Generated by All in One SEO Pro v5.0.1, this is an llms-full.txt file, used by LLMs to index the site. # NameCorp Stealth domain name acquisition service from domain name brokers with over 20 years experience in the domain name industry. ## Posts ### [Nissan.com – A 20-Year Battle of David vs. Goliath](https://namecorp.com/nissan-com-a-20-year-battle-for-nissan-domain-name/) **Published:** October 21, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Nissan.com Domain Name Case](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-nissan-com-battle-main-1300.png "Nissan.com Domain Name Case → NameCorp") **Nissan Vs. Nissan** *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) Owning the right domain name is a critical part of branding. Public companies like Facebook, Endurance and Twitter have all acquired better versions of their original domain name. A reverse WHOIS search will even show celebrities like Mark Cuban have invested in key domain names such as Matter.com, Practice.com and Replace.com (presumably for future projects). The acquisition of great domains is not a small business anymore. Weekly sales are in the millions of dollars. Brand purchases have [their own column](http://domainnamewire.com/tag/end-user/) at DomainNameWire, and the attention [from China](http://www.businessinsider.com/china-is-buying-up-the-internet-2015-11) has catapulted many domain name values to all-time highs. **But what happens when you really want a domain name and don’t want to pay the price and/or can’t agree to a deal?** Nothing good. Just ask Nissan Motor Corporation. I think it’s fair to say most American consumers automatically think Nissan Motors is located at Nissan.com. After all, Nissan has spent hundreds of millions — possibly billions — promoting the brand “Nissan” around the world. But if you think that, you would be wrong. Nissan owns the domain name NissanUSA.com. A man named Mr. Uzi Nissan, who owns a computer company called Nissan Computer, actually owns the domain name Nissan.com. > For trademark experts, intellectual property attorneys, domain name owners and well… anyone who likes a David vs. Goliath story, this is one to bookmark. [The story](http://www.nissan.com/Lawsuit/The_Story.php) has everything you want to read. A man registered his family last name (Nissan.com) in 1994, for a company he started in 1980, when Nissan Motors was known as “DATSUN.” Years later, he is sued by the Nissan Motor Corporation, starting what would become almost two decades of legal arguments and maneuvers, even entering a request to the United States Supreme Court. The [opening brief of 97 pages](http://www.nissan.com/Lawsuit/images/Appeal%20Opening%20Brief.pdf) is worthy of a novel. And David (Mr. Nissan) is winning … so far. It doesn’t look like Nissan Motors is any closer to obtaining the domain name today than it was 20 years ago. Mr. Nissan’s last update shows that Nissan Motor Company (after a decade of lawsuits) applied for a trademark for the term Nissan under the category, “Computer software games; computer storage devices, namely, flash drives.” USPTO records show the trademark application was filed on March 27, 2007, and then finally registered and live six years later, on April 23, 2013. Remember, Mr. Nissan has a computer company so we may see another chapter in this saga soon. **![Nissan.com](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27300%27%20height%3D%27300%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20300%20300%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27300%27%20height%3D%27300%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "→ NameCorp")Why is this case important?** For domain name owners, this is a case your attorney should read before responding to any purchase request from a company with a similar name. For business owners and marketing professionals, however, this is much more important. This case of Nissan (Motor Co., LTD.) vs. Nissan (Computer Corporation) is a visual example of the possible struggles from not choosing the right company name, not obtaining the right domain name, and/or not valuing the acquisition of a key domain name the same as a key piece of real estate. Paul Graham, a well-known VC and co-founder of the Y Combinator seed capital firm, [published a post](http://paulgraham.com/name.html) in 2015 called, “Change Your Name.” The article starts by saying *“If you have a US startup called X and you don’t have x.com, you should probably change your name.”* Paul goes on to explain, *“The problem with not having the .com of your name is that it signals weakness.”* Weakness is only one aspect. Not having the best version of your domain name also causes brand confusion, exposes you to potentially embarrassing content (ask Jeb Bush), and very real security issues with people emailing the wrong address. Unlike global companies like Volkswagen, BMW and Fedex.com, where consumers can type in VW.com, BMW.com or Fedex.com and choose their country of choice, Nissan Motors offers a more complicated user experience where one has to visit country code sites to see local information (such as Nissan.ca or Nissan.co.uk). In fact, [on Page 26](http://www.nissan.com/Lawsuit/images/Appeal%20Opening%20Brief.pdf) of the opening brief, it reads: > *Nissan Motor’s Internet Strategy Manager, Merril Davis, puts it in a firm-wide memorandum distributed in 1999, ‘our current proliferation of regional websites and URL’s creates confusion for customers and fragments \[the\] Nissan and Infiniti brands.* I couldn’t have said it better myself. Furthermore the corporate website for the Nissan Motor Corporation is located at Nissan-Global.com, which doesn’t show up on the first page of Google when you search for Nissan. The company even owns NissanGlobal.com (without the hyphen) and doesn’t forward the name to Nissan-Global.com. Obviously, Goliath has some issues in understanding how domain names work. Nissan Motor Co. also operates ChooseNissan.com, NissanFinance.com, NissanNews.com, NissanOnetoOneRewards.com and likely others. We could also mention the thousands of people likely emailing by accident every month, probably even Nissan employees, but that would be too painful. **The Takeaway** No matter how big your company is, it’s not always possible to get the domain name you want. Nissan is a victim of its own success in many ways, as well as bad timing. Choosing a short name makes branding easier, and 20 years ago the Internet wasn’t nearly as popular. For perspective, it wasn’t until another year after Mr. Nissan’s registration of Nissan.com (in 1995) that Joshua Quittner wrote the legendary “[Billions Registered”](https://namecorp.com/billions-registered/) article for WIRED Magazine, where he called McDonalds only to fail and find anybody interested in registering McDonalds.com — so he did. New companies can learn from this by paying attention to naming at the time of launch and making sure their domain name is available. Once you start building a brand, it may be very expensive or impossible to change course. On a positive note, Tesla Motors finally [acquired](https://namecorp.com/why-tesla-motors-finally-acquired-tesla-com/) Tesla.com. Awesome, I really don’t want to email . — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [Who can register a .ORG domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-org-domain-name/) **Published:** December 7, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-cctld-faq-1200x600-dot-org.png ".org domain names → NameCorp") The .org domain name extension is considered a Top Level Domain (TLD) and is the 2nd most registered extension in the world. One of the most common questions about domains is “Who can register a .org domain name”. **The answer is basically anyone.** While the .org extension is used by millions of charitable organizations around the world that doesn’t mean you have to be a registered charity to use one. In fact, many .org domains are used for groups, family email, personal blogs and more. This is an open extension for anyone to register. Of course, like any domain name extension, you have to comply with the Registry’s terms of use ([PIR in this case](https://thenew.org/)) for the extension but in general, anyone is free to register and use a .org domain. **Categories:** TLD --- ### [Who can register a .CA domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ca-domain-name/) **Published:** December 8, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-canada-1200-630.png ".ca domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Canada’s ccTLD (country code top level domain) .ca is one of the more popular domain name extensions. However, ownership requirements are stricter than a typical .com domain name. In order to register a .CA domain name you must agree to terms set by CIRA (The Canadian Internet Registration Authority) and certain Canadian Presence Requirements must be met. As of December 2020, the applicant requirements to register a .ca domain name include: 1. Canadian citizen 2. Permanent resident 3. Legal representative of Canadian citizen or Canadian Permanent resident 4. Canadian Corporation 5. Trust (with more than 66.6% of trustees made up of 1-4 above) 6. Partnership (with more than 66.6% of trustees made up of 1-5 above) 7. Association (see Cira CPR for details) 8. Trade Union recognized by laws of Canada with its head office in Canada 9. Political Party (registered in Canada) 10. Educational Institutions (registered in Canada) 11. Library, Archive or Museum (located in Canada) 12. Hospital (located in Canada) 13. Indian band. 14. Aboriginal Peoples. 15. Government. 16. Trade-mark registered in Canada. 17. Official marks 18. Her Majesty the Queen. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second and her successors 19. And more. Before applying for a .ca domain we recommend reading the [current .CA requirements](https://www.cira.ca/policy/rules-and-procedures/canadian-presence-requirements-registrants) which can be found from [CIRA’s home page](https://www.cira.ca). Talk to us today about acquiring a .ca domain name for your brand. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .ie domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ie-domain-name/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-ireland-1200-630.png ".ie domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Ireland’s ccTLD (country code top level domain) .ie is a very popular extension in Ireland and for brands around the world. The .ie extension is considered a restricted extension as applicants must show a connection to Ireland. This Connection Requirement can be proven a few different ways such as: **For Individuals:** 1. Irish Passport 2. Irish/UK Driver’s License 3. Irish/North Irish Bank Statement 4. Official College ID (issued by any educational institution recognized by the Department of Education) 5. Public Services Card issued by the Department of Social Protection **For Businesses:** 1. RBN number 2. CRO number 3. VAT number (company registered in Republic of Ireland / Northern Ireland) 4. Tax clearance certificate from Ireland’s Revenue Commissioners (or other correspondence from them showing your VAT number) Before applying for a .ie domain we recommend reading the current .IE requirements directly from the .ie registry located at [WeAre.ie](https://www.weare.ie/) Talk to us today about acquiring a .ie domain name for your brand. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .CO domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-co-domain-name/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-colombia-1200-630.png "Colombia .co domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Colombia’s .CO domain name extension is likely the most popular ccTLD (country code Top Level Domain) globally. In fact, it’s one of the only ones which Google considers a generic TLD (like a .com) and ranks globally. Below is a good video from Matt Cutts, former head of the web spam team at Google, explaining how .co is treated for SEO. About 10 years old, but still very relevant today. The .co domain name extension is also unrestricted; meaning anyone can register one (and millions have). Some of the more famous companies using .co domains include: - [500.co](https://500.co/startups) – Early stage investors with a track record of investing in great companies such as Udemy, Grab and Canva - A.co – Amazon - Angel.co – Angel List - G.co – Google - T.co – Twitter The .co extension is also one of the few non .com extensions who have seen **aftermarket values rise** substantially since launch. Today, it’s not uncommon to pay $25,000 or more for a single word .co domain. Just a few recent sales include: - CBD.co – $50,000 - Dance.co – $58,000 - Feed.co – $85,000 - HeyDay.co – $45,000 - Smart.co – $52,820 Many companies have also started on a .co (such as Mirror.co) and only end up acquiring the .com years later – as Mirror did just before they were acquired for $500 Million by Lululemon. Notably, the company’s main site today still rests on Mirror.co and the .com forwards to it. **Want to acquire a .co?** [Talk to our domain name experts today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) about a private domain name acquisition. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .NL domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-nl-domain-name/) **Published:** December 10, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-netherlands-1200-630.png "Netherlands .nl domain name → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The .NL domain name extension is The Netherlands ccTLD – country code Top-Level Domain. This extension is administered by the Dutch registry SIDN and is unrestricted – meaning anyone can register a .NL domain name. Country specific domain extensions typically offer a level of local trust very few other extensions can compete with. According to SIDN’s website, 80% prefer to click on a .nl domain name. If you have ever been to The Netherlands this statistic is not surprising since .NL domains are advertised everywhere. The Dutch Registry SIDN also plays a large role in giving back to the Netherlands community with the SIDN Fund. This fund provides money for projects which strengthen or innovate Internet usage. You can [learn more about the SIDN fund here](https://www.sidn.nl/en/about-sidn/sidn-fund). **Who can register a . NL domain name?** Anyone can register a . NL domain but remember that it’s always important to read the terms and conditions of ccTLD’s. In .NL’s case, one noteworthy term is: *“An applicant based outside the Netherlands has to accept that our office address may lawfully be used for the receipt of writs and other formal documents relating to the registration or the .nl domain name served on the registrant…”* The full terms and conditions for .NL domain names can be found on [SIDN’s website](https://www.sidn.nl/en/nl-domain-name/registering-a-domain-name). [Talk to NameCorp® today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about acquiring or adding a .NL domain name to your portfolio. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .FR domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-fr-domain-name/) **Published:** December 10, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-france-1200-630.png "France .fr domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The .FR domain name extension (a country code Top Level Domain / ccTLD) is for France and administered by [AFNIC](https://www.afnic.fr/en/) – which stands for “Association française pour le nommage Internet en coopération”. This translates in English to The French Association for Internet Naming in Cooperation. AFNIC also operates additional France related extensions including: - .re (for Réunion Island) - .yt (for Mayotte) - .tf (for French Southern and Antarctic Lands) - .pm (for Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon) - .wf (for Wallis-et-Futuna) **Who can register a .FR domain name?** - Individuals who reside in The European Union, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein. - Organizations located in the European Union, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein. **Are Proxy Services Available for .FR domain names?** Yes. Many domain name registrars offer proxy services for .FR domain names. However, not all major registrars do. Some even have restrictions on transferring a .FR domain name from one registrar to another when using proxy services. Managing ccTLD’s is complex so if you are interested in a .FR domain it’s best to speak with people who understand this product’s complexity. [Talk to NameCorp® today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about acquiring a .FR domain name for your brand. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .US domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-us-domain-name/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-us-1200-630.png ".us domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The .US domain name extension (a ccTLD – country code Top Level Domain) is for the United States. It also holds title of being **the very first ccTLD** dating back to 1985 when Jon Postel of the Information Sciences Institute (ISI) at the University of Southern California undertook administration of the domain name extension. The history of .US is complex – some would even say it mirrors the same level of government over-regulation and red tape in the physical world. Part of the complex history includes limiting who can register a domain and what type of domain can be registered. For example, Did you know that every state has a \_\_.us reserved for it’s own use? If you like domain name facts then [read the Wikipedia page on .US domains](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.us). Depending on your view, it can be quite entertaining. The .US extension is still restricted today. Any applicant must meet one of the following conditions: 1. Any individual, blog or organization that is a citizen of, or licensed in, the USA including federal, state and local governments. 2. Foreign entities with a bona fide interest or presence in the United States. However, even with it’s rich complex history and restrictions, the .US extension still has millions of domains registered. It’s worthy to note that America is a very unique marketplace for a local extension. By many standards .com has been adopted as the default local extension of the USA, whereas if you visit France or The United Kingdom you could likely see just as many .FR’s and .CO.UK’s on billboards. This broad use of local ccTLD’s typically corresponds with consumers trust of an extension and in many countries, these local extensions are trusted as much, or more, as a .com domain. Finding a .US domain name on a Billboard in America can seem like hunting for a Unicorn at times – especially since Zoom acquired Zoom.com and has since removed the .US from many of its ads. [Talk to us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about acquiring the perfect domain name for your brand. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .EU domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-eu-domain-name/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-eu-1200-630.png "European Union .EU domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The European Union was founded on November 1, 1993 by Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Today, 27 countries are now members across Europe. Most of these member countries had a ccTLD before joining the EU. Others gained a ccTLD by a change in the country’s name (such as Montenegro, resulting from a breakup of Yugoslavia) or other factor. Discussions around a specific URL for the EU started in 1999 and, six years later (2005), the .EU extension was launched. The .EU extension has registration restrictions ([see EURID](https://eurid.eu/en/register-a-eu-domain/rules-for-eu-domains/)) – limiting applicants to those with connection to a European Union member country. Such registration requirements include: - an EU citizen, independently of their place of residence; - a natural person who is not an EU citizen and who is a resident of a Member State; - an undertaking that is established in the EU; or - an organization that is established in the EU, without prejudice to the application of national law. On the surface, .EU domains sound like they should be widely used but in practice a lot less are used than many hoped for. [The initial launch was even criticized by Bob Parsons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.eu) (of GoDaddy fame) for an atmosphere that allowed hijacking of the .EU landrush by phantom companies. However, the bigger issue for more widespread adoption is that maybe .EU is essentially stuck as a third place contestant in a game which often has only one winner. Most European companies already use the local ccTLD and/or .COM and most businesses really only need one primary domain. [Talk to us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about acquiring the perfect domain name for your brand. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .DE domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-de-domain-name/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-germany-1200-630.png ".de domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Germany’s .DE is the 3rd most popular ccTLD (country code Top Level Domain) with respect to total domains registered. The only other ccTLD’s which have more registered domains are .CN (China) and, believe it or not, .TK – for Tokelau, a territory of New Zealand\*. The .DE domain name registry is managed by [DENIC](https://www.denic.de/en/about-denic/the-denic-history/) – a combination of DE for Germany and NIC for Network Information Center. NIC is a very common term in the world of domain names and a fun fact is the very first domain name registered for any extension is always nic.\_\_\_ In order to register a .DE domain name you don’t necessarily need a German address but you must be able to provide an authorized contact (located in Germany) who can receive documents on your behalf if requested. And this information must be provided within 2 weeks upon request. **Where to Register a .DE domain name?** Most of the bigger domain name registrars allow registration of .DE domain names. Some even offer proxy services to act as a local contact. [Talk to us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about acquiring a .DE domain name for your brand. *\* Source:* [*The Verisign Domain Name Industry Brief Q3 2020*](https://www.verisign.com/en_US/domain-names/dnib/index.xhtml?section=cc-tlds) **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .IT domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-it-domain-name/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-italy-1200-630.png "Italy .it domain name → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The .IT domain name extension (a ccTLD – country code Top Level Domain) is for Italy. It is also one of the few ccTLD’s which corresponds with a popular acronym – IT for Information Technology. Unfortunately, this domain name extension has registration restrictions otherwise we expect it would be used much wider for it’s relationship to Information Technology. On the other hand, many Italian companies have been able to get their desired domain name because of such restrictions and that is very often **the primary reason such restrictions exist**. Anyone interested in registering a .IT domain name must be: - a person(s) who have citizenship, residence or a registered office in the countries of the European Economic Area (EEA), the Vatican, the Republic of San Marino, and Switzerland. Various domain name registrars offer proxy services for .IT domain names so there is often an easy workaround to secure one. [Talk to us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about acquiring the perfect .IT domain name for your brand. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .HK domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-hk-domain-name/) **Published:** December 10, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-hong-kong-1200-630.png "Hong Kong .hk domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The .HK extension is Hong Kong’s designated ccTLD (country code top-level domain) administered by [HKIRC](https://www.hkdnr.hk/en/) – the Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation. Interested applicants in .HK domain names can choose from a variety of extensions, depending on the Registrant’s profile. Available .HK extensions include: - .hk - .com.hk - .org.hk - .net.hk - .edu.hk - .gov.hk - .idv.hk Chinese versions are also allowed including: - .公司.hk - .組織.hk - .網絡.hk - .教育.hk - .政府.hk - .個人.hk Although anyone can register a .HK domain, applicants must also show documentation proving the identification details and DOB of the Registrant Owner. Commercial companies and organizations will need company verification documents. For all domains outside of the simple .HK extension other requirements also exist. For example, if you wish to register a .org.hk you must be a Non-profit organization registered or approved by the Hong Kong Government. Before applying for a .HK domain, [talk to us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") about the specific documents required to register a .HK domain name. **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [Who can register a .RU domain name?](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ru-domain-name/) **Published:** December 10, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-russia-1200-630.png "russia .ru domain names → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) The Russian Federation’s .RU is a Top 10 ccTLD (country code Top Level Domain) according to [Verisign’s Domain Name Industry Brief for Q3 2020](https://www.verisign.com/en_US/domain-names/dnib/index.xhtml). In order to register a .RU domain name you must agree to the registry terms set by [The Coordination Center for TLD RU/РФ](https://cctld.ru/en/domains/howto/) but no local presence requirements exist. In short, almost anyone can register a .RU domain name – and millions have. As of Q3 2020, almost 6 million .RU domain names were registered. Some of the more popular .RU sites include: - yandex.ru - mail.ru - ok.ru A good visual showing the popularity of .RU domain names is below: ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-graph-leading-cctlds-Q3-2020-by-number-of-domains.png "leading cctlds by number of domains → NameCorp") [Contact NameCorp about a .RU Domain Name Today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **Categories:** ccTLD --- ### [What is a Category Killer Domain Name?](https://namecorp.com/what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name/) **Published:** February 28, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![What is a category killer domain name?](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-social-what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name.jpg "image-social-what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name → NameCorp") Over the last 25 years some of the biggest domain name sales, and asking prices, are from “Category Killer” domains. **However, what is a “Category Killer” domain name?** Defining this may sound simple but it’s actually quite complex. Take for example TV.com – sounds like a “Category Killer” right? Sure. It can be. However, TV is a dated word imo. I never say I’m going to watch TV while streaming a show, and cut cable years ago. A growing phrase is to say you are going to watch Netflix – which can mean Amazon Prime, Hulu, Showtime or anything streaming. Sorry other brands but Netflix won the streaming verb contest. TV is also an acronym. Not that a “Category Killer” domain name can’t be both, but it’s worth noting the real appeal may be the branding of such a domain versus a product the domain defines. I mean, how many people want to visit a TV.com like domain to buy or watch TV when Amazon and Netflix exist? If that’s the case, why call this a “Category Killer” domain name — seems there is more value in calling it something else. What that is, I’m not sure. **How about WeddingDresses.com?** Killer domain for sure. But what is the better domain – WeddingDress.com or WeddingDresses.com? My opinion is only one “Category Killer” can exist to truly be a “Category Killer”, otherwise the domain is not really a killer but more like one in a group of assassins. So are either of these domains really “Category Killers”? How “Category Killer” can you be when search results for the term are so inundated with brands that your domain name has almost no chance of competing with the likes of David’s Bridal, Nordstrom etc… without spending gazillions? The term “Category Killer”certainly isn’t sounding like it will kill anything so far. **What about smaller “Category Killer” domains?** Let’s take VidaliaOnions.com for example. Maybe you heard of this onion type before. I didn’t until reading the story of Peter Askew who purchased VidaliaOnions.com and made it into a thriving business. But wait, as I type this, legendary attorney Dr. John Berryhill tweeted that Vidalia Onions is not a category but a certification of onion. > It is a certification mark, which is why Peter enlisted a certified grower. > > — John Berryhill (@Berryhillj) [February 28, 2020](https://twitter.com/Berryhillj/status/1233398917192208386?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Ok, so Vidalia is not a “Category Killer” and, as expected, I know nothing about onions. Fantastic small business story though so check out [Peter’s Onion site](https://www.vidaliaonions.com/about/#). The point here is maybe your “Category Killer” domain is not really a category after all. **So what is a “Category Killer” domain name?** I know. It’s confusing right. Let’s shed some more light. In response to the same thread that inspired this article Shane Cultra (aka Domain Shane) tweeted: > If its a product big enough to have an entire company built on that one product then it's a great exact match. The other billion domains are what he's talking about > > — Shane Cultra (@DomainShane) [February 28, 2020](https://twitter.com/DomainShane/status/1233393925920038912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Let’s look at this statement: *“If its a product big enough to have an entire company built on that one product then it’s a great exact match. The other billion domains are what he’s talking about”* I like the statement but don’t necessarily agree with this either. If a company just wants to sell Books then Books.com is, on the surface, a “Category Killer”. However, spending millions on a domain which (a) locks your brand into a single product and (b) has more established brand competition than people lining up for American Idol doesn’t sound like the best investment to me. Sure, owning Books.com is awesome and you have a “Category Killer” domain on the surface. However, do the benefits of having this domain name outweigh the challenges of ranking for your product. Can you really “Category Kill” it? Let’s say you do kill the category with the domain name. What happens when you want to grow? Is this “Category Killer” domain name now “killing” you from being authoritative on anything other than books? I’m not sure — Personally I would rather a killer domain like Thrive.com anyday. Whatever your opinion is I think it’s important to ask these questions (and more) before writing a big check for a “Category Killer” domain and thinking the domain is a magical solution. **So what is a “Category-Killer” domain name?