Here’s the big reveal of the domain name mentioned in my SnapNames debacle post. It’s TAGOLOGY.com, and the plan is to use Tagology instead of Savory for my personal WordPress-based bookmarking theme.
So, in case your’re wondering what either of those two are… Tagology is a WordPress theme that allows you to bookmark sites much like Delicious.com except that YOU own the database of bookmarks.
Skip over to the Tagology page for more information HERE.
I bid on an expiring domain at SnapNames for $79. This was the minimum bid. I was the only bidder, but somehow the process went awry and SnapNames failed to acquire the domain from Melbourne IT. The domain would go to pending delete, I was told.
Fast-forward to today. The domain was set to drop. I didn’t want to backorder the domain with SnapNames for fear of my bid showing up in their search results. If there are NO other bidders, I believe you’ve got one hour BEFORE drop time to backorder the name with them. One hour is a long time for your bid to be showing up publicly on their search pages.
(Expired domain bids can be placed just before the closing bell, which is more advantageous…)
Long story short: I got the domain name with SnapNames when it dropped. Here’s what happened: my expired domain bid was flipped to a backorder automatically. Fine. But, my bid of $79 also went with it. The problem is that $59 is the minimum bid for SnapNames backorders. I just paid $20 more than I could have.
Here are some lessons:
I’m pretty happy I got the domain though in the end 
I didn’t get too burned. Actually, SnapNames came through, although it would have been nice to receive notifications like “Your expired bid is now a deleted domain backorder and TODAY that domain is dropping”, or something like that…
Looks like SEDO is holding a premium .ME auction. It’s scheduled to start Nov 11th and run for a week. So far, I’m seeing 150 domains in the catalog.
My faves are:
[domains sedo]
promise.me – think wedding engagements
recycle.me – SUPER green call-to-action
open.me – SO generic, it has to be good!
message.me – would seem cool and obvious, but it’s not…
shop.me – OH yeah
text.me – now THAT’s better…
write.me – maybe, but no one writes anymore…
affiliate.me – awesome domain if you’re blogging about this
eat.me – foodies! lol
feed.me – foodies rule!
green.me – another superb ‘geen’ domain
[/domains]
Here’s the complete catalog:
Continue reading
Some of these names are from Snapname’s showcase auction. I added some commentary… I won’t be doing that very often as it consumed approx. 6 minutes of my free time…
Enjoy the List!
[domains snapnames]
anniversary.org – $5000
internetcafes.net – expired, 2 bids, $89
flagstaff.org – $10,000 Ouch! Very cool town…
smokeshop.org – $200, these are everywhere!
liftingbenches.com – $39, you want a “weight” bench, but this has some Google.
pooltables.org – $2500
memories.com – $100,000. Wow… amazing generic .com if you’ve got the bankroll…
hobbystore.net – $499, private auction
invitro.org – $1399, not bad for the extention
cuffs.com – $10,000 too much for this adult brandable, not worth it in generic use…
renttuxedo.net
druidguide.com – Come on, you people all played D&D at some point…
temps.com – $100,000 another HUGE generic (jobs)
insidesource.org – expired, another wikileaks, memoryhole, etc…
identificationcard.org – $200, could be…
luxurydistributors.com – I sold LuxuryWarehouse.com not long ago, there’s something to this…
male.org – $25,000, too much…
cakemix.net – $699, forget it.
thin.me – $1000, diet is still HUGE. Just look at every billboard for 1-800-get-slim
temps.net – $10,000, if you’re getting Temp.com, get this too…
nowayshop.com – expired, for all your Norway needs!
careerguru.net – $79 expired, job advice is always hot
gnomewizard.com – is that even an allowed character-class??
discount.org – $25,000… hardly!
magicsouth.com
october.com – $100,000, month of my Birthday, priceless!
mullet.us – expired, $59… yes, let it go!
[/domains]
Here’s another list of domains I like ending at SnapNames today…
[domains snapnames]
necrology.com – Euw!!
visitmaui.net – yes please!
animalcoach.com
templetours.net
weathergirl.org
animeindex.org
realrock.org
rarecoins.info
orangeguide.info
skateboutique.com
tobogganist.com – a lost pasttime!
babekit.com
beerpong.us
swedendaily.com
knowwho.net
wallcabinets.net
mesacafe.com
newvisitor.com
trueboats.com
magicbelize.com
hungaryvisitor.com
limebuzz.com
storepost.net
dailyspecial.org
answerguys.org
losthunters.net
coolname.net
makeout.net
proxyhub.org
sandiegoholiday.com
bestmotion.org
[/domains]
Lots of great domains ending at Snapnames today, but with very high reserves. Many of these are coming from the HuntingMoon portfolio…
[domains snapnames]
roleplay.com
gothic.com
vampires.com
werewolves.com
scrolls.com
cavemen.com
allnite.com
ravers.com
facial.com
hell.com
celebs.com
liveshow.com
[/domains]
But there are others, some under $100, that also have very good potential:
[domains snapnames]
gamepress.net
norules.org
hobbystore.net
calamari.org
calculateloan.net
toymodels.net – only $25!
