Domainer's Gazette-Home

I feel like Frankenstein right now..

The domain industry created me, and now I must be fed on a regular basis from domain name auctions.

When Frankenstein doesn’t get what he wants, he lashes out, and causes much disruption.

So, Frankenstein wants to know, Monte, we’re down to t-minus 9 days for the Moniker Domain Auction at Pubcon Vegas, and the master inventory list has yet to be posted..

it makes Frankenstein very very angry.

“Where my domain name list? Me want. Me need to analyze. Now!”

: )

(my other option was to become a strung out drug user domain buyer, needing my “fix”..I opted for Frankenstein.)

check out this pretty interesting hack case study I performed lazily, being the day after Thanksgiving…

Bodog.com

yes, they lost their original domain name in a well publicized lawsuit

but my question today was this: how negatively affected was the traffic to their business?

Did the domain name shift confuse users, and drive them away to competition? or drive them away permanently?

Not really, according to compete.com

check it out.

You can see the initial jump to domain name ‘newbodog.com’ after the fracas.

then, weeks later, they decided to settle on the domain name bodoglife.com as their mainstay.

Notice, traffic is right on track, trending upwards reflecting the college football and nfl seasons.

don’t think compete.com data is accurate? Well alexa mirrored the same results:

How about that for a loyal fan base?

Google even jump-stepped and quickly understood the change, even tossing several site links along the way:

Type-in traffic domaining and SEOmaining this is not, brand establishment-aining this is. Not sure I’ve ever seen a domain name, or business model, shift this drastically with relatively no downside on traffic loss.

bravo to Bodog, bravo…

I’m quite thankful this Thanksgiving 2007, I thought yesterday.

I’m thankful for the domaining industry as a whole, cause it’s where my obsession currently rests.

I’m thankful for Frank Schilling (whom I hope to meet one day), for opening up his war chest of knowledge, and helping new domainers understand the minutiae of the industry.

From an seo & site design front, I’m thankful for Jim’s blog, Aaron’s blog, and Andy’s blog, and the wealth of knowledge they dole out on a regular basis. Without those, I wouldn’t be here.

I’m thankful for Roger Barnette, who gave me my first dot com job back in ‘98, and started the snowball effect of my career.

And most importantly, I’m thankful for great friends and a loving family.

I’m thankful for my parents who let me wander after college, and always supported me in any endeavor I’ve pursued.

I’m thankful to have such a supportive, loving, and beautiful wife, who is hands down smarter than I am.

And I’m thankful for my brother & sister, who - with or without knowledge - gently pushed me to become the domainer & entrepreneur I am today.

a non-domaining post.

We’re in a pretty nasty drought down here in ATL..

I’d never heard of a rain dance done online, so I thought I’d give it a shot.

so enjoy these top rate animated gifs, as I coax the atmosphere in the southeastern United States to become full of moisture.

here we go..

and my personal favorite:

where’s Hatfield when you need him?

There’s a waiting game we domainer’s patiently experience when eyeing domains coming up for auction.

In general terms, when we identify domains we wanna acquire, we have to wait for them to exit their grace period, and enter the pre-release period. When the pre-release starts, the auctions typically begin, and the floodgates open for all bidders who’ve placed the name into their queue. Then it’s off to the races.

The waiting period can be a drag, though. Why? Cause not all domains exit the grace period. Their original owners can swoop in and re-register them. Great for them, but a drag for us.

Bad for me, though - directly - cause when I find exceptionally good domains entering the grace period, and slowly inching towards pre-release, my mind enters overdrive, and begins calculating how I can develop the domain, monetize the traffic, and create a worthwhile, relevant website for new or existing visitors.

Yes, the original owners fully deserve the right to a grace period, and the ability to re-register their domain names, but how about we adjust the process a little bit?

How about, when an owners domain enters the grace period, there’s an immediate three day “offer” auction, where bidders can make direct offers to the original owner, through a 3rd party or the original registrar. When, and if, the owner returns to re-register, they’ll be presented with two options: Renew -or- accept $xxx offer for your domain.

Seems like a win-win to me.

I decided to splurge and go - hopefully I’ll meet a few folks in the industry (who I always seem to talk about and have never actually met..)

If you’re looking for a way to get out there, and also something to do when you’re there, try hitting these two contests.. one will pay your way, and - it seems - another will brutally haze you like it’s initiation night.

Gimme a shout if you’re planning on going.. when you’re out there, I’m pretty easy to spot, being 6′8 with red hair..