Domains 90210, LLC

As I mentioned previously, I found myself in the middle of a reality show wedding proposal, this weekend.  Coincidentally, my business operates a reality social network named www.Be.tv .   Our slogan is: “Don’t just watch TV, Be TV.”  Well I certainly was this evening.

I wanted to share this video with you.  Thank you for visiting.  Please come back soon.

Wedding proposal caught on tape

Tonight I arrived at Sushiya, prepared to blog.  I arrived little later than I expected.  I asked for an outdoor table sans heat lamp.  It’s about sixty-five degrees here in LA.  I just walked three miles to get here, with a backpack and arm weights.

While I’m wearing a tee shirt and jeans, every one else is sporting a jacket or hoodie and shivering under a heat lamp.  Maybe it’s just the New Yorker in me.

Just after I was seated, twelve attractive young women jumped up from their table and lined up directly in front of my table.  They were literally five feet in front of me.  Each woman wore a white tee shirt adorned with a letter, spelling, “Will you marry.”  Then, a big burly fellow with a big burly voice walks up to the girls, wearing a tee shirt with the word, “Me,” on the front.

I pulled out my iPhone, of course, always thinking of our www.Be.tv web site.  Our slogan has always been, “Don’t just watch TV, be TV, Be.TV.”  Today I was, right in the middle of it.  The prospective fiancee walks up a few minutes later, looking absolutely lovely.  She sees the burley fellow as she approaches my table.  She pauses, blushes, and purrs his name softly.

He proposed right on the spot. She accepted.  As corney as it was, you could not help but to be moved, at least a little bit.  Funny, this was the second time a bloke proposed to his gal right in front of my table.  The last time, was in New York City at a dark, romantic, restaurant off of Madison Avenue near Sixty-Second Street.  He was wearing a kilt which I though was quite cool.

The craziest thing is, that I had no idea what I was going to write about when I sat down.  Sometimes you just have to let the story come to you.  Thank you for visiting.  Please come back soon.

Tonight, I’m on my balcony again.  The fog has painted a wash over the Hollywood Hills. Cigar in hand, I blog, without the sparkle of those magical hills.  Sometimes you just have to rough it.

I wanted to discuss one of the more confusing aspects of domain name investing.  How do you value a domain name?  Please keep in mind that there are no hard and fast rules. Sometimes you will see what seems like a very mediocre domain name fetch five or six figures, while a truly sumptuous domain name brings in a pittance by comparison.

I attribute this to the fact that there is no way to create a consistent valuation model for a series of letters, numbers and or dashes.  You can try to weigh the length of the series, the popularity of the term in searches, the number of websites pertaining to the subject, the language in which it’s spoken, along with a number of other factors, and multiply that sum by 3.14 and divide by your age.  Ultimately, it’s not going to mean much.

One can use a variety of appraisal tools, whos’ algorithms might be almost as plausible as the above mentioned, and you will find very little consistancy among them.  As a matter of fact, the degree of variation from one appraisal to another can be mind boggling.

One can list their domain names on an auction with a very low opening bid and no reserve, but that will not always ensure that you will receive fair market value.

Having the advantage of being a domainer who ran a successful online retail business from 1996 – 2009, and having been employed by a very successful designer and manufacturer of Point of Purchase advertising displays for many years prior, I can suggest how most traditional businesses do it.  They use a fairly consistent mark-up model.  Multiply your purchase price and carrying costs by a factor of “x”.  Keep an eye on things, have some closeouts, lost leaders, bulk sales, dealer trades and try to achieve a nice return on investment, while being mindful of carrying costs.

I say fairly consistent because some names are priceless and will only get better with age. Good comparisons would be a rare bottle of 1948 Taylor Port or 1959 Château d’Yquem. If kept properly, these wines can drink well for over 100 years.  These would compare to the two and three letter acronyms or the category killers.

Conversely, some wines, Such as a vintage 1971 Dom Pérignon champagne have a much shorter life span, and need to be moved quickly.  This would compare to a domain name based on a current event or technology, which may not be as meaningful at a later date.

Of course, if Andy Warhol was alive today, I’m sure he would be able to deduce how to turn a bottle of Two Buck Chuck into a million dollars.

