Domainer's Gazette-Home

My background, prior to domaining, was PPC. From PPC, I learned SEO. And from SEO I entered domaining.

Fast forward to this morning. I read that Frank, Sahar, and Jay were heading to the TRAFFIC Conference on 10/9, so I Googled ‘traffic conference’ - maybe I’d splurge and go, last second.

Here’s the search result:

My first reaction: “Um, where’s the TRAFFIC site?” It doesn’t come up #1 - it’s not even in the top 10. Talk about a disconnect between traditional domainers and the world of Search.

Then the second mistake became apparent - they’re failing to even buy the name of their conference within PPC.

And just to reveal how many potential conference attendees they’re missing because of these omissions, here’s the traffic estimation tool from Google AdWords:

Disregard the number within the “Estimated Clicks / Day” column, cause we want to know how often users are searching for the phrase ‘traffic conference’, not how many clicks Google expects we’ll receive. With this in mind, and assuming the 5% CTR that Google calculates for expected clicks within AdWords, the term ‘traffic conference’ is being searched 20 times a day. That’s 20 people they’re missing, every 24 hours (and we’re not even counting Yahoo and MSN Search). If they advertised within PPC, like this example, I’d expect they’d receive a CTR of well over 50%.

Also, outside of the fact they’re missing potential attendee’s, they’re also missing media outlets and press representatives using Search to locate the conference.

I’m not publishing all this to call them out, or make them look silly. I want them to succeed, and to witness them skip these 2 immensely important marketing vehicles makes me shake my head.

Hey Rick, how about some free passes to the next conference in exchange for free PPC set-up and management plus some SEO 101 for the site?

I wonder if chipstealingseagull.com is available…

A seagull in Scotland has developed the habit of stealing chips from a neighborhood shop.

The seagull waits until the shopkeeper isn’t looking, and then walks into the store and grabs a snack-size bag of cheese Doritos.

Once outside, the bag gets ripped open and shared by other birds.

The seagull’s shoplifting started early this month when he first swooped into the store in Aberdeen , Scotland , and helped himself to a bag of chips. Since then, he’s become a regular. He always takes the same type of chips.

Customers have begun paying for the seagull’s stolen bags of chips because they think it’s so funny

Hi Peter, I’m the domain you’re chasing at auction.

Let’s see, a little about me..

I was registered back in 1998.

I was even a USA Today Hot Site back in 1999. Boy - were those the days.

I’ve enjoyed a nice long life with one owner and registrant.

I used to operate a website about dog training, and I know you like that niche cause the CPC is nice and competitive. I’d love to operate that type of site again, as people consistently visit me looking for that content.

I think I’m one heck of a catch, and I promise I’ll work real hard if you decide to buy me..

One thing I ask, though, please don’t turn me into a drone, brainwash me, and park me in some dank registrar somewhere. I feel I deserve better.

best regards,

-domain

I won’t.. but Lord help me if benfranklin, vaxis, or bonkerstwo are in the room. Serenity now…

1. No need to submit sites to DMOZ or pay to be included in Y! Directory - the domains we acquire are already listed there.
2. Sandbox, schmandbox. This has no bearing on us as the domains we buy are already well indexed, old, and trusted.
3. We don’t have to chase new link partnerships - our links are already there, and old to boot.
4. Serp traffic trumps type-ins, plain and simple. Other domainer’s of the world haven’t realized this yet. As long as you stay nice and white-hat, visitors will continue to knock on your door.
5. Outside of the domain acquisition cost, the business expenses are next to nothing. Annual domain renewal cost + hosting fees are it, basically.
6. You can indulge your creative side. Play around with design logos, learn CSS, test web design layouts for optimal CTR. You wanna design a site with the background color of pink? Knock yourself out.
7. It’s the ultimate treasure hunt that doesn’t end when you acquire the domain. You work to acquire the name, then you work to develop the property, then you strive to make it profitable. Incredibly challenging, and when it works, and the passive income begins to trickle in, it’ll make you smile like a cheshire cat
8. For the most part - NO ONE’S DOING IT. Ie., typical ‘domainers’ will pass on domains we covet. I say, Let ‘em chase dictionary and two letter .com’s. I’ll be vacuuming up all the 10 year old, .edu backlinked domains. Thank you! …next…