When’s the last time you saw a long-tail domain name sell for $18,000?
Especially one that’s over 25 characters long.
Sales of Long-Tail Domains
2009 saw the sales of several long-tail insurance domains like KansasCityHealthInsurance.com for $6,000 a pop – names acquired by Joel Ohman of Domain Superstar on an insurance-domain shopping spree that included dozens of city-based home, car, and auto insurance domains.
Sedo GreatDomains is now reporting the sale of the long-tail domain name HighInterestSavingsAccount.com for $18,000.
While it’s not necessarily an easy type-in domain, the new owner can tap into natural search traffic on Google – with nearly 30,000 exact Global keyword searches conducted last month alone.
A WordPress blog has been put up. Still in its early stage of development, no ads are displayed, but several pages of content are online already.
HighYieldSavingsAccount.com sold last week via Moniker for $16,200. Though both long-tail domain names are marked Private, they appear to belong to the same owner, based on the look-and-feel of each website.
According to Estibot, the Average Cost Per Click for High Interest Savings Account is $19.20 USD.
Rick Schwartz sold the domain name iReport.com to CNN for a whopping $750,000. The URL now re-directs to ireport.cnn.com
While the amount of the price tag for PunchBowl.com sold by Rick Schwartz is undisclosed, it is almost certain that the final sales price is a multiple 6 figure deal plus other considerations.
Multiple 6 figure deal + other considerations likely means some sort of long term deal that includes a one time payment and recurring paychecks based on company profits – similar to the deal he brokered for his Candy.com domain name which sold for $3 million plus other considerations.
Rick Schwartz received his first dividend payment from Candy.com this month, though not his biggest check to date, with Candy.com sitting nicely atop of the Search rankings and enjoying type in traffic, if the terms of dividends are for years down the road, his dividend payments are certain to improve.
In the not too distant future I will be announcing my 12th domain sale is PunchBowl.com. Another multiple 6 figure deal plus other considerations. There should be a press release forthcoming and the buyer will decide how much of this to go public with as there will be a confidentially clause .”
While I may not always agree with Rick’s opinions and often have difficulty understanding the point of his blog posts – I always find his sales amazing.
Take a look at the press release issued earlier today.
Purchase and acquisition transaction of Punchbowl.com between Punchbowl Software Inc. and “Domain King” Rick Schwartz
Framingham, Mass., July 19, 2010 – Punchbowl Software, Inc. today announced the acquisition of the web domain Punchbowl.com from legendary domainer Rick Schwartz. Punchbowl Software Inc. develops web applications for start to finish party planning. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
With Punchbowl.com, the company plans to re-launch the domain as a leading consumer site for party and event planning. With new technology and a new look, the party planning site will be ready to launch in time for the holiday season of 2010. At Punchbowl.com, consumers will be able to plan a party from start to finish. The service will offer unique features including the innovative “Date Decider” which enables users to find the best calendar date for their event, beautiful Save the Dates and digital invitations, photo and video sharing after the event and other services that will help consumers throw an unforgettable celebration.
“A punchbowl is the center of any great party,” said Matt Douglas, CEO, Punchbowl Software. “The acquisition of Punchbowl.com will allow us reach new customers and expand our growing customer base.”
Rick Schwartz, aka the “Domain King,” is one of the early domain pioneers. Domains he has sold include iReport.com to CNN for $750,000, Candy.com to G&J Holdings, LLC for $3 million plus dividends, and Men.com for $1.3million back in 2004.
“During my domain career, I’ve sought prime, recognizable domain names that were easy to spell, easy to remember and could be developed into a major brand in their respective industry” said Rick Schwartz. “I was the first to see the intrinsic value in Punchbowl.com and knew that it could be developed into a huge brand in the social expressions and celebrations industry. I’m thrilled that Punchbowl Software will now develop the domain to its full potential.”
The party planning industry is ripe for a new entrant to provide a service for party hosts. Whether it’s a mom planning a birthday party for her five year old daughter, a friend planning a baby shower, a family planning their annual reunion, or the company Christmas party, everyone has multiple reasons to plan a party every year. As the industry moves from traditional offline sources to online, the market will consolidate. A new brand will emerge – Punchbowl.com – that will define this new industry.
Stay tuned for frequent updates and milestones for the new Punchbowl.com. While you can visit the Web site in its current appearance, the complete re-launch and re-branding will not be official until sometime this fall.
