DomainState closing shop

[Theo]

for now it`s working perfectly: everybody is talking about it.

The difference is, when facts and figures come out along with the "we are sad to announce the sale" statement, analysis kicks in. There is nothing wrong with selling any business, whether it's successful or not. However, it does affect the sales price based on the actual value of the item for sale.

Again, I wonder whether they secured a buyer prior to making the announcement; from a marketing standpoint the announcement itself contains rather negative overtones and appeals only to the hobbyists and the crowd that currently frequents the forum. But that's not how you approach a business sale.

 

[denny007]

Agree with Acro

As for value it has now - maybe $20K or so

 

[katherine]

the lack of any visual change or improvement

The layout & color theme is a real putoff indeed
Forums die when left on autopilot. Even when you have a very active member base you still need direction.

Not sure about the value. I need details of demographics and traffic stats. Or willing to pay 18 months of revenue

 

[italiandragon]

The layout & color theme is a real putoff indeed
Forums die when left on autopilot. Even when you have a very active member base you still need direction.

Not sure about the value. I need details of demographics and traffic stats. Or willing to pay 18 months of revenue

revenue on a domainer forum?

Good luck.

 

[think]

The difference is, when facts and figures come out along with the "we are sad to announce the sale" statement, analysis kicks in. There is nothing wrong with selling any business, whether it's successful or not. However, it does affect the sales price based on the actual value of the item for sale.

Again, I wonder whether they secured a buyer prior to making the announcement; from a marketing standpoint the announcement itself contains rather negative overtones and appeals only to the hobbyists and the crowd that currently frequents the forum. But that's not how you approach a business sale.

Perhaps it's like selling a cottage by the lake where you use to spend all your free time and invite your friends and family. But now you have too much going on in your life and you no longer have time to do all the maintenance and upkeep. The sale price is important but it has been a big part of your life so now it is also important as to how the cottage will be kept up and used by the new owner...

 

[TheLegendaryJP]

As mentioned, if it wasnt already full of dnf/np users then it has real $$$$$$ value to say Adam, otherwise there is likely no up side to Adam buying it.

As for value, to someone with a vision and plan to build and own a domain forum, restructure/design and have thousands of members already.. I dunno but imagine 5 figures.

 

[A D]

As mentioned, if it wasnt already full of dnf/np users then it has real $$$$$$ value to say Adam, otherwise there is likely no up side to Adam buying it.

As for value, to someone with a vision and plan to build and own a domain forum, restructure/design and have thousands of members already.. I dunno but imagine 5 figures.

I have asked for a ballpark price, no response as of yet.

-=DCG=-

 

[oldtimer]

I like reading all the major forums, each one has it’s own character and atmosphere and that’s what makes them interesting, it’s always sad to see a domain related business call it quits as that reflects on the whole industry.

-

 

[italiandragon]

I like reading all the major forums, each one has it’s own character and atmosphere and that’s what makes them interesting, it’s always sad to see a domain related business call it quits as that reflects on the whole industry.

-

I don`t!

Ideally it would be fantastic to have only 1 forum but I know this is not going to happen.

Between normal domains, ccTlds, IDNs , etc. etc.

I already have to read about 10 forums, 20 blogs and a million news...

I am dreaming all domain forums to merge in a big one only.


(in the mean time my RSS feeder says "Leisure.com" sold for peanuts...$150,000 )

 

[oldtimer]

I don`t!

Ideally it would be fantastic to have only 1 forum but I know this is not going to happen.

Between normal domains, ccTlds, IDNs , etc. etc.

I already have to read about 10 forums, 20 blogs and a million news...

I am dreaming all domain forums to merge in a big one only.

I hope that others don’t think like that.

When there is no competition in this or any other industry then we will lose our freedom of choice.

-

 

[FormerDnForumer]

So those who were banned over at DomainState please stand up. LOL!

It's funny: There was a time when a bunch of us said the same thing about being banned from Rick's board, and that included some pretty successful domainers: Sys (Paul C.), GregR, GeorgeK, and so on. We always felt that being banned from that clown's board meant you weren't drinking the Kool Aid and Ego Juice that Rick has served up for 100 years.

But I have noticed, almost to a person, that the people that have been banned from DomainState had it coming, not because they challenged authority as they would like you to believe, but because they were morons, plain and simple. I look at this thread and I know at least three that fit in that category. (I've had my moron days, so I'm not judging

The thing about DomainState that most people don't seem to realize is that lurking in all those great threads is the absolute top of the business, either idea-wise or money-wise. Most people at the higher level love that place because it doesn't tolerate the endless juvenalia that goes on here and other places.

The domain business is now very organized. The high end boards are Rick's, maybe Donna's, and DomainState. The rest, including this one, are not where the heavy lifting is done, for lots of reasons. If you're a low-to-mid end flipper you'll love this place. But if you want the real juicy meat of high level domain thinking, DomainState has always been the place.

I agree that all forums have a role, including this one that I frequent often. But when I hear bullshit trash from people that were just banned from DS plain and simple, I have to speak up. Many, many times over the year lots of us have offered to pay membership fees or do something to make the place pay for itself. They ALWAYS refused, and refused to sacrifice the integrity of the place in any way. The clean, fast loading design was what most serious domainers wanted and were happy with. If you get off on smilies and flashing ads, well, you have different priorities than most.

I have had my own disagreements with the mods at DS over the years, even as they have been my friends for a decade, but in the end I always deferred to them, because they have a very deft touch and they are CONSISTENT.

The new DS may be better or worse, who knows. But it will be remembered at the best domain forum ever by many of us, plain and simple.

 

[Soofi]

FormerDNForumer, are you one of the admins over at DS that you are blowing your own trumpet??

