Big announcements coming this week that will change the domain aftermarket.
The business of selling domain names to end users will forever be changed before the end of this year.
Domain Name Wire has learned that this week Afternic will announce it has inked agreements with both eNom and Moniker to be Premium distribution partners. They will join Network Solutions and Register, giving Afternic deals with 4 of the top 10 registrars for premium distribution. Afternic also has a deal with GoDaddy Auctions. These deals will be fully implemented before the end of the year.
What does this mean? Domain owners who have their domains registered at eNom (owned by Demand Media) or Moniker (owned by Oversee.net) will be able to list their domains at Afternic’s Premium level. Premium listings are syndicated across all premium partners’ sites. If someone is searching at Network Solutions to register a domain you own and have listed through the system, they’ll be able to purchase the domain name through the registrar. The domain will also be instantly transferred to the buyer regardless of which of the four registrars currently has the domain.
Getting your domains into the “registration path”, which this allows you to do, is key to selling to end users. I’ve talked to a couple people who have used Premium listings on Afternic who say the results have been remarkable.
The big win for Afternic with these two registrars is inventory. Yes, it helps that domains will be listed for sale on both web sites, but the real win is getting access to inventory at two registrars that are popular with domain investors. Network Solutions and Register are key to end user sales.
I’m not sure how the deals are structured for eNom and Moniker. I suspect they get a cut of the action. But more importantly this is another customer retention tool. I’ve moved a number of my domains from Moniker to GoDaddy over the past year to take advantage of GoDaddy’s premium listing service.
Yesterday Afternic changed its promotion levels and commissions. The commission for these Premium level listings is 20%, or 15% if the domain name is parked with Afternic/SmartName.
This is going to be a really big deal for domain owners.
SL says
Wow, wasn’t expecting that…nice digging Andrew!
Btw, in general how well have your Godaddy premium listings worked out?
M. Menius says
Just took a look at Net Sol. They charge $34.99 per domain registration. Also, they have adopted a GoDaddy style checkout process in which you are presented with numerous pages of options/services before getting to the actual checkout page. However, a Google ad for “domain registration” shows a Net Sol ad promoting $6.99 domain registration. So which is it, $6.99 or $34.99? That will make a difference to domainers.
Register.com currently charge $19.99 for registration, and $12.00 for transfer.
Of the 4 registrars mentioned, which have the most competitive domain renewal rate, Moniker perhaps?
I would also be interested to hear views on why Net Sol and Register.com are considered to be “end user” channels.
Meyer says
This might be the first step in the decline
of Namejet.
Don’t know if Enom corporate domains are included
in this agreement.
If not and the program is successful, Enom
will add their domains. Presently, they
are using Namejet or “Acquire this” to sell
them.
If Enom corporate joins afternic premium program,
they will send less and less through Namejet.
Why get domainer sales when Enom can get
much higher prices through Afternic.
I really don’t see Sedo sitting on the sideline.
I wonder what they will do?
RKB says
I hope fabulous.com also becomes a premium afternic partner soon.
Btw, what sucks about afternic is that they force/dictate you to lower your price on the domains that get offers/leads via their system.
They MUST stop dictating the price because I have never gone back to reduce the price as it annoys me being forced to lower the price.
I know many people feel the same way.
This is a dead-end for afternic listings.
I just hope they change this soon.
PS: How can I lower my price to below 20k for a $50,000 domain? Come on guys, don’t force us to lower the price all the time.
Meyer says
If the tables were turned, do you think they
would lower their price by 50%?
Neil Kavanaugh says
My name is Neil Kavanaugh and I’m the sales manager at Afternic. Our goal for our customers is to create a unified aftermarket that enables sellers to list their domains once and sell them everywhere.
@RKB. We do have a system in place that reviews all names priced at more than $20k. Overall, very few names that are listed or sold are for more than $20k. Obviously, it is in all of our best interest to have names sell at higher values. The purpose is to ensure that names are priced and consumers aren’t seeing prices that aren’t logical (i.e., domain name XYZ338-384.net cannot be priced at $30k). If you don’t agree with our assessment of your domain, like with all customers, please contact me and we can review. We are all in the business of selling domain names. My email address is listed below.
With Enom and Moniker being added to the network, we believe we are providing our selling customers even more opportunity to sell their domain names. We look forward to continuing unify the aftermarket and providing sellers with the ability to list once and sell everywhere.
If I can assist anybody, please feel free to post here or contact me directly. My email address is nkavanaugh (at) afternic.com
Steve M says
“The domain will also be instantly transferred to the buyer regardless of which of the four registrars currently has the domain.”
Andrew–is there a max list/sales price for such “instant” transfers?
:: Domainers Gate :: says
I hope that this agreement will help to sell quickly and better my domains on auction at Afternic… 🙂
len says
Think about it: When the banks were in trouble what did they do? Merged and bought out each other. Teamed up to make one big comglomerate. What it’s going to do is limit less choices for domainers to sell. You will be forced to reg with these companies in order to sell and no other choice but to sell with them. In a way who needs them to do this? You have the choice to go to these individually anyways. Not to mention they are the most expensive in commission charges.