If you are lucky enough to possess even a few extremely rare domain names of an elegant breed, with harmonious balance, know that they should get better with age and set your price expectation accordingly.

Very often, the one consideration which trumps all others, is the domain name investors’ liquidity and cash flow.  In my opinion, it is best to start slowly, and be mindful that there is inherent risk involved.  One must also be careful not to invest more than than one can afford to lose.  Get ready to put in some elbow grease and consider using a fairly consistent mark-up strategy.

Thank you for visiting.  Please come back soon.

I just walked a few miles to a Japanese Noodle house in Los Angeles, and had a delicious steaming hot bowl of soba noodles.  I am now seated at a Coffee Bean around the corner.   I’ve planted myself on the patio with a hot cup of Brazilian Coffee, the scent of which reminds me of Amsterdam.  Maybe that’s why so many people are hanging out at Coffee Bean shops all over town.

As technology continues to evolve, I often ask myself; What if?  Tonight, I pondered the following concept:  What if we had one day of rest from technology every week?  How would we handle it as a whole?  Imagine, no iPhone, no iPad, no computer, no television, no car.  What would we do?

As I continued to delve into this fantasy, I tried to imagine…  I could read a printed book, I could draw, I could paint, I could write; but you would have a hard time reading my handwriting, I could play piano, I could spend time with friends, I could play with my dog, I could form a drum circle on the beach, I could swim, I could walk, I could share passion, I could ride a bicycle, I could rest, I could dream, I could plan, I could organize, I could clean, I could keep going on and on and on.

And then it hit me!  I used to do all of these things and more.  I hope and trust that as technology continues to evolve, and as technology becomes even more intertwined with every aspect of our lives, that we will hold dear, all of the simple pleasures which our ancestors enjoyed over the years.   I also hope that we will make an effort to continue to find time for those passions and pleasures.  Otherwise, we might lose that connection to what it is that makes us human.

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Tonight I walked from Beverly Hills to West Hollywood to pick up dog treats for my 18 year old Pekingese Poodle mix Mallie. In some circles she is referred to as a Peek-a-poo but I’m way to square to refer to her as that. Ever since I was a lad, I have had this issue.

I had the most amazing parents, Martha and Sid Dauman, may they both rest in peace. They would take my brother and me to some pretty swanky places every now and then, when we were little boys. At the tender of age of five, I had the presence of mind and self respect to order a “Ginger Ale with a splash of Grenadine,” instead of a Shirley Temple. I would do it the same way today, if that were still my drink of choice. But it is no longer my drink of choice. As with almost everything else in life, change is constant and unrelenting. More so now than ever.

Some people are opposed to change. Some feel that because .com is king and has been king; it will always be king. I’m not entirely sure myself, but change has been doing pretty well over the years.

I highly suggest that one considers some of the other options out there such as .net, .tv, .org, .me and .co. Let me be clear; I am not saying run out and start buying up these extensions, as they are the next big thing. I am not saying that .com is going down. I am suggesting that you take them into consideration. In certain applications a well selected .tv, such as Be.tv, can be the foundation of an incredible branding opportunity which might even lose some impact if burdened with a .com. Keep in mind we have all been quite familiar with the abbreviation TV for many years prior to .com hitting the scene.

The time to build your outrageously cool .TV brand, is not after 60 Minutes does a feature on how popular they are becoming, or when .TV graces the covers of Time and Newsweek. The time is now, during the haze of confusion, when things are slowly heating up, when insiders are speaking softly, about change.

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I’m at Sushiya again. This time under the sun rather than the stars. I am being totally unconventional today and actually starting with tamago.

Speaking of unconventional, I am finding it rather unconventional that one of the most desirable domain names on the face of the earth was purchased for approximately $8.5 million dollars by a company with a market cap of roughly $56 million dollars.

The buyer, Market Leader, Inc. has earned my most profound respect. My gosh, that’s a big chunk of change for such a big, little company. When you look at the real estate segment, there are some pretty big fish in that pond. Let’s take an informal look: We have Century 21, Coldwell Banker, ERA, Remax, Prudential, CB Richard Ellis, Cushman & Wakefield, Collier International, Grubb & Ellis, Simon Property Group and a number of other behemoths which I have not included.