“Working with Rick Schwartz on this domain name acquisition has demonstrated to me that he’s not only a visionary in the domain industry, but he’s a savvy businessman who understands how to extract the most value from the Internet” said Matt Douglas, CEO, Punchbowl Software. “I couldn’t be happier to be the new owner of Punchbowl.com.”
About Us: About eRealEstate.com
Rick Schwartz, aka “Domain King” and “Webfather,” is the CEO, President and Cofounder of T.R.A.F.F.I.C. found at TargetedTraffic.com– the premiere domain conference for the domain industry. It is both the oldest and largest and attracts over 500 of the top professionals in the industry in what was a by invitation only event until 2009 and now open to all. As one of the early domain pioneers dating back to 1995, Rick has a knack for predicting big trends and getting it right. He may have been the first to recognize the value of “type in” traffic which is now commonly referred to as “direct navigation” — the most potent and targeted traffic on the net. Rick has a prime portfolio of some 7000 one and two word domains, and is considered by many to be among the leading experts on domain names, traffic, Web site flow and valuation. ‘http://www.erealestate.com & ‘http://www.ricksblog.com
Contact Info: Media Contact:
Matt Douglas
Punchbowl Software Inc. [email protected]
650 814 3393
Reinvent is changing its image, and taking a more aggressive approach to domains and the internet
Reinvent.com, the corporate web site of Domain Guru Kevin Ham, has reinvented itself.
The company that has steadily been expanding it’s presence on the web by developing its portfolio of domains such as BlackFriday.com, Vancouver.com, and GoodNews.com – is now focused on expanding its team and ideas.
The company is growing, both online and offline.
With Kevin Ham owning a lion share’s of the best domain names on the web, Reinvent is positioning to become a major player on the internet, and part of that process appears to be taking a much more aggressive approach.
Look Out Demand Media, Here Comes Reinvent
If Kevin Ham and his crew at Reinvent can continue to pull together to develop domain names into their own business units, companies like Demand Media and Idealab, may need to look out. Reinvent owns some of the best properties on the net – names like Attorney.com, Menopause.com, Spanish.com – and yes, even God.com.
The new site design is “lite” on content and looks to be a work in progress. With only a couple pages (as opposed to dozens of pages on the old site), the company is focusing on hiring employees to continue it’s growth.
We have a unique approach to total rewards that emphasizes community, wellness, and development. Our culture is uniquely friendly, casual, and apolitical. We share information freely with team meetings and updates and celebrate regularly with team lunches, foosball and pool tournaments, Rock Band jam sessions, and of course our monthly birthday extravaganzas.
In Canada, we offer 100% employer-funded extended heath benefits, and subsidize 50% of provincial health plans for the employee, couples, or families. We match your RRSP contributions, starting at 20% in year one and growing to 100% in year eight (with some indexed limits). We offer flex time, telecommuting and nearly four weeks of paid time off to start (vacation, personal days, and winter shutdown). As part of our leadership development program, we offer an additional 40 hours per year of paid time to serve on the board of a local non-profit or cause, or flex time and the use of up to four personal days per year to volunteer or participate in local fundraising campaigns or events.
We offer ongoing professional development of up to $1,500 per person each year (related to your craft) as well as peer-led tech talks where we learn from each other. We do not believe in burning people out and you’ll see the office nearly empty by 6:00, time we hope you use for friends and family.
The new home page, rotates different calls to action with each click – focusing on the power of Reinvent’s portfolio. The variety of quotes include:
Domains are the hub of the internet and we own a very big piece.
Where’s the next big idea coming from?
Traditional Media is struggling…there’s a new kid in town.
Twitter helped to make popular generic keywords such as "Tweet", but doesn't own any of them on the internet
On July 11, Mike Berkens ran a story about who owns the best 3D domain names, in which Mike refers to 3D being the “Next BIG Thing”. The article got us thinking: who owns the best Twitter domain names?
Twitter has done extensive work towards making phrases popular such as “Tweet” and “Unfollow”.
And while many of the phrases are generic terms, one thing seems certain: Twitter doesn’t own them.
For fun, I decided to look at some the key terms on Twitter’s Learn the lingo page which can be found by clicking the Twitter 101 link on the company’s home page – then I added .com to the keyword. You might not be surprised to see who owns the names.
Following.com
Following.com re-directs to VeryBest.com, an invitation only website that provides information on the “very best” in luxury products, services, and people – the site says. In this case, the owners of Following.com, own one of the “very best” domain names when it comes to Social Media.