 

[DNWizardX9]

Let the ship sink... Site used to be helpful back in the day...

 

[Theo]

I have no problems with being called a moron, Cameron, but then again I always speak the truth in the face of those that believe in enforcing a virtual dictatorship. Since I am the only one here with the balls to admit that I was banned at DomainState yonks ago, let me give you the reason: some schmuck made a derogatory comment in one of my sales threads and I put him in his place. Instead of attempting to resolve the issue by punishing the offender, the easy way out was to ban me. That incident was a continuation of similar events that happened in the early days of DNForum when it was controlled by Dan and the Three Amigos. The difference being, Dan was used by these three folks who attempted to lowball him as well (go read some DomainGang if you need the full scoop). Now, to equalize a free, non-exclusive forum such as DomainState to the one launched by Rick Schwartz, is a joke. My respect for DomainState was lost long before they failed to act with justice; I wasn't the first one axed as a participant and I wasn't the last. But who am I to argue with the triad of egos that ballooned to the moon. On the subject of monetization of a domain forum, some of you forget that Greg Ricks brought paid subscriptions to DNForum a short while after he bought it. I was, perhaps, the first member to exclaim that I am definitely buying my membership; Greg's reaction was something along the line of "if this won't convince you to be a paying member, nothing will". Therefore, Greg had a vision that others did not; the fact that DNForum is now the biggest and most serious domain community is partially due to the fact that it weeds out non professional troublemakers. Best of luck to the Three Amigos; selling out is the only option to make some money out of this. I only wonder how do the current users feel, being peddled around as "assets".

 

[FormerDnForumer]

Theo, I respect what you have done, but like me in the old days, you were not easy to deal with, and you often tested the boundaries of a board. The past is the past, I certainly wouldn't want to be judged by what I did or said five or ten years ago, but when you got turfed from DS most of us saw it coming, and didn't feel much outrage.

As to the rest of what you wrote, I don't agree with much of it, and I was around back then to actually see it, unlike 99% of the people who will read this thread.

I have never seen a banning at DS that didn't make sense to me, and I'm someone who also tests the boundaries of "free speech". Paul has warned me many times over the years, has also forced me to do things their ways, and I've never been pissed off by any of it, because it's just my own ego. Sound familiar?

 

[Theo]

I do remember the "old days", Cameron, and although it was a lesson in progress I never challenged justice when it was delivered; it's lack thereof that I have an issue with. The bone I'm picking is the false impression given by some that somehow DomainState was the paradise of all professionals, when in fact it was simply a sandbox for the 3 admins to spend their time on. To see the forum being offered as a business with potential when the numbers at Alexa etc. show the opposite sounds to me as an obvious attempt to get rid of a lame horse before it dies.

 

[FormerDnForumer]

I do remember the "old days", Cameron, and although it was a lesson in progress I never challenged justice when it was delivered; it's lack thereof that I have an issue with. The bone I'm picking is the false impression given by some that somehow DomainState was the paradise of all professionals, when in fact it was simply a sandbox for the 3 admins to spend their time on. To see the forum being offered as a business with potential when the numbers at Alexa etc. show the opposite sounds to me as an obvious attempt to get rid of a lame horse before it dies.

But you are not impartial, given you were banned, and you don't like them. I mean, c'mon.

I had been on that board for some time before I realize how many heavyweights were floating about, and I mean heavyweights. Most never post, but use the PM to float big money back-and-forth. Paul C. is very deeply connected to every bigtime domainer, and I have told him about dozens of big deals while they were in progress (often asking his advice) and I never had to worry about him keeping the lid closed. I've heard the same thing from people like Frank Schilling, Steve Sacks and half a dozen other guys. There's so much wisdom spread between those three mods it's amazing.

It's too bad you can't see that. You can only see personality issues, which in the end just don't matter.

 

[Theo]

Actually, I am very impartial. The fact that I am speaking out, is due the directness of my character. I call it as it is, not as I see it. Now, you want to sugarcoat the sales pitch or to attempt to maintain relationships to the people that were completely anti-business, that's your prerogative and not mine.

 

[FormerDnForumer]

Actually, I am very impartial. The fact that I am speaking out, is due the directness of my character. I call it as it is, not as I see it. Now, you want to sugarcoat the sales pitch or to attempt to maintain relationships to the people that were completely anti-business, that's your prerogative and not mine.

What are you talking about? You're implying that I'm here to grease the value of the site? I don't give a shit what they make or don't make on the site. But when people come to trash the individuals involved, I'm also calling it like I see it, and those guys are gold.

In its current state, it has little commercial value. That is a fact, and I couldn't care less. If these guys were in it for the money, it would have been slutted out to advertisers a long time ago. But what you seem to miss is that unlike almost every board around, the moderators at DS didn't need anyone's money, as they were busy making lots of their own. Those are the people you want to trade information with. What you call anti-business is your own misunderstanding of how to make real money, rather than bullshit forum money.

 

[keyser]

There is more salient information on how to make money in the domain business on that site that just about any other place in domain land. If I was starting out in the domain business in 2010, I would read that forum top-to-bottom.

The moderation has been the best anywhere for a long time. Unlike 99% of boards, the three amigo moderators have all made a lot of money in the business, and have a spectacularly even hand when it comes to keeping things lively but civil. It's true that in the last few years, the place has been a lot slower and certainly needs new energy, but to the people in the business at the higher level, that board is massively important.

Many of the people in this thread and on this board could learn a lot of things from DomainState and its example. As always, if you say something bad about the place, it says more about you than it does them--and it's always been the case. They're the gold standard of how to run a board. Their moderation and class is on another level.

Great post, it sums it all. DS will be missed.