PremiumDomains.biz

In October of 2009, I had proposed the question for reader consideration as to what Insurance.com might fetch given that it is the ultimate premium, generic domain name for the entire insurance industry. We have the answer to that question. Exactly $35.6 million.

Quinstreet have purchased Insurance.com in what appears to be a total buyout of the domain name and related assets. This puts Quinstreet at the center of the insurance world. They have effectively bought their way into an industry that is both necessary and highly lucrative. To Quinstreet’s credit, they appear to have keen insight as to the value of a generic domain name and its power to connect with consumers.

Now I will propose another question. What would Insurance.US sell for in the open market? We now know that Insurance.com is well out of reach and has been snatched up permanently for over $30 million. This places Insurance.US front and center as one of the best domain names available for the United States insurance market.

In the early days of the domain game was a site called GreatDomains.com. That site became overwhelmed with low quality domain names, fell out of favor, and was eventually acquired by Sedo some years later for a marginal sum. They now use that site for primarily moving dotcom inventory.

As a domain investor and developer, it is useful to maintain one’s own independent website for organizing your domain name portfolio. Buyers of all kinds need a clean, well-organized platform for searching through hundreds (or thousands) of domain names for sale. Organization and clean presentation are important customer service keys.

The downside of a large brokerage like AfternicDLS, BuyDomains, or Sedo is the sheer volume of domain names that they carry. A very large percentage of their inventory are non-premium domain names.

If you offer a true premium domain name inventory, then you will want to separate your domain name collection from the mass of low quality domains available at the large online brokerages. I prefer to post domains for sale at both AfternicDLS and Sedo (which are generally excellent venues) while also maintaining a premium domain collection on a personal website. Below are several means of viewing the Menius Enterprises portfolio of premium domain names with PremiumDomains.US being the most comprehensive.

• PremiumDomains.US
• PremiumDomains.biz
• Sedo (a portion of our collection listed there)
• AfternicDLS (a portion of our collection listed there)
• DomainBusiness.US (showcases some top premium domains)
• This blog (our domain names for sale page showcasing many premium domains)

Premium domain names are valuable assets for companies who are looking to create or enhance their online brand in a particular market, or with a select group of products or services. Premium domain names are obviously expensive and are typically purchased by select corporate end users or dedicated buyers. PremiumDomains.US have sold domain names both in traditional instant buyout arrangements and through “payment plan” arrangements.

In Andrew’s blog post, he writes that in the Escrow.com payment plan, Escrow.com take control of the domain while collecting monthly payments from the buyer. Upon final payment, the domain name is then transferred to the new owner and funds are disbursed to the seller. This option allows smaller companies to acquire a high level premium domain while conserving capital for daily operations as the company scales up operations.

Andrew writes that Escrow.com use GoDaddy.com (the world’s largest and highest quality registrar) to safely hold the domain while payments are made over time. Presently, Escrow.com’s payment plan for domain purchases range from 8 months to 5 years.

Thanks to DomainNameWire.com for covering this important industry development.

PremiumDomains.US

The website also divides domain names into various price points, geographical locations, and domain extensions (such as .com, .biz, .info).

In selecting domain names for development, resale or other monetization strategies, I typically look for several key characteristics before adding a domain to the portfolio.

These key “ingredients” will include a combination of the below:

• Is the domain clear, descriptive, and easy to communicate?
• Does the domain relate to a common business category?
• Is the domain name a generic word or word combination?
• Does the domain specifically avoid trademark infringement?
• Is the web address a geodomain or geo-targeted?
• Does the domain have special appeal to an audience or group?
• The domain name fits the domain extension?
• Usually avoid hyphens, typos, and uncommon abbreviations?

The various categories of domain names featured on the site are: Business | Geodomains | Hotels | Jobs | Keywords | Legal | Medical | Real Estate. Each of these categories contain high-quality, premium domain names that meet all of the criteria listed above.

