SnapNames gets monthly auctions and a makeover.
SnapNames is starting a series of monthly themed auctions next week, and its interface is getting a timely update to handle these auctions and future extended live auctions.
The new monthly auctions will augment SnapNames’ expired domain auctions and sister company Moniker’s live domain auctions. Monthly auctions will begin on the second Tuesday of each month and end the second Thursday. (The first auction, starting July 16, will be longer.)
To accommodate the new auctions and respond to issues with previous extended auctions, SnapNames has released new bidding interfaces. As someone who has been critical of the SnapNames interface in the past, these changes are welcome. SnapNames Senior Product Manager Craig Calder and Director of Product Marketing Michele Van Tilborg gave me an overview of the system earlier this week.
The new interface means there will now be separate interfaces for expired domains, monthly auctions, and extended auctions. “People want to bid differently in different types of auctions,” said Van Tilborg.
For the new monthly auctions, bidders can view and sort the domains according to price, number of bids, closing time, etc. There will also be reserve auctions, each with a published reserve range. Most importantly, bidding on domain names will no longer require “adding them to cart” and checking out, a process that was built for backordering domains but applied to auctions.
A similar interface will be used for Extended (silent) auctions, but they will not include reserves. The home page at SnapNames.com will also change to focus on the new monthly auctions.
DOmainer says
So what? Do you think anything will be different? First off: They won’t auction your names unless regged through Moniker.
Second: Domain auctions have become a joke. It’s like to many attorneys in one city. Thus driving prices down again.
Andrew Allemann says
I don’t have a problem with Moniker not selling a domain that isn’t registered with them. It makes for an easy, seamless transfer. At the last extended auction I bought four domains. Within hours of the auction ending my credit card had been charged and the domains that were at Moniker were in my account.
Domain Investor says
I realize our industry is continuously evolving.
But, since DS has owned Snapnames, it seems to have lost its importance to domainers.
It use to be there was Snapnames. And then everything else.
Today, all of their competitors have caught up to them and past them.
I really like Monte.
But, he can’t do everything.
Stephen Douglas says
Craig Calder and Jonathan Standfill, along with other representatives from Oversee, Snapnames and Moniker, discussed in detail the desired changes with a large group of domainers, in person and in other ways, in order to get the domainer’s perspective. I think they’ll be very successful in implementing everything as suggested.
I agree with Dub-A on the domains being required to be registered through Moniker. No hassle sales, quick payouts. Additionally, extremely easy to list the domains for Snapnames auctions at every level when using Moniker.
I am looking forward to seeing it fly!