** Who really knows. I think this term is about dated as words like the interweb, CD’s and Cassette Tapes. Build a killer brand, don’t worry much about category killer domains. A few will win, but more often than not, a better brand can be found elsewhere. Plus, it takes a whole lot more than just a domain name to build a brand. In the meantime, hopefully somebody comes up with a better name for “Category Killer” domains since the term itself is not killing it anymore. **Categories:** Thoughts --- ### [Why Hire a Domain Name Broker](https://namecorp.com/why-hire-a-domain-name-broker/) **Published:** December 11, 2018 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Domain name acquisitions are an important transaction for any company – especially primary domain names for consumer brands. While some domain name acquisitions are fairly easy, many large transactions can be quite complex. Whether it’s a buyer wishing to keep their identity private, timing an acquisition before announcing a funding round or simply trying to find a domain name owner. Almost every domain name deal is different and hiring a domain name broker can be one of your best decisions. Think about the transaction for a moment: - Would you buy a house without a real estate agent, appraiser and/or attorney? - Would you write a $25,000 check to a stranger? - Do you know anything about the current owners relative value of money? - How do you contact a domain name owner for a domain name with redacted or private WHOIS? There are hundreds of questions a good domain name broker considers with each acquisition. Not only to set expectations for a buyer but also to ensure the seller is responsive and all parties walk away with a fair transaction. NameCorp primarily works with brands to acquire domain names. We generally do not represent domain names for sale unless they are extraordinary. This focus, and over $50M in experience, provides us with the unique perspective to help guide and complete your transaction. **Categories:** FAQ --- ### [30 Days of Catch-All Emails. Wow.](https://namecorp.com/30-days-of-catch-all-emails-wow/) **Published:** March 23, 2016 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Catch All Emails](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-catch-all-emails-main.png "Catch All Emails → NameCorp") # **A Case Study in Human Nature** *“The problem with not having the .com of your name is that it signals weakness.”* This is not a quote by a domain name broker. This is a quote by one of Silicon Valley’s leading Venture Capitalists. In August 2015, Paul Graham, co-founder of the Y Combinator seed capital firm, penned [an article](http://www.paulgraham.com/name.html) titled, “Change Your Name.” He goes on to say, *“Unless you’re so big that your reputation precedes you, a marginal domain suggests you’re a marginal company.”* Again, these are not words of a domain name broker. These are words coming from somebody who has invested millions of dollars in companies and certainly understands a thing or two about branding. With that said, there are always two sides of a fence and some may debate that a great domain doesn’t always matter. We obviously would disagree with this side, but deciding whether or not to acquire a domain name should never be about the sales pitch, automated valuation tools or comparable sales. Your decision should be **directly correlated to the value proposition** a great domain name holds to the value of **your** business. Does Amazon need to own every specific product domain name, such as babybeds.com or weddingrings.com? Of course not. In fact, some would argue this type of domain is only valuable to a brand for: (a) a redirect, (b) brand protection, and/or (c) a defensive play. Why? Because Amazon is the brand, and the danger of diluting that brand by focusing on keyword domains is very real. It also costs a lot more to manage a sea of smaller brands, has possible negative workplace culture effects not having all employees working for the same brand and more. ### **Buying a Better Domain** Let’s look at the more-common scenario of why companies buy domains. Many acquisitions today are not the result of a name change, but of companies acquiring a better version of their domain. Almost any brand expert will tell you that consistency is the key to branding. > Target is Target. > > Target cannot be Target in one place, Target Inc. in another, Target Stores somewhere else, Target LLC back at headquarters and TargetCompany.com on the web. > > They have to be known as Target to get the most bang for their marketing bucks, both internally and externally. ————————————— **Any marketing professional, domain name broker, brand protection company — anyone interested in selling you something — can provide 1,000 reasons why you should make a purchase.** **Only you can determine how much a domain name is worth to you.** **However, the value is not always in what is gained — it is sometimes also in what is lost.** **So we used data to analyze one of the core intangible elements of a domain names’ value proposition. The Human Nature of emails.** ————————————— ### **The Project** A couple of months ago, we were asked our thoughts on a very generic domain name— we loved it. Not only is it a pretty cool ancestry term, but it’s also a popular last name (even our industry has a well-known person with the last name), and there are plenty of companies who could potentially benefit from the acquisition of this domain name. Samples include: - A Public Company - A Restaurant Franchise - An Online Catalog - A Furniture Store - Many Architectural Firms - And more. For privacy reasons, and on the advice of counsel, we cannot mention the domain name. However, this domain is generic enough that anyone who owned it would clearly defend its generic status. It’s a word we all use. And this is just the beginning. According to Ancestry.com, there are over **200,000** births, marriages, and deaths of people with this word as a surname. Some of the more famous people include an NFL quarterback. There are potentially thousands of possible buyers for it across the world. While the owner was interested in selling the domain, he also understood that selling a great domain name at a fair market price is not always an overnight process. In case the domain did not sell, he started to explore some development ideas of his own. **What he didn’t realize was what would happen when a catch-all email address was turned on.** ————————————— ### **The Catch-All Experience** A catch-all email address can serve many different purposes. The most popular being an option for the owner to create all kinds of email addresses such as info@example.com, name@example.com, development@example.com, etc., without having to create individual email accounts. This provides instant flexibility to create any address for specific reasons. For example, if the owner sets up a Netflix account, they could use netflix@example.com and the “catch all” feature would automatically deliver that email to their preferred address. However, the Left Side of the @ also provides much more fun for great domain name owners. Human nature often leads to the misspelling of a name or two at times, but we also live in a world where shorter is better. Our brains are wired to automatically remove some words when thinking of brands, such as Inc., LLC, etc., and for some companies this can pose a pretty serious problem when it comes to email. - Imagine if Google’s website was GoogleInc.com. How many people would type in Google.com? - How many employees would send internal email to someone@google.com? - How many people email someone@cia.com every day with confidential state secrets? - How many job applications for the NSA are sent to the Neptune Shipping Agency monthly? - How many people try to order a moving van from Atlas.com? - How many employees give out the wrong email to customers every day? These are just some of the question types many people wonder so we looked at emails from this domain over a 30-day period. ————————————— ### **What We Found** Wow. Our theory on human nature wasn’t far off. In the last 30 days, the owner had no idea what was about to happen once the email was turned on. He received a total of 261 emails from unrelated addresses relating to his development. Many of these were spam emails, marketing emails or Russian lady friend requests. But there were also emails from employees, contractors, attorneys, job applicants and friends of people at companies that have “Example” in their domain name. ————————————— > *For clarification, anytime we use “Example,” we are referring to a user emailing someone@example.com instead of the respective longer / alternative TLD version of the domain owned by the intended recipient such as exampleinc.om, examplellc.com, myexample.com, example360.com. There is also a bleed of email from strong brands who do not use a dot com extension and those who use creative spelling versions of commonly spelled words.* ————————————— ### **Let’s Break It Down.** Total Emails Received in the 30 Day Test: 261 - 132 spam - 20 LinkedIn (including 4 friend requests to real people at Example) - 21 emails from Twitter (with 7 people opening new accounts) That’s 173 emails (66%) which are basically of little importance. ![Domain Name Catch All Emails](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-catch-all-emails.png "Domain Name Catch All Emails → NameCorp") No big deal right? Wrong. That leaves **88 emails of some significance** to intended users. These emails varied across all security aspects of a company, including: - One thank you note from a senior vice president. - Three requests for insurance. - Two proposals from vendors totaling over $126,000 in work. - Private financial correspondence to an “Example” property manager, who then forwarded the email to the wrong “Example” email address, showing more than a $900,000 balance in an account, the account number, the account owners and more personally identifiable information. - Several follow-up emails with people thanking them for a conversation, a meeting, etc. - Loan contracts for a note over $100,000. - Establishment for a new phone line where the presumably “Example” employee opened the account with her work email. - Statements for an established wireless account where the user used @example.com email. - A fully executed real estate purchase and sale contract asking the “Example” employee to have the buyer initial. - Documents from several outside attorneys to multiple employees of “Example” for internal review. - A link to the “Example” company’s internal intranet login. - Several 2015 1099s mailed to “Example” employees for correction. - A refund request for $21,464 in overpayment of rent to “Example” company from an accounting supervisor. - Approval designs for custom fit machinery for “Example” company. - A character and fitness report from a National Bar Association as part of a background check for an applicant. - Numerous receipts for “Example” employees. - Multiple Google meeting requests to “Example” employees — from both other employees and outside parties. - One not-so-subtle email to someone who will never know. If there is a full-time job analyzing emails sent to the wrong version of a company’s domain name, we may just apply for it. The entertainment value of some of these emails alone was well worth any cut in salary. However, let’s get back to the article… ### **The Takeaway** If you can afford it, then you need to acquire the preferred version of your domain name. This really isn’t a question. Not owning the preferred version of your domain exposes your company to so many different negative consequences. From security concerns about confidential information, data collection, HR correspondence and employee communication to brand confusion between employees and customers. And 1,000 reasons in between. > Almost no one will append a word to your company name. If your company is called Example, no one is going to arbitrarily add Inc., Corp, LLC, Realty, or any other word to an email address. However, they will shorten the domain name and send sensitive information via email without hesitation. Scary? Yes it is. The question you should be asking yourself right now is: Do you know what the preferred version of your domain name is? > The preferred version of a domain name is NOT the domain name you like best. - It is the word your customers and employees remember the most. - It is the word your employees refer to the company as. - It is the word you use to explain to people who you are. - It is the word you possibly spent hundreds of hours coming up with. - It is the word you have spent (ten or hundreds of) thousands of dollars marketing. The preferred version of your domain name is all of this and more. **It is not always the domain name you like the best.** ————————————— ### **The Value Proposition** Remember, the value of a domain name is not what a domain name broker tells you. The value of a domain name is the “value proposition” it holds to you and your company. This could be $100 or $10,000,000. It’s a highly personal question for you and your brand and one that no automated appraisal system can ever calculate. The value of a domain name to your brand can only be measured by you and you alone. Whether or not the seller agrees, that’s another story. Value is not just measured in sales, however. The value proposition of owning the preferred domain name can often lead to stronger brand recognition, greater perceived authority, higher employee loyalty and more. Sometimes just the simple acquisition of the preferred domain name sends employees a better message of long-term dedication than any PowerPoint slide ever will. It can also tell your customers you are growing and becoming more dominant in your industry. If your company is selling rainbow bracelets on eBay with an average order of $4.25, then owning the best version of your domain name may not be that critical. However, if you’re a million-dollar company, a company handling sensitive information, a company providing data solutions, or 1,000 other types of companies, then you really should understand the important of owning the preferred version of your domain name, what exactly that domain name is, and fight for the dollars to acquire that domain proportionate to the value proposition it holds for you. Branding is a choice. You can choose to bet against human nature. Probably not the best bet. =================================== Data Collection Notes 1. *Example.com was NOT a high traffic domain name. Only about 700 people naturally visited the domain name in the last 30 days (about 25 a day).* 2. *There was no mention or link to any @example.com email anywhere on the domain names landing page for this 30-day period.* 3. *All of these emails were sent to somebody@example.com — not generic emails like info@, support@, webmaster@ example.com, etc. Those were discarded.* 4. *No emails were included that resulted from a form submission on the current landing page (hosted by us).* **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [Gemini.com - A Brand Story of Bitcoins, NASA and Twins](https://namecorp.com/gemini-com-a-brand-story-of-bitcoins-nasa-and-twins/) **Published:** June 6, 2017 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Bitcoin NASA Gemini Twins](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-gemini-bitcoins-nasa-and-twins-1200x628.png "Bitcoin NASA Gemini Twins → NameCorp") Great brands are more than just words. Great brand names evoke emotion, inspire engagement and provoke discussion. The greatest brands, however, are those that tell a story. Gemini.com is one of those great brands. The Winklevoss twins, Cameron and Tyler, founded the Gemini Trust Company in 2012 as part of their journey and commitment to the future of Bitcoin. This commitment includes the pursuit of an ETF named the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust and a Bitcoin price index called WinkDex. Both brothers have continued to be passionate about this sector of the cryptocurrency space, and Gemini Trust Company was launched in 2015 alongside a banking relationship with a New York State charted bank. This relationship was not only one of the cryptocurrency industry’s first key moves closer to Wall Street recognition, but also provided individual and institutional investors with the protections of FDIC insurance. However, there are a few stories here. We already know the story of the Winklevoss twins and Mark Zuckerberg. We also know that the Winklevosses have been a driving force behind Bitcoin in an industry that (like all new technology) depends on such recognizable support to launch. The brand story behind it all, though, is the reason they choose Gemini as their company’s name. In 2015, the Winklevoss brothers also acquired the domain name Gemini.com for an undisclosed sum. While the NDA may tell a story of a high-priced domain name sale, the real value lays in what the brand name says to them. According to a [2015 blog post](https://gemini.com/blog/welcome-to-gemini/) by Cameron Winklevoss: *“So, why the name ‘Gemini’? After white-boarding a list of possible names for several weeks, we settled on Gemini for a host of reasons. Gemini is the Latin word for ‘twins’ and as such, it inherently explores the concept of duality. We were drawn to this both because of the two worlds of money (old and new) that will intersect on the Gemini platform as well as the two-way nature of trade that it will facilitate. But that’s not all. Once we picked our name, a fun fact emerged. We realized that NASA’s Project Gemini was a spaceflight program focused on laying the groundwork for Apollo’s later mission to land man on the Moon. As such, it was coined (no pun intended) man’s ‘bridge to the moon’. In this spirit, we’ve built Gemini to be ‘your bridge to the future of money’. Oh, and Tyler and I just happen to be identical twin brothers.”* Branding is so much more than a catchy name. The Winklevoss twins have an engaging story to tell about their company until the end of time. One of interest. One that inspires. And one that discounts their fame and elevates their branding knowledge. Can you do that with your brand? **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [The Crypto Name Game - Custom Ethereum Wallet Names](https://namecorp.com/ethereum-wallets-the-crypto-name-game/) **Published:** June 19, 2017 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Ethereum Crypto Wallet Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-crypto-ethereum-wallet-names-1500-630.png "Ethereum Crypto Wallet Domain Names → NameCorp") Naming has always been a critical element of branding. Whether it’s a global brand or a school newspaper, the power of a name can evoke many emotions; therefore it’s critically important to spend time curating a name that represents your company correctly. Historically, once a name was chosen the route to naming was fairly simple. A quick corporation or trademark search would essentially comprise most of the clearance legwork to move your name forward. Once you had clearance then maybe you tried to get a matching toll-free number, but that was about it. Today, however, the [complexities of naming](https://qz.com/994698/domain-name-registration-problems-are-going-to-become-a-lot-worse-when-we-run-out-of-names/) are only growing in scale and finding the right name involves so much more than a trademark search. Not only should you obtain legal clearances but you need to check on the competition in search results and whether or not your preferred domain name and social handles are available. If they are available, you then need to search for brand confusion from global companies and more. Finding a name is the easy part now—securing the digital assets has become the higher challenge. There have been many articles published about the value of a good domain name. Many companies understand this value and are quite proud when they are finally able to acquire their .com (such as Discord App, which acquired the domain name discord.com last week and posted about it on Twitter), while others simply do not understand it at all. > We now own which is pretty exciting for us 🎉🎉🎉 > > — Discord (@discordapp) [June 15, 2017](https://twitter.com/discordapp/status/875421449250418688) However, it’s not just domain names and social handles anymore. One of the newest naming solutions is happening now in the crypto currency space. In fact, the numbers are mind-boggling for something still so new. ## **$1 Million for a Crypto Wallet Name** When investing in crypto currency you need to understand [what a digital wallet is](http://www.coindesk.com/information/how-to-store-your-bitcoins/) and [how blockchain works](https://medium.com/the-intrepid-review/how-does-the-blockchain-work-for-dummies-explained-simply-9f94d386e093). Hundreds of thousands of users have created digital Ethereum wallets using solutions like MyEtherwallet.com and Mist, and it’s highly unlikely few can remember their own wallet name. Ethereum wallets by design have a naming convention that reads something like this: 0x06C426A3D6889a8D3326c2d4eB6c9BF899DcCa8F With this ID you can send and receive many digital currency forms, and if you know somebody else’s wallet ID, you can look it up on sites like etherscan.io. For example, if you want to look up the balance of the wallet above (a wallet we created for this article), simply visit [etherscan.io](https://etherscan.io/address/0x06C426A3D6889a8D3326c2d4eB6c9BF899DcCa8F) and punch in the wallet ID. And a page will appear detailing the transaction history associated with this particular wallet. This naming convention is called the ENS, short for Ethereum Name Service. It’s a naming system based on the Ethereum blockchain and very similar to the DNS protocols for domain names. According to ENS documentation on [GitHub](https://github.com/ethereum/ens/blob/master/docs/introduction.rst): “*The primary goal of ENS is to resolve human-readable names, like ‘myname.eth’, into machine-readable identifiers, including Ethereum addresses, Swarm and IPFS content hashes, and other identifiers. A secondary purpose is to provide metadata about names, such as ABIs for contracts, and whois information for users.”* **Sounds a lot like the Domain Name System, right?** Well, just like IP addresses, which work wonderfully for computers speaking to one another, the odds of people remembering addresses such as 0x06C426A3D6889a8D3326c2d4eB6c9BF899DcCa8F are about the same as you winning the lottery—impossible at best. Much like domain names, ENS has an option for users to choose a custom handle. So, instead of 0x06C426A3D6889a8D3326c2d4eB6c9BF899DcCa8F, you could identity your wallet as tickets.eth, for example. However, securing a custom handle is not as easy (or affordable) as you may think. In fact, it’s pretty fascinating because many of these .eth wallet names are selling for tens of thousands of dollars already. For example, [tickets.eth](https://etherscan.io/enslookup?q=tickets) sold for 2,977 ETHER. That converts to… wait for it … $1,049,154.34. ![Ethereum Tickets.eth](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-tickets-eth.jpg "Ethereum Tickets.eth → NameCorp") It’s a fascinating read, actually. Just like social handles and domain names, these vanity Ethereum wallet names are becoming highly popular and are still in the early days of naming – they were only launched less than 45 days ago on May 4th. In fact, they have character limitations, auctions, the ability to create subdomains, and more. The system is even built with future dispute resolutions in mind and auctions are based on the Vickrey auction model – where bids are sealed and the highest bidder wins but only pays the bid of the second-highest bidder. Sound familiar for those involved in new gTLD applicant auctions? It’s also important to note that these names are not sold, per se, but funds are withheld for a period of time and then eventually released back to the owner. Either way it can be a lot of money tied up for rights to a name. You can learn about the deposit and auction rules [here](https://registrar.ens.domains/). Medium contributor, [Maurelian](https://medium.com/the-ethereum-name-service/explaining-the-ethereum-namespace-auction-241bec6ef751), also published a good post on this topic noting: *“The value paid by the winner will be held in a deed in exchange for ownership of the name. There is no recurring fee, or subscription required to own a name. After 1 year of registration, the owner of a name is free to release it, and the full value of the deed will be returned to them.”* If you are interested in naming as much as we are, and want to to learn more about currency wallet naming, here are some links to help understand the market. - [Fantastic Medium post explaining the Ethereum Namescape](https://medium.com/the-ethereum-name-service/explaining-the-ethereum-namespace-auction-241bec6ef751) - [Registering a name with the FIFS registrar](http://ens.readthedocs.io/en/latest/userguide.html#registering-a-name-with-the-fifs-registrar) - [Registering a name with the auction registrar](http://ens.readthedocs.io/en/latest/userguide.html#registering-a-name-with-the-auction-registrar) - [Latest ENS FAQ](http://ens.readthedocs.io/en/latest/faq.html) - [Ens.Domains](http://ens.domains/) – The official home of the Ethereum Naming Service ### **How big is the market?** According to Codetract.io, more than 2.8 million Ethereum tokens (over $100,000,000) have [already been deposited](https://ens.codetract.io/) for bids. ![Ethereum Domain Name Auctions](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-ens-auctions.jpg "Ethereum Domain Name Auctions → NameCorp") Basically, it’s already bigger than you or I probably ever imagined. Digital naming. The fun never ends. **Categories:** Featured --- ### [How to transfer a domain name to GoDaddy](https://namecorp.com/how-to-transfer-a-domain-name-to-godaddy/) **Published:** October 31, 2017 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** One of the most common questions we are asked is how to transfer a domain name to GoDaddy. The video below provides a really good explanation of the process. While most domain name transfers to GoDaddy are fairly simple there a few important things to note below. # ## IMPORTANT NOTES - BOTH PARTIES MUST APPROVE: Both parties (the buyer and seller) must now typically approve any change in registrant. It’s common for a domain name transfer to get stuck simply because one of the parties has not approved a “registrant change” notification email. - CONTACT CHANGE (60 DAY LOCK): Domain names can be locked for 60 days for a number of reasons, especially if you make any registrant changes. Some registrars may allow you to opt out of this lock period when updating domain name contacts however many do not. Please be very careful of making changes before moving a domain name. - CHECK NAMESERVERS: Once a domain name is successfully transferred (to GoDaddy or any registrar) its important to check the DNS (domain name servers). This is critical for domain names you are not planing to use right away you since by default the domain name may resolve to a page of ad units. While rare, this can compromise your rights to a domain name if other parties have trademark claims. **Categories:** FAQ --- ### [Seva.com — a $310,000 Lesson](https://namecorp.com/seva-com-a-310000-lesson/) **Published:** September 17, 2018 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Seva.com Domain Sale](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-seva-com-1500-430.png "Seva.com Domain Sale → NameCorp") As we move more into a digital world brands are often faced with naming and branding questions. For new companies it’s about choosing the right name to convey their message. For more established companies the idea of re-branding becomes a possibility. Whatever the stage, it’s important to get naming right. A couple months ago ProsperWorks re-branded to Copper and acquired the Copper.com domain name in a private transaction. By almost all measures, this was one of the great re-brands of the year. Jon Lee, Copper’s CEO/Founder, wrote [why it was important to change](https://www.copper.com/blog/hello-copper) to a non-traditional name: *“… the fact that our software is used by marketing, sales, service, support, and even product teams… well, that meant no more “sales\_\_\_\_” this or “pipe\_\_\_\_.” And yes, we made a clear decision to not have “\_\_\_\_CRM” as our name. We wanted a name that was relatable, memorable, fun, and instantly recognizable the world over.”* Re-branding moments are supposed to go like this. They are supposed to elevate the brand, heighten employee enthusiasm and show long term dedication to consumers. However, not all re-branding stories are the same. The story of SEVA.com is one of those other stories. The founders of ConvertKit presumably fell in love with this name for a re-brand, so much [they paid $310,000 USD](https://www.dnjournal.com/ytd-sales-charts.htm) for the SEVA.com domain name back in July. On the surface, this word seems perfect for many companies. After all, who wouldn’t want a great 4 letter pronounceable word as a brand. Furthermore, by definition the word SEVA means “selfless service: work performed without any thought of reward or repayment”. Almost a perfect name for a company whose [values include](https://convertkit.com/mission/) Teach everything you know, Create every day, Default in generosity and more. However, it was not meant to be. While by definition SEVA seemed to be a great fit it was the community reaction which caused a shift in re-branding. A shift so important that the founders of Convert Kit should be recognized for what they did. Less than 8 weeks after spending $310,000 to acquire the domain name the re-branding to SEVA was shelved and Nathan Barry, the company’s Founder and CEO, explained why it was necessary to recognize the importance of this word to various cultures and religions and not commercialize the word. [Nathan’s entire letter is here](https://convertkit.com/staying-convertkit/). These are words any founder, any agency .. any person should read. Not only did it take guts to incur the financial loss but also a sense of humanity (and humility) to accept what was unknown prior to the acquisition and make the decision not to change. Words are powerful. Commercializing words is more powerful. Most words don’t have such deep meaning as SEVA however imagine if Hanukkah.com was a tabloid, Christian.com was a vice magazine or Shalom.com was a crypto company. The very moment a word enters mainstream as a brand it can often weaken the word, lead to a loss of meaning and hurt people never meant to be hurt. This moral sense. This type of humanity. This public display of humility. This is what we need more of today. In a world where money rules, decisions like this keep things sacred. Well done Mr. Barry. Well done indeed. **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [How much is a domain name worth?](https://namecorp.com/how-much-is-a-domain-name-worth/) **Published:** September 14, 2018 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** This question is asked by thousands of people a month and the answer is never clear. Unlike stocks, real estate, commodities and other more popular assets, domain names have many x factors which contribute to value. Some of these factors are tangible such as the elements of the domain name (dictionary word, three letter dot com, etc) but the most valuable factors are intangible. A seller’s relative value of money, a buyer’s need for the domain, the buyer’s relative value of money etc. Many articles and tools exist to help measure how much a domain name is worth. Some articles have value. Some tools have value. But there is no magical formula accurate enough to broadly value domain names in general. In fact, it’s mathematically impossible due to the numerous amount of x factors included in the foundational data set of comparison. *Note that public sales comprise the primary data set foundation for which most automated valuations are formed. Many other factors are also used (such as keyword volume, CPC etc) however, the data set is not complete, nor ever can be, without incorporating intangible and immeasurable factors.* ## SO HOW MUCH IS YOUR DOMAIN NAME WORTH? The quick answer is there is no simple answer. However, speaking with a domain name broker can help answer many questions such as: - How much do you think a buyer will pay? - Why did other domain names sell for so much? - What if I auction the domain name? - Is the domain name a good investment? A good domain name broker can not only help you understand value but also may be able to identify other available domain names of similar value or other potential buyers. *Note that if your domain name is considered super premium (one word dictionary .com, two/three letter .com or two/three/four numeric .com) then its imperative you look at current sales or speak with a broker. Most anybody who owns these type of domains typically has a floor value in mind since they have likely been offered a great deal but premium domains continue to rise in value so you need current information – not a valuation based on offers made a year ago.