A. Mitchell says
Afternic is struggling to understand its customers. And basic economics.
Problems of cramming down prices (that sellers are allowed) stem from a poor understanding of the economics of value and prices.
Industry sales numbers for any given week reveal a high degree of arbitrariness in prices. This price elasticity derives from variances between use value (to individual owners) and market value as defined by the residual price that a domain might achieve if it were to be offered in auction today.
Ten or more years may transpire before optimal use value (to a niche-oriented buyer) equals or exceeds the market price that a seller selects on Afternic. The spread between use value over a ten-year period and current ‘fair market value’ can exceed a factor of 100.
The top bidder for a domain may be separated by several years from the second highest bidder.
Would I jump off a moving horse for $10? Absolutely not. For $10 million? Certainly.
Afternic’s price cram-downs ignore price elasticity and the fact that domains have different values for different users. This ignorance is costing Afternic and its customers money. Real money.
Duane says
It’s time to lock doors on all aftermarket plattforms!
Why should the owner of property be charged a sales comission? Usualy when renting or buying a house, the client looking to buy a house pay’s the broker and not the actual owner of the property.
I have heard there is a new Marketplace on the works and Sedo, Afternic and others should be on there toes.
When this game changer pops up and comission is only charged from the buyer? I see millions of domains change there dns and then it’s goodbye Sedo, afternic and all other brokers charging sales comission from the landlords.
SL says
@Len: Imho that’s a stretch. For the sake of argument though, the worry would be if 95% of $1k+ sales ended up flowing through a single dominant middleman. Then theoretically they could ratchet commission rates higher at will because of the implied lack of competition. Since we’re talking about unique items vs. commodities, there is a possibility of this happening.
But a broader range of participating registrars is good. The real question to ask is how exclusive these partnerships are.
@Duane: Seller pays commission is standard.
Duane says
@ SL
“Standard”? Sorry but this word should not even have reason of existens anymore.
Windows was standard.
Newspaper ads where standard.
Radio communication was standard.
Phones with a line where standard.
And the list goes on.
“Standard” is just a better word for “antique” or “ I’m to lazy to offer or invent a better option.
Deke says
I agree with RKB and Duane.
I don’t like being badgered to lower my prices as Afternic does all the time on primo generics. I set the prices, not them! If they don’t like it they can remove my domain from their index and then it will never be sold through them at all. Their loss.
Commission rates are so high for Afternic and Sedo, it’s silly, and yes, the buyers should pay.
I sell most of my own domains though a site links, so I really don’t worry about Sedo or Afternic or whoever “cornering up the market”. I’m not sure that is even possible, really. They both are such an insignificant channel for selling domains that they are an afterthought really to me.
Combined, they don’t even make 3% of my sales.
SL says
@Duane: “Usualy when renting or buying a house, the client looking to buy a house pay’s the broker and not the actual owner of the property.”
Just pointing out that if you’re selling a house and sign with a real estate agent, it’s “standard” for the x% commission to be paid by you. Whether the commission is paid from the proceeds of the sale is immaterial. The buyer doesn’t enter the picture at all wrt commissions, only the negotiation of price. That’s all.
Landon White says
I hope your right Andrew…
I don’t like anything the orginial pigs
are involved in,NOW there gonna try
and play Monopoly and maybe fix pricing?
Network Dilutions (steal your search,and register it, Remember?) and Register.con
(as greedy as B parsons can be, at least he has shown he has a heart, sometimes???
(him and dick Cheney,lol
@ RKB
Anyway, Asking you to LOWER YOUR PRICE is
just some commissioned salesperson who wants to get $50 at your many a $thousands$ loss..
(try asking them to lower there commission,
(yeah,right) better still, say you changed your mind and your going to raise the price if they don’t sell it (hehe)
“I SAY DON’T DO IT”
or your being played.
Neil Kavanaugh says
I am currently down at TRAFFIC Miami. If anybody is in Miami and would like to speak, let me know. I’d enjoy walking through the Afternic platform and discussing ways that I can best assist you in selling your domain names.
I’ve been receiving a lot of individual emails with questions. If there are any specific questions you have for me – please let me know and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. My email address is nkavanaugh (at) afternic.com.
A couple of the questions I’ve received and thought that I’d share:
Question: Is there any way to get rid of the membership fee on Afternic?
Answer: As part of our latest release, where we completely redid the Afternic UI, we eliminated all membership fees. Membership at Afternic is FREE.
Question: How does Afternic’s Instant Transfer Technology benefit the seller?
Answer: When a domain is sold at one of Afternic’s premium partner site, the domain name is instantly transferred to the buyer. This makes the name more attractive to end-users seeking immediate use of the domain name as they look to establish their business, and is aligned with how most ecommerce transactions work. Thus, with instant transfer, we have found that the likelihood that the domain is sold is higher than names not sold through instant transfer. Additionally, from the seller perspective, all domains are still guaranteed under the Afternic escrow process.
