if they wanted to remain anonymous it is a good way to do so. And after they refused my $325 there is no way to go back and contact them.

Have a great weekend!

India Part II: A View from The Youth

TeenDomainer — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 16:00:59 +0000

In India I stayed with a host family in Delhi for only a few days and then I spent the rest of my time at the boarding school surrounded by youth or traveling with guys I met to their cities. In my month I spent with the kids who I would say were all members of the middle and upper class I realized some interesting things about their relationship with money, the internet, and technology in general.

First the phones, every guy I was with had a nice phone. In my previous article about India I mentioned how everyone even the servants had basic cell phones but these phone were not basic phones that they had. I saw as many iPhones, blackberries, android phones and other top phones as I see at home in Florida. They also do not have unlimited data plans like we do in the united states but they used the internet and facebook all the time from their phones. The number of mobile internet users in India is going to be huge, and there is a huge opportunity to do something with the market. The basic phones unlike the top end phones do not have full html internet browsers and they will need to view mobile sites to make the internet work well on their phones.

Internet use was also a big thing I noticed. At the school they limit the kids internet use and block most sites. (I had to get special permission to unblock gmail.) So when we got to go into the city and leave school we would head right for an internet cafe with computers for all that were unblocked. Everyone would go check facebook, and other sites that they could not open at school. They loved to look up cricket, and soccer (football) websites. Internet speed was good but not blazing fast but it was no problem loading most sites and downloading stuff.

As for other technology many of the kids had iPod touches and other various mp3 players. Many of them love American music and movies.

The big market in India right now is the upper and middle class because most of them attend school which is taught in English and the are exposed more to western culture and the internet. When these students become the leaders of India after being exposed to technology and the internet they will begin to use it more in their business and realize the importance of the world wide web.

I asked many guys about what they think the difference is between the .com and .in and .co.in and they said they are all equal in their eyes. The .com is still the most well known but in India the .in has gained mainstream recognition as the domain extension for India.

Again this is a perfect reason why Indian domain names I believe make a great long term investment. I hope you enjoyed this post, the Indian Domain Names eBook is almost done and I it will be given away for free on my blog thanks to sponsorship from Inforum.in

Learn From Your Domain Drops

TeenDomainer — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:04:17 +0000

The decision to drop domains or renew them is a common issue faced by every domainer. When it comes time for me to renew my names every year I have to look at my plans for the domain, if it is getting traffic or generating revenue and try and establish an overall estimate of its value to me and use in my domain portfolio.

When I do decide to drop a domain I often check back on some of the ones that I debated the most over to see what happens to them. If a domain goes to auction or is picked up by someone else I try and learn from that and next time I will maybe not drop a similar domain name.

For example I owned the domain outdoorsecuritylight.com and let it expire a few months back. I see now that it has been picked up and is on the Epic platform. Other of my domains have also been picked up and developed, but most still are available to register. Many of the first domains I purchased I dropped because like many first time domainers I really did not know what I was doing and I registered all sorts of domains that I look back and laugh on now.

I am always tying to learn more about domaining and become better at it. Looking at what happens to a domain when you decide to drop it is a great way to evaluate the decision you made.

Anyone have any good domain drop stories?

Parking is Not Only About Pennies Per Click

TeenDomainer — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 11:32:41 +0000

On various forums and blogs I often read that "Parking is Dead" and that people are only earning a few pennies. While revenue might be down, parking for me is not only about the money it has more important uses.

The domain parking service I use most is Parked.com its simple, and the service is great. They also payout by papal when you get $20.00 in your account. When I first buy a domain I change the name servers to my parked account and let it sit for a few months. On all of my parked domains there is a contact forum so that people know that the domain is for sale.

After a few months I check back and often I am surprised by the traffic and revenue that my domains generate. Last month I got over my $20 payment limit and was just paid by Parked. Now that's not much, but for only a few domains it pays for some more renewals, but parking has two much more useful purposes for me.

First

The revenue and visitor stats that I get from the parking websites show me which domain I want to develop. If a domain is getting type in traffic and people are clicking on a parking page imagine if it was a real helpful website. I recently took a domain of mine that earned $1.13 the month before on parking and I threw up a wordpress site with 4 articles and Adsense and EPN ads. Last month the same domain that earned $1.13 parked now earned $12.58 with Adsense and $16.35 with eBay Network ads. That is $28.93 on a site that took an hour to create and now it earns almost $30 a month. Without parking the domain first I would have not know that it was perfect for development. It now ranks top 3 in Google and the traffic and revenue continue to grow.

Second

Parking my domains allows end users and general visitors to know the domain is for sale. I have sold 2 domains and had many offers just from the little contact sheet on the parked domain that says "this domain may be for sale click here to contact us." It makes no sense not to park your unused domains you have nothing to loose and lots to gain by signing up for an account at one of the many parking providers and moving over your names. Collecting stats and end user sales are two great reasons to park your domains regardless of the "pennies" they may earn.