* Also remember that 98% of domain names have no liquid value. This means the words you buy today (thinking they are great) likely have zero resale value unless you get an inbound lead. Yes, almost every domain name registered today is not valued high enough to liquidate for cash tomorrow . Some of this 98% however were worth nothing yesterday and over $100,000 today. That is the gambling side of domain name investing. If you want to know how much a domain name is worth before you buy then understand the LIQUID value of the domain name – the value if you needed to sell today. Most people will never answer this question correctly so learn from people who have been around. There are many who have already lost millions learning what not to do. Understand the word “liquid” otherwise you are just gambling. **Categories:** FAQ --- ### [100 Companies Who Understand Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/100-companies-who-understand-domain-names/) **Published:** January 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Cool Dogs](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-cool-dogs.png "Cool Dogs → NameCorp") Follow [Alan Dunn on Twitter](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) - How many customers confuse your domain name? - How many employees get your domain name wrong? - How many writers link to the wrong site? - How many times do you spell out your domain name? - How many people email someone@anotherdomain.com? - How much do you really not like your current domain? — let’s be honest. Even if you personally don’t get the whole internet thing **many of your competitors, customers and employees do**. Well, at least the natural ability to extract only words which matter from your brand name. Employee confusion is real. Consumer confusion ever more so. Even those companies with really cool made up words almost never make consumers spell the wrong way. If budget is the issue that’s fair. We all have to eat Mac N Cheese some days. However, one primary reason many companies do not have a better domain is simply the person/people making decisions. Yep. Many times it’s just good old ego getting in the way of a better brand. Below are 100 companies who understand brand. Some are your competition. Some you like better than your own. **One thing is for sure.** #### **Somebody WILL almost always buy the best one word .com version of your brand.** When that happens its likely off the market forever. Why? Because the internet is the foundation of a global economy and .com is the pinnacle extension. Most common words no single company exclusively owns, even with a trademark. ### **100 Companies Who Understand Domain Names.** The point of this list is reference for those who say “we don’t need the domain” or “no one is going to pay that much”. These examples prove how your competitors think different and are branding better than you. Almost every one of these domains sold for big bucks proving (once again) domain names have value. A few simply teach a lesson. Remember it’s supply and demand driving prices. Just ask the companies who [lost a chance to acquire FireFly.com](https://domaininvesting.com/firefly-com-acquired/) to another company called FireFly who paid the asking price last week, or well, you get the point. Obviously not a complete list. There are hundreds of millions of domain names registered. These are just some good ones, all better than yours. Peace and Love. ![Peace Love Dogs](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-dogs-peace-love.png "Peace Love Dogs → NameCorp") 1. **Advance.com** — Acquired by Advance Publications, Inc. The perfect domain name especially for such a huge company who owns titles such as Vogue, Vanity Fair, Gentlemen’s Quarterly (GQ), Architectural Digest (AD), The New Yorker, Condé Nast Traveler, and Wired. 2. **Arrive.com** — Acquired by ParkWhiz as a [rebrand to Arrive](https://www.arrive.com/press-releases/parkwhiz-rebrands-as-arrive). Love it when companies go from zero to hero. The ParkWhiz name does nothing for me. Arrive is awesome and you can bet more VC’s will now take their call based on name only. They have arrived. 3. **August.com** — acquired by smart home company August. Fantastic branding with a word everybody knows. Think about it — for 30 days every year the entire world is saying your brand name. You brand on a word like this and losing is your fault. 4. **AWS.com** — acquired by Amazon. Imagine the customer service emails from people saying they went to AWS.com and couldn’t find anything. Now they can. Time is money. 5. **Buffer.com** — acquired by Buffer. Final upgrade from bfffr.com -> bufferapp.com -> buffer.com. [Read the story here](https://open.buffer.com/acquired-buffer-com/). It’s worth the font. 6. **Bungalow.com** — acquired by [Bungalow](https://bungalow.com/). A real estate company who upgraded from livebungalow.com. If you have to ask why just stop reading now. 7. **BTM.com** — acquired by [Bryn Mawr Trust](https://www.bmt.com/). A 3 letter .com matching your brand can almost never lose. Upgrade from bmtc.com — sure it’s technically the Bryn Mawr Trust Corporation but no one cares if you are an inc, corp or llc. **Match the brand you advertise, not the name on your bank account.** Really good upgrade here. 8. **Cabbage.com** — common sense acquisition by [Kabbage](https://www.kabbage.com/). Proper spelling is always good to have except when you’re President. Then it doesn’t matter. 9. **Casper.com** — acquired by [Casper](https://casper.com/) Mattress Company. Serious upgrade from caspersleep.com and now the coolest ghost around. 10. **Carrot.com** — acquired by [OnCarrot](http://www.carrot.com). What does On Carrot even mean? Great upgrade. Your customers, staff and Bugs Bunny should be proud! 11. **Chewy.com** — acquired by Chewy. The killer startup PetSmart paid $3.35 Billion for. 12. **Chivalry.com —** acquired by Chivalry, a company offering “Amazing Relationships Through Amazing Experiences”. Personally I would have rather seen a good scotch buy this one. 13. **Close.com** — acquired by [Close.io](http://close.com). They know how to close! 14. **Common.com** — acquired by Common Living, a co-living company. “Private rooms and beautiful shared spaces in friendly homes.” Another great upgrade to the matching .com domain. 15. **Compass.com** — acquired by real estate company Compass. Slogan is “[Let us guide you home](https://www.compass.com/)”. Is there a better real estate brand? The upgrade from domain doesn’t matter. Perfect. Just Perfect. 16. **Copper.com** — acquired by ProsperWorks as a re-brand. I won’t explain why they re-branded, [you can read it here](https://www.copper.com/blog/hello-copper). It’s everything a re-brand should be. 17. **CT.com** — acquired by [Cointelegraph](https://cointelegraph.com/), a leading provider of cryptocurrency news. Only 676 two letter .com’s exist. Go Bitcoin! 18. **DCC.com** — acquired by [Davies Collison Cave](https://dcc.com/) in 2017. Awesome upgrade, many typos of Davies and Collison is just a colossal cluster-fudge of a word. Money well spent. 19. **Doc.com** — acquired by [Docademic](https://doc.com/), say that three times. 20. **DropBox.com** — acquired by Dropbox. Not a one word but a great upgrade from the getdropbox.com domain. Let’s put this very bluntly. If your domain name starts with “get” you almost always need the better one. It makes you look like an ad all day long. How many ads do you like? 21. **Duck.com** — acquired by [DuckDuckGo](http://duck.com), even when you thought [Duct Tape](https://www.duckbrand.com/) could win every time. 22. **DXL.com** — acquired by [Destination XL](http://www.dxl.com). Common sense upgrade for a public company especially when branded as DXL. Again, match the brand you advertise, not the name on your bank account. Awesome upgrade here. 23. **EEN.com** — acquired by Eagle Eye Networks. The thing about this one for me is I would trust a company who owned EEN.com much more than a company who operates on some version of eagleeyenetworks.com or similar. The 3 letter tells me you are real. The long URL tells me I need to do some homework. Yes, you can buy trust with a domain. You can also question that trust with the wrong one. 24. **Enhance.com** — acquired by a UK Hosting company. Looks like a small company (I think) but the new domain name makes them look HUGE. That’s a real ROI. 25. **Facebook.com** — acquired by Facebook. Not a one word but [Watch the movie](https://youtu.be/dU6scly2AFU?t=165) — Justin Timberlake says it all. 26. **Fallout.com** — acquired by [Bethesda Softworks](https://bethesda.net/en/dashboard) for their Fallout game which is much better than using Fallout4.com since the latest version is Fallout 76 and 15,987 more versions seem possible. 27. **FireFly.com** — acquired by [Firefly Space Systems](http://www.firefly.com). A much better domain name than FireFlySpace.com and one companies like [this](https://fireflyon.com/) and [this](https://fireflybicycles.com/) entirely missed the shuttle on. 28. **Fortnite.com** — acquired by [Epic Games](https://www.epicgames.com) in 2013. Great upgrade from the FortniteGame.com domain. Value today? Who knows, probably a Gatrillion V-bucks. 29. **Freedom.com** — acquired by [Freedom Mortgage](http://freedom.com). Not only does the domain match the brand but what better domain to sell the American dream on? Freedom is not free and neither was the domain name – $2,000,000. 30. **Handle.com** — acquired by Debt Collection Company Handle. Automatically provides brand authority and class to a rather negative industry. I love this one. I mean who better to “handle” your debt receivables. And, even better, an upgrade from the (yucky) handle.us domain name. 31. **Ice.com** — [Intercontinental Exchange](http://www.ice.com) paid $3.5M for this domain name in 2018. It’s a whole lot cooler than TheIce.com 32. **Insider.com** — great acquisition by [Business Insider](https://www.thisisinsider.com/). They have multiple brands with the word “Insider” attached. If you are going to spend millions branding around a word take note — own the word. 33. **Instagram.com** — acquired by Instagram. Not a word (real brand). Point is they started on instagr.am, don’t get me started on hacks. 34. **Invision.com** — acquired by [Invision](https://www.invisionapp.com/) which is only logical as an upgrade from Invisionapp.com. They are so much more than an app. 35. **Jump.com** — acquired by [JUMP Bikes](https://jump.com/). One of my favorite all time acquisitions and now they can Jump anything not just bikes. 36. **Knock.com** — acquired by [Knockaway, Inc.](https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/15/opendoor-competitor-knock-raises-400m/) as an upgrade from Knockaway.com. Watch this company. 37. **LA.com** — acquired by Tribune Publishing when they owned the Los Angeles Times. Unclear whether the domain name name went with the sale of the Times to Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong. WHOIS still shows Tribune as the owner and the domain has the same coming soon page on it. Time will tell. 38. **Ledger.com** — acquired by [Ledger SAS](https://www.ledger.com/). Logical upgrade from ledgerwallet.com because again, they are more than just a wallet. 39. **Lola.com** — acquired by [Lola](https://www.lola.com/), a corporate travel company. When you are trying to compete with and/or secure giants the right name will help. Never underestimate how many doors a great domain can open. 40. **Magnolia.com** — acquired by [Magnolia Market.](https://magnolia.com/) Fantastic domain. Great flowers are almost always great brands. 41. **Marcus.com** — acquired by [Marcus by Goldman Sachs](https://www.marcus.com/us/en). If Goldman is involved you pretty much can expect the best domain. Take lead from those who rule the world. 42. **Marshalls.com** — acquired by [The TJX Companies](http://www.tjx.com/). Seller was UK Superbrand [Marshalls Mono Ltd](https://www.marshalls.co.uk/). Finally some good news for America. I mean really, who hasn’t visited Marshalls.com looking for the blue-light specials. Or maybe that’s K-mart. I have no idea. 43. **Mya.com** — acquired by conversational ai company [MYA Systems](http://www.mya.com/). Upgrade from hiremya.com. Not having Mya.com is almost like Apple not having Siri.com. If you are going to give your ai a personal name buy the exact domain! 44. **NWM.com** — acquired by NatWest Markets. NatWest is owned by the RBS Group (Royal Bank of Scotland) who owns RBS.com so keeping with the family tradition this only makes sense. 45. **Onyx.com** — acquired by [Onyx Enterprises](https://www.onyx.com/) their slogan says it all. “We are Onyx”. Yep. You are not ONYXwhateveryouwerebefore.com. Why? That’s what you are telling everyone! 46. **Packet.com** — acquired by [Packet Networks](https://www.packet.com/). An upgrade from Packet.net thank be da heavens. 47. **Pitch.com** — acquired by German startup Pitch. Homepage reads “The future of presenting starts here.” Says enough to me. Perfect domain name. After all, how less professional do gopitch or pitchapp or pitchworld sound? If you want to learn how to Pitch then Pitch sounds like THE expert. You can’t buy that kind of authority. Oh wait, you can — with the best domain name! 48. **Pilot.com —** acquired by Pilot, a bookkeeping service. Who would you trust more with your bank statements? Someone with a super name like Pilot.com or someone with a second tier name. All things equal, a one word .com will likely win every time. 49. **Presto.com** — acquired by Presto, a company who digitizes the dining room for restaurants. Great domain name. 50. **Prime.com** — acquired by Amazon. Need I say more? 51. **Pro.com** — acquired by a Home Services company. Seriously would you hire a contractor from [Pro.com](https://pro.com/) or Rocco123.com? The name gets them business. Rocco makes you consider insurance. 52. **Purple.com —** acquired by Purple Innovation, LLC (the [Purple Mattress Company](https://purple.com/)). Upgrade from onpurple.com. With $1,000, $2,000 and $3,000 products you don’t want consumers typing in the most obvious domain version of your brand only to find competition. Secure the domain!! My guess is the ROI earned from owning this domain name has already returned the purchase price and more. Going forward the registration costs are $10 a year. Win-Win-Win. 53. **Sierra.com** — another acquisition by [TJX companies](http://www.tjx.com/) to match their exact brand names. An upgrade from SierraTradingPost.com. This Management team gets it. 54. **Sportsmans.com** — acquired by [Sportsmans Warehouse](https://www.sportsmans.com/) as an upgrade from SportsmanWarehouse.com. Warehouse always sounded cheap to me. I may even visit now. Who am I kidding? If there is no room service I’m not going. 55. **Rain.com** — acquired by [Rain Autonomics](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/rainnet-systems#section-overview). Upgrade from Rainnet.com which is probably the worst suffix around. Is it Rainnet.com or Rain.net? Good news is they bought Rain.net also in the same deal. 56. **Rock.com** — buyer still unknown. I hope it’s Dwayne Johnson but highly doubtful. He’s the only one who deserves this domain. 57. **Ring.com** — acquired by smart home / doorbell company Ring. Founder Jamie Smirnoff paid $1M for the domain name, [later estimating the name turned out to be worth between $30 million and $50 million](http://www.dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2018/dailyposts/20180307.htm) to the company. He sold Ring for over $1B to Amazon, he would know. 58. **Snap.com** — acquired by Snapchat. Perfect acquisition, especially when they define themselves as “a camera company” not a chat company. Think about what you do and want to do. If removing a word means also removing boxing your brand in then hey, it’s probably worth jumping on. 59. **Square.com** — acquired by Square, one of the largest payment processing companies in the US. They still use squareup.com as the public site but we all know that will likely eventually change. 60. **Sandbox.com** — acquired by a large full-service design agency this domain is perfect. High end design is killer competitive. Owning sandbox.com is already an ice breaker for pitches and sometimes it’s that ice-breaker which wins the account. 61. **Super.com** — acquired by The Super! Fund. Solid acquisition and certainly the best domain for their brand. 62. **Surround.com** — acquired by Bitfury Group Limited. All I know is they work with music and automatically I think they are pros. Any conference they attend people will now comment on this name. Can you do that with your brand? Probably not. 63. **Trailblazer.com** — acquired by [Salesforce](http://trailblazer.com). Trailblazer is a key word for Salesforce developers and partners. When almost 200,000 people come to your hometown every year for a conference built around Trailblazing you really should own the .com. If not for you, for them. Well done. 64. **Tesla.com** — acquired by [Tesla Motors](https://www.tesla.com/). Even with rocket ships and gazillions it doesn’t mean you get your best domain. The word Tesla is actually a last name and many companies use Tesla in their company name. Some as homage to Nikola Tesla, the renowned Serbian inventor. Elon Musk finally acquired this for a reported $11M after 10 years of trying. Persistence pays. Wait, Musk just made another $11m since I started typing. What does money really matter anyway? 65. **TN.com** — acquired by Tuft & Needle. Another player in the billion dollar mattress business. That’s three on this list. 66. **Triangle.com** — acquired by [Canadian Tire](http://www.triangle.com). Perfect addition for their Triangle Rewards program. Note that selling off a rewards program to a third party does happen and having such a great domain likely adds value if the time ever comes. Plus when companies like Square.com and Box.com have become a hit why not acquire a primary shape if you can. 67. **Tube.com** — The fact that Amazon acquired this domain name instead of YouTube makes me question who is in charge of YouTube domains. This domain probably gets millions of natural visitors a year (people typing it in). At the very least, it’s a name you don’t want a competitor with gazillions to have. First world problems I know. 68. **Turbo.com —** acquired by Intuit. Basically a financial planner system branded like TurboTax. Intuit owns TurboTax so this a great acquisition. However, the whole branding and lookalike logos make it pretty confusing. I would imagine many consumers think Turbo is TurboTax and TurboTax is Turbo. Whatever, they make billions every year and I’m not getting paid for these words. Rock on. 69. **Twitter.com** — Acquired by Twitter. Upgrade from original domain name twttr.com. WTF was that? But hey, now they are billionaires and you (and I) are not. Who’s really winning? 70. **UI.com** — acquired by [Ubiquity Networks](https://www.ui.com/). Like you need a reason not to shorten Ubiquity. I’m not going to look at what they previously used. It sucked compared to UI.com. Well done. 71. **URW.com** — acquired by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. Why? Do I really need to explain the tsunami of typos with any other domain name option for these 3? I mean it’s bad enough employees have to say all of these but imagine the time wasted trying to spell email addresses? URW.com could have been a billion dollars. Worth every penny. 72. **User.com** — Acquired by UserEngage as an upgrade from UserEngage.com 73. **Valley.com —** acquired by Valley National Bank. Not only is this domain name one of the best around it’s also a great upgrade from the three word valleynationalbank.com domain. A real bonus is now those customers sending someone@valley.com loan documents may actually get them to the right place. Any financial services company should learn from this one. If you want to be the best get the best. New companies like RobinHood, n26, Simple and more are kicking butt at branding. Valley just got a lot cooler, you probably didn’t. 74. **View.com** — Acquired by View as an upgrade from the viewglass.com domain. View has raised almost $2B in funding so far. Whatever they paid for view.com was worth securing their word on the net forever and not boxing the brand in to just glass. 75. **Visible.com** — acquired by Visible, a phone service in an app. I don’t get this one nor the word’s connection to cellular service. Whatever, it’s short and sweet. Anytime in doubt just remember somebody pitched a script called Sharknado and today there is the original Sharknado movie, Sharknado 2: The Second One, Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!, Sharknado: The 4th Awakens, Sharknado 5: Global Swarming and The Last Sharknado: It’s About Time. Go Visible Go! 76. **Visor.com** — acquired by an online personal tax advisor company, Visor. Previously used the myvisor.com domain. Great upgrade. 77. **Vivo.com** — acquired by the China’s [Vivo Mobile](https://www.vivo.com/) Communication Co. Monster sale at $2,100,000 by a monster company and a great upgrade from vivoglobal.com 78. **Walker.com** — acquired by Walker Manufacturing. Big company with a whole lot of mowers. If you or your company name is Walker forget it, you are never getting this domain. You snooze you lose. Walker Manufacturing is the winner. 79. **Wing.com** — acquired by WING, a Google Moonshot Company. With the money they have you can likely bet on something flying there. Awesome domain name and 100% relevant to secret Moonshot projects. 80. **WW.com** — acquired by Weight Watchers for a re-brand. Love the “WW. Weight Watchers re-imagined.” slogan. Love the double-double two letter .com even more. 81. **WMP.com** — acquired by West Monroe Partners. Another huge company acquiring the exact match 3 letter .com domain. Nothing screams authority like a perfect three letter .com, maybe only a two letter. 82. **Workplace.com** — acquired by Facebook for their [Workplace](https://www.workplace.com/) product. Smart acquisition. When you are likely investing hundreds of millions in a product you want to own the word. Facebook is very good at this. The unlimited budget doesn’t hurt either. 83. **Zoom.com** — acquired by [Zoom Video Communications](http://www.zoom.com). You know that worldwide video conferencing company using .us (yuck) forever. One of the top 10 upgrades in 2018 for sure. 84. – 100. Insert pretty much any good one word.com here. I’m tired and need coffee. These domain names represent not even a fracture, a sliver, or even a sliver of a sliver of upgrades which have happened. ……. **If you think for a moment no one will buy the better one word .com version of your brand’s name THINK AGAIN.** ……. ### **IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME.** ……. Commerce today is global. Even with a trademark there are 100 plus countries to file a trademark in, and over 40 classes to register. At half this math there are still over 2,000 openings for someone else to acquire TM rights to the same brand name. If you are on the fence then make a decision or possibly lose forever. To those who still don’t get domain names: May your dreams be crushed by those who do. And I wish you luck — just to be balanced here. Do I need to say more? ……… *Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) All of these domain name movements are sourced from public information. Many sales are reported by multiple sources. **Categories:** Featured --- ### [18 Government Agencies And Their Dot Coms](https://namecorp.com/18-government-agencies-and-their-dot-coms/) **Published:** October 16, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![18 government agency domain names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-government-agencies-main.png "18 government agency domain names → NameCorp") *Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) National Security is one of the greatest expenditures globally. According to [The Washington Post](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/black-budget/), the United States alone has a “black budget” of **$52.6 billion**, with the CIA and NSA enjoying 48% of those funds. Israel’s Mossad is reported to have a $2 billion annual budget and other countries surely have similar ones. Human intelligence operations, the oldest method for collecting information, account for $3.6 billion of the United States’ black budget, with informants often paid thousands to millions of dollars in fees. These budgets should not surprise anybody. However, the failure to spend a small fraction of them on “logical” purchases should. Monitoring messages is something of high value to any government. The NSA reportedly collects **over 200 million text messages a day** for analysis, [according to The Guardian](http://www.businessinsider.com/nsa-collects-text-messages-2014-1), and based on data leaked by Edward Snowden. Then there’s the fallout for individuals and companies when a leak or scandal happens. Take, for example, Hillary Clinton’s email scandal, multiple politicians destroyed by “secret” text messages, the massive leak of Sony emails and more. NameCorp™ [analyzed emails](https://namecorp.com/30-days-of-catch-all-emails-wow/) from a generic dot-com domain over a 30-day period and were surprised at the results. On a low-traffic, non-government-related domain name, there were almost 100 emails of significance emailed to the wrong company, including loan contracts, bank statements, fully executed contracts, personal information and more. So what happens when you are a National Security or Government Agency with a billion-dollar budget? You would think purchasing the most obvious domain name for the agency makes sense — for security purposes. But you would be wrong. ![USA Government Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-usa-domains.jpg "USA Government Domain Names → NameCorp")Who owns FBI.com, DOD.com, CIA.com and other “cool” domains? ## **Let’s Start with North America** **The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)** According to [Vice](http://motherboard.vice.com/read/the-fbi-wants-38-million-to-buy-encryption-breaking-technology), the FBI wants $38 million more to buy encryption-breaking technology for a variety of vague reasons. Understandable of course, so naturally someone must have purchased FBI.com for the Bureau. No. FBI.com is owned by DigiMedia.com, L.P. — The same people who own Recipes.com, PeopleFinder.com, Judo.com, etc. *Official Site —* [*fbi.gov*](http://fbi.gov/) **The National Security Agency (NSA)** The NSA has the second-largest piece of the black budget mentioned above. What happens if you send a security tip to ? You probably won’t get a reply. NSA.com is owned by a company called DV8 Media (UK) LTD. and the domain name is home to the Neptune Shipping Agency which doesn’t seem like they’re in the spy business. Wait, it almost sounds like the perfect cover. *Official Site —* [*nsa.gov*](http://nsa.gov/) **The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)** If you are going to apply to the Central Intelligence Agency, then emailing will not get you very far. In fact, the email will end up in Canada, sent to a company called CyberSurf Corp. Maybe this is all a test of your IQ. *Official Site —* [*cia.gov*](http://cia.gov/) **National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)** Interested in space? You won’t find a space shuttle by visiting Nasa.com. The domain Nasa.com is forwarded to a subdomain of Jerusalem.com and offers a pretty standard ad-supported search box, registered to a Mrs. Jello, Inc. — not of Bill Cosby relation. *Official Site —* [*nasa.gov*](http://nasa.gov/) **Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)** This is a government division “Committed to Excellence in Defense of the Nation.” One quick visit to DIA.com will quickly make you think the agency has shut down. But then a review of the WHOIS — Design Institute of America, Inc. — will remind you that you are probably not at the right place. *Official Site — dia.mil* **Department of Defense (DOD)** How many people do you think email or every day? Take a look at this organizational chart — I’m going to bet more than one. Luckily for the department, [defense.com](http://defense.com/) is marked for sale. And for those part-time rockers at state, one visit to DOD.com introduces “the triumphant return of the original boutique synthesizer pedal”. The slogan, “Reborn to Be Wild” is likely not state-approved. *Official Site —* [*defense.gov*](http://defense.gov/) ![Israel Government Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-israel-domains.jpg "Israel Government Domain Names → NameCorp") ### Moving to Israel **The Mossad (Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations)** Being part of Israel’s highly respected intelligence division, The Mossad, is a dream for many. But one visit to [mossad.com](http://mossad.com/) and you may question everything you know. ![Mossad domain name for sale](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-mossad-domain-for-sale.jpg "Mossad domain name for sale → NameCorp") According to the domain name’s page, you can purchase Mossad.com for $29,995. Surely that price is worth paying just to put @[mossad.com](http://mossad.com/) on your business card. *Official Site —* [*mossad.gov.il*](http://mossad.gov.il/) ![China Russia Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-china-russia-domains.jpg "China Russia Domain Names → NameCorp") How about the MSS, KGB or FSB?### **China** **Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS)** China’s fascination with domain names has [increased exponentially](http://techcrunch.com/2015/12/12/china-making-domain-name-history/) in the past few years, with many of the world’s largest sales coming from Chinese buyers purchasing domains like We.com ($8 million), [360.com](http://360.com/) ($17 million) and more. So where is the Chinese Ministry of State Security’s (MSS) website? Good question. We checked MSS.cn, which goes to Morning Snow Studio, and MSS.com is a page advertising Math, Science and Social Studies. Still searching for the real one. *Official Site — good question* ### **Russia** **Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti (KGB)** The KGB is legendary, with its initials evoking many emotions around the world, but “Ask Me Anything” isn’t one of them. KGB.com is owned by a privately held New York company. According to their website, KGB “extended the brand to the Web with the launch of kgbanswers.com, a site where users can search the vast KGB database of questions and answers, or ask their own question directly to a KGB Special Agent.” Probably not the 007 you’re looking for, but they certainly have a wordsmith on staff. *Official Site — the KGB has been rebranded to the FSB (Federal Security Service) so let’s check them out.* **Federal Security Service (FSB)** Who said America-Russia relations were dead? Time, Inc. owns FSB.com and forwards the domain name to Fortune.com .. not home to Putin’s personal blog. *Official Site —* [*fsb.ru*](http://fsb.ru/) ![UK Germany Australia Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-uk-german-austalia-domains.jpg "UK Germany Australia Domain Names → NameCorp") Surely the home of James Bond must own Mi5.co.uk? What about Australia or Germany?### **The United Kingdom** **Military Intelligence, Section 5 (Mi5)** The UK is home to James Bond, so surely these agents know a thing or two about marketing. Mi5.co.uk does not resolve, but is registered to a UK company, Enterfirst Limited, based in London. The .uk version is not registered (Mi5.uk) and visiting Mi5.com leads us full circle, back to one of the reasons that agencies should consider buying the .com version of their domain — defensive purposes. It may be time to engage the marketing team behind Bond for a little help here. *Official Site —* [*mi5.gov.uk*](http://mi5.gov.uk/) ### **Germany** **Bundesnachrichtendienst (Federal Intelligence Service)** The Bundesnachrichtendienst (Federal Intelligence Service) is the foreign intelligence agency of Germany, with an estimated annual budget (2015) of € 615 million. It is commonly referred to as the BND, and is one of the leaders in global intelligence. However, if you visit BND.com, a visitor will find Breaking News for Belleville, Illinois. On our visit, they were announcing a new German restaurant and brewery under construction, so maybe they are related after all. Good news is a Henri Vogel from Germany has registered Bundesnachrichtendienst.com and has the domain forwarded to the BND’s official site. Bad news is we don’t know if Henri is a spy or someone who just registered the domain name for fun. *Official Site —* [*bnd.de*](http://bnd.de/) ### **Australia** **Australia Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS)** The ASIS was established on May 13, 1952, to “protect and promote Australia’s vital interests through the provision of unique foreign intelligence services as directed by Government.” However, if you want to apply, it’s probably best not to visit ASIS.com, unless you want a reminder of what the Internet looked like in 1989. *Official Site —* [*asis.gov.au*](http://asis.gov.au/) ![USPS IRS Medicaid Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-usps-irs-medicaid-domains.jpg "USPS IRS Medicaid Domain Names → NameCorp") What about the IRS, Medicaid, The U.S. Postal Service and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office?