I’ve been there myself. I had a business idea I thought was going to change the world and make me a millionaire. I took the plunge and bought a domain name straight away. I wanted to secure the brand name before someone else had the same idea. I woke up the next morning I and realized that my idea was actually pretty stupid. Actually, it was worse than stupid, plus I was lumbered with this domain name that I was never going to use.
There are other reasons why you might own domain names that have outlived their use. Maybe your business or personal site isn’t popular anymore. Maybe your business has changed its name, but you still have the old name as a domain. The thing is, these domain names cost money to renew every year. You don’t need to throw money down the drain. You can sell them.
It’s possible to sell your domain if you follow our handy steps. Who knows, you may be sitting on a goldmine!
1 – Evaluate Your Domain’s Value
Before you sell your domain name, it’s important that you figure out a rough idea of what your domain name is worth. It’s good to know what to expect, so later in the process, you’ll be able to negotiate with a degree of knowledge. You won’t be lowballed. There are many online tools that can give you a guide price. Find out the estimated value of your domain name with Free Valuator.
The value of a domain name depends on many factors. There’s existing traffic. If your domain name is associated with a site that lots of people visit, it will be more valuable than one that has never been used. The suffix is important. Domains with the .com extension are more valuable than any other type. If your domain name is easy to remember, such as one simple word, or a combination of two words, it will be much more valuable than a random jumble of letters. Your website’s rankings and sales of similar domains have an effect on your domain’s value as well.
It’s important that you have realistic expectations. For your domain to be worth a lot it has to have millions of visitors, high search engine rankings, is associated with a popular website, and is incredibly valuable to someone. Having value to someone for business purposes is a good ticket to a high domain value. For example, in 2010, Facebook paid the American Farm Bureau Federation $8.5 million for fb.com.
2 – Put it up For Sale
There are a few different ways to sell a domain name, so let’s examine your options. You can choose to do one or more of the following:
Website Banner:
If your site is still popular, tell your visitors that the domain name is for sale using a website banner. A devoted follower may see it and want to buy up their favorite site. Create a for sale design or hire a graphic designer to create a banner for you.
Advertising Page:
Put up a page advertising your domain name sale.
WHOIS Information Update:
Update your WHOIS record to show that your domain name is for sale. You can do this by adding (domain name for sale) next to the owner name. Make sure you take privacy off your WHOIS information if you had privacy on in the past.
Domain Selling Website:
You can advertise your domain name for sale on a domain names site. Simple research will show you there are 3 or 4 big players in this area. To name a few: Sedo, GoDaddy, Afternic, or forum sites like NamePros or DNForum. Choose one or two and add your set to the sales list. It’s a ready-made shop window, with a large number of domain-hunters visiting every day. You could certainly have some success selling in this way. The site will charge a percentage of your revenue as commission.
Domain Broker:
Another option is using a domain broker. This is the personal touch. A broker will actively try to sell your domain name to their connections, for a fee of course. However, brokers are generally well-connected to prolific domain buyers. They are likely to know someone who would want to buy your domain, who may not have otherwise seen your listing. The domain brokerage services can be found almost at all domain selling sites. Be careful as some of them can be quite selective about the domains you want to sell.
The market leading domain name brokers: BuyDomains, Domain Name Sales, Domain Agents, eNaming.
Auction Websites:
You can also sell domain names on auction sites. This is a good way of maximizing the value of your domain, if you think your domain will generate a lot of interest. Auction sites charge a percentage of the selling price as commission. Again, to mention a few: Flippa, NameJet (your domains have to be approved), SnapNames or even eBay.
3 – Sell it!
Now your domain is up for sale, it’s time to begin the job of actually selling it.
If you get any interest from a potential buyer, send a quick and friendly response. Don’t give them the chance to take their money elsewhere.
It’s likely that a buyer will offer you a price under the amount you’re asking for. Negotiate with them to ensure you get a price you’re both happy with.
Finally, make sure you are secure when taking payment. It’s a good idea to use an escrow service, so both sides can do business with confidence.
Selling a domain name is not a difficult process, but it can be hard to get a high price for your domain. Have you ever sold a domain name? How did you find the process? Leave us a comment to let us know.
I never knew that “.com” extension domains are more valuable that any other type! My husband and I are wanting to start our own company, but we’ve had some troubles coming up with a company name that has an open domain. We never knew that selling/buying domains was an option we could look into. We’ll have to look into hiring a domain broker to help us out. Thanks for the info!
Hi Shayla,
We’re so glad our article helped you! We wish you success!