In that group, who wouldn’t want to own this most prestigious category? When you think Real Estate, there are a lot of choices. Now, when you go to RealEstate.com, you get the impression that the market leader is Market Leader, Inc. It is very fitting indeed. This big little company has moxie. I’m putting my money on them, in the poetic sense. When you consider the scope of the market and the size of the players, my supply and demand based formulation puts the valueation of RealEstate.com much higher than $8.5 million. In addition, there were a few hundred other domain names thrown in. Wow, what a deal.

The seller was Tree.com which operates LendingTree.com and RealEstate.com.

So who’s handling the virtual brand identities for these behemoth real estate companies? How was this allowed to happen? If I were to try to find a real estate analogy for this, it’s as if Mega Real Estate Conglomerate, Inc. keeps a modest office on Eighth Avenue and Thirty Seventh Street in Manhattan, while Itsy Bitsy Realty occupies the entire fiftieth floor of the GM building on Fifth Avenue. It just makes no sense.

I believe that this is another perfect example that the corporate world by and large, underestimate the value and importance of establishing the best virtual brand identities that they can online. Until they do, there will probably be a lot of surprises ahead.

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I am writing from my balcony tonight. Beverly Hills is close enough to the Pacific Ocean that, if the wind blows right, you can feel a hint of an ocean breeze. Tonight the ocean brings with it a very slight chill, just enough to let you know the seasons are a changing.

Change is subtle, most hardly notice it at all, while some are highly attuned to it. Maybe it’s our sixth sense, the sense of change. With change comes the need for some degree of reorganization, both individually and collectively.

Old positions are replaced by new opportunities. Often I wonder if more time is spent figuring how to cut positions in order to save money than on how to to create positions that generate revenue. Sometimes by neglecting to create a needed position, we miss out on major opportunities to build our brands, our customer base, our consumer trust, our community and most of all, our bottom line.

Case in point, who in the world is there to speak to, regarding a company’s domain names? Who is the company’s expert when it comes to URL’s? And most importantly, who is the boss speaking to?

In most cases nobody. Sure, you can try the director of marketing, advertising, public relations, IT or brand management, but more often than not, domain names or as I like to call them, “virtual brand identifiers” are unmanaged.

I received an inquiry on one of our prized domain names this morning, that being Connect.tv .  Wouldn’t that be an outstanding virtual brand identifier for a number of major brands?  To connect is one of the most important aspects of life.  We connect with our friends, our lovers, our family, our pets, our televisions and our computers.  And if a major conglomerate has a division which can connect any of the above, wouldn’t it make sense to have a virtual brand identifier for that service, like Connect.tv, rather than just having that division hidden within the hierarchy of MajorConglomerate.com’s web site?

Sadly, since MajorConglomerate.com probably hasn’t named a director of virtual brand identity yet, many of these opportunities are not being explored.

So if in this rapidly evolving virtual world, virtual brand identity does seem important, wouldn’t it make sense to have virtual brand identity expert on the team?  That’s what we do here at Domains 90210, LLC.  Please don’t hesitate to call upon us if you think we can be of assistance.

Thank you for visiting.  Please come back soon.

Having finished a most sumptuous dinner at Genwa, my favorite Korean restaurant in Los Angeles, I started my three mile egress home, on foot, with no idea what I would share with you this evening.

I took refuge in a Starbucks, with a cup of Joe and sat down to write. After a few sips it came to me. I will blog about my first domain purchase. As every journey begins with a single step, this was mine.

On a warm summer evening in 1996, in my former New York apartment on Park Avenue and eighty sixth street, I sat at my Acer 486 66 and thanks to the miricle of my 14.4 Earthlink dial-up, was able to connect to Internic.com and register my Surname “Dauman” dot com. It set me back one hundred dollars, if I recall correctly and I believe you needed to wait a couple of weeks to receive an email confirming your successful acquisition. Everything went through and I never regretted my decision.

So, since then, I use my first and last name for my primary email address:

c l a u d e @ d a u m a n . c o m

I can’t tell you how often people comment on my email address, “How did you get that” they will often ask in amazement? I did it by doing it and that’s always the best place to start.