Below are examples of high quality domains in various extensions:

1. .US -> Charlotte.US | Portland.US | Indianapolis.US
2. .biz -> Miami.biz | AutoRacing.biz | NewOrleans.biz
3. .info -> Indiana.info | Knowledge.info | Memphis.info
4. .com -> ColoradoSpringsApartments.com
5. .mobi -> Manhattan.mobi | Tampa.mobi | ParisFrance.mobi
6. .TV -> Albuquerque.TV | BeachHomes.TV
7. .net -> ManhattanCondo.net

Visit this link for more on Domain Portfolio Strategies & Approaches

Everything imaginable is being channeled to the internet. And this tidal wave of information is accessed through logical, intuitive web addresses otherwise known as premium domains. 

From an investing perspective, domain names are demonstrating not only unprecedented price appreciation and return on investment, but an ability to hold value through time while other investment vehicles experience decline. Premium domains possess a rare combination of attributes which increase their business application & value … especially to those companies who are looking to distinguish themselves on the internet world stage.

Domain marketplace, Sedo, reported last month that for select tld’s the sales growth of domains in 2008 was as much as 57% higher over the preceding year, and that …

The secondary domain market is one of the few industries withstanding the economic downturn of 2008.

Sedo also reported that “Marketers are seeing better returns in acquiring domain names as opposed to search marketing in their efforts to drive traffic to their businesses”.

Domain name sales for 2009 have been projected to increase over 2008. It appears thus far that this calculation is going to be proven true. In the early days of the internet, companies were either not aware of the importance of domain names in driving their business, or they were skeptical that the internet would become a long-lasting, robust medium for furthering their growth.

Fast forward 10 years from 1999 and we now see the future is here. Company stocks are a risky venture. Real estate has declined, but is consequently now offering good buying opportunities in select markets. And domain names have taken a seat alongside every other major investment category. In fact,  the rate of return on many premium domains has surpassed any other investment in history.

Investing in anything requires due diligence. It also requires intelligent speculation and an ability to look forward toward evolving trends. Today’s internet entrepreneurs looked forward at a time when everyone else was looking backward.

Capturing high return investments is the end result of: persistent learning, open-mindedness, an ability to weigh alternatives, and the will to act while a window of opportunity remains open. Enjoy your day.

When .US availability was announced, scores of internet users and companies positioned themselves to acquire America’s top .US web address. The .US domain space garnered instant appeal. Savvy registrants considered the importance of American patriotism, the need for a .com alternative, and the fact that the U.S. economy was the # 1 business engine of all time. And so our story begins …

In the vast universe of domain name real estate, one occasionally comes across a very rare internet property. A brilliant star above the landscape which draws attention … and sparks imagination.

For me, it is a domain name registered to a man from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His name is Robert DeMartinis. Robert is the sole investor, registrant, and owner of …

One must restrain the hyperbole, and awe, that is often associated with discussing such a premium-quality internet property. The mind races with possibilities. I was actually introduced to the domain industry in 1999 while in bed one night listening to the 11:00 pm news. The TV news anchor announced with enthusiasm that the domain name, Business.com, had been sold for 7.5 million dollars. My mind froze for a second … and then the light bulb turned on. Years later, we now clearly understand the inherent value contained in a premium generic domain.

Business.com went on to be sold again in 2007 as a developed internet business. The purchase price was $345,000,000. It was acquired by telephone directory publisher, R.H. Donnelley, who outbid News Corp., Dow Jones & Company, The New York Times Company, and InterActiveCorp. No small corporate monikers there.

It’s relatively safe to say that Business.com is now permanently out of reach, and will be “occupied” for some time to come. Which leads us back to Mr. Robert DeMartinis and his jewel, Business.us. Make no mistake, Robert is an astute domain investor having acquired his gem through a series of strategic moves that required foresight, impeccable timing, and an odd dash of irony (an amusing story for another day). In case you’re curious, Robert holds other synergistic properties that compliment his portfolio quite well …

• Products.us
• Services.us
• Delaware.biz
• Housing.biz
• … among others.

Mr. DeMartinis, like many of us, is employed in another profession. Family, responsibilities, and the other callings of life often interfere with time needed to explore the next step for one’s portfolio. Sometimes, the next step is just a phone call away. Or, materializes as a unique and unexpected veer in the road ahead … a turn that is not yet seen, but which may arrive suddenly and with refreshing clarity. This mystery, and journey, are half the fun.

