If you use Google Exact Match to decide to buy domains.....

[000]

You quoted broad match numbers. I quoted exact match numbers which are better for guesstimating dot com type in traffic. Read here: http://support.google.com/adwords/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=6100

 

[AtTheLake]

Thank You!

 

[ImageAuthors]

As a side-note to anybody who uses the AdWords search-volume tool,

I recommend always using the drop-down menu to select "Exact" or "Phrase" or (God Forbid!) "Broad". When I first began using this tool, I often directly entered the keywords with quotation marks or brackets around them. But there are at least 2 kinds of typographical symbols for quotation marks, and the AdWords tool produces DIFFERENT numbers depending on which typographical symbol you have entered. Once I realized this several months ago, I had to redo a lot of my work; so beware!

 

[michael02482]

I use exact match when evaluating a domain.

Analyze the phrase to evaluate long-tail potential.

Flat For Rent
Flat For Rent in London (long-tail)
Flat For Rent in NW1 (long-tail)

Most of our traffic is from long-tail.

 

[webadresim]

More than 1900

 

[ImageAuthors]

Some domains are a good buy at $8 but a bad buy at $100. Other domains are a good buy at $2000.

Let me paraphrase Adam's original question the way I'd phrase it to myself:

1. If the domain's SLD phrase has zero CPC, can you put a dollar amount on what "Global Phrase", [Global Exact], "Local Phrase", or [Local Exact] would be worth to you? In other words, what price will make SampleDomain.com a good buy for you? Let's say [Sample Domain] receives 100,000 exact searches in the USA monthly. Knowing this, would you feel happy buying SampleDomain.com for $100? Would you feel less happy but still buy SampleDomain.com for $200? Then, to you, local exact searches by themselves are worth 0.1 cents or 0.2 cents.

2. Which type of search statistic do you use? "Global Phrase"? [Global Exact]? "Local Phrase"? [Local Exact]? Does it vary depending on the domain? How does the value of each type of search rate in your book? 0.1 cents for [Global Exact]? 0.03 cents for [Global Phrase]?

3. How do you alter these valuations when there is a non-zero CPC associated with searches? Obviously the rate per search must increase. But how do you quantify it?

4. How are the numbers affected by language?

5. How is the valuation affected by the TLD? Suppose we're talking about .org, or .net, or .co.uk, or .ca?

Notice, these valuations are as if buying the domain sight-unseen--without any reference to the domain's meaning, brandability, or the prevalence of potential end users.

I'm not discussing the metrics I've developed for myself because I buy from people on this site. But this is how I would ask myself Adam's question. Maybe some of you would like to answer the questions I've posed.

(P.S. Lest anybody think otherwise, search stats do not define value. They correlate with it, yes. But my two most recent sales were for hand-registered original domains that do not receive any phrase or exact searches whatsoever.)

 

[dcristo]

Any of you had success with these domain attributes?

- Low exact match search volume
- Decent CPC
- Good keyword saturation (number of instances keyword can be found on other pages on google)

For example, let's say a keyword has 200-300 exact match monthly search volume, $1+ CPC, and 500,000 search results for the keyword in quotes.

If this was a product keyword, would you pick it up without a second thought?

 

[Skinny]

Hey Adam,

I use Exact search numbers from Google's tool, but how many searches really depends on what the keywords you are targeting is and how much you are willing to spend (usually).

There is definitely, a difference between type in traffic and number of monthly searches.

That number will be more useful if you are trying to develop a site on the domain or on keywords surround the ones in your domain.

Skinny

 

[south]

Any of you had success with these domain attributes?

- Low exact match search volume
- Decent CPC
- Good keyword saturation (number of instances keyword can be found on other pages on google)

For example, let's say a keyword has 200-300 exact match monthly search volume, $1+ CPC, and 500,000 search results for the keyword in quotes.

If this was a product keyword, would you pick it up without a second thought?

Yes, *if*:

The domain was the .com
I planned to develop it.
The product wasn't something a person couldn't go to walmart & buy the same night for the same price or less.
There was an affiliate program that had the product available for me to sell.

 

[INFORG]

Any of you had success with these domain attributes?

- Low exact match search volume
- Decent CPC
- Good keyword saturation (number of instances keyword can be found on other pages on google)

For example, let's say a keyword has 200-300 exact match monthly search volume, $1+ CPC, and 500,000 search results for the keyword in quotes.

If this was a product keyword, would you pick it up without a second thought?

Yes, that can be a successful set of criteria, but you also have to look at brandability and niche. Like ImageAuthors referred to above, there isn't any magic equation. You have to evaluate the name in it's totality. Let's call it the "holistic system". I just sold a name at GD for $999 that I hand regged off the drop, is 3 word .com with only a handful of exact searches. I selected it because the .com.au and the .org were also registered, it is in the "green" niche, a nice product category niche, and it just sounded nice. One of my criteria is "am I willing to develop this name myself?" If the answer is "yes", then I have little to lose.

Look at the kind of names you end up dropping each year. Many times you can learn as much from them as the ones you sold. 99% of the time I end up dropping names that I broke discipline on and never should have registered because they failed to meet my criteria. At least I have the discipline to not keep renewing them though

 

[south]

99% of the time I end up dropping names that I broke discipline on and never should have registered because they failed to meet my criteria. At least I have the discipline to not keep renewing them though

I agree for the most part. But often you don't get the offers or sales until after you renew. Happens quite a bit for me. I think that as long as I had a purpose for the domain when I regged or bought it, then even if I don't sell it, I can still build something on it. Sales are just a bonus on top of the steady income. Also, if the domain / site is making regular money, then you won't feel bad about asking "too much", because you will (usually) make it back & more just through income. If they are willing to come up to your price, fine, but if not, no loss. Of course, there are always exceptions. If you have to pay a bill, you sell what you can, not what you want.