If you are considering purchasing a domain name, why not start with your name? It may not be 1996 anymore but there still might be some excellent options.

You can try with your first and last name in a .com, .net, org, .tv or .me . With names which are not extremely popular you may still be able to get one of these extensions at registration fee.

If you want to do even better, you can try for your first name or your last name in a .com, .net, .org, .me or .tv. Most likely and depending on your name, you will have a harder time here. You may be able to hand register a .me or a .tv and the .tv might come with a premium registration fee, but it’s a good place to start.

Your best option might be to look to the aftermarket. There are a number of good brokerage houses including Sedo.com and Afternic.com. In addition, Godaddy.com offers what they call “Premium Listings” that are privately owned domain names listed with Godaddy.com.  They appear in the search results when customers attempt to hand register that specific domain or a very similar domain. So search in Godaddy for your first or last name and if it pops up as a premium listing, at a price you feel comfortable with, grab it.

If you can invest $500 and up here in the aftermarket, depending on your name, you might pick up an impressive domain name and an even more impressive email address. Best of all, you will have something which you can put to use right away and continue to use for as long as you like and as long as you renew on time.

Lastly, you can always come to us. We’re reachable, and we might be able to assist you in locating the right domain name and negotiating the purchase on your behalf. In addition, we already have a fair number of surnames and given names in our portfolio and they are priced fairly.

So, if you are considering buying your first domain name, consider starting with your own name. Thank you for visiting. Please come back soon.

It is another stunning night on the Sunset Strip. Sushiya is bustling, and I will soon be enjoying a buttery black cod while I blog under the stars. Oh how we have evolved.

As a web 1.0 veteran, I remember the countless evenings confined (seemingly under house arrest) in my New York apartment, reloading Windows 3.1, one floppy after another and becoming familiar with all of the DOS filenames as they would casually flash by, seemingly in slow motion.

Once I was up and running again, more countless hours were spent building websites with my trusty Sausage Software Hot Dog Pro. There was a bit of a learning curve with web site programming back then. I have never been one for school, so instead of taking classes, I immersed myself in knowledge, knowledge and more knowledge reading everything I could on the subject. Suffice to say, there may have been some impact on my social life.

Cut to today, blogging under the stars. WordPress, which is not a new name, has evolved to a point where I might not disuade someone from letting their eleven year old daughter design their business website. It’s really that easy. In addition, it comes preloaded on most 10 dollar a month hosting packages and it’s free. So basically, if you are eleven years or older, with parental consent as needed, and you have $10 dollars a month which you can categorize as disposable income, you can have an amazing web site.

Your new web site can include an almost unimaginable number of features including streaming audio and video, great blogging features, really useful SEO software, calendars, you name it. Many features are offered as free plugins many others are offered at a very modest cost, most instantly available. This is the game changer which no one is talking about.

As we approach the time when having a personal website or blog becomes almost as common as having a cellphone, I expect we will see an increasing demand for short, catchy and brandable domain names. While statistics may vary, I estimate there are many hundreds of millions of active websites across the world. There are several billion cellphones in my estimation. The webmaster today is as chronologically out of place as a horse and buggy. Today, we are all webmasters.

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In the domain name world, acronyms are a prized commodity.  Most noteworthy are the two and three letter acronyms.  Someone new to the game might wonder what anyone might see in a small group of letters which may or may not form a dictionary word?  Well, it’s pretty simple, supply and demand.

With a three letter acronym and especially with a two letter acronym there are large numbers of potential end users who would benefit from any sequence.  Some letter combinations are more popular than others.  Certain letters such as Q and Z are less desirable although there are exceptions.  I sold QA.tv for $10,000 this year.  I selected it, most of all, because it is an abbreviation for Questions and Answers.  It can also stand for Quality Assurance or any business or law firm name with matching letters (for example Quincy and Anderson).  In addition it is the country code for Qatar.

The real key here is the potential to abbreviate, to make more memorable and to reduce the likelihood of users misspelling the URL.  Most importantly, online, distance is measured in keystrokes, not meters or miles. If hundreds, thousands or tens of thousands of potential end users could benefit from your unique two or three letter acronym, then you must have something of value.

Thank you for visiting.  Please come back soon.