### **Other Notables** **Internal Revenue Service (IRS)** IRS.com is owned by public company Remark Media (NASDAQ: MARK), and is basically a comprehensive site leading people to use E-file.com. Remark Media also owns Vegas.com, Banks.com and Bikini.com. *Official Site —* [*irs.gov*](http://irs.gov/) **Healthcare.com** According to Bloomberg, the government has spent $2 billion on Healthcare.gov. Some of that money might have been better spent limiting the confusion caused by not owning the dot-com version of the domain name. Healthcare.com is self-described as “a privately-held internet start-up for healthcare consumers.” They have Obama to thank for marketing. *Official Site —* [*healthcare.gov*](http://healthcare.gov/) **Medicaid** Who better to own the domain name Medicaid.com than a private health insurance company? One visit to Medicaid.com and you will find a wealth of information about Medicaid and, of course, a great option to choose from many of United Healthcare’s plans. Talk about choices. *Official Site –*[*medicaid.gov*](http://medicaid.gov/) **United States and Patent Trademark Office (USPTO)** Our favorite. A visit to the dot-com version of the United States Patent and Trademark Office and you will see nothing but sponsored links for ads relating to Trademark Search, Patent Ideas and more. Even the government office in charge of issuing trademarks has a lot to learn about efficiency. *Official Site —* [*uspto.gov*](http://uspto.gov/) **United States Postal Service (USPS)** Finally, a winner. USPS acquired the domain name USPS.com more than 15 years ago. According to Wikipedia, “The USPS is often mistaken for a government-owned corporation because it operates much like a business, but as noted above, it is legally defined as an ‘**independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States**.’ Maybe this is the key to winning here. *Official Site —* [*usps.com*](http://usps.com/) ![Private Sector Lessons](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-pivate-sector-lessons.jpg "Private Sector Lessons → NameCorp") ### Learning from the Private Sector You may read this article and immediately say, “wow, look at all the cyber-squatters,” but you would be wrong. - How many people have the initials FBI? - How many companies have the acronym CIA? - The word Healthcare is pretty generic — How could one ever say the government should own the .com? **How about the word Medicaid?** It sounds like a government term — one the government should surely own. But wait… The United States Patent and Trademark Office has **22 trademarks which include the word “Medicaid”** with a LIVE status. These trademarks include: “The Medicaid Experts” registered to a Financial Planning Company in Florida, “Medicaid University” to Brokers Choice of America, Inc. and “Medicaid Direct” to Centris Group LLC in New York. The government clearly is not concerned about having the exclusive right to this so why should the people? Ownership rights of domain names are not as clear as you may think. For almost every one person claiming they should own a domain, there are possibly dozens lined up to say they should also — **especially for acronyms that can stand for almost anything**. Private and public companies around the world, such as Salesforce, Microsoft, Facebook, WeChat and more, spend tens of millions annually on domain names. Some are upgrades, some are brand protection and some are vanity. But at the very core, these investments are made to secure stronger brands and protect the security and financial investments of the company. **National security is a much bigger reason than any profit or brand protection goal to secure the most obvious dot-com domain.** The world has seen leaks and scandals before, and will again. From Edward Snowden to WikiLeaks. From the Panama Papers to Hilary Clinton. How all of these happened are different, but one can bet another will happen. The next one may not even be intentional. It may just be from somebody doing what humans do, and that is email the dot-com version of the expected domain name. Maybe it’s time for Global Intelligence to take a lead from the private sector and invest in a few domains. — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — ***Follow Alan Dunn*** [***on Twitter***](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) **Categories:** Featured --- ### [Why Tesla Motors Finally Acquired Tesla.com](https://namecorp.com/why-tesla-motors-finally-acquired-tesla-com/) **Published:** March 17, 2016 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Tesla Motors Finally Acquired Tesla.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-tesla-acquires-tesla-com-main.png "Tesla acquires Tesla.com domain name → NameCorp") # **Why Tesla Motors Finally Acquired Tesla.com** *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) Elon Musk is no stranger to innovation. Tesla cars lead the world in brand reputation for electric vehicles and last year, Tesla announced the introduction of the Tesla Powerwall home battery. However, for years Tesla never owned the domain name Tesla.com — until now. According to Andrew Allemann of [DomainNameWire](http://domainnamewire.com/2016/02/18/tesla-finally-acquires-tesla-com-domain-name/), the WHOIS record for the domain name Tesla.com changed on February 17, 2016, to represent a frequently known WHOIS address used by a brand-protection company to acquire domain names. James Illes from NamePros [confirmed the transaction](https://www.namepros.com/blog/tesla-acquires-tesla-com-we-speak-with-the-seller.921692/) by speaking with seller Mr. Stuart Grossman directly and, if you type in Tesla.com, it now goes to TeslaMotors.com. **How much did Tesla Motors pay?** The rumors have started but we may never know for sure. Companies like Anker, The Texas Rangers and Facebook have paid top dollar to secure preferred versions of their domain. Uber is reported to have traded 1% of company stock to acquire Uber.com. These days, getting a great domain is no longer cheap. Some may even think Tesla had a right to the name. Oh, that’s so wrong. The owners of Tesla.com registered the name long before Tesla Motors existed. Another company (Tesla Industries, Inc.) even filed a motion in 2005 to acquire the domain, and well-known intellectual property attorney John Berryhill successfully [defended this motion](http://www.adrforum.com/domaindecisions/547889.htm). A lot of the confusion in domain name rights is simply the equivalent of being the victim of your own success. Companies spend millions building brands but often fail to realize how people truly think. We live in a short-name world and, if you have a unique name like Tesla where marketing efforts have helped establish such high brand awareness, then human nature is to call the company Tesla — not Tesla Motors, Tesla Cars or anything else. Just Tesla. **Did they need Tesla.com?** Maybe not. But the amount of brand value and brand security acquired by owning this is almost impossible to measure. How many people email someone@tesla.com every day? How many people type in Tesla.com? What if another company started selling products on Tesla.com that had nothing to do with cars, but was an embarrassment to the brand? It happens all the time. Just ask Nissan. For over a decade now, [Nissan has filed one lawsuit after another](https://namecorp.com/nissan-com-a-20-year-battle-for-nissan-domain-name/) to acquire this domain name. It just so happens that the domain is somebody’s (Mr. Uzi Nissan) last name and he has a company called Nissan Computer. The acquisition of Tesla.com is another leading example of why brands need to pay attention to domain names. At some point it was inevitable that Tesla would do more than just offer cars and the TeslaMotors.com domain wasn’t representative of this growth. Imagine if AmazonBooks was the brand used to try and compete with Netflix — or UberCab was the company trying to sell you data. Both would potentially lose tremendous brand value. However, when you remove the secondary words and simply have Amazon and Uber, then it shows authority and opens the window to innovation without brand dilution. Patrick Swayze said it best in Dirty Dancing: “Nobody puts Baby in the corner.” Well, the wrong domain can put you in a corner. The right domain can open the world. The world has changed greatly since Joshua Quittner [wrote an article](https://namecorp.com/billions-registered/) over 20 years ago when he personally registered McDonalds.com, but the process of naming is still a challenge many companies fail to recognize until the need is so high that a price tag comes along to match. ## Tesla 1. Nissan 0. — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [$25,000 for a Domain Name is (not) Crazy.](https://namecorp.com/25000-for-a-domain-name-is-not-crazy/) **Published:** April 10, 2016 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![,000 for a Domain Name is (not) Crazy.](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/25000-is-not-crazy-for-a-domain-name.png "25000 is not crazy for a domain name → NameCorp") [*Originally published on Medium*](https://medium.com/@alandunn/25-000-for-a-domain-name-is-crazy-192a88d41e98#.5mjumud16) # $25,000 for a Domain Name is (not) Crazy. ## **Or is it?** *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) I registered my first domain name in 1996 and have been involved in more than $50 million in sales since then. If there is one word I would never use about domain name prices, it would be “crazy.” Crazy, by Google’s definition, refers to something that’s “mentally deranged, especially as manifested in a wild or aggressive way.” Synonyms include insane, deranged, lunatic and — my favorite — out of one’s mind. Every domain name transaction has a buyer and a seller. The price is all but relative and starts with the seller’s asking price. This is the only place where a little bit of crazy may come in. Owning a mediocre domain and asking $250,000 for it may seem a little crazy, but if you get a counteroffer then crazy is good. This type of crazy also falls in line with the simple notion of “if you don’t ask you don’t receive” — a basic foundation of anyone selling anything. Where the word crazy gets thrown out the window is when the potential buyer makes an offer. People do not throw money away. When a counteroffer is made, the exact value of that domain name to their business is known and a financial offer is made that represents this value. So, before a selling price is established you already have two very sane people negotiating a deal. There is no crazy here. For first-time buyers and people not familiar with the domain name industry, it’s important to realize that good domain names are incredibly valuable assets today. There is a thriving investor market for premium domain names and an ever-increasing demand for one-word and two-word meaningful domains from companies. In fact, if you have interest in a good domain name then **you can almost bet someone else has inquired** about the domain name in the past. ### **How are Domain Names Priced?** It all depends on who you ask. Every investor has their own pricing model, and different expectations of return. Some only sell a few a year while others like to price them lower and focus more on quantity. However one prices a domain name is a personal choice and, as with almost any other rare investment, price is all but relative to the seller’s interest in money and the expected value relative to the buyer’s needs. Over the last 20 years I have been on the receiving end of almost every imaginable rebuttal for price. From the student looking for a deal (coming from a high-level executive e-mail at a major bank) to “I’m a nun, please can you give me a deal” to one of our most famous internal threads where the person’s maximum budget was initially $50 and then, magically, a few weeks later they were able to come up with $85,000 to buy the name. Our job as brokers is to represent the client (whether a buyer or seller) and that includes educating both sides of the fence on domain name values. Sometimes the seller’s asking price is so high we prefer to work on other opportunities and sometimes a buyer needs to understand why domain names are valued so much. Our primary initial goal is to qualify people. Just like an auction house may require a deposit to secure a bidding handle or a real estate agent request your profile before seeing a luxury home, we are focused only on negotiating with people who can qualify as a potential buyer, relative to the seller’s price expectations. Of course, not everybody is qualified. In the spirit of transparency and education here are a few of our favorite lines from people inquiring about domain names, and a typical reaction from the seller. **“But It’s My Domain Name.”** Personally, this is our favorite statement from a potential buyer. It’s almost the equivalent of us telling the owner of the oceanfront beach home — “wait that’s my house” — explaining that we always dreamed of the home, so in essence (because we had a dream) it’s our house. Maybe we can bring the word crazy back in here. A few people may actually have the right to a domain name with a valid trademark, but owning a trademark is not a general “pass over the domain please” piece of paper. Trademark law is very complicated and many things, including the use of the domain, when it was registered, its generic factors and so much more, all contribute to whether or not having a trademark provides you with a right to a domain name. In fact, it’s very rare for a trademark holder to win a generic domain. For most people, the best strategy is typically to make an offer for the domain because, if your case loses, you can bet the owner is going to likely substantially raise the price. Domain name owners who traffic in typos and collect trademark names typically do not argue since they know from the start there is risk associated with these. Generic domain name holders, on the other hand, will typically fight to the end to keep their asset and they usually prevail. ### **Why $25,000?** I needed a number for a subject line, if you really want to know. Whether its $25,000 or $250,000 is not really relevant. What is relevant is how much a domain name is worth to your business versus the asking price. Remember the asking price is usually just a starting number. The reason I picked this number arbitrarily is because many domain name owners do the same thing. Before reacting to a price you need to read and understand more about domain names. Having to explain why a great domain is priced so high is only going to get a vague response purely because the sellers we represent are looking for buyers who understand values. Asking us to justify an asking price pretty much discounts any credibility you have as a buyer. However, if you put a reasonable counteroffer in and explain why, then odds are we can work with the seller on that. Very few high-valued domains are ever sold at asking price. There is almost always some negotiation. **“We’re a non-profit and our budget is only $2,000”** Cool. We are not. The good news is that, if you are a real foundation and the domain is going to be used, then some owners may be influenced by that. Some, not many, but some. The bad news is that a lot of people try this line and it’s not something many even respond to anymore. **“I’m a student and don’t have a lot of money”** Cool. We wish you the best of luck in the future. Come back when you have a job, and savings. **“I let this domain expire and I want it back.”** Owners do not steal domains. They buy them in auctions and from other owners. If your name expired and you forgot to pay the eight bucks then sorry — win some, lose some. “**Let me think on it. Maybe I’ll buy it later.”** Okay, this is where we need to transition out of common replies and talk about domain name values. You never want to assume you can buy it later. Hobi Michalec of Domain Holdings wrote [a fabulous article](http://hobimichalec.com/bluestar-com-2/) on this exact scenario when selling the domain name BlueStar.com. Patient and/or aggressive tactics can often backfire on you. Paul Graham, one of Silicon Valley’s most notable venture capitalists and co-founder of the Y-combinator seed capital firm, wrote an article in August (2015) entitled “[Change Your Name](http://www.paulgraham.com/name.html)”. One of his best comments was *“Sometimes founders know it’s a problem that they don’t have the .com of their name, but delusion strikes a step later in the belief that they’ll be able to buy it despite having no evidence it’s for sale. Don’t believe a domain is for sale unless the owner has already told you an asking price.”* Life is too short and time is money. You often can’t afford not to have that domain name. ### **Why are domain names worth so much?** To answer this question you really need to get past the initial cost of a domain name and understand why a premium domain name is so valuable. Back in the mid-90s, domain names were free and today they are generally available for anywhere between $8 and $100 annually. But, like real estate, almost all the good .com domains are primarily gone — and if they were available today, no one would ever let you register them for anywhere close to eight dollars. Keeping in line with real estate, it’s fair to say that almost everyone reading this would buy real estate today at 1995 prices. Hindsight is 20/20 except if the Blue Jays win the World Series, and then I will say I knew that. You see, domain names are not just a rare asset — a collectible or a modern art piece only a few will ever see. The right domain name can save you thousands (even millions) in marketing costs, help expand your brand authority, increase your brand recognition and make you and your company look smarter. In short, a domain name is everything. ### **Domain Name Cost vs. Other Media** A $25,000 domain name is still incredibly cheap compared to the value received by almost any other marketing source. - A large roadside billboard can cost [upwards of $30,000](http://www.bluelinemedia.com/billboard-advertising) for every four-week period, according to Blueline Media. - According to *Entrepreneur* magazine, radio ads [can easily cost $8,000 to $12,000 a month](http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/203246) for smaller companies. - The average small business using AdWords spends [between $9,000 and $10,000 per month](http://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2015/05/21/how-much-does-adwords-cost), according to Wordstream. Let’s try this again, but annually. - A large roadside billboard can cost upwards of **$390,000 annually**, according to Blueline Media. - According to *Entrepreneur* magazine, radio ads can easily cost **$96,000 to $144,000** a year for smaller companies. - The average small business using Google AdWords spends between **$108,000 and $120,000 annually**, according to Wordstream. So what happens the next year? You get to spend it all again. A domain name, on the other hand, typically has a single fee of less than $100 the second year. ### **$25,000 is sounding cheap.** ### **Because it is.** Whether you own a bad domain name or a good domain name it still needs to be advertised. Our media comparisons above are shown for you to understand how much money is spent on other areas of your business to put the relative cost of a domain name in perspective. What a lot of people don’t factor in when evaluating the cost to acquire a premium domain name are the intangible values a good domain name also brings, such as: **Higher ROI** When you’re spending your money on advertising it’s important to stay in the real world and keep it simple. The KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) acronym is more important than ever with domain names. **For all of these advertising costs, your ROI is going to be better with a better domain.** Why? You are asking people to remember and trust you. And people are not the brightest, let’s be real. Collectively, the human race is not full of Einsteins and Jeopardy! winners. If your domain name includes a hyphen, ends with inc/llc, starts with THE, has 48 characters or is something your employees cannot spell, your customers cannot type and even you get mixed up on, then really … why are you questioning the need for a better domain? **Lower Ad Cost** Many online ad publishers have quality scores built into them. These quality scores help determine how much your ads cost, your rankings and more. Having a better domain name often translates to a better quality score and lower pricing. **Greater Authority** Ron Jackson, of *DN Journal*, wrote an article on the Castello Brother’s ownership and [sale of Whisky.com](http://www.dnjournal.com/cover/2014/february.htm#sthash.u51ENmwc.dpuf). One of the best quotes from the article was, *“I started out walking around the distillery display tables where you could sample great whisky. I walked up to the table to tell them that I was the owner of Whisky.com and handed them a Whisky.com business card. I told them I would like to have a picture for the website. They would all stop what they were doing and have me come behind their booth to take pictures with me while everyone else out in front of the table asked who I was…I realized this is what happens with a Hyper Domain Name like Whisky.com. There is already a built-in trust factor, and it greets you like a Lamborghini in the fast lane.”* It’s true. Would you trust a doctor from doctors.com or thedoctorintheparkclosetoyourhouse.com more? **Time Is Money** Time is the ultimate currency, and in the business world every minute costs you money. Every minute your employees waste having to spell your domain name, or a customer confuses your domain name with a better version, or how many times it takes for a customer to remember your website — all of these (and more) have very real financial costs associated with them. If you don’t own the very best version of your domain name you are losing money and telling your customers that you are second tier. Using the Whisky.com example above a company could be using aboutwhiskey.com for the last 15 years but as soon as someone calls them from Whisky.com you can bet the consumer will have interest in listening — because the implied authority of being the better brand is built into the domain name. **Should I stick with a .com? What about the new domains?** Personally, I love this question. It’s like asking us who you should marry. There is no solid answer for this without knowing more about you. One thing is for sure though: **We all wish we registered more domain names 20 years ago.** The Internet is changing and many of these new domains are incredibly authoritative. For some, they are the answer. For others, a .com or .org or country code is more appropriate. It really depends on so many factors. There is no blanket answer for everyone. There are millions of these new domains such as .link, .guru and .club already registered. Launched only 18 months ago big brands like Google, Lady Gaga, LionsGate, TED, Merck and many others have acquired and started using these. Tens of thousands were sold in early access auctions costing upwards of $12,000 + each and more are registered every day. ### **— Again, $25,000 is sounding cheap. Because it is.** There are so many reasons for owning a good domain name that at this point you either get it or you don’t. The key is not to be upset if somebody buys “your” domain name, but rather focus on understanding the true value of the domain name to your business and then deciding whether or not to obtain the budget for an acquisition. ### **How do I find a broker that I can trust?** This is a fair question. The domain name industry is small, but it also has grown tremendously over the last few years, especially with the Chinese investment in domain names, which you can [read more about here](https://namecorp.com/china-the-new-king-of-domains/). Finding the right broker means you need to find someone who represents your best interests. There are many great brokers in this industry who regularly sell premium domain names and have industry awards and nominated staff, including eNaming, Igloo, Media Options, DomainNameSales, GUTA and, of course, my company [NameCorp](https://namecorp.com)™. Every broker operates similarly; you need to find the one you are most comfortable with. It’s really not much different than choosing a real estate agent. ### **Where to start?** A great place to start is [DNJournal.com](http://www.dnjournal.com) to learn more about sales and understand industry names. [TheDomains.com](http://www.thedomains.com), [DomainInvesting.com](http://www.domaininvesting.com/) and [DomainNameWire.com](http://www.domainnamewire.com) are three of the most popular sites related to domain name news. [DomainSherpa.com](http://www.domainsherpa.com/) is a great site to watch interviews. [DomainShane](http://domainshane.com/) is a great blog who showcases a high-quality list of domains in auction every day. [GGRG](http://www.ggrg.com) is an amazing resource to learn more about Chinese and short domains, ran by Giuseppe Graziano. And everyone should register at [Domaining.com](http://www.domaining.com) for an easy RSS feed of the top domain name articles every day. For tools, [DomainIQ ](http://www.domainiq.com/)is one of the best resources. With an account you can quickly look up WHOIS information, do reverse searches on DNS servers and more. If there is ever a geeky data side to you then DomainIQ is the ultimate place you want to spend your time. Warning, it’s highly addictive. Of course, you can also always email us at **sales@namecorp.com** and we will be happy to advise you. What you can take away from this article is that good domains are quite valuable. And there are a lot of professionals who understand domain names, and can provide solid advice about buying/finding the right domain name for you. I know very little about buying real estate so you can bet I am going to hire a realtor to help with a home purchase. It’s probably a pretty good idea to do the same when buying a domain name. — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) **Categories:** Featured --- ### [China. The New King of Domains.](https://namecorp.com/china-the-new-king-of-domains/) **Published:** September 1, 2015 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![China Domain Name King](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-china-domain-king.jpg "China Domain Name King → NameCorp") # China. The New King of Domains. If you own a premium domain name, then odds are you have received an inquiry from a prospective Chinese buyer over the past year. Domain names have become an extremely popular investment in China and many of the industry’s top reported weekly sales are now credited to both Chinese investors and Chinese companies. **Why is China suddenly the biggest marketplace for domain names?** There are many answers to this question but one thing is for sure: The Western world doesn’t even come close to the influence that China has on domain names anymore. And this is a good thing. Let’s go back a few years first. **The Collection Years.** Up until 2009 or so, there were only a relatively small number of large bulk buyers in the traditional domain investment community. The vast majority of these buyers were based in North America, Europe and the Caribbean, and often competed heavily in auctions for any name of quality. **The Adjustment Period.** Somewhere around 2009, Google, Yahoo! and other upstream ad providers introduced quality score payments and many domain name owners who relied on parking revenue saw their payouts drop. It was the first of many things to shift a primary focus to domain name sales versus monetization. Pandas and Penguins killed the value of exact match domain names and the introduction of zero-click advertising started exposing premium domain holders to great risk, reducing the interest in parking by many big investors. *(Zero-click parking is almost the worst thing you can ever expose a premium domain name to in our opinion. A domain name’s value has the potential to be exposed to penalties, bans and more, all while you often have no idea. If you own a premium domain and it’s on zero-click ads, you’re just asking for trouble.)* During this period, DomainNameSales.com, Mark.com and other key marketplaces were established, showing the interest in expanding public aftermarket sales platforms. **The New Internet.** Prague, 2012. This is when many of the world’s top domain investors became kids again. ICANN opened up the doors for new domain name extensions and the response was similar to Willy Wonka finally opening the doors of his chocolate factory. New companies were formed, people became enthused again – it truly was similar to kids in a candy shop, except the candy cost more. Companies like Donuts raised $100 million for new GTLDs; Google spent $18.6 million just on applications. Even well-known industry leaders spent millions on applications to own some of these new extensions. However, the most important thing was something very few people ever spoke about. A lot of this money wasn’t from domainers. It was from venture capitalists, private investors, well-known companies and more. All of a sudden, domain names had Main Street credit with tremendous new cash investments. This was verification the aftermarket for domain names was just beginning. **February, 2014.** This date was critical. The first launch of these new domain name extensions went live. It was like being at the Super Bowl watching the coin drop. No one really knew what was going to happen. Would anybody want these new domains? Would people pay a premium for early access to premium domains? If so, what prices would they pay? Would companies really buy these names? Registries needed adoption for the long term. The last 18 months have proven that there is an undeniable thirst for these new domain name extensions. *“Adoption is, in fact, key, and it’s borne itself out over the course of the past year and a half. Registrations at Donuts alone exceed **two million names** and the number is steadily climbing. Consumers not only are buying names in new TLDs, they’re putting them to use. One has to look only at the featured sites page on [our website](http://www.donuts.co) to see daily examples of real world use.”* noted Daniel Schindler, Co-Founder, Donuts Inc. when asked about the last 18 months. A couple weeks ago the industry may have achieved its biggest tipping point yet when Google decided to forgo the traditional .com and consolidate all its companies [under a .XYZ domain](https://namecorp.com/google-alphabet-a-naming-lesson-for-mortals/) name. **China Becomes King.** While all these changes were happening with the introduction of new domains, Chinese investors were slowly becoming dominant players in domain name investments. For those unfamiliar with China, there are very core differences in how wealth can be invested in China. If you live in the Western world, you can pretty much invest in anything. China has much tighter restrictions, especially on funds leaving China. These restrictions may impose hardship in China, but they also create great demand for alternative investments from Chinese buyers more than many other countries. Domain names started becoming extremely popular for a number of reasons. - China has an [extremely high](http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users-by-country/) Internet penetration. - No walled gardens for mobile usage. In the U.S mobile usage is mostly behind walled gardens (Facebook/Twitter/etc.) - Mobile Internet [is mature](http://www.inmobi.com/blog/2015/04/16/inmobi-insights-the-dynamics-of-a-booming-app-economy) since they started and expanded mobile Internet before the App economy took hold, they are still used to domain names - gTLDs are not under the control of the Chinese government. The ICANN controlled gTLDs are harder to seize without proper legal documentation versus their domains (.com.cn/.cn) which can be often seized without notice. **But why domains?