Tweet.com
Tweet.com is owned by prolific Domain Investor Mrs Jello, LLC of ExoticDomains.net. There is a website online about birds, and while birds are somewhat popular, the 10,000 visitors per month on average that visit the website, can’t be explained by the simple minisite design that talks about binoculars and birdhouses – it most likely has to do with the popularity of the phrase tweet. Tweets.com by the way, is owned by Frank Schilling.
DirectMessage.com
DirectMessage.com re-directs to RoaldMarth.com – the IdeaEvangelist, who apparently is an internationally recognized venture capitalist, speaker, technologist, CEO, fundraiser, author, strategist, television personality, and marketing guru.
DirectMessages.com is owned by Mobile Media Technologies LLC. who run TextCaster, a mass notification service. The domain name however, doesn’t resolve.
Retweet.com
Retweet.com exchanged hands earlier this year, but nearly exchanged hands accidentally on NameJet after being accidentally listed. Traffic to the website has nosedived since the site sold in 2010 on Flippa
Retweet.com has been in the spotlight repeatedly in the last year. In June 2009, the Popular Twitter Term Retweet.com accidentally went up for Auction at NameJet.com. Mesiab Labs the owners of the domain name at the time, launched a website in the summer of 2009 which quickly rose in popularity as a competitor to Tweetmeme. Mesiab Labs finally sold the domain name and website on Flippa for $250,000 USD.
Tweetup.com
Idealab purchased Tweetup.com in April 2010 for an undisclosed amount before launching their Twitter advertising service that garnered lots of media coverage. Idealab also acquired (or acquired through a consulting gig) the @tweetup username from the operators of tweetups.org.
We happen to own the phrase Tweetups.com, a name we acquired on the aftermarket after the name expired. If you’re not familiar with the term:
A tweetup is simply an in-person gathering organized via Twitter, often spontaneous. Companies use them for things like hosting launch parties, connecting with customers and introducing like-minded followers to each other.
There will always be opportunities with domain names, as new trends appear online. The key is, who will strike first at buying the name? In this case, it wasn’t Twitter.
ShortenedURLs.com
Strangely enough, Twitter even mentions the keywords “Shortnened URLs” at the bottom of the Learn the Lingo page (referring to URL shorteners—that take regular links and shrink them down to a manageable length for tweets), and guess what?
At the time this story appeared online, ShortenedURLs.com is still available for hand registration.
UPDATE: ShortenedURLs.com is no longer avaialable. @MarketTaker acquired the domain name after reading this post.
SponsoredTweets.com is a wholly owned property of IZEA. IZEA is a venture-backed company that has raised $10 million from some of the world’s leading investors.
SponsoredTweets.com is a wholly owned property of IZEA. IZEA is a venture-backed company that has raised $10 million from some of the world’s leading investors.
The Twitter market is only growing stronger in numbers and events like the World Cup demonstrate how powerful the microblogging website can be. According to the Associated Press, “Though Twitter normally sees about 750 tweets per second on an average day, there were 2,940 tweets per second”.
Having got on the Twitter bandwagon relatively late, we’ve still been able to grow our Twitter following to an amazing number: 31,000+.
Despite what people say about the ratio of your Twitter following to followers, high numbers of Twitter followers are still one of the best ways to get traffic back to your website and to monetize your Twitter account. Size does matter, and the quickest way to build numbers is to follow new people and to follow-back people who follow you first.
You’d be surprised who you’d meet and who retweets your messages, it’s not always the obvious – especially when it comes to Tweeting about domain names.
Monetize Your Twitter Account
If you spend time on Twitter, then maybe you should get paid to do something on Twitter. You can get paid to Tweet by web sites like SponsoredTweets, Twitter advertising platform that connects advertisers with tweeters, by tweeting messages from advertisers. You can also get paid by referring other people to Twitter and receive 10% of SponsoredTweets portion of revenue for each successful transaction that Tweeter makes.
We’ve been signed up to SponsoredTweets for some time, and even though Twitter changed it’s Advertising Policy, SponsoredTweets is still going strong. It’s a small niche market for the Domain Industry on Twitter, with a lot of potential.
It’s nice to receive email messages titled “Good News! You just got paid for tweeting” and “You earned money from a SponsoredTweets Referral”.
There’s no secret where our Twitter followers come from: we follow back and we follow new people. This is what some of the most successful internet marketers like Guy Kawasaki even do, who have written about the implications of a large following.
In 2009, Guy wrote an article for Entrepreneur magazine titled Create a Twitter Following that included tips like:
Follow everyone who follows you. Some people will respond to you and everyone who follows them will see this–which is more exposure for you.
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When’s the last time you saw a long-tail domain name sell for $18,000? 