pies.org
autolistings.info
[/domains]
Auctions end at 12:15pm PST OR 9pm PST… be sure to check and set your reminders! =D
[box]Learn how I publish domains lists like these and earn affiliate commissions at API Domainers[/box]
Here are some domains I like that are ending at Snapnames today. You just gotta bid on SETS.net, just to watch the action… =D
[domains snapnames]
magicparty.com
econs.com
sets.net
dealboutique.com
yogurtzone.com
timesharebook.com
fontlounge.com
debug.me
optimize.me
younews.org
lecture.me
dnb.info
southclub.com
script.me
hobblers.com
truesamples.com
funnybeads.com
newarkairport.info
germanhomes.com
aegeanguide.net
alaskahomes.info
minoritypress.com
raintheme.com
journalbug.com
sohomagazine.com
electrickit.com
ancientcivilization.com
socialtoday.com
graffitidesigner.com
playdenver.com
aboutbody.com
devilforum.com
garageclub.org
veganblog.net
eruby.org
ebids.net
8-0.org
twinmart.com
[/domains]
When I was getting my sea-legs in domaining, reading Frank’s latest blog post was something I really looked forward to. There was something reassuring and compelling at the same time seeing him waist high in blue tranquil water of the Caymans knowing his portfolio of generic domain names was doing the work for him.
Smash cut to Rick’s “Good morning folks!” Wow… it’s been too long without Frank’s yin to Rick’s yang. I feel like the Avatar has come and put the elements back in balance again… yes, it’s that good.
Frank is back blogging now after a long hiatus and what a come back! If you’re new to domaining read his latest post over and over again.
One thing he talks about – and I’ve made this my new mantra – are domains that “put the wind at your back”. THAT is something I now incorporate into every new domain purchase and auction bid.
If you’re a new domainer and not someone with cash to burn playing the numbers game, then I strongly advise you to take this to heart. Read and re-read Frank’s latest post…
Despite tracking a zillion (approx.) names in that time over at GoDrops.com, only 10 new names have been added to my domain collection (dare I call it a portfolio?). I’ve been keeping busy developing a real-estate WordPress-based site and, of course, keeping up with what’s dropping and the bargains at auction.
Here’s a run-down of my latest 10 domains and why I pulled the trigger on them:
GenericOutlet.com (reg fee) - Think “generic drugs” or “generic medications”. Great Google searches and “outlet” makes a strong e-commerce brandable.
AbandonedWarehouses.com – This is where all the bad guys set up shop and, in the end, where Detective Caine rolls in surrounding the place eventually taking the crime boss and his cronies down. Also, this domain could serve a property-search site…
HomeLoams.com (reg fee) - typo of “Home Loans”
ShowbizShop.com (reg fee) – strong e-commerce suffix making a great celebrity/entertainment shopping site
EmeraldMart.com (reg fee) – Can 5 million searches on emerald keywords all targeted to jewelry be wrong? I am a little cool on the “Mart” suffix paired with luxury items, but it’s still a very consumer-friendly domain.
MoneyCompanion.com (reg fee) – A total brandable. “Money” is a great keyword and with “companion” makes a great domain that could host a how-to money-management site.
SUVOutlet.com (reg fee) – Are people still buying SUV’s? I hope so! There are some obvious end-users that come up if you Google this. Again, a nice consumer-friendly “outlet” paired with a big money item.
AltoonaApartments.com (reg fee) – I mentioned that I’ve been working on coding a real-estate site. These kinds of names would be perfect to lay down on top of that code and seek end-users: brokers, realtors, or maybe a self-listing type of site. (I grew up not far from Altoona, PA)
CreteApartments.com ($40 at Snapnames private seller auction) – Ouch! This one hurt the wallet! Great tourist destination (I’ve been there, it’s awesome) and super Google search frequency. “apartments” works in europe and serves a different customer than “hotels”, so there may be some differentiation to work with there…
OrnamentOutlet.com (reg fee) – Another simple product e-commerce site. Christmas ornaments come inexpensive to mildly expensive and, more importantly, they’re easily shippable. A good consumer-friendly domain.
That’s it! My last 10 names. I think I did alright… =)
At the GeoDomain Expo a couple weeks ago, I found myself sitting down with a representative from Booking.com over lunch. They’re big in Europe covering all the large hotels and the smaller independent ones (i.e. the long-tail). I’ve got a solid collection of undeveloped travel names now and it’s time I rolled-up my sleeves and get them built. Yesterday, I applied to their affiliate program and hope to be in contact with them early next week.
I’m still looking for WordPress magazine and news themes for inspiration, but I’m closing in on a couple. One thing I look for in any travel affliate partner is the availablity of content and the ability to do deep linking in their booking engine. Not only do I want a booking widget to paste into my WordPress theme, but listings as well that appear under my own domain.
Having that content on your own domain, gets you a little further along than being just a thin affiliate and allows you to get traction with Google with a greater variety of keywords. Also, the deep linking into their site would give me the ability to send users to more targeted areas such as individual and geographically targeted hotel listings and that should increase conversions.
I’m off to watch the daily domain drop over on GoDrops.com… Stay tuned here for more development updates!