** Good domains are rare—very rare—and with such rarity comes value and prestige. Most people would love to own a domain like sex.com or money.com, but very few have the means. Furthermore, very few great domains are even available for sale. The reason China became king is that the Chinese wholesale market has applied logic to inventory and created foundational values rarely seen before in this industry with such high demand. Instead of applying a Wild West attitude using almost defunct measurements like SEM value or PPC search, Chinese investors focus primarily on the best of the best. Two Letter dot coms, Three Letter dot coms, One word dot com’s etc… There is very little Wild West of anything when it comes to Chinese buyers. In fact, they have proven to be some of the smartest investors in this industry although **the latest to arrive**. This year alone we have already seen 50% of the Top 10 reported sales YTD by Chinese buyers and the biggest rumored sales are also from Chinese companies – We.com ($8 million USD), and 360.com ($17 million USD). Some say this is a bubble but many industry professionals disagree. Tracy Fogarty, Founder of [eNaming.com](http://enaming.com), said *“Many of our best clients are from China and the demand from Chinese companies looking to acquire domains has never been higher than before*”. Perspectives like this further validate there are many signs this is not a bubble. It’s not just investor demand but real companies who are looking to upgrade or acquire the best version of their domain name, and willing to pay dearly for it. **What the Future Holds.** There are many opinons on domain name values. However, it comes down to simple supply and demand. Great names are hard to find and once a great domain is gone it’s typically gone for good. Over the last year many two letter dot com domains have gone to brands – most recently [TR.com to Thomas Reuters](http://www.thedomains.com/2015/08/27/thomson-reuters-acquires-premium-domain-name-tr-com/) – and more will be acquired. At some point these will all be owned by brands and almost impossible to buy. If you are sitting on the fence about acquiring a premium domain name there are a couple things to understand: - Domains are global. So is demand. Waiting doesn’t typically help your chances of acquiring a domain. - The domain name you want is likely a generic domain name. That means other people want it also. - A domain name is an asset. It’s something you own. The $100,000 you spend on ads is an expense; it’s not something you own. - Understand the value of the asset before negotiating. It’s not “just a domain name”. - If somebody owns a great domain name and they tell you they have multiple offers from Chinese investors, well, they probably do. - A US Trademark doesn’t mean you have exclusive rights to a domain. There are multiple classes of trademarks and many countries issue them. Then there’s the situation when the domain owner acquired the name, use and so much more. - If your lawyer has never dealt with a domain name issue before and promises they can file a form to get the name, think again. Talk to a domain name lawyer. Odds are your lawyer is wrong. - Offers for a good domain name do not start at $500. Add a zero or three. Nobody can predict the future but when it comes to great domain names one thing is for sure, it’s not a collector sport anymore. --- NameCorp™ is a boutique digital agency with an insane appetite for naming and more than 20 years of experience. **[Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/)** to learn more about finding a better domain name.\[/av\_textblock\] **Categories:** China, Featured --- ### [The Real Value of a Domain Name](https://namecorp.com/the-real-value-of-a-domain-name/) **Published:** July 29, 2015 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Nothing in life is free. At one time, however, domain names were. Twenty years ago – in 1995 – Joshua Quittner penned [this historic piece](http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/2.10/mcdonalds_pr.html) for Wired Magazine and registered McDonalds.com for free. But, as the expression goes, today is different. A good domain name is hard to find and, when you find it, can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even bargain hunters are often hard pressed to find anything of superior quality for less than $10,000 USD. **Why are domain names valuable?** If you start by trying to answer this question then you’re already approaching the answer wrong. Before trying to understand the value of domain names it’s critical to understand what your brand means to you. Ask yourself: **Are you building a global or local presence?** Are you planning to conquer the world or looking to serve a section of Utah? For many companies the world is their customer which means a brand name has to be authoritative, memorable and social. **How valuable is your brand name?** Your domain name is the billboard for your brand. It’s how people talk about your brand, how they find you on the Internet and how they remember you. Settling for a second-tier name should never be an option. **Do you want people to remember you?** Of course you do. Consistency is one of the golden keys of advertising. Brand confusion appears when your company name is one thing and your domain name another. Visual.ly is a prime example of a brand where the average Joe will likely remember the brand as visually. But what happens if someone builds a site at visually.com — a lot of brand value may have just disappeared. **Let’s look back at history for a moment.** The most valuable area code in the world is likely New York’s 212. Today it’s almost impossible to get it without paying a tidy fee. So let’s visually look at the authority that a 212 number brings you. ![212 vs 646 area code phone numbers](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-212-vs-646.jpg "212 vs 646 area code phone numbers → NameCorp") The 212 number shows a certain pedigree which spills over into the expectations people have for your brand. These are good expectations, such as: you are established, experienced, trusted etc. The 646 is just another number. While it does the job it doesn’t have those intangible benefits that a 212 number has. 800 numbers are the same. Let’s compare: ![800 vs 844 toll free numbers](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-800-vs-844.jpg "800 vs 844 toll free numbers → NameCorp") Both numbers work the same. The owner of the 844 number, however, is likely never going to get a call from someone misdialing the 800 number. The 800 number owner should end up getting lots of calls from customers of the 844 number. Why? All toll-free numbers are commonly referred to as 800 numbers. Not 866, not 844 – most people collectively group all toll-free numbers into a group called 800 numbers. This is also why 800 numbers are much more expensive than other toll-free extensions. Supply and demand, just like New York’s 212 numbers. **As for Domain Names…** The comparison above still holds true. A higher quality name speaks to a higher quality brand. Take our company name for example. We have more than twenty years of experience but what if we choose to start with namecorpllc.com? ![Namecorp vs Namecorpllc](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-namecorp-vs-namecorpllc.jpg "Namecorp vs Namecorpllc → NameCorp") First we certainly wouldn’t have as much brand value. Second, people would email us @namecorp.com instead of @namecorpllc.com. Third, our brand could be exposed to potential dilution from somebody starting a company at namecorp.com. Trademark laws exist but the odds are not always as they seem. **What about New Domain Name Extensions?** This is where branding gets very interesting. In early 2014 hundreds of new domain extensions became available, such as .link, .tattoo, .guru, .photography, .club and more. Some are meant to be generic while others are very industry and/or community specific. Let’s take a look at two domain name examples: ![Fly.fishing vs FlyFishing.com domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-fly-fishing-vs-com.jpg "Fly.fishing vs FlyFishing.com domain name → NameCorp") Which one has more authority? It’s a fascinating question if you consider a future perspective. While .com is king today this doesn’t mean it will be the only extension to provide authority in the marketplace. Over the next couple years many great companies will build on these extensions. Not only do they provide higher relevancy but they also provide at least four fewer characters, which is huge when trying to market within the text limitations of social media. Plus they are memorable — if you know how to choose one. Take the example above. Both domain names have sex appeal: however FlyFishingToday.Fish is just not going to have the same charm. Building a brand requires a commitment to detail, whether it’s a local phone number, a toll-free number or a domain name. And it’s critical to understand the intangible value before securing a domain name. **What is the Real Value of a Domain Name?** Only you can answer that question. The price of a domain name can range from $10 to $1,000,000 or more. This all depends on quite a few variables: - Owner Expectations - Demand for the name - Strength of the wholesale market - and more. However, every domain name is unique and every situation is different. It’s near impossible to define why domain names are valuable other than simple supply and demand. What makes them unique are owners have an emotional and intangible investment — **often the very same reason why a brand wants to acquire a domain**. So, you need to understand how valuable a domain name is to your business plan before asking for a price. Many companies spend tens of thousands on logo designs, advertising, brand consultations, proposals and more. The domain name needs to be part of that conversation. Only when you can define how much having the very best version of your brand name is worth to you are you ready to buy a domain name. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **Categories:** Featured --- ### [Look Inside Your Brand](https://namecorp.com/look-inside-your-brand/) **Published:** August 3, 2015 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Look inside your brand](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-look-inside-your-brand.jpg "Look inside your brand → NameCorp") For most entrepreneurs, the idea of having their own business is a primary objective. But for some, building a brand is the ultimate goal. However, building a brand is very different than building a company. One could even say brand building requires an entirely different sub-set of skills that only a few have ever mastered. The truth is, you don’t need a company to build a brand: **What you need are followers**. Today’s world is very different than yesterday’s. Many personal brands are built on YouTube, Twitter and Instagram, some intentionally and some unintentionally. A brand could be a company (AOL), a product (Rubik’s Cube) or even an individual (Kim Kardashian). No matter how a brand is built there are common elements to successful brands. Some of these elements are created by your marketing team while others are created by employees or followers. Howard Schultz, the founder of Starbucks, wrote: *“Mass advertising can help build brands, but authenticity is what makes them last. If people believe they share values with a company, they will stay loyal to the brand.”* This is one of the greatest quotes about branding and is true today as much as it was when he wrote it in 1997. Why? Because it sums up that great brands are built not just by ads, but from the total experience. How many times have great brands been tarnished by poor customer service or luxury brands cheapened trying to appeal too widely? And how many times have we fallen in love with a brand, creating a relationship that has stood the test of time? Building a great brand is not easy. It’s likely the hardest challenge any company has. But when you do it successfully, the rewards are plentiful. According to Brand Finance®, [Apple is the most valuable brand](http://brandirectory.com/league_tables/table/global-500-2014) in the world. What is even more interesting is that most consumers will likely feel certain emotions about, and some kind of connection to, almost **every brand** on this page **before** thinking about their product. Companies without high brand value do not have this consumer connection. Having a great product and customers is just not enough. There are several things every brand owner should ask themselves : **Is Your Brand Authentic?** People are collectively smart (excluding those nominees for the Darwin Awards) and authenticity is a key element for a successful brand. Whether it’s a luxury good, an honest review or a promise of a low-cost, high-quality alternative, what people want to know more than anything else is if you’re authentic. No fakes have stood the test of time. **Do You Have Shared Values?** A key extraction from Howard Schulz’s quote is: *“If people believe they share values with a company, they will stay loyal to the brand.”* We would like to dissect this a bit deeper and define “people” as all people involved with a company and not just customers. From employees to vendors to competitors—the more a brand authentically shares value with all people, the greater the emotions invoked for the brand. **Are You Integrating Completely?** Having a person at hello is not enough. The greatest brands in the world incorporate their brand into everything, from product packaging to logo silhouettes to a single font. From an outside perspective, what looks relatively simple is often the result of countless hours spent planning a brand’s integration. **Do You Have a Single Voice** Great brands understand the value of a single voice. They also understand how to minimize damage control by not having too many people tell the same story. It’s very rare to hear Google employees discussing the search engine’s future, or Home Depot employees describing the store culture. A single voice is critical. Otherwise, your brand may never be consistent and this, in turn, will undermine your authenticity. **Are You Consistent?** Consistency is crucial. Imagine if Starbucks baristas didn’t wear green and everyone could choose a different uniform color. Imagine if Apple stopped paying attention to design. What if Tesla tried to sell regular fuel cars at the same time? Any of these actions would likely result in only negative consequences for the brand. Consistency and Authenticity go hand in hand, and many times the only way to be authentic is to be consistent. Branding (in theory) is pretty straight forward but in reality, it is far more difficult. After all, the ultimate goal is to earn the love of others and that is something even the best world leaders find hard to do. --- NameCorp™ is a boutique digital agency with an insane appetite for naming and more than 20 years of experience. **[Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/)** to learn more about finding a better domain name. **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [Knock Knock Wordpress Acquires Blog for 19 million](https://namecorp.com/knock-knock-wordpress-acquires-blog-for-19-million/) **Published:** May 15, 2016 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Knock Knock Wordpress Blog](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-wordpress-knock-knock-1300.png "Knock Knock WordPress Blog → NameCorp") Automattic, the company behind WordPress, announced on May 12 they were the successful winner of the auction for the new top-level domain name extension .blog. The winning bidder was a company called Knock Knock Whois There LLC, but it wasn’t until now that the true owners of this LLC were announced. Matt Mullenweg, founding developer of WordPress, [published a post](https://ma.tt/2016/05/blog/) explaining the need for privacy. *“We wanted to stay stealth while in the bidding process and afterward in order not to draw too much attention, but nonetheless the cost of the .blog auction got up there.”* Automattic has now joined the list of brands who have invested millions of dollars into owning new domain name extensions. Google paid $25 million for the .app extension last year, and Amazon acquired .buy for $5 million. According to ntldstats.com, total new top-level domain (NTLD) registrations have now surpassed 17 million. While this number sounds impressive, it’s the adoption of these new domain names by companies and publishers that really matter. WordPress has the X factor here. It’s massive, relevant customer base is almost second to none. [VentureBeat](http://venturebeat.com/2015/11/08/wordpress-now-powers-25-of-the-web/) has reported that **WordPress now powers 25% of the web**, which may just be the perfect match for seeing adoption of new domain name extensions scale. ### **Personal Branding** It’s well known that most all the best dot-coms are taken. So, **for personal brands**, the cost of acquiring the perfect dot-com is often far greater than the typical person can afford. However, it’s not just a dot-com-world anymore. Take, for example, Ryan Anderson Bell, founder of streaming conference site Summit.live, and a nominee for Periscoper of the Year. Ryan has collected almost 4 million likes on Periscope and is followed by over 17,000 people. We asked Ryan why he chose Ryan.live. “Dot-com simply doesn’t mean anything,” said Ryan. “And, who wants to say Twitter dot com slash Ryan underscore A underscore Bell?” – (Ryan’s actual Twitter handle). Ryan may be on to something. New domain name extensions like .live or .blog intuitively tell people what to expect before they arrive. And it’s not just tech founders like Ryan seeing the advantages of these personalized domains. Gene Marks, president of the Marks Group, published an article on how [professional athletes](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/you-probably-wont-guess-what-3-basketball-stars-4-nfl-gene-marks-6120235257972142080) are adopting the new domains, including D.J. Fluker of the San Diego Chargers, pro golfer Lee Westwood, DeMarre Carroll of the Toronto Raptors, and more. Even large celebrities like Joe Rogan (of Fear Factor / UFC / NewsRadio fame), who has 650,000 YouTube subscribers and 1.8 million Twitter followers, have embraced the new domains. Joe adopted JoeRogan.live, and is promoting his asset every day, not the vanity URL owned by YouTube. Sure, he still has the community at YouTube, but since he’s telling everybody HE is JoeRogan.live, then he controls much more of the brand messaging. **Will .blog change the world?** No. But it is another opportunity to acquire a premium piece of the Internet for your personal brand, instead of saying follow me at “Twitter dot com slash Ryan underscore A underscore Bell”. — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [Why You Need The Perfect Domain Name](https://namecorp.com/why-you-need-the-perfect-domain-name/) **Published:** February 1, 2016 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Why you need the perfect domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-why-you-need-the-perfect-domain.jpg "Why you need the perfect domain name → NameCorp") *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) Building a brand is something every entrepreneur dreams of. Whether it’s the next unicorn, a fashion empire or the local go-to ice cream parlor, your brand name is representative of so much more than your financial statements. It represents your culture, how people connect with you, how customers refer to you, how employees explain what you do and more. The right domain name is a critical part of your brand. It is also one element that many CMO’s and founders fail to recognize the importance of until its too late (and much more expensive). However, there comes a time when every solid brand will want to upgrade. From Uber to Instagram, Twitter to Anker. Almost every brand matures, and with that maturity comes the need to acquire a better domain name. Paul Graham, one of Silicon Valley’s most notable Venture Capitalists and co-founder of Y Combinator, [published an article](http://paulgraham.com/name.html) in August, 2015 noting that obtaining the best .com domain name was less about getting users and more about signifying strength. Paul wrote, **“The problem with not having the .com of your name is that it signals weakness”**. He also noted an extremely important point *“Sometimes founders know it’s a problem that they don’t have the .com of their name, but delusion strikes a step later in the belief that they’ll be able to buy it despite having no evidence it’s for sale. Don’t believe a domain is for sale unless the owner has already told you an asking price.”* All one has to do is look at [Nissan.com](http://nissan.com/) to understand the headaches associated with someone else owning a name resembling your brand. Over ten years later, and multiple lawsuits later, Nissan (the car manufacturer) is no closer to obtaining the domain owned by Uzi Nissan (yes, Nissan is a last name), and rightfully so. Why should the domain name go to someone just because they are bigger and more well-known? After all, Nissan is his family heritage and the name of his company. ## **Brand Stories.** ——————————————– **![Uber Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%27187%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%20187%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%27187%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Uber Logo → NameCorp")Company: Uber** **Founded: March 2009** **Valuation: $62 billion +** **Original Domain: UberCab.com** **Preferred Domain Name: Uber.com** UberCab, which was founded in 2009 by Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick, first launched services in San Francisco in 2010, using the eponymous URL www.ubercab.com until it was forced by San Francisco and California regulators to drop the “cab” from its name. Uber has continued to grow in the past five years, expanding in markets and size. The company that was valued at $60 million in February 2011 now has a valuation of more than $62 billion. It has expanded beyond San Francisco to more than 180 cities in the U.S. and 60 countries around the world, and its car service may be just the beginning — Uber is exploring ways to use its delivery platform in other ways. Recent rollouts include UberEATS, a local food delivery service launched in 12 major cities, and the announcement that Uber would help distribute AMBER alerts via its data network. At about the same time that it changed its name from UberCab to plain ol’ Uber, Uber bought uber.com from Universal Music Group. Because the young company was cash-strapped, they offered — and UMG accepted — a 2-percent stake in their company in return for the highly desired domain. They later bought this stake back from UMG for $1 million. So, essentially, they acquired this must-have URL, which is now priceless, for a cool million. Not bad at all. Although Uber may have been originally forced by regulators to change its name from UberCab, it’s undoubtedly a move they would have made at some point anyway. After all, Uber is essentially a technology company, and their continual forays into other services using their delivery platform shows that they know this and are looking at the ways to best monetize it. Uber as a brand is both highly adaptable to a number of scenarios (i.e., UberEATS, UberHEALTH, Uber EVENTS) and very valuable. After all, “uber” means the best of whatever you are, and Uber is striving to be just that for a number of things. And they’ve got a boatload of uber domain names in their portfolio to prove it. Uber cool. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > **UberCab had no chance of ever becoming a verb.** > > They needed the domain to reflect their ever-growing popularity and authority in the marketplace. The word Uber (by itself) did and when your brand becomes a verb you know something is working. Plus Uber is a technology company — they are not just a cab. Imagine if Amazon was called AmazonBooks… ——————————————– **![Twitter Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-twitter.png "Twitter Logo → NameCorp")Company: Twitter** **Founded: 2006** **Valuation: ~ $19 billion** **Original Domain: twttr.com** **Preferred Domain Name: Twitter.com** Twitter was first developed by Jack Dorsey and Noah Glass while they were working at Odeo, a podcasting company, in 2006. Dorsey envisioned the service, which went by “twttr,” as an SMS-based service that people could use to track their friends through status updates. Users would send a text to one main number and that text would then be broadcast out to all of their friends. SMS short codes are five digits, so they tried to get twttr, but Teen People were already using it (well, they were using txttp, which is numerically the same as twttr). A bird enthusiast originally owned the Twitter.com domain, and company co-founders weren’t willing to spend the money to buy the domain name from him until they were confident their platform would catch on. (An early logo features bubble-font lettering in green, making “twttr” look more like “twtta,” which we kind of love.) A lot of joking references have been made to the long-running Wheel of Fortune television game show, at the fact that within just six months, the powers-that-be were willing to purchase the necessary vowels to take control of Twitter.com. It may have seemed like a big deal then — since Odeo had basically foundered and Ev Williams had bought back the stock from investors and taken control of both Odeo and Twitter — but the reported $7500 paid for the Twitter.com domain makes us wonder, from the perspective of a decade’s hindsight, why they even waited at all. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > The Twitter founders got a bargain by getting their preferred domain name early in the game, before even they knew how successful the service would become. ——————————————– **![Anker Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2750%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%2050%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2750%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Anker Logo → NameCorp")Company: Anker** **Founded: 2009** **Valuation : $200 million +++** **Original Domain: ianker.com** **Preferred Domain Name: anker.com** So Yang, a senior engineer at Google, returned to his native China in 2011 to found the Anker brand. Four years later the company is reportedly doing over $100M in sales annually and is consistently one of Amazon’s top sellers. With rumored plans to go public in 2017 its no wonder they upgraded from ianker.com to Anker.com in June, 2015 paying a reported $130,000 USD for the domain name. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > The first look at iAnker poses a question of who they are? Is it I AnKer, are they trying to say I An Ker? This upgrade to eliminate brand confusion were dollars well spent. ——————————————– **![Bitly Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%27100%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%20100%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%27100%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Bitly Logo → NameCorp")Company: Bitly** **Founded: 2008** **Valuation: A Lot.** **Original Domain: Bit.ly** **Preferred Domain Name: Bitly.com** Bitly began in early 2008, with an initial $1.5 million in seed funding from New York City-based VC firm BetaWorks (they also chipped in more money during another round two years later). At the time it was one of a handful of URL shortening companies, including TinyUrl.com, and it has since emerged as the dominant player in the field. Bitly never seemed to have a problem getting users to use a domain with an uncommon .ly extension, but the company began redirecting bit.ly to bitly.com in 2011. Libya, which owns and controls the .ly extension, closed down one or two other domains, accusing them of being anti-Muslim. However, some experts believe that Libya was only able to do this because those sites let their domains expire, though it can enforce the requirement on country codes that users must have a local presence. Either way, the bit.ly domain has been extended through May 2022. Bitly is not the only URL link shortener out there and with the acquisition of Bitly.com they now have a top level domain to compliment the brand. Think Google’s Goo.gl, Twitter’s t.co, YouTube’s youtu.be, etc. The brand names stand alone as domain names while shorteners live on in other extensions (t.co, goo.gl). > **TAKEAWAY:** > > By shifting to Bitly.com instead of domain hack bit.ly, the company now comes across as more than just a one-trick pony and shows the authority that tech companies need. > > It also reduces the risk of operating under a domain name that is is regulated by the Libyan government. This risk alone made it worth upgrading due to the unpredicitability of how some countries regulate country code extensions. > > Imagine being a company founder and [waking up to this article](http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/21/technology/bitly_libya_service/) referencing an extension your company is formed around. ——————————————– **![Square Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2770%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%2070%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2770%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Square Logo → NameCorp")Company: Square** **Founded: 2009** **Valuation: ~ $3 billion** **Original Domain: squareup.com** **Preferred Domain Name: square.com** When Jack Dorsey (Twitter’s co-founder) and his friend Jim McKelvey originally thought up the idea of Square, which would allow merchants to accept credit card payments via smartphones, the story is that they went to the dictionary and came across the word “square.” Connotations of the word that fit their concept included the expressions “fair and square” and “square up,” which means to settle a deal (with money, one hopes, not with fists). It didn’t hurt that using Square as the company’s name also gave them a design for their hardware, either. Not unexpectedly, square.com was not available when the company launched, so Square took instead the domain squareup.com, which was a good second-choice pick. More recently, Square bought the square.com domain for a reported millions of dollars. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > The company is consistently referred to as Square in media everywhere. There was no logical argument NOT to acquire square.com. Our guess is thousands of people email someone @square.com every month thinking they were reaching squareup.com. This email vulnerability alone (especially for a payments processing company) is enough to warrant paying top dollar for the preferred domain. ——————————————– **![Dropbox Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2770%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%2070%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2770%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Dropbox Logo → NameCorp")Company: DropBox** **Founded: June 2007** **Valuation: $10 billion+** **Original Domain: getdropbox.com** **Preferred Domain Name: dropbox.com** DropBox launched services in 2008, using the getdropbox.com domain. The company began as an online data storage system back before the idea of “the Cloud” was as ubiquitous as it is today. In 2009, with users and traffic growing daily, DropBox filed court papers against what it deemed a squatter on the dropbox.com domain, which had been a parked site until it began hosting links to DropBox competitors. They cited the fact that traffic to dropbox.com was growing and they were losing an immeasurable number of potential customers who were visiting the site to find DropBox and not necessarily knowing to go to getdropbox.com. Although financials are unclear, by October 2009 — [as TechCrunch reports](http://techcrunch.com/2009/10/13/dropbox-acquires-the-domain-everyone-thought-it-had-dropbox-com/) — DropBox was finally using “the domain everyone thought it \[already\] had.” **Let’s remember a key point here. Secondary words like GET, INC, LLC, CORP, PLAY, etc. are not your brand, nor will people (including employees) remember them. What people remember, and what the media often refers to, is the primary word of your company name. We live in a short world. Your domain needs to be short.