For Sale Is it time to check your Ego?

[DropWizard.com]

I am seriously surprised by domainer buying habits.

I saw where a vanity domain sold for a little over 2k in a TBR auction. Why do I call it a vanity domain...because the only reason to own it was pure vanity.


There were NO ADS
I ran the figures for traffic and it showed between 450 - 500/day exact search. But the eye opener was a zero CTR. If you looked at the adwords performance for the term it was zilch, nothing, nada. What that means is that people DO NOT CLICK on ANY ads appearing around that search term. In fact there are NONE. It's an indication of an abolute lack of interest in buying something. Zero revenue!

For the related terms where people did take action the MONEY KEYWORDS range from around 24c to about 84c. Hardly inspiring. Less inspiring was that there were very few money terms and they had very low traffic/ctr rates, well under the 5%+ I shoot for. In fact it was one of the worst categories I've researched in a while.

Yet a group bid it over $2,000. Others were following the TBR auction and asking how much it went for.

In contrast I posted several groups of domains

one had a daily exact search of 100 with a ctr of almost 5% and an adword average ppc of $2.30 in short it shouldn't be hard to turn this into something making $3-5/day. Interest .....nil

Another group had a 13/day with a CTR of almost 24% and a ppc of $1.47 It got some interest but no serious offers in fact somebody told me it was "pricey" at slightly more than half the price of the one in the TBR.

Another group had similiar type of figures with ppc rates up to $16.

And never mind just my domains I'm sure I could have found some gems in others that people posted for sale.

I am boggled that people would rather participate in a vanity auction rather than buying solid domains from the board. I have to call it an ego thing because it makes no business sense whatsoever.

Is it ego? Is it addiction to the thrill of being seen to be "movers and shakers" (if that's what you want to call it). Is it a gambling addiction? Have you taken the time to ask yourself why you do this? Does it really make sense for your business and your future?

 

[urlurl]

what was the name - maybe they purchased it for other reasons other than PPC.

 

[DropWizard.com]

I didn't want to embarrass anyone by outing them. I was looking more for discussion.

But I can tell you that it couldn't be used for much else without a TM violation.

I guess if you had a passion for the subject a blog perhaps but really there was obviously more than one bidder for it to go up so high.

 

[ImageAuthors]

Since I don't know the domain in question, it's hard to say much that's very specific. But CPC, Click-through rate, and Ads aren't everything. Even domains that don't get much search traffic can act as powerful brand identities. And people don't just spend money to make more money. They spend money to get something they want. Most people who buy beach-front property or a painting aren't thinking about how much profit they'll derive from ownership.
And there are philanthropists out there and altruistic hobbyists and Egos with a capital "E" as well as prudent profiteers.

"Why did you pay $10,000 for that painting?" objected the used car salesman. "You could get a poster for $20. And I've got cars that will GET you somewhere right here for less!"

 

[Mark Talbot]

Well, vanity,.. is in itself a commodity for the one who desires it.

re: I would love to buy the domain for my last name, but alas the owner doesnt respond and he owns it for his last name too. What would I pay? I dont know what my top would be but I would participate in auction for it regardless of the CTR.

 

[elevatoria]

Well! one man's meat is another man's poison. However, they must have reason for getting the domain at such rate. You just have to take it easy for your turn will soon come.

 

[Domonetise]

I have a domain with my first name and surname, does that make me vain?

It was only after reading a thread on this forum that I decided to register it. The benifts are clearly obvious to me.

 

[Poker]

Why do I call it a vanity domain...because the only reason to own it was pure vanity.

You're so vain, you probably think this thread is about you...I'll bet you think this thread is about you..don't you...don't you...

Oh and back to the point...who cares, others mistakes are your rewards, if you have the balls to capitalize. Even their mismanagement of money...the list goes on and on.

 

[DropWizard.com]

You're so vain, you probably think this thread is about you...I'll bet you think this thread is about you..don't you...don't you...

Oh and back to the point...who cares, others mistakes are your rewards, if you have the balls to capitalize. Even their mismanagement of money...the list goes on and on.

ROFLMAO I thought about putting the words to the song in the thread. Re-purpose old Carly.

I understand so many reason as listed above. Brand, your own name, some dumb mistake, maybe thinking it might be a great branding opportunity for the right buyer.

I guess the point to the post was here are great names listed for sale on the board (mine and others) that easily exceed what they were chasing in the auction.

It makes no sense.

I mean if you think about it someone else chased it, spent some time with it that always helps seo or dev. And then they're willing to sell it for less than the auctions. And you have little or no competition.

Yet you run out to the auctions every week and buy lesser names for more money. It's insane!!!