Indian Domain Market Part 1: An Overview

TeenDomainer — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:40:14 +0000

To try and describe India and its domain market in 1 post would be impossible. In this post I am going to try and give some general information about India and also some of my big picture thoughts and observations.

India is a land of vast extremes on both ends of the spectrum. Their tourism ads say "Incredible India" and it truly is. The best way I can describe it is with a scene I saw on the way to visit a Hindu mountain temple. There was a BMW and a farmer on his cow drawn cart with his goods both stuck in traffic because of the elephants up ahead blocking the roadway. There is immense wealth brought in by the IT sector and also tourism and large businesses and there is also vast poverty in India. Some parts of India are poorer than subsarhan Africa and this was easily visible on the sides of roads and trash filled alleys.

Stats about India

A population of 1.18 Billion people making it the 2nd largest behind China, it is also the 7th largest country by land mass. The official languages are English and Hindi but many local languages are also spoken, the more educated wealthy Indians seemed to speak English better and more frequently then members of the lower class. Almost all of the domain names that I saw were in English even if the ad was in Hindi the domain would still be in English. 42% of people live below the poverty line, but India with its 5.8% GDP has had one of the fastest growing economies in the world. On average the average income per person in India is less than $2,500 per year.

Now about the internet. Overall India's infrastructure is still developing but in the major cities I found the internet coverage to be great. In Delhi the speed was fast and when I went to stay at the school and on trips I had a USB data card which had decent speed. India's mobile market has started massive price wars so everyone has a cell phone at a super cheap price over 50% of people in India have phones meaning 601.22 million people and the number is growing fast. In 2009 178.25 million new cell phones were added. These phone companie have also made data cards affordable to many people which will increase internet coverage in rural areas where many people still live and are not connected to the web.

India has the 4th largest number of internet users in the world, but still the usage in rural areas is very low and the overall usage compared with the population is lower than the rest of the world.

So from most of this information there is huge potential in the Indian domain market especially with large companies moving into the market and the large number of people, but the poverty, corruption, government, and other factors hold down the current values and markets for the names.

On to domains; I was looking at many advertisements to see which domain extensions and what domains were used. Dot Com was the most used domain extension, but not by much (exact stats and many more number to come in later post and the ebook.) Dot In was next and the numbers were not very far off from the dot com numbers. The .in domain extension has been accepted by the people of India as their domain extension which is the total opposite scenario that what has happened with the .us in America. The .in is not considered second tire to the .com; it is a alternative that is on the same level' which is great news for the .in investor. Dot .Co.in was next, but compared with the .in the usage was small, it only seemed that big international companies were using them which was very interesting to see. Some examples of this were Dell.co.in, Hyundai.co.in, and Nokia.co.in. Someone needs to educate them on using the domains that the people in a country use. Maybe they should read my blog

Also on many ads I did not see domain names at all which surprised me at first. In the US in most ads there is a domain name somewhere, but in India I would say less than half had domains especally when one looks at signs and billboards that littered the streets and cities. After spending time in the country I realized that some of the companies products were not targeted towards the internet using population they were aimed at the lower class citizens. As time goes on the lower class will have easier access to the internet and thus these companies will begin to use websites. Another reason for domains not being featured on ads was that unlike in America there is a lack of major brand name stores that control cities and small townships. In India many of the cities are filled with family owned hotels, stores, street stalls, repair shops, ect.... These mom and pop shops as we call them have not fully embraced the internet yet and may not see the need too, yet. Like anything though as more customers get online the stores too will have to follow.

There are a few markets I see that have potential right now. Education, travel, health, high end merchants, and mobile internet. Education because every other sign is for a college or some sort of education instution. People in India take huge pride in education and the companies because they have to target the younger more web savvy generation are using domains now. Travel because people in record numbers are going to India, its a great destination people speak English and its very cheap. Health and healthcare because India has some of the best healthcare centers in the world and people come from all over to utilize the doctors and hospitals. Lastly mobile because the phones used in India do not have full html web browsers like the iphone or my droid phone so mobile websites could be a big hit.

More about the younger generation, India is a very young country and the youth that I spent time with were very connected with the internet much more than the adults. Every time we went out in the city they would go to a computer cafe where everyone could go surf the net. As this generation grows older they will become the leaders and store owners and they will bring with them their knowledge of the internet and many I believe will try to utilize it to their advantage.