** > **TAKEAWAY:** > > This story is a perfect example of the difference between a good-enough domain and the perfect domain. Getdropbox.com was a good choice of URL for a startup when DropBox found that its first choice was unavailable and it needed to roll out its product and business. However, once its product became successful and word started spreading, potential customers assumed they would find the recommended site at the product’s URL. The need to acquire the preferred domain (dropbox.com) became almost mandatory. ——————————————– **![Facebook Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2755%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%2055%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2755%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Facebook Logo → NameCorp")Company: Facebook** **Founded: 2004** **Valuation: $250 billion (mid-2015)** **Original Domain: thefacebook.com** **Preferred Domain Name: Facebook.com** When Mark Zuckerberg first launched “The facebook” while still an undergrad at Harvard, he was said to have named the social platform after the papers that were distributed to freshmen to tell them more about other students and staff. The platform rapidly expanded outside of Harvard to other Boston-based colleges and then colleges and universities nationwide. In August 2005, Zuckerberg spent $200,000 to purchase facebook.com and dropped “the” from the company name and its URL. While that was no small amount for a year-old company, a decade later Facebook easily shelled out $8.5 million for FB.com, which tells a lot. Facebook wasn’t a new concept at the time — MySpace had launched a year earlier, based on Friendster’s original concept — but Zuckerberg was able to build and grow it into the wildly successful social platform it is today. While he may have been able to name it anything he wanted and still have it turn into the 800-pound gorilla in the industry, the history of branding shows that one-word names seem to find the most success. And when your name becomes synonymous with the activity your product actually does (i.e., Hoover), you know you’ve caused a societal shift. Zuckerberg has always been a visionary, and streamlining both the company name and its domain name in the early years undoubtedly helped Facebook on its meteoric ride. Plus, it appears to have helped save the company the millions of dollars it would have needed later on to get its coveted domain name. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > Anytime a company drops THE from a domain name, it becomes more much authoritative. You never want to be known as THE \_\_\_\_ company. > > Imagine our world if brands used THE in domain names. THEcocacola.com, THEFedex.com, THEtwitter.com .. Oh please, shoot me now. ——————————————– **![Instagram Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2760%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%2060%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2760%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Instagram Logo → NameCorp")Company: Instagram** **Founded: March 2010** **Valuation: Billions.** **Original Domain: instagr.am** **Preferred Domain Name: Instagram.com** Instagram was launched in October 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger as a mobile photo and video-sharing social platform. In a little more than a year, it had 10 million users. Facebook acquired the app in 2012 and it continues to grow to this day, especially among the younger crowd, who have grown up with smartphones and image sharing, and prefer the social network to Facebook. Instagram didn’t just come out of nowhere. Systrom had actually developed, and gotten funding for, a prototype of an app called “Burbn,” which was a location-based check-in app similar to Foursquare. However, after receiving $500,000 in investments and hiring Krieger as the engineer, they looked at Burbn and decided it was too cluttered and needed to be stripped down. Because the photo component was the most popular one with beta users, they kept that feature — along with comments and “like” capabilities — and started again. They named the new app “Instagram,” an amalgam of “instant” and “telegram” that also sounded “camera-y,” in the words of Systrom. Nobody, not even the two founders, could imagine how rapidly their app would be downloaded from the moment it appeared in the Apple App store. Less than four months after launch, Instagram secured $7 million in a round of funding, putting its valuation at $20 million. At the time, [Bloomberg Business noted](http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/magazine/content/11_07/b4215043298221.htm) that the company didn’t even have “real company” accoutrements, such as its own permanent Web address. It was using instagr.am. Systrom made the decision to pay $100,000 to the owner of the Instagram domain name in January 2011. In 2014, however, a relative of the seller denied that the seller had had the authorization to sell the domain, and wanted the domain name back. Facebook won the 2014 UDRP case, which also included 21 other similar domains that were a typo or two away from the Instagram.com URL. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > Domain hacks look cool but should always be secondary URL’s. When instagr.am launched practically everybody called it Instagram –- they didn’t pronounce it instgr.am (can you even pronounce that?). Always try to acquire the domain your employees and customers will pronounce by default. ——————————————– **![Foursquare Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2742%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%2042%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%2742%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Foursquare Logo → NameCorp")Company: Foursquare** **Founded: 2009** **Valuation: $250 million+** **Original Domain: playfoursquare.com** **Preferred Domain Name: foursquare.com** After Dennis Crowley sold Dodgeball to Google in 2005 and then left the company in 2007, he went on to create Foursquare — essentially the next-generation of Dodgeball’s location-based social network — in 2009. While you wouldn’t be the first to wonder whether Crowley loves playground games, he has stated in the past that he always wanted to use the name “Foursquare,” but settled first on Dodgeball when the foursquare.com domain wasn’t available. When he started all over again, he had no such qualms and just went with playfoursquare.com to get the new company going. And it did start out as a mobile gaming app tied into the location-based services, so that “play” in the URL made sense. After Foursquare’s first round of funding, the acquisition of foursquare.com was a top priority. In fact, in mid-2014, Foursquare spun its gamification component into a separate app called “Swarm,” (the domain is for sale) and became even less about gaming and more about personalized local search. While Foursquare users don’t pay for the service, the company has worked to leverage its knowledge of locations and user visits for revenue-making purposes. Many products and platforms use the Foursquare API — including Twitter, which uses it to geo-tag tweets — and the company’s deep data is anything but child’s play. > **TAKEAWAY:** > > The removal of “play” in their domain makes them sound a little more grown up and, more importantly, shows that their Foursquare service means serious business (regardless of the fact that they briefly, and unintentionally, let the domain name expire in March 2010). ——————————————– ## What does this show? Simple. It shows there is a proven method for choosing the right domain name. We live in a world where consumers (and employees) embrace the natural, short versions of domain names. All of these companies (and thousands more) have invested in a better domain name for reasons that make sense across the board including economics, brand recognition, email security and more. If you haven’t considered upgrading your domain name then maybe you should. **You never want to bet against human nature.** — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — *– Follow Alan Dunn* [*on Twitter*](https://twitter.com/alangdunn) **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ### [China and Domain Names. It's all about Data Now.](https://namecorp.com/china-and-domain-names-its-all-about-data-now/) **Published:** November 18, 2015 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![China Domain Name Market](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-chinese-domains-data.jpg "China Domain Name Market → NameCorp") Data. I love data. And today, investing in domains is all about data. As Shane Cultra[ said a few weeks ago](http://domainshane.com/domainshanes-big-list-domain-auction-picks-wednesday-october-28th-2015/), “If you’re not in Chinese domains right now you’re out of the wholesale market.” Not 100% accurate, more like 110%. Everybody has seen this type of scenario before. A product gets hot, buyers rush in, everybody’s making money and then a bubble pops. I am going to go on record and say my opinion is there will be a bubble, but not any time soon. And when that first bubble pops, it will simply be a slight correction to a foundation not even formed yet. What is happening right now is the most important thing to ever happen in the domaining world. ## **Traditional Domaining** Up until China started investing heavily in domains, choosing assets to invest in was part art, part science and part gut. Over the years, I have seen so many different opinions on domain name values for brandable and keyword domains. While this data played some role, the value typically ends up based more on a gut check than anything else. Comparable sales data of brandable and keyword domains can only do so well because metrics used from one sale to another are rarely strong enough to warrant broad extrapolation to similar domains. Sellers often use data like the Google Adwords Keyword Planner to identify the number of searches each month for a particular keyword or phrase. However, if there is no direct navigation traffic (people typing in the domain name), then the owner must develop a website and get on page one of Google to take advantage of that traffic. Otherwise, it really means nothing. Secondly, my guess is that over 50% of all keyword and brandable domain sales would never had a second buyer anytime soon. It’s one of the main reasons why looking at *DNJournal* every week is such an addictive read. You never know what’s going to sell. Furthermore, most sales are from inbound leads, which is not the result of 12 people fighting for a domain in auction. It’s typically the result of one person with an emotional attachment to that name. This is a core issue behind the problems in extrapolating sales data for broader valuation analysis. Numerous other factors exist that make the challenge of quantifying domain name values using an algorithm nearly impossible. Luc and Essa from Estibot are brilliant people. Many of the world’s top technology companies would love to have even a clone of either one who is half as good. Yet, even with all the resources they have, automated domain name values for brandable and keyword domains are still hit and miss when compared to the accuracy of appraisal systems for traditional industries. Take real estate, for example. Ten appraisers could assess the same house and likely come in within 15% of each other. Take 10 automated systems in this industry or even ask 10 true professionals in this industry and you’ll likely see variances of 50-75% – resulting in a valuation that ultimately has more to do with your gut than with data. ## **Enter China – The New Normal** Did I mention that I love data? Domain name investing for the China market is now based on data. Four-letter (4L), five-letter (5L), three-number (3N) domains … Whatever the data set is, one can break this set down and find floor prices for a wealth of patterns. Double letters, beginning and ending 8s, double repeating, etc. And these patterns mean something, since underneath it all we have an extremely large amount of buyers who satisfy the demand. This is not going away, in my opinion. If two-number domains dropped in value tomorrow and China wanted out, then only a small percentage of value would fall before Western bidders all bought back in. Same with four numbers, four letters and even longer strings. The underlying difference in why this data is so much more important (and relevant) today for Chinese domains is that brandable and keyword domains do not have the same liquidity factor nor the same amount of people lining up to pay $25,000 for a domain. The wholesale market can be 75-90% cheaper than end-user sales. In China, this wholesale demand is the market. Almost none of these domain names will ever get used. They are being treated strictly as commodities, and we are still in the first stage of this investment: Building a foundation. No popular CHIP (acronym for Chinese Premium) domain name seems like it is going to fall off the charts. Why? Because we are likely not anywhere near the top of the mountain yet. People are acquiring portfolios, registering domains and positioning themselves. And there is a lot of that still to do. There is also a beautiful difference between Chinese and Western culture. China is a culture where people are taught about saving and building wealth from Day One. North America, on the other hand, is a consumer-based society where we spend, spend and spend. There is an entirely different mindset for building wealth in China and this is something, together with the portable liquidity of these assets, which I truly believe is core to the growth of domain investing as a long term asset class in China. ## **The Big Picture** Oh, the big picture. I don’t think that reported sales are showing enough of the big picture. Why? **Undervalued Inventory** There is so much inventory being purchased under value at the moment: from buy it now, closed auctions and private sellers. Many owners are not aware or simply have no idea how to price domains right now and – rightfully so – many of us are still trying to understand the China market. **Corporate Life** I spoke to one of the largest domain portfolio owners yesterday and they said: “We are just getting into this market now. Not sure how we really missed it.” Think about it – How many other corporate and private owners who list names on marketplaces follow the daily domaining topics as most of us do? A small fraction, is my guess. Domaining is still only a full-time job for a relatively small group of people and many of the employees who run domain portfolio sales are not domainers. They simply have goals to meet and, if all is well, then hey, all is well. **Poor Inventory Search** Many auction houses are doing extremely poor jobs of showcasing inventory. Sedo, for example, just added a numeric-only search function in early November. SnapNames still doesn’t have one. **Blocking Buyers** Many auctions are closed, so those buying need to understand where to place backorders, etc. There are visible differences where you buy domains resulting in arbitrage (buy on Snap, sell on NameJet, for example), and many more undermarket sales happening. The good ol’ days of being in private auctions may very well come to an end soon. In fact, except for personal gain, I really don’t see any reason to have private auctions anyway. As long as bidders are verified, **it doesn’t make any sense** from a business perspective to limit the last three days of bidding to a closed group of people. People will follow the gold and that gold is inventory, doesn’t matter if auctions or private or public. **New Players Innovating** NameJet is likely the most important player in the West right now. Not only do they provide an API feed for their inventory, but they’ve also been quick to add a numeric search function, have quality standards for sellers, an exclusive lock on Network Solutions expired inventory, longest payment terms and holding more and more public auctions. DropCatch and Pheenix are also opening up public auctions once a domain name is caught. And registrars like NameBright are advancing bulk tools every day for owners – seriously, [try their bulk search](https://namebright.com/BulkSearch) of 5,000 domains at once. You will never go back. Many companies who used to run the drop markets in this industry are being phased out by people who realize the potential in China, listen to buyers and sellers, and have the nimble resources to adapt. This innovation is resulting in greater tools, more opportunities and a more efficient marketplace. All of this would never happen at this pace without the demand from China. So, going back to Shane’s quote: “If you’re not in Chinese domains right now you’re out of the wholesale market.” Yep. That sounds about right. --- NameCorp™ is a boutique digital agency with an insane appetite for naming and more than 20 years of experience. **[Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/)** to learn more about finding a better domain name. **Categories:** China, Featured --- ### [Billions Registered](https://namecorp.com/billions-registered/) **Published:** January 8, 2016 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-billions-registered.png "Billions Registered → NameCorp") ![Wired Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-wired-300x95.png "Wired Logo → NameCorp")*Over 20 years later, this article remains to be the one of the most important pieces of history for the domain name industry. It shows early brand perspective, early trademark concerns, how only a few people (2.5 to be exact) were responsible for issuing domain names and more. If only we had a time machine.* *Originally published in Wired Magazine on October 1st, 1994. Used with permission.* —————- # Billions Registered *by Joshua Quittner* Right now, there are no rules to keep you from owning a bitchin’ corporate name as your own Internet address. I’m waiting for a call back from McDonald’s, the hamburger people. They’re trying to find me someone – anyone – within corporate headquarters who knows what the Internet is and can tell me why there are no Golden Arches on the information highway. It’s true: there is no mcdonalds.com on the Internet. No burgerking.com either. Yet. “Are you finding that the Internet is a big thing?” asked Jane Hulbert, a helpful McDonald’s media-relations person, with whom I spoke a short while ago. Yes, I told her. In some quarters, the Internet is a very big thing. I explained a little bit about what the Big Thing is, and how it works, and about the Net Name Gold Rush that’s going on. I told her how important domain names are on the Internet (“Kind of like a phone number. It’s where you get your e-mail. It’s part of your address.”), and I explained that savvy business folks are racing out and registering any domain name they can think of: their own company names, obviously, and generic names like drugs.com and sex.com, and silly names that might have some kind of speculative value one day, like roadkill.com. “Some companies,” I told Jane Hulbert, “are even registering the names of their competitors.” “You’re kidding,” she said. I am not, I told her, recounting the story of The Princeton Review, the Manhattan-based company that sells SAT prep courses, and how it registered the name of its arch-rival, kaplan.com. Now the lawyers are working it out in court. Very ugly. (We’ll get to that later.) “I could register McDonald’s right now,” I said, pointing out that the name is still unclaimed. “You could?” she asked, then quickly answered my silence: “You could.” “So could Burger King,” I said, and Jane Hulbert rang off, looking for some MIS person with the answers. How much do you think mcdonalds.com is worth? What could you sell mtv.com for? Is there gold in them thar domains, as a lot of people seem to think, or is it just fool’s gold? No one knows the answers to these questions, though they are being asked, very pointedly, in federal court, as well as in the boardrooms of a number of the nation’s biggest companies. In the meantime, a frenzy of domain-name registration is going on at the InterNIC, or Internet Network Information Center, the agency that assigns domain names and rules on requests. It’s easy to find an unused domain name, and so far, there are no rules that would prohibit you from owning a bitchin’ corporate name, trademarked or not. The InterNIC staff has neither the time nor the inclination to scrutinize your application. Not too long ago, I spoke to Scott Williamson, the person who supervises InterNIC registration, to find out what criteria the InterNIC uses to deny registration requests. There are situations that raise two red flags, according to Williamson: “If the name’s already taken. Or if we catch an ‘obvious one.'” An “obvious one,” he explained, is a blatant attempt to register a name to which you’re not entitled. For in-stance, let’s say Sprint Communications wanted to register MCI, a competitor in the long-distance telephone biz. That would be an “obvious one” that even the beleaguered staff of the InterNIC would pick up. But wait a second! In the spring of this year, Sprint *did* register the call letters MCI, albeit briefly. For a while Sprint owned mci.com. Why did Sprint want to register its rival’s name as a domain name? Sprint won’t say, exactly: “For the record, Sprint won’t discuss its plans for the domain name,” said Evette Fulton, a spokesperson, who added, for anyone too dumb to read Sprint’s lips, “We’re in an extremely competitive business.” As soon as the InterNIC got wind of it a week or so later, mci.com was re-registered to MCI. How did such an obvious one get by InterNIC? “It was a fluke,” Williamson said, noting that three requests for the domain name, mci, came in almost simultaneously. (One request was from MCI itself, one was from Sprint, and one was from another company whose initials were MCI.) “All three came in, and the guy in registration registered the wrong one.” *The guy* in registration? One person is responsible for assigning domain names on the Internet? Actually, “We have 2.5 people doing it,” Williamson said, meaning that the half person is really a full person doing it part-time. Or something. Regardless, 2.5 humans is not enough people, or parts of people, to do the job. (Would one person be assigning quit-claims to a gold rush?) Williamson said that a year ago, his agency received 300 requests a month for domain names; now, more than 1,300 requests stream in each month. Clearly, the InterNIC can’t research every one of those names for trademark violations. “If we had to research every request for a domain name right now, I’d need a staff of 20 people,” Williamson said. So the policy is simple: “Trademark problems are the responsibility of the requester.” Which means, I asked, that I could register mcdonalds.com? “There is nothing that says I can stop you from doing that,” he said. “We really need some policy.” “The problem with the Internet is, who’s in charge?” he added wryly. “When we figure that out, there will be a meeting.” But even if the InterNIC figures out some mechanism to more effectively weed out bad-faith registrations, it can’t go around protecting trademarks. That would be too time consuming and would be beyond the scope of its responsibilities. The situation is analogous to incorporating a company to do business in a particular state, explained Bruce Keller, one of the country’s top trademark attorneys, at the white-shoe Manhattan law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton. While I was waiting for McDonald’s Hulbert to call me back, I spoke with Keller on the telephone. Keller, who is counsel to the International Trademark Association, said that “when you incorporate a company in a state, the state doesn’t bother to see if there are other conflicts with trademarks that may be registered in other states — it just checks with the secretary of state to see if the same name has been registered.” This is the same function, in effect, that the InterNIC performs. If a name hasn’t been registered, you can take it, he added, but beware: “That in no way entitles you to use the name if in fact there is a conflict with a federally registered trademark.” It’s no different in cyberspace. Keller’s advice to anyone registering a domain name is to do a careful trademark search, just as you would before incorporating a business. “In my view, it’s trademark law pure and simple.” Trademark law, he explained, offers two general kinds of protection. In the first in-stance, protection from infringement, when a customer associates a certain name with a certain product or services, the law prevents others from using that name and creating confusion. You see the name, “McDonald’s,” and what do you think of? (Quarter Pounder with cheese, medium fries, and medium Coke is what I think of; you can name your own poison.) The question is, Would most people expect to find some connection to fast-food hamburgers in cyberspace when they finger mcdonalds.com? Keller says yes. Trademark protection has to extend from the physical world to the virtual world. The second kind of protection seeks to prevent trademark “dilution.” “Trademarks are valuable corporate assets. You can put a price tag on them,” Keller said. “Coca-cola, for instance, has a multibillion-dollar value.” If someone else attempted to use that name — as a joke, for instance, or to be cute — the value of the trademark would start to dilute. “This protection comes into play when someone takes the word ‘McDonald’s’ and sticks it on a mailbox” – as in a domain name. “McDonald’s is among the most aggressive companies in stopping use of its name. It goes after everybody, whether it’s a dentist calling himself ‘McDental,’ or a motel calling itself ‘McSleep.’ That, conceivably, might even bar you from using a domain name such as bigmac.com. Trademark infringement cases are usually settled through a process I’ve come to think of as Big Footing. The big company with the trademark Big Foots the little one, forcing it to give up the name. Usually, this is achieved with a Big Foot letter from the big company’s lawyer, threatening legal action. McDonald’s does it. So does *Wired*. Last year, WIRE, a computer network encouraging women to get on the Net, registered the domain name wire.com. This magazine’s lawyers sent them a Big Foot letter: “That sounds too much like *Wired’s* online service, wired.com. Give up the name, or else.” WIRE became Women’s Wire, and retreated to the domain name wwire.com. Most trademark infringement cases never get beyond the Big Foot letter. “This is going to cost you a lot of money if you want to fight it — that’s the way the bulk of cases are settled. Who wants to waste time fighting it?” said Keller in an obviously rhetorical question. Keller’s firm is local counsel in the Kaplan versus The Princeton Review case,a good example of someone who wants to fight it. And here’s another: Anyone ever hear of Adam Curry? In June 1993, Curry, then an MTV video jockey, registered the domain name mtv.com with the InterNIC, “partly because it was a cool address to have, and it was available,” he wrote, in an electronic message that was hard to miss if you were on the Net this past May. Curry hung his own computer on the Internet and put up a gopher site, which offered, among other things, a daily entertainment “Cybersleaze Report” and “Adam Curry’s Brain Waves,” providing Curry’s own spin on the rock and roll scene. He paid for the site himself and considered it kind of a hobby. He said he told his bosses at MTV what he was doing and encountered no resistance. Then, in April, Curry resigned from MTV. He was promptly sued for copyright infringement stemming from his ownership and use of mtv.com. MTV’s lawyer asserted that the case would be fought on traditional trademark infringement grounds. But Curry, who has agreed in the meantime not to use the domain name mtv.com “in a confusing manner,” said mtv.com is his property, and he’s not relinquishing it. Until the court battle is resolved, Curry is maintaining a site called metaverse.com. In other words, while he might not use the name, he intends to keep it and not transfer title to MTV. “I will fight this all the way,” he said, adding that the case would be the “*Roe v. Wade* of the Internet and the information superhighway. There is just no way that MTV has the right to my address. It’s my address. Mine.” Curry said his site has become exceptionally popular on the Net and has received millions of visits. Indeed, his lawyer, Joe Donley of the Manhattan firm of Shereff, Friedman, Hoffman and Goodman, said that Internet users have come to associate mtv.com with Curry alone. “We believe that if they were allowed to take Adam’s mtv.com address and use it for themselves — now that Adam has shown what a useful service this could be — there’s a very real danger of reverse confusion,” Donley said. “Millions of Internet users have come to associate mtv.com, not with MTV, but with Adam. If they go out and take the domain name, it will leave those millions of people with the potential to be confused.” One way around this problem would be to compensate Curry for his efforts, of course. Would Curry be willing to sell mtv.com to MTV? I asked. “There are things going on that I cannot comment upon,” said Donley. And he didn’t. John Katzman is another guy whose company registered a domain name that is prized by someone else: kaplan.com. Katzman is president of The Princeton Review, a company that provides courses and workbooks to prepare students for standardized tests such as the Scholastic Achievement Test. The Princeton Review’s main antagonist is Kaplan Educational Centers, which goes a long way to explaining why Katzman’s company might see a strategic advantage in registering and owning kaplan.com. Katzman said his company decided to launch a site on the World Wide Web “that explains to people the difference between Princeton Review and Kaplan…. We decided to call it kaplan.com.” Doesn’t that domain name make it sound as if the site is maintained by Stanley Kaplan? “Our position is that the name of the site is descriptive of what’s on the site, which is an analysis of the different courses,” he said. Kaplan’s former president, Greg Rorke, doesn’t see it that way at all. Around January, Rorke’s people met with representatives of The Internet Company Inc., which helps businesses get on the Net, and looked into the possibility of registering a kaplan.com domain name. “We figured there was no hurry,” Rorke said, adding that it came as quite a shock when someone in Kaplan’s technology department found out a few months later that Princeton Review had registered kaplan.com. Kaplan fired off a Big Foot letter, and initiated legal action that went to US District Court in Manhattan, the same courthouse-arena, by the way, where the Curry-MTV bout is being fought. Katzman said he intends to hold onto kaplan.com, unless the court tells him otherwise. In the meantime, he said, Kaplan is more than welcome to find its own, unused name and, “if they want to link it from our server both ways, we’ll do it.” While awaiting McDonald’s call back (I called Jane Hulbert and was informed she was on the other line), I started playing the Whois Game. The Whois Game tells you who, if anybody, owns what domain name. For instance, I found out that there is a god, at least on the Internet. (god.com is registered to Guaranteed Online Delivery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.) There’s also plenty of sex and rock, if not roll. (Sex.com is registered to Online Classifieds Inc. of San Francisco, and rock.net is registered by Rocknet of Cupertino, California.) From most Unix Internet shell accounts, you can easily play the Whois Game. From your shell prompt just type, “whois “. If you type $whois nbc.com, within a few seconds the InterNIC registry will be fingered and you’ll see: National Broadcasting Company Inc. (NBC-DOM) 30 Rockefeller Plaza New York, NY 10112 plus some other administrative stuff that meant little to me but would probably help a system administrator, lawyer, or someone who spends far too much time in front of the computer and ought to get out more. While NBC also has an Internet e-mail address for *Nightly News*, the other three networks haven’t even registered their domain names. But other people have: as I write this, abc.com is registered to ABC Design in Seattle; cbs.com is registered to a consultant in Golden Valley, Minnesota; and fox.com is registered to something called the Flexible Online eXchange, in California. (I couldn’t believe that Fox hadn’t figured it out. I mean, the Internet was mentioned on an episode ofThe Simpsons, and Rupert Murdoch was smart enough to grab Delphi, the national Internet gateway service. Fox does, in fact, maintain an address at delphi.com, through which viewers can offer feedback.) The Whois Game is an interesting gauge of who is paying attention to the Big Thing known as the Internet. In May, I asked a researcher at *Wired* to check the list of Fortune 500 company names against registered domain names and found that only one-third of the Fortune 500 had registered an obvious version of their names. More telling was that 14 percent of America’s largest corporations had their net.name snapped up by someone else. That left more than 50 percent of the Fortune 500 names still available to first-comers. The top 15 companies all had their act together and had registered their domain names. But some other very big companies did not. Those include: Nabisco, Sara Lee, Anheuser-Busch, Kellogg, and Coca-Cola, or even Coke. Ooops. That was just nabbed as I write by one Rajeev Arora in Campbell, California. Way to go, Rajeev! The Pepsi generation, presumably, is more wired, since pepsi.com is registered. A John Sculley legacy? Of course, some companies were on the Net with nonobvious, unhip addresses at places like America Online and Prodigy. What will these companies do when they attempt to move onto the Net and reclaim their names? Draft Big Foot letters and lawsuits, I guess. Which made me think of Jane Hulbert, at McDonald’s. I called her again and we finally connected. She was very apologetic. “I don’t have anything for you, and I probably won’t have anything for you,” she confessed. “I’ve left a lot of voicemail for people, but no one seems to know anything about it.” Jane Hulbert said she’d keep checking around, but she didn’t seem hopeful that we could get to the bottom of this domain-name thing. “You’ll probably just have to do your story without it,” she said. “It probably won’t be the end of the world.” She’s probably right. I wondered how long it would take 2.5 InterNIC people to process my application for mcdonalds.com. Not very, it turns out. About two weeks later, after filling out the Net-available domain-name application form, I got e-mail notification from domreg@internic.net: “Registration for the domain MCDONALDS .COM has been completed. The InterNIC database has been updated…. The new information will not be visible via WHOIS until the next business day….” My fingers trembled, as if ripping open a Big Mac. I checked: $whois mcdonalds.com Domain Name: MCDONALDS.COM Administrative Contact: Quittner, Josh quit@newsday.com Oh, that’s McCool. I feel like McPrometheus. I have stolen McFire. I need to get comment from someone. But who? For weeks now, I’ve been trying to get McJane on the phone, to let her know that I have their name registered if they need it. One week, she’s out on vacation. For two others, she’s on another line. Is she avoiding me? “Can anyone else help you?” someone asks. Yes, I tell her, explaining all over again about the Internet, domain names, the Gold Rush, mcdonalds.com. Still, no one returns my calls. Hamburgers are what makes this country great. Burgers are the backbone of our economy. It’s not so far-fetched to think that McDonald’s would be out there on the Net; ISDN, after all, was first used commercially by McDonald’s. Also, McD’s was expected to perform an online first in August on America Online with a 30-second commercial. I’ve even heard that the Golden Arches is experimenting with delivery service. What better way to order your Big Mac than over the Net? Over 25 million users served…. This callous indifference to the Internet worries me. Will the Japanese catch on? Isn’t there someone in burgerland who cares? *Hold the pickle, hold the lettuce. You can have it your way, at Burger King!