Possessing prime internet real estate is a uniquely rare opportunity. One in which impulsivity and haphazard decisions have no place. Mr. DeMartinis knows this, and he is in no hurry. I have no doubt that someday, as time allows, Mr. DeMartinis will fully ponder the paths available to him. For now, keeping one’s options open is a good play.

Until the eventual course of Business.us is one day revealed, I invite you to share your thoughts and speculations …

1. What enterprise, what exotic venture, might come to be launched via Business.us?

2. Is there an existing corporate entity who could elevate their US presence with Business.us?

3. Assuming a large corporate interest within the next 5 years, do you see this domain being acquired by a U.S. company, or a foreign investor? (assuming the foreign entity meets U.S. nexus requirements)

4. Which unique products, services, or business concepts could shape the future identity of Business.us?

Think big

Sound a little like hype? Depends on your perspective, or lack of one. Newspaper, radio, television, global commerce, healthcare, university instruction, on and on, are being digitized and delivered to the world via a variety of high-technology devices. So advanced are these devices that they make the internet simple, and more readily accessible with every passing day to billions around the world. From a pure business perspective, this equals multiple revenue streams. From a human evolutionary standpoint, it’s a continuing advancement with no end in sight.

As you can tell, I’m an optimist. But also, proudly … a realist. If one evaluates what the internet has achieved thus far, that in itself is incredible. The world wide web has dramatically changed global business on an unprecedented scale. The wheel, electricity, and maybe the auto are its only peers. The exciting part, for me, is that the juice hasn’t even been squeezed yet from the fruit. We have witnessed thus far only a trickle, or glimpse, of greater things to come. Many have commented that the internet is in its infancy. True and correct in the extreme.

So what about domain names?

They’re about one thing only … language, and the power of a word. The internet has been constructed, for all of the correct reasons, around the simplest and most direct form of communication that we know. The …

word: a unit of language, consisting of one or more spoken sounds or their written representation, that functions as a principal carrier of meaning.

Beautiful in its simplicity, the domain name is the concise unit of language which has no parallel (or substitute) for connecting a person with their internet destination. Like an accurate street address, it’s all you really need to get you there. Naysayers and chicken little’s like to pontificate that somehow language will be replaced by some abstract technology (a series of grunts perhaps?) that will render domain names, or “web addresses”, obsolete. For that to happen, domain names would have to stop serving their purpose. All the more improbable since domains function perfectly for billions of internet users day in and day out.

The domain market has a bright future?

What we have witnessed over the last decade is universal acknowledgement of domain name value. No one had to pump it because it sold itself. You read much in forums about clear, descriptive domain names that are easily conveyed both in writing and in verbal communication. We call these great domains, premium domains, high-quality web addresses. These all mean the same thing: They’re the Best!

Just below “the best” is a multitude of excellent two and three word domain names each of which also describe a unique business, service, or product that internet users aim to find. Whether a single word, or a highly targeted three word phrase, domain names transport the user to their desired destination like no other technology or concept. Why is this? Because domain names (words) are: the simplest unit of language that function as a principal carrier of meaning. No getting around that. And therein lies their eternal value and universal importance.

So, the answer is self-evident. The domain market, like all markets, will ebb and flow, peak and valley. But within that cycle … is incredible opportunity. Domain values will continue to appreciate over longer time horizons. One is encouraged to ignore snapshots of time (which reveal little), and focus more on spans of time which are more accurate predictors of domain trends and future growth. From my perspective, the trend is both excellent and promising.

Domaining, as a relatively new business and investment vehicle, is widening out to catch the attention of corporations, venture capital investors, entrepreneurs, and the everyday person. It’s not about riding a wave that’s here today and gone tomorrow. The Domain Industry is a real market that is maturing and taking shape, and which will sustain over time. Because underneath the hoopla and the excitement on any given day, there is true relevancy and ongoing necessity for quality domain names. The evidence is everywhere. The evidence is all around us.