“I would generally recommend, from an SEO and reputation management perspective, that these domain names be redirected to a page on the main company’s web site,” Hartzer said. “This way links and any other mentions of the company made by others are directed towards the main company web site, and not another web site.”
Kesmodel mentioned that user behavior is a bit difficult to predict, and that some newer browsers don’t necessarily take a user to a specific page if he or she doesn’t type in the keyword string as a single entry and add the .com. He pondered the process the Internet user would go through and then shared his own method for obtaining the necessary information.
When asked about the case of recalls where consumers may be aware of the class or category of product, but not the actual brands, Kesmodel commented that he thought some people would just type right into a browser. However, he explained his thinking on the topic this way. “Let’s say you were a consumer affected by that spinach recalled from a couple of years ago…. If that was me, and I know I’d eaten a bunch of spinach, I probably would have just typed the words ‘spinach recall’ into Google, myself. [But], there are some people who would have gone into the browser, and typed ‘spinach recall’ and maybe their browser would have automatically referred them to a specific site related to spinach recall.”
The “Get It” Factor: Outsiders
Stedelbauer believes that the larger a company is, the more aware they are of the benefits of registering/purchasing and using deo domain names. However, he wonders if these same firms have solid action plans in place to actually acquire and develop them.
Kesmodel stated that companies seem to be much more aware of the value of domain name assets than they were 10 years ago. “I think a lot of companies do get it now,” he said. But, Kesmodel added, “companies were slow in the mid to late ‘90s to recognize the value of a good domain name…. there are a lot of examples of companies in the last few years that are using domain names effectively to market themselves, or sending people to a generic domain name from their ads (print or TV).”
Still, even the biggest and best of corporate America have to keep a quick pace with the domain industry, for fear of losing the advantage. “I will say… generally speaking, a lot of companies and their lawyers are outsmarted by all these entrepreneurs that deal on a daily basis with domains.” Kesmodel explained that sometimes it comes down to the numbers. “If you’re a big corporation with a lot of issues, you might have one or two people that deal with domains, but you might have a hard time going up against some of these companies that, that’s all they do is focus on the domain name market.”
He also raised the issue of a paradigm shift that still needs to take place in some corner offices and boardrooms. Kesmodel commented on how there is a need to include additional domain strategies in a company’s overall Web marketing efforts. “A lot of companies still think they can largely drive traffic through having their corporate name (Web site, the domain affiliated with their corporate name and brands) use paid search, or display ads on the Web to drive traffic to their sites.” Kesmodel said that this is simply trying to drive traffic through regular, traditional marketing channels and doesn’t take advantage of the dynamics of mini-site and direct navigation practices.
Hall said that investing in domain names is almost always a good idea, for a variety of reasons. “Companies should invest in domain names like they invest in other assets. In fact, the possible return on investment for domains, which can be purchased for $10 with some Registrars, is far in excess [of] nearly any other kind of investment today. Domain names incorporating all of a company’s trademark should be purchased; companies must police the registration and use of domains that incorporate their trademarks, and the use of generic domain name should be understood.” Hall described the discrepancy between the corporate mentality and the growing domain industry as one of ignorance that could and should be addressed.
“It is not that those outside the domaining industry are stupid,” Hall said. “Rather, they are simply uneducated when it comes to the domain name market, domaining, and domain name law. Domain names are valuable intellectual property and extremely powerful marketing tools. Not having them can be costly to a business, whether it be lost traffic, diverted customers, or some other undesirable effect.”
The “Get It” Factor: Insiders
On the seller’s side, both Kesmodel and Hall believe that value is not always easy to pin down. Hall said that he feels that domain investors, for the most part, are up to speed on generic domain names. Kesmodel acknowledged that the playing field is not exactly level for all types of sellers.
“I think there are definitely people who sell their names for less than … those names could [sell for],” said Kesmodel, “if they were a little more cognizant of the marketplace.” He added that sellers don’t just have to be educated for end user sales. “There are cases where really experienced domain investors will approach a domain owner and make an offer for a name, and the owner thinks, ‘Well, that’s a great offer, man.… and no one’s ever offered to buy my name.’ And there are naïve people who will sell at that price,” he said.
Kesmodel said that one of the reasons for this situation is that there are millions of names out there and it’s not a very liquid market. “They aren’t changing hands the way stocks and bonds do, so potential sellers, when they get interested buyers flocking to them [can] find it a little bewildering, and they’re not necessarily well-experienced to handle that,” Kesmodel added.
“And, I think sometimes, too, if they haven’t had an offer for five or ten years, and suddenly they have it, their thinking may be, ‘Well, I better take this opportunity while I can.’ There’s also a lot of arguments about the dollar value of specific domains. Some names will sell for millions of dollars, and people are baffled; other names that people think might be worth more than those sell for $100,000 or less.“
According to Kesmodel, the wide fluctuations in pricing domain names results from buyers having different views on what they can do and how much money they can make with a name. “Someone may be willing to spend more for a particular domain than anyone else because that name has particular value to that buyer,” he said. “Maybe they run a business that they’re going to start up and no one’s ever heard of, it’s a stealth business, a new industry, but that name has a lot of value to them, and eventually, people realize why they got it, why the wanted to buy that particular name.”
Hall said that those inside the industry generally have a better understanding of pricing and yield than typical end users. “Domainers in general are educated about their industry. They understand the value of generic domain names and look to register them, monetize them, and capitalize from a sale where possible.”
While understanding that the price of domain names is driven by market forces of supply and demand, Hall explained that there are some basic parameters help buyers ascribe value. “While there can be subtle variations to a domain, domains are much like real property in that they are unique with attractors and detractors that can affect price. However, short, east-to-remember, generic domains in the .com TLD remain the most valuable. Again, the more educated you are about domain names and their value, the better chance you have of selling high or purchasing low.”
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