* As I said, there’s no burgerking.com either. Still, Burger King seems reasonably wired. The person who answers the phone in communications even has a vague idea about what the Internet is. (“Some kind of information thing, like Prodigy?” she asks. “Yes!” I tell her. “OK, but what does that have to do with Burger King?” she asks. Exactly.) I’m routed to some guy who promises to look into the matter of domain-name registration. A day later, he leaves me voicemail: “I don’t have a definitive answer on the Infonet registration,” he says. “The closest thing I’ve got for you is *We are considering it*. But no decision has been made.” I’d like to ask him more. Hell, I’d like to see if Burger King is interested in buying mcdonalds.com, taking it off my hands, but his message says he will be out for a week or so. So here’s the deal: Let’s get interactive. What should I do with mcdonalds.com? You tell me. I could auction it off. I could hold on to it as a trophy, a la Curry and mtv.com. I could set up a Mosaic home page, explaining the difference between McDonald’s and Josh “Ronald” Quittner. Got a suggestion? Send it to ronald@mcdonalds.com. —————- *This article was originally published in Wired Magazine on October 1st, 1994. Used with permission. Written by Joshua Quittner.* **Categories:** Featured --- ### [Google Alphabet - A Naming Lesson for Mortals](https://namecorp.com/google-alphabet-a-naming-lesson-for-mortals/) **Published:** August 11, 2015 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Google Alphabet XYZ Domain Name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-google-alphabet-xyz-domain-name.jpg "Google Alphabet XYZ Domain Name → NameCorp") # Google Alphabet – A Naming Lesson for Mortals When your name is Google, it’s only logical to own the alphabet. Yesterday, Google announced the consolidation of its companies under a new corporate brand: Alphabet. In reference to the new name, Co-Founder **[Larry Page said](http://abc.xyz)**, “We liked the name Alphabet because it means a collection of letters that represent language, one of humanity’s most important innovations, and is the core of how we index with Google search! We also like that it means alpha-bet (Alpha is investment return above benchmark).” Within minutes, the wires were flooded with opinions about this naming choice, especially focused on Google’s choice of using the domain name abc.xyz for the new brand. The Washington Post [penned an article](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/08/10/googles-new-parent-company-alphabet-is-sharing-online-real-estate-with-a-fashion-company-in-jakarta-and-a-dude-in-cleveland/?tid=sm_fb) titled “Here’s what happens when you try to find Google’s new parent company, Alphabet, on the Internet”. It describes how Alphabet.com is owned by BMW and the twitter handle @alphabet is owned by one Chris Andrikanich, a self-proclaimed geek in Ohio. Ironically, this brand announcement came the day after Paul Graham, one of the most vocal people in the start-up community, **[wrote an article](http://paulgraham.com/name.html)** stating that, if you have a U.S. start-up called “X” and you don’t own x.com, you should probably change your name. All of this news has made for an interesting couple of days in the naming space. Why would Google use a .xyz extension? Why not build on a .com domain? Many different answers have been floating around but the answer is a lot easier when you look at the buyer. Google is the world’s third most-valuable brand, behind Apple and Samsung. This means Google can brand anything. It doesn’t matter if its .xyz, .123 or .supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. You will learn to type in abc.xyz and you will like it. For Google, it doesn’t matter what the extension is—what matters is what the extension represents and, from our perspective, abc.xyz sounds a lot more Google-esqe than abc.com or alphabet.com. Alphabet is also not the consumer brand, but a non-consumer-facing umbrella company for the Google family of brands, which lessens the importance of having a .com domain (if there is any when your name is Google). Google’s use of abc.xyz is likely the most significant event to date for adoption of the new GTLDs (generic top level domains). Millions of people will visit this site and the .xyz extension will be branded forever as a solid domain name extension. Furthermore, because of Google’s adoption, the automatic trust and credibility will trickle over and make people consider .xyz as a choice in naming. ## **What does this mean for your company?** Using a new GTLD is certainly enticing, but there is so much more to naming than simply choosing what URL to use. For starters, Google can brand anything and, well, you aren’t Google. The key takeaways from this new brand announcement are: **Simple is better.** Forget about three-word names and unpronounceable words. Choose a single or two-word combination if at all possible. **You need a story.** Alphabet will forever be a memorable talking point since it doesn’t just stand for letters but also for “alpha-bet (Alpha is investment return above benchmark)” and “a collection of letters that represent language, one of humanity’s most important innovations” that form the core of Google’s business model. What story does your name tell? **Eliminate confusion.** This starts with owning the best version of your domain name and also making sure you own the exact match in social handles. This doesn’t always mean .com—what it does mean is consistency among the URL and social handles. If The Washington Post is confused, then you can bet your customers will be too. **Remember, you are not Google.** It takes millions (and millions) of dollars to brand globally. The .com extension is already branded and remains the dominant extension for now. However, Francois Carrillo of **[Domaining.com](https://www.domaining.com/)** said it best: “Times are changing, slowly but surely, and resistance is futile.” If your budget allows it, then the cost of acquiring the .com will be worth it to eliminate potential confusion. But it’s not the only option anymore. At the end of the day, if you build something cool, people will come. The Internet is truly like a Field of Dreams, no matter what your domain name extension is. --- NameCorp™ is a boutique digital agency with an insane appetite for naming and more than 20 years of experience. **[Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/)** to learn more about finding a better domain name. **Categories:** Brand Stories, Featured --- ## Pages ### [Home](https://namecorp.com/) **Published:** September 24, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Get The Perfect Domain Name. Over 20 Years and $200M+ in domain name experience. Since 1996. Trusted by Brands Worldwide. [Talk to an Expert](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # Get The Perfect Domain Name. Over 20 Years and $100M+ in domain name experience. Since 1996. Trusted by Brands Worldwide. [Talk to an Expert](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## ## Published On: [![Published on](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-bar-published-on-color-medium.png "image-bar-published-on-color-medium → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/press/) ![We Love Domains](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-we-love-domains-400-orange.png "image-we-love-domains-400-orange → NameCorp") With over 20 years experience the [odds are you know our work](https://namecorp.com/work/). Many domain names we have acquired are used by millions of people around the world every day. If you want to acquire a domain name make sure to contact us. We offer many solutions including private domain name acquisitions, new company naming assistance, transaction due diligence and more. Domain Names – It’s What We Do. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") ![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-computer-what-we-do.png "NameCorp → NameCorp") ## We Love Domains® And we know this industry well. Do you need a domain name acquisition before a funding announcement, want to compare domain name options or locate a private owner? We can help solve these and 1,000 other questions. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## ## Brands We Have Worked With. ![Adabisc logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-adabisc-260x185.png "Adabisc logo → NameCorp") ![Amare Global Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-amare-global-260x185.png "Amare Global Logo → NameCorp") ![Blend Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-blend-260x185.png "Blend Logo → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-deserve-260x185-transparent.png "Deserve.com Logo → NameCorp") ![Discord Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-discord-260x185.png "Discord Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-norwest-venture-partners-260x185.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Happy Chef Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-happy-chef-1-260x185.png "Happy Chef Logo → NameCorp") ![Guaranteed Rate Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-gauranteed-rate-260x185.png "logo gauranteed rate → NameCorp") ![Sound Ventures Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-sound-ventures-260x185-transparent.png "Sound Ventures Logo → NameCorp") ![Forrester Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-forrester-260x185-transparent.png "Forrester Logo → NameCorp") [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## ## Sell a Domain Name Domain names have come a long way since their introduction 30 years ago. Today, there are 1000’s of domain name extensions and millions of dollars in reported sales every week. Talk to us about your premium domain name. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## Why Us? We know domain names, are well connected and have seen almost every scenario. We also provide a comprehensive solution for brands including private domain name acquisitions, WHOIS due diligence, TLD diligence, social media checks and more. ### A 360° PERSPECTIVE Over the last 20 years we have been involved with buying domains, selling domains, website development, trademark guidance, social marketing, native advertising and much more. We have also been owners, sellers, publishers, advertisers, developers and users. All which have been in scale. ### PORTFOLIO ### MANAGEMENT We offer corporate domain name management where the client is always in control of the domain names. Our management has managed domains through almost every existing top registrar, and understands the mechanics of each one. The client will always have access to the domains and will never be charged an additional release or high transfer fee to move from one registrar to another. ### PRIVILEGED ACCESS With more than two decades of experience from award-winning staff you can bet an extensive network of industry contacts is part of the package. NameCorp® clients benefit not only from our experience but also from the collective intelligence of our industry contacts. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy/) **Published:** October 16, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Privacy Policy ***Last updated December 18, 2024*** This Privacy Policy discloses NameCorp LLC.’s practices and policies regarding the gathering and dissemination of personal information (the “Privacy Policy”) through the web site, NameCorp.com (the “Website”). This Privacy Policy should be read in conjunction with our Terms of Use (“Terms of Use”) which you can access by [clicking here](https://namecorp.com/terms), and the Terms of Use shall govern where any inconsistency exists between this Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use. This Privacy Policy does not apply to sites, products, or services that are not owned or operated by us, or to information we may receive from other sources. We may change or update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changed or revised Privacy Policy shall be effective immediately after it is posted on this Web Site. If you do not agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy, you must discontinue using this Website. ### Information gathered by This Website When you visit this Website, we may collect the following types of information: personally identifiable information you knowingly provide, information we collect automatically, and non-personally identifiable information you knowingly provide. We may collect personally identifiable information that you knowingly provide to us. For example, we may ask you to provide personally identifiable contact information (such as name, address, e-mail address and telephone number). In some cases (for example, if you register with us (or sign-in on this Website), we may also ask you to provide other information such as a personal ID, password, and a security question and answer. In addition, as you (and other users) browse this Website, our web servers may automatically collect certain information about such visits (usually through the use of cookies, javascript tags, clear .gif files (also known as “web beacons”), and the analysis of http headers), such as the user’s IP address, the user’s geographic location, the user’s domain name, the user’s browser type, the user’s user agent, how many users visit this Website, which pages the user visits and for how long, the date and time the user accesses this Website, the Internet address of the site from which the user directly linked to this Website and the links on this Website on which the user clicks. In addition, we may collect certain search parameters relating to searches conducted by the user which are not entered by the user. To improve the services we can offer you, we may decide to expand this Web Site’s capabilities for obtaining information about users in the future. We will update this Privacy Policy as our practices change to ensure that you are aware of developments in this area. If we collect such information, we may use it for a number of purposes, including: - **To establish and maintain a commercial relationship with you and to provide you with products and services.** Account information may be retained by us to enable our website to identify you, to allow you to set up and access your account (if applicable) and to change your account information and/or services. This information is used only for these purposes and is only retained in transaction records required for internal management and auditing purposes, unless you are informed otherwise or you provide your consent or we are required to disclose same pursuant to a court order or other legal process. - **To understand your needs and preferences.** We may maintain a record of the services you receive from us (if applicable), and we may ask you for additional information so that we can serve you better. - **To provide you with information you have requested, and to keep you informed with respect to ongoing changes to our website.** Your email address may be used to send you any newsletters and mailings if you have requested us to do so. 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These are unique Internet “addresses” assigned to all Web users by their Internet Service Providers (ISP). Server logs record statistical information, such as visitors’ IP addresses, type of operating systems, time and duration of visit, web pages requested, and identify visitors by categories such as domains and browser types. These statistics are only used on an aggregate basis and will not contain any information that could identify you personally. - **To meet legal, regulatory, security and processing requirements** (such as in response to a court order), and otherwise as permitted or required by law. We may also use this personal information to contact you regarding any such legal, regulatory, security, or processing requirements, and may be required to disclose this information pursuant to our Terms of Use. If we intend to use personal information for purposes not identified to you or as set out above, these other purposes will be described to you at the time of collection or before using the information. We will not use your information or otherwise disclose it for any other purpose without your consent. ### Cookies Users also should be aware that non-personal information and data may be automatically collected through the standard operation of our Internet servers or through the use of “cookies”. Cookies are small text files containing a unique identification number that identifies your browser – but not you – to our servers each time you visit our website. Cookies are not pervasive or invasive programs that enter a user’s system and damage files. They simply tell us which pages of our website are visited and by how many visitors. Cookies cannot, by themselves, disclose the individual identity of any site user, and we never combine information gathered by a cookie with personally identifiable information like your name, telephone number or email address, without your consent. You should be aware that we cannot control the use of cookies or the resulting information by advertisers’ or third parties’ web sites that you may visit as a result of clicking on a link from our Website. If you do not want information collected through the use of cookies, there is a simple procedure in most browsers that allows the user to deny or accept the cookie feature. ### Third Parties’ Access to Information We are not in the business of selling visitor information to others. Our visitor information is not available for sale to any outside entity. We may however, provide advertisers with space on our website. 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We require that our service providers only use your PII in connection with the services they perform for us. - With your service providers: Companies under contract with, or acting on your behalf, who handle data (such as a customer lists) on your behalf. - With our subsidiaries and related companies - In connection with legal proceedings: When we are under a legal obligation to do so, for example to comply with a binding order of a court, or where disclosure is necessary to exercise, establish or defend our legal rights or that of any other third party. In connection with a sale of our business: If a third party acquires some or all of our business or assets, we may disclose your PII in connection with the sale. We may also share technical data that we collect about your browsing habits and your device (such as data relating to our cookies, tracking pixels and similar technologies) with other advertising companies in the digital advertising ecosystem. This enables them and us to better target ads to you. ### External Links Our Website may contain links or references to other web sites to which this Privacy Policy does not apply. These sites are not owned or controlled by us and we not responsible for the collection, use and disclosure of personal information or the privacy practices of other organizations or other web sites to which our site may refer visitors or provide links for. When submitting personal information on such other websites, we encourage you to read the privacy policy of those sites. ### Opt-in and Opt-Out Option We may offer you the opportunity of opting in to receive email communications from us. Upon request, we will allow any user to “opt out” of further email and/or promotional contacts at any time. Also, upon a user’s request, we will use commercially reasonable efforts to functionally delete the user and his or her personal information from our database; however, it may be impossible to delete a user’s entry without some residual information because of backups and records of deletions. You can opt-out of receiving targeted ads served by us: You can opt out of receiving targeted ads served by us or on our behalf by contacting us at the below email address. Please note that, if you delete your cookies or upgrade your browser after having opted out, you will need to opt out again. Further, if you use multiple browsers or devices you will need to execute this opt out on each browser or device. If you opt-out we may collect some data about your online activity for operational purposes (such as fraud prevention) but it won’t be used by us for the purpose of targeting ads to you. You can opt-out of our tracking your online activity for targeted advertising purposes (Do Not Track): We respond to “do not track” or “DNT” signals sent from your browser. You can request that we stop email marketing to you. You can use the unsubscribe link in our marketing emails or contact . In addition, if you are located in the European Economic Area you may also have the right to access, correct or update some of the PII we hold about you. You can also request that we delete your PII. If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at . ### Your Consent Consent to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information may be given in various ways. Consent can be express (e.g., orally, electronically or on a form you may sign describing the intended uses and disclosures of personal information) or implied (e.g., when you provide information necessary for a service you have requested, or in some circumstances where notice has been provided to you about our intentions with respect to your personal information and you have not withdrawn your consent for an identified purpose, such as by using an “opt out” option provided). Consent may be given by your authorized representative (such as a legal guardian or a person having a power of attorney). Generally, by providing us with personal information, we will assume that you consent to our collection, use and disclosure of such information for the purposes identified or described in this privacy policy, if applicable, or as otherwise described at the time of collection. You may withdraw your consent to our collection, use and disclosure of personal information at any time, subject to contractual and legal restrictions and reasonable notice, however, please note that if you withdraw your consent to certain uses of your personal information, we may no longer be able to provide certain of our products or services. We do not collect, use or disclose your personal information other than as described in this Privacy Policy without your consent, unless permitted or required by law. We may be required or permitted under statute or regulation to collect, use or disclose personal information without your consent, for example in response to a court order or subpoena, to comply with local or federal regulations, or to collect a debt owed to us. ### Contacting Us If you have any questions or concerns about this privacy policy, or if you would like to review your personal information, you can contact us by email at or you can write us at the following address: NameCorp LLC 228 Park Avenue South #23329 New York, NY 10003-1502 --- ### [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) **Published:** October 21, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Terms of Use ***Last updated December 18, 2024*** NameCorp LLC (“Provider”) reserves the right to change these terms and conditions at any time, and you agree that each visit you make to NameCorp.com (“Provider’s Web Site”) shall be subject to the current terms and conditions as [published on our website here](https://namecorp.com/terms/). **General Terms of Use** By accessing Provider’s Web Site, you are agreeing to be bound by these Web Site Terms of Use and all applicable laws and regulations, and you agree that you are solely responsible for compliance with any applicable local laws. If you do not agree with any of these terms, **do not use this site.** Any claim relating to Provider’s Web Site shall be governed by the laws of State of Florida, USA. The materials contained in Provider’s Web Site are protected by applicable copyright and trademark laws. **No Endorsement of Third Party Content** Provider’s Web Site may contain links to and/or frames of third party websites or third party content that are not operated or maintained by Provider (“Third Party Sites”). Provider is not responsible for the content of those sites and cannot guarantee that those sites will not change without our knowledge. Product and service information on Third Party Sites are the sole responsibility of each individual vendor or operator of such Third Party Site. The inclusion of such links and frames in Provider’s Web Site does not imply endorsement of such sites or any content, information, material, products or services provided on such sites. You will need to make your own independent judgment regarding your interaction with these linked sites. Provider makes no representations whatsoever concerning; (a) the information, software or other material appearing on, or accessible through, any Third Party Site (including without limitation, any advertisement for products or services on any Third Party Site), (b) the performance or operation of any Third Party Site (including, without limitation, any transactions initiated or conducted through any Third Party Site, any taxes associated therewith and any use by third parties of user credit card information), (c) any products or services advertised or sold on or through any Third Party Site (including, without limitation, the quality, safety and legality of such products or services or the sale thereof), or (d) the sellers of any products or services advertised or sold on or through any Third Party Site. If you decide to access any of the Third Party Sites linked to Provider’s Web Site, you do so entirely at your own risk. If you are accessing a Third Party Site through a link on Provider’s Web Site, you are advised to read the terms of use and privacy policy of such Third Party Site before you use such Third Party Site. **Limited License** Provider hereby grants you a limited license to view on your computer any content made available on Provider’s Web Site for which a fee is not charged, for non-commercial, personal, or educational purposes only. No other use is permitted. