RicK Schwartz: Fool's Gold

"You want names which somebody will either type into their address bar because the string means something to them. Names which compel other human beings to take some form of action."

From the vaults of a bygone era and the great private forums of days past, here is a notable sermon from Domain King, Rick Schwartz.

Fool's Gold
by Rick Schwartz

I feel it is smart for a company to own the category or product they are in and maybe some other key domains.

However, every domainer thinks they have gold and asks....when will these end users come and why don't these companies buy my names.

I don't think they will buy most of these names EVER for most people. I think most people hold "Fool's Gold" and not GOLD Bullion.

Take a step back....look at your portfolio. Look at the names that you own and ask yourself a few questions.

1. Why do I own this?
2. What can be done with it?
3. Who are the possible buyers?
4. What can they realistically pay for it?
5. What are the chances of the name being resold?
6. Are there viable alternatives to the name you own?
7 If so, at what cost?
8. Would I be better off selling it and re-investing the money into something different?

If it's a traffic name, then the point is moot because the name pays for itself and who cares when or if it ever sells.

Look at the majority of names recently that have been presented for sale. How many of those names are Gold Bullion? How many of those are must haves for business owners? How many those define a category or support it?

So, I challenge everyone to look at their portfolio and classify the names as Gold Bullion or Fool's Gold.

One criteria I try to remove when doing this is the emotional factor. Take out the what if and it could be good if...

A good name does not need an IF and COULD. A good name says I AM

I want all my names to be Gold Bullion. To bad for me, most are fool's gold.