Right now at 101domain .in and .co.in domains are only $3.99 and at godaddy they are 7.99 which is less than .com domains. There are no requirements for a presence in the country. If you decide to invest in them be careful about words that are different they speak English, but use some words differently Indian English is more British than American usage from what I saw with words like centre being used. Also remember the reseller market for .in domains right now is very poor and even the end user market is bad. If you sell to a person in India they earn in the rupee which is around 50 to 1 with the US dollar and you are not going to get a huge payday from many people just because the market is not established. Investments in the Indian domain market are long term from most right now. There are still great domain for reg fee or to be picked up on the aftermarket.

This is the first post of a series I am going to do over the next week and the I am going to give away a free eBook that goes into much greater detail. Please I would love any feedback good and bad about part 1 of many.

What to Do When an End User Stops Responding

TeenDomainer — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 12:19:50 +0000

End user sales are a big part of domaining, they are normally the most lucrative, but they also take the most work to pull off. With my domain sales I often try and be proactive and contact the end useres either by email or by phone to sell domains.

End users are often busy business men and women so many time even after getting the initial reply of interest in a domain they stop responding for whatever reason. When an end user does not respond to my email I normally give them a week or so depending on how the contact has gone up to that point. If they seem super eager to buy the domain and have been responding to emails within a day I will give them less time that someone who has responded after 5 or 6 days.

After giving them time to respond without response I will then send another email or call them asking if they are still interested in buying the domain. Often times the email was just mistakenly missed because of other work. If they still do not respond after this if the negotiations were a little ways down the line I might add that I am going to be listing and trying to sell the name to other businesses if I do not hear from you within x days.

Then if there is still no response maybe the business changed hands or something else happened I have no problem sending them another email after a few months have passed about the domain. One of my favorite tactics if the end user does not answer an email is to give them a call. This shows them you are serious and can help close the deal faster.
End user sales are a tricky art to master, and in no way have I even come close to getting it perfect. Every day brings a new scenario and a new learning adventure.

Late Update from India and My Initial Thoughts

TeenDomainer — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 15:46:50 +0000

India has been an incredible experience for me to say the least, the month I spent here has been amazing in so many different ways. The style of living, learning, and basically is different than at home in the US, so it provided a great opportunity to learn. The school I attended was loads of fun and the guys were all supper nice. It was very remote and a spartan strict kind of school so I did not have the chance to update the blog as I would have liked but I still got loads of information about the Indian domain market.

I was able to sample the ads in over 25 different newspapers, magazines, handouts and such. I also looked at many road sign ads (I had lots of long car rides) and also I got to watch a little tv and saw a few ads.

Overall without any number stats or interviews right now to back me up .com is still the most used in the ads I recorded (print ads newspapers and magazines) and also from what I observed and talked to students about but the .in is a very close second and is very widely accepted and is not considered a second rate extension to the .com. .In was used much more in ads than the .co.in but it was funny to see many larger international brands using the .co.in when most of the smaller Indian brands were mostly using the .in. .Org and .net even made a decent showing and some more extensions showed up to my surprise and delight.

I have decided I am going to do a few post about my case studies and interviews and observations and then write an ebook which I have started and it should turn out to be over 20 pages of solid information. Overall I like the Indian domain market for longer term investments. End user sales are still small and resale value is not great but there are some new developments in India (Gambling look at the news?) that I think will change that. It is a good time to buy!

I want to update this blog much more and it just did not work out to update it when I was in India but you can expect more post from me in the weeks to come. If anyone has any questions they want answered in the ebook or in a post about India please comment and I will respond the best that I can.

Off to India and My Plans for a Report On the Indian Domain Market

TeenDomainer — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 16:53:33 +0000

Right now I am in the airport waiting for my flight to New Deli, India. For the next 5 weeks I will be studying at a school called Mayo College in Rajasthan India a few hours south of Deli. This is part of an exchange program at my school and I will be the first America to attend Mayo. It is a traditional English boarding school founded over 120 years ago. I am really excited to learn about the culture and see India, I am also going to be doing many little trips while I am in the country.

As part of my trip I plan on giving a first hand report on the Indian domain and internet ecosystem. What is used more .co.in or .in? Are many people and businesses online yet or is the boom still to come? Do they know about .us and other cctld’s? Is the .com still king in India? What are the most popular websites? Ect.. I know I will think of more questions and if you have any questions about the Indian domain market please post them and I will try and find the answer.

I am going to be doing video and written interviews with my classmates and other people, I think the students will give a great perspective because they are the future of India. India is a very young and smart country and the newest generation is connected to the internet just like America’s present youth so if they use the .co.in or .in that will make a big difference in the future use of these domains and their value to invertors.

I have not really decided how I am going to do this yet I am thinking in a long series of blog post or even a little free ebook. Again if you have any questions you would like answered about the Indian domain market I would be glad to try and find the answer as this will be a huge learning experience for me. I would love to hear all feedback.