Thanks
Neil Kavanaugh
Sales Manager, Afternic
Duane says
@ SL
Again you are thinking “STANDARD”
You are stating a example of which is mostly common for this very small comunity called the United States.
These rules are not standard elsewhere. (example europe)
RKB says
@Neil
Unless the $20k pricing restriction is removed, I don’t see myself wasting my time daily as we get offer daily on our over 16k names at afternic/sedo.
I know more about the history of my domains than afternic and It’s not that we list all domains over 20k (we even list for 1k, 2k, etc) but when we list we don’t want to be dictated on price or waste our time daily contacting/begging afternic for letting our price stay.
Also, it will be great if prices are “actually” reviewed by human beings instead of firing system generated emails automatically all the time.
Just my honest feedback.
Neil Kavanaugh says
@RKB
If you could, send me an email [nkavanaugh (at) afternic.com] and I can review your names when I get back from TRAFFIC.
Your feedback is very much appreciated. We want to make it as ‘easy’ as possible for customers to list and sell their names, as we are all in the business of selling domain names. Will take it as an action item to review the process.
Thanks.
Neil
Steve says
Will domains be allowed to be listed as “make offer” (without pre-determined pricing)?
Neil Kavanaugh says
@Steve
At Afternic, we have two different promotion levels, DLS Network and DLS Premium.
Within DLS Network, you do not have to list a price and can keep at “Make Offer”. The names listed on DLS Network will then be displayed across a network of 20 partners.
Within DLS Premium, you do have to list a “Buy Now” price. The names listed on DLS Premium will be listed on all of the DLS Network partners, plus all of the Premium partners (Network Solutions, Register.com and will be listed on Moniker and Enom by the end of the year). The pricing enables the names to have “Fast Transfer”, which allows buyers to purchase and take possession of the names instantly via eCommerce hence increasing the likelihood that the name will sell.
We have many questions regarding our pricing parameters, so let me try and provide an overview. Afternic has 3 main pricing attributes for each domain name and each one is very important and will increae the likelihood of selling your names. They are:
1. Minimum Offer: If someone goes to the Afternic site, this is the minimum amount that the offer has to be for the lead to go to you. My recommendation is to keep this number as low as possible, as you never know what the intentions of the buyer are and you want to make sure that ALL leads are followed up on. We have minimum offer, because some sellers would like to eliminate leads based on price point.
2. Floor Price: The floor price is the amount that the Afternic sales executive can negotiate (if necessary) to close the deal without contacting you for approval. Buyers don’t see the floor price. As we all know the speed of the negotiation is very important, so it provides the Afternic sales representative, who is working on your behalf, to move quickly to close the deal instead of a potential delay in trying to contact you.
3. Buy Now Price: The buy now price is the list price. This is the price a buyer sees on the DLS network sites and can purchase the price immediately.
We have found that names that are priced are 10X more likely to sell than names that are unpriced. Why? A few reasons:
1. Buyers can purchase the name immediately. Every minute that the buyer has not to purchase the name, is more opportunity for the buyer to change their mind about purchasing the name.
2. It has been our experience that Buyers are more likely to inquire names that are priced, than names that are not priced. More inquires = More Potential Sales.
3. Sellers can list their names on DLS Premium. This provides much greater reach for even more potential buyers to purchase your name.
Please let me if there are any more questions. I can also be reached at nkavanaugh (at) afternic.com.
Thanks.
Neil
industry domains says
very informative post, thankyou Neil
i was a member of Afternic for few years, never got a sale and didn’t renew my member ship
what is the process now? does one have to rejoin and then just list with no listing fees and click premium listings with price?
is there a link you can give that explains everything?
cheers
Neil Kavanaugh says
@Industry Domains
Thank you. Yes, that is exactly what you would need to do – it is a very simple process.
Below is our ‘join’ link – simply establish an account and you can then list your names for sale.
https://www.afternic.com/join.php
Our phone number is on page, if you want to talk to a customer service rep, feel free to call us at any time.
And, the link below will explain the two promotion levels.
http://www.afternic.com/promotion-upgrade.php
Please let me know if we can assist further, in any way.
Thanks.
Neil
Oversee affiliate scam search dnforum for halvarez says
After shaving me estimated 5000-10000$/month at Moniker affiliate (brought them domainer that spends about 400k$/month) and scammed me several 1000$ at Snapnames affiliate, I must suggest to avoid any company where gipsy Monte Cahn is involved.
Same with Jeff Kupietzky who turns blind eye which means he supervise all scams and shaving.
len says
Namejet is in big trouble. Trust me! The lions are hungry
len says
Why do we let these guys rule the roost? When in the end where would they be without us?
DOMAINER’S UNITE!!
Stay together. Be informed. Stop listening to Ron Jackson who always paints a rosy picture of how wonderful the domain industry is. Because right now it’s not. But domainers in numbers have power!!
M. Menius says
@A. Mitchell –
“domains have different values for different users”
Excellent point and one which has a tremendous effect on the variability in domain sales. Comps are way over-weighted in domain valuation. Which makes automated appraisals especially invalid.
Tony says
@A. Mitchell
Very insightful comment in my opinion.
Thank you.