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing you may not make any commercial use of such content or copy or host such content on your or any other person’s web site or FTP server. Nothing contained in this limited license shall be deemed as conferring any right in any copyright, trade mark, trade name, or other proprietary right of Provider or any other party who owns or has proprietary rights to the content, information and materials provided on Provider’s Web Site. **Preservation of Intellectual Property Rights** All material on this site, including, but not limited to images, illustrations and multimedia materials, is protected by copyrights which are owned and controlled by Provider or by other parties that have licensed their material to Provider. Material from this Web Site or from any other web site owned, operated, licensed or controlled by Provider may not be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted, or distributed in any way. Modification of the materials or use of the materials for any other purpose is a violation of the copyrights and other proprietary rights held by the respective Providers thereof. The use of any such material on any other web site, ftp server, or network environment is prohibited. The NameCorp trademark and NameCorp logo are trademarks used by Provider under license. **Changes and Improvements** Provider reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to change, modify, add or remove portions of these Terms of Use, at any time. It is your responsibility to check these Terms of Use periodically for changes. Your continued use of the Web Site following the posting of changes will mean that you accept and agree to the changes. As long as you comply with these Terms of Use, Provider grants you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, limited privilege to enter and use the Site. **Privacy Policy** Provider’s Privacy Policy applies to use of this Site, and its terms are made a part of these Terms of Use by this reference. To view Provider’s Privacy Policy, [click here](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy/). Additionally, by using the Web Site, you acknowledge and agree that Internet transmissions are never completely private or secure. **Jurisdictional Issues** Due to the nature of the Internet, it is not possible for Provider to restrict access to its Web Site only to the jurisdiction where Provider is located. Some or all of the product and service advertisements which are provided by third parties on this Web Site may not be eligible for solicitation in your jurisdiction. If you are accessing this Web Site from such a jurisdiction, you should not consider anything on this site as an advertisement or as a solicitation to the public to purchase any product or service from any advertisers that is advertising their good or service on or the Provider’s Web Site. This site is for use only by persons residing in jurisdictions where such products and services may legally advertise. Unless otherwise specified, the materials contained in Provider’s Web Site are presented solely for information purposes. This site is controlled and operated by Provider from its offices in Delray Beach, Florida, USA. Provider makes no representation that any of the materials contained in Provider’s Web Site are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Those who choose to access this Web Site from other locations do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent local laws are applicable. This agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Florida and the parties hereby irrevocably and exclusively attorn to the jurisdiction of the courts of Palm Beach county in the State of Florida. **Miscellaneous** If any of the provisions of these Terms of Use are held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be void or unenforceable, such provisions shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary and replaced with a valid provision that best embodies the intent of these Terms of Use, so that these Terms of Use shall remain in full force and effect. These Terms of Use constitute the entire agreement between you and Provider with regard to your use of the Web Site, and any and all other written or oral agreements or understandings previously existing between you and Provider with respect to such use are hereby superseded and cancelled. These Terms of Use shall not be interpreted or construed to confer any rights or remedies on any third parties. **NameCorp LLC** 228 Park Avenue South #23329 New York, NY 10003-1502 [**help@namecorp.com**](mailto:help@namecorp.com) --- ### [Contact](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **Published:** October 18, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # SPEAK WITH A DOMAIN NAME EXPERT Over 20 Years Experience and $100M+ in Private Transactions. Published On: ![Techcrunch Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp") ![Medium Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Medium Logo → NameCorp") ![Quartz Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Quartz Logo → NameCorp") ![Business Insider Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp") Contact NameCorp® to discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. ## Email ## WORLDWIDE [(212) 709-2000](tel:+12127092000) [## About NAMECORP®](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) [Learn More](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) LinkedIn This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit --- ### [FAQ](https://namecorp.com/faq/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # FAQ # Domain Name Acquisitions A domain name is not in use – How can I acquire it?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [A domain name is not in use – How can I acquire it?](#collapse-1-9262) The comment we most frequently hear is “the domain name is not in use”. What exactly is use? Take for example the domain name LuxuryHotels.com – Marriott owns this domain name and, for years, it didn’t resolve. Would this lack of “use” mean they don’t think the domain is valuable? No. This domain has significant value to a company such as Marriott and maybe it was an internal decision (or simple oversight) not to redirect the domain. Whether or not the domain name resolves to a website often has very little to do with value. Valid forms of use can include: - Defensive Registrations - Email (domains only used for email) - Internal Resources - IP Protection - Name Servers - and more… Thousands (and thousands) of great domains do not resolve. It usually doesn’t make them less valuable to the owner. [Contact us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") to discuss the right strategy for acquiring the domain name you want. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Do we charge a broker fee upfront?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Do we charge a broker fee upfront?](#collapse-1-9214) No. We never charge an upfront fee to explore a domain name acquisition. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How can I acquire an expired domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How can I acquire an expired domain name?](#collapse-1-9251) The domain you want is expiring so it’s natural to think *“Great, I will register the domain name when it expires”.* Sorry, if the domain name of interest is any good you likely have zero chance of getting it alone. The domain name aftermarket is a billion-dollar industry. Hundreds of companies (and individuals) have spent millions and millions of dollars building technology to catch domain names milliseconds after they become available. Some expired domains never even make it to general availability but go directly to auction. The expiring domain name sector is probably the most fascinating and consistently profitable (by measure of ROI) area of domain names in general. The odds of catching a domain name depends on factors such as: - What registrar the domain name is registered? - What technology you are using to “catch” the domain? - What status the domain is in? – expiration is not the only stage - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and learn about more acquiring an expired domain name. We literally catch them all the time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How do I pay for a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How do I pay for a domain name?](#collapse-1-9305) We use trusted third party escrow services for most transactions. These services include licensed escrow services and attorneys. The exact details for payment will depend on the terms of an acquisition and parties involved. For many trusted clients we also offer credit card and cryptocurrency (BTC, BCH or ETH) payment options. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How long does it take to acquire a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How long does it take to acquire a domain name?](#collapse-1-9258) Good question. Every domain name acquisition is different. While many acquisitions take only a few days (from the time terms are agreed), others may take weeks or months. Some domains have even taken years to acquire. Ask Elon Musk – it took him almost 11 years to acquire Tesla.com The most common elements contributing to timing of an acquisition are: - Who owns the domain name. - The number of owners of the domain. - Is the domain listed for sale? - Is the owner using the domain? - Does the owner have email attached to the domain? - Who is representing the owner? - The technical resources of the owner (for transitioning current use) - And much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today to learn more about our private domain name acquisition service. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How much will the domain name cost?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How much will the domain name cost?](#collapse-1-9227) The cost of a domain name is subject to a number of X factors unique to that particular domain name. Automated appraisals, and even comparable sales, are often worthless comparison points. You really need to talk to an expert – The best first step is to contact us. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What information do we need to acquire a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What information do we need to acquire a domain name?](#collapse-1-9221) Almost every domain name acquisition starts with one thing – **The Domain Name**. We can talk in general about domain name budgets, the acquisition process and other elements. However, knowing what domain name you wish to acquire is the most important place to start. All transactions have unique X factors such as: - Who owns the domain name? - Why they own the domain name? - When they acquired the domain name? - How they use the domain name? - What other IP is associated with the domain name? - Is there any sentimental value? - How much did they pay for the domain? - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and get a strategy recommendation for acquisition. We are always [happy to sign a NDA](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/will-we-sign-a-nda/ "Will we sign a NDA?"). *Pro Tip… Tell us any back story. We work for you. The more we know the better.* [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What is a domain name buy service?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What is a domain name buy service?](#collapse-1-9314) A domain name buy service (also called a domain name acquisition service) is where you engage a professional domain name broker to acquire a domain name. Essentially, choosing a domain broker is like hiring a real estate agent to buy a home, an architect to design a home, or a wedding planner to create the perfect third wedding. Good domain name brokers understand the many nuances of acquiring a domain name including: - Best strategies towards a successful acquisition - Contractual needs - Transitional questions - Offer strategies - And much more… If you are starting a new company, launching a new brand or simply want to acquire a domain name for another reason, then consider adding a domain name professional to your team. Very few domain brokers have long, successful track records. We do. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What is the minimum budget required?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What is the minimum budget required?](#collapse-1-9324) We have no set minimum budget requirement for domain name acquisitions. However, the budget must provide for a reasonable chance of success. For example, if you are trying to acquire a one-word .com for $1,000 then we (and likely every other broker) will pass. Typically we provide a recommended budget based on the domain name’s profile and then you can decide whether to engage us or not. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Will we sign a NDA?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Will we sign a NDA?](#collapse-1-9200) Of course. We can provide a NDA or sign yours. Note that Brands hire us all the time – sometimes years in advance of launching a product or brand. We are often part of the confidential naming process. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-ad-namecorp-get-the-perfect-domain-300-600.png "image-ad-namecorp-get-the-perfect-domain-300-600 → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # Domain Name Transfers Can I transfer the domain name to my preferred registrar?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Can I transfer the domain name to my preferred registrar?](#collapse-2-9260) Yes. We work to ensure the domain name(s) acquired are transferred to your preferred registrar. Most transactions allow for an immediate transfer to your preferred registrar, however some may take a little longer depending on factors such as: - The domain extension - Registrar policies - Registry policies Note that a registrar transfer delay will **almost never stop you from using the domain name**, or getting possession. It just means you may have to hold the domain name at another registrar for a short time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How long does a domain name transfer take?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How long does a domain name transfer take?](#collapse-2-9317) Domain name transfer times vary depending on the registrar, extension and response time of parties involved. A large percentage of transfers associated with domain name acquisitions can take less than a day. However, sometimes you have to wait 5 days for a domain name transfer to complete. Some buyers opt to accept an account change at the domain name’s current registrar. While this can certainly expedite gaining possession of a domain name, it can also sometimes result in an extended transfer lock period. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today to talk about the domain name transfer details for your scenario. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # Expired Domain Names How can I acquire an expired domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How can I acquire an expired domain name?](#collapse-3-9251) The domain you want is expiring so it’s natural to think *“Great, I will register the domain name when it expires”.* Sorry, if the domain name of interest is any good you likely have zero chance of getting it alone. The domain name aftermarket is a billion-dollar industry. Hundreds of companies (and individuals) have spent millions and millions of dollars building technology to catch domain names milliseconds after they become available. Some expired domains never even make it to general availability but go directly to auction. The expiring domain name sector is probably the most fascinating and consistently profitable (by measure of ROI) area of domain names in general. The odds of catching a domain name depends on factors such as: - What registrar the domain name is registered? - What technology you are using to “catch” the domain? - What status the domain is in? – expiration is not the only stage - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and learn about more acquiring an expired domain name. We literally catch them all the time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) [![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27970%27%20height%3D%27250%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20970%20250%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27970%27%20height%3D%27250%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "namecorp → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # International Domain Names How do I register different country code domain name extensions?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How do I register different country code domain name extensions?](#collapse-4-9253) Many countries have their own country code domain name extensions such as .ca (for Canada), .co.uk (United Kingdom) and .ie (Ireland). In fact, the popularity of these extensions are almost (or more) popular than .com in some areas. Do you want to own your brand in local extensions? While many countries have no restrictions on who can register a domain name, many do have restrictions such as: - Local Contact Required - Local Presence Required - Limitation to the number of domains a single company can own - Restricted words - How the domain name is used - and much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and speak with an international domain name expert. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What is a local presence requirement?[Alan](https://namecorp.com/author/caymanbrac/)2020-12-09T07:44:02+00:00#### [What is a local presence requirement?](#collapse-4-9486) Many country code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) have a local presence requirement. How a “local presence” is defined will vary by registry. Some common requirements, **specific to the country the domain name extension represents**, include: - Registrant must be a citizen of the country - Administrative contact must have a local address - Technical contact must have a local address - Registrant must hold a Trademark for the country or area (EU for example) - Organization must be registered with a recognized government department - and more… Many domain name registrars offer local presence services. Don’t rule out getting your desired domain name before speaking with an international domain expert. There is typically a workaround available. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # Selling a Domain Name Can I sell my domain name portfolio with NameCorp?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Can I sell my domain name portfolio with NameCorp?](#collapse-5-9285) Yes and No. We represent a lot of portfolios owned by companies, brands and select individuals. However, we are very selective about the quality and type of domains to dedicate resources for. If you feel like your portfolio is worth sharing then [contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") here. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How can I sell my domain with NameCorp?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How can I sell my domain with NameCorp?](#collapse-5-9283) The best first step to having us potentially represent you on the sale of a domain name is to [contact us here.](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") **If you have a current offer and need to speak to someone immediately** then emailing is quicker. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How long does it take to sell a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How long does it take to sell a domain name?](#collapse-5-9309) Very good question. How long it takes to sell a domain name depends on a variety of factors such as: - The quality of the domain - The asking price - Trademark competition - and more… Many higher end domain name sales often result from longer marketing periods and/or simply finding the right buyer at the right time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How much is my domain name worth?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How much is my domain name worth?](#collapse-5-9312) Very good question. How much your domain name is worth can be a difficult question to answer. Some important notes to remember are: - Around 99% of all domain names registered have little or no liquid value. - Many published domain name sales were simply the result of one buyer wanting the domain. This doesn’t always make similar domain names valuable. - Automated domain name appraisals are not (almost always) a good indication of liquid value. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") If you think you have a domain that falls into the 1% of those with liquid value. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Acquire](https://namecorp.com/acquire/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # SPEAK WITH A DOMAIN NAME EXPERT Over 20 Years Experience and $200M+ in Private Transactions. Published On: ![Techcrunch Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-techcrunch-300x300.png "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp") ![Medium Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-medium-350x150.png "Medium Logo → NameCorp") ![Quartz Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-quartz-300x300.png "Quartz Logo → NameCorp") ![Business Insider Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-business-insider-300x300.png "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp") Contact NameCorp® to discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. ## Email ## WORLDWIDE [(212) 709-2000](tel:+12127092000) [## About NAMECORP®](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) [Learn More](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) LinkedIn This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit --- ### [Work](https://namecorp.com/work/) **Published:** October 17, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # **Some of our work** A few domains we have been involved with. We never report details. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-1t-org.png "1T → NameCorp") ![Alan.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-alan-com.png "Alan.com → NameCorp") ![Amare.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-amare.com_.png "Amare.com → NameCorp") ![Appetize.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-appetize-com.png "Appetize.com → NameCorp") ![Beacon.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-beacon-com.png "Beacon.com → NameCorp") ![Bellhop.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-bellhop.com_.png "Bellhop.com → NameCorp") ![Blend.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-blend-com.png "Blend.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-block-com.png "block-com → NameCorp") ![Bonvoy.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-bonvoy-com.png "Bonvoy.com → NameCorp") ![Charles.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-charles-com.png "Charles.com → NameCorp") ![Contra.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-contra-com.png "Contra.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-convex-re-com.png "ConvexRE.com → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-deserve-com.png "Deserve.com → NameCorp") ![Dialup.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-dialup-com.png "Dialup.com → NameCorp") ![Discord.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-discord-com.png "Discord.com → NameCorp") ![DXL.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-dxl-com.png "DXL.com → NameCorp") ![Editas.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-editas-com.png "Editas.com → NameCorp") ![Equality.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-equality-com.png "Equality.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-escapes-dot-com.png "escapes.com → NameCorp") ![Ess.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-ess-com.png "Ess.com → NameCorp") ![F8.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-f8-com.png "F8.com → NameCorp") ![Forge.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-forge-com.png "Forge.com → NameCorp") ![Gather.co](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-gather-co.png "Gather.co → NameCorp") ![GHK.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-ghk-com.png "GHK.com → NameCorp") ![Gideon.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-gideon-com.png "Gideon.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-glidewell-com.png "glidewell-com → NameCorp") ![JDP.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-jdp-com.png "JDP.com → NameCorp") ![Lightning.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-lightning-com.png "Lightning.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-meg-com.png "meg.com → NameCorp") ![Oath.net](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-oath-net.png "Oath.net → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-oda-com.png "Oda.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-olive-com.png "Olive.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-picture-com.png "Picture.com → NameCorp") ![Prime.uk](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-prime-uk.png "Prime.uk → NameCorp") ![Pippa.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-pippa-com.png "Pippa.com → NameCorp") ![Rates.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-rates-com.png "Rates.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-rcv-com.png "rcv → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-rhp-com.png "rhp → NameCorp") ![Swarm.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-swarm-com.png "Swarm.com → NameCorp") ![Trv.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-trv-com.png "Trv.com → NameCorp") ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-yap-com.png "yap → NameCorp") ![And more...](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-work-and-more.png "And more… → NameCorp") Discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Domain Name Acquisition](https://namecorp.com/domain-name-acquisition/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # There are millions of domain names. # We acquire the great ones. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Domain Name Acquisitions Whether it’s starting with the wrong domain, waiting on a funding announcement before inquiring about a domain name or simply getting ghosted by the current owner we can help. NameCorp® clients use our stealth domain name acquisition service for a number of reasons such as: ![Experience](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Experience Over 20+ years experience tracking owners down. Sort of like Bond. ![Private Access Icon](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Private We have never reported the details of a single transaction. Never. ![Success based](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Success Based Our fees are success based. We rarely charge upfront fees for attempting to acquire a domain name. ![Success based](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Value We understand your time is valuable and focus on obtaining results quickly. ![Community](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### You before Us We will not waste your time. Our priority is you. ![Advisors first](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Advisors First Our business model is based on referrals, not one-time fees. ## A Few Brands We have Worked With ![Swarm Fund Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-swarm-fund-260x185.jpg "Swarm Fund Logo → NameCorp") ![SelfScore Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-self-score-260x185.png "SelfScore Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-norwest-venture-partners-260x185.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Facebook Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-facebook-1-260x185.png "Facebook Logo → NameCorp") ![Focus Script Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-focus-script-260x185.png "Focus Script Logo → NameCorp") ![Gauranteed Rate Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-gauranteed-rate-260x185.jpg "Gauranteed Rate Logo → NameCorp") ![Happy Chef Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-happy-chef-1-260x185.png "Happy Chef Logo → NameCorp") ![Discord Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-discord-260x185.png "Discord Logo → NameCorp") Published on [![Business Insider Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-business-insider-300x300.png) [![Techcrunch Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-techcrunch-300x300.png) [![Quartz Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Quartz Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-quartz-300x300.png) # # Have Questions? [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Family Office](https://namecorp.com/family-office/) **Published:** October 15, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # A Trusted Partner. Our clients range from Founders to Families. Contact us about your family office needs today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ### Published On: ![Published on](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-published-on-566.png "Published on → NameCorp") ## Family Matters. All NameCorp® family office clients benefit from custom portfolio management solutions. Some benefits include: - Consolidate all your domain names in a single account. - Concierge domain transfer service - Secure shared account access options. - Brand and Family name domain name monitoring. - Private acquisitions where we only know your name. - Private or proxy WHOIS service - And more… [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") ![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-computer-what-we-do.png "NameCorp → NameCorp") ## We Know Domains. Whether it’s starting with the wrong domain, waiting on a funding announcement before inquiring about a domain name or choosing a social handle similar to a popular one used for vice. There are many reasons to outsource your domain name acquisition and management needs to experts. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Brands](https://namecorp.com/brands/) **Published:** October 15, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # You Know Us. Over 20 Years and $100M+ in experience. Odds are you have seen our work. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ### Published On: ![Published on](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-published-on-566.png "Published on → NameCorp") ## Brands We Have Worked With Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets and we recognize and value that trust. ![Facebook Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Facebook Logo → NameCorp") ![Travelers Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Travelers Logo → NameCorp") ![SelfScore Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "SelfScore Logo → NameCorp") ![Amare Global Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Amare Global Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Happy Chef Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Happy Chef Logo → NameCorp") ![Techland Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techland Logo → NameCorp") ![Focus Script Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Focus Script Logo → NameCorp") ![Adabisc logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Adabisc logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Reply App Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Reply App Logo → NameCorp") ![Guaranteed Rate Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "logo gauranteed rate → NameCorp") ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") ## We Know Domains. We have seen it all. Companies who start with the wrong domain, others who wait until after a funding announcement before inquiring about a domain name or choosing a social handle similar to a popular one used for vice. There are many reasons to outsource your domain name acquisition and management needs to experts. We not only can help with an acquisition but also provide: - Private acquisition service - WHOIS due diligence - TLD diligence - Social media checks - and more. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-computer-what-we-do.png "NameCorp → NameCorp") ## Why NameCorp? Think of the right domain name as the global window to your company. Odds are you wouldn’t buy real estate without an agent so buying a domain should be no different. You need experts on your team and we have the experience and track record to be that expert. Plus we can offer all this fancy stuff below: [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ### A 360° PERSPECTIVE Over the last 20 years we have been involved with buying domains, selling domains, website development, trademark guidance, social marketing, native advertising and much more. We have also been owners, sellers, publishers, advertisers, developers and users. All which have been in scale. ### ADVISORS FIRST We understand the value of your brand and partner with clients who understand we are part of the solution. Our fees are always secondary to maximizing the value of our services. At the very core NameCorp® is a trusted advisor to clients rather than a service provider. This is something we take great pride in. Anyone can sell, few can provide real value. ### PRIVILEGED ACCESS With more than two decades of experience from award-winning staff you can bet an extensive network of industry contacts is part of the package. NameCorp® clients benefit not only from our experience but also from the collective intelligence of our industry contacts. ### BRAND EXPERIENCE From start-ups to Fortune 500 companies the staff of NameCorp® has helped brands worldwide define, promote, acquire and sell digital assets. This global reach across many different continents and languages gives us a solid foundation to service clients. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Your Dot Matters](https://namecorp.com/your-dot-matters/) **Published:** February 16, 2021 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Your Dot Matters® Get the Domain Name You Really Want. Looking for the perfect .com? [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## 1. Trust Will consumers trust the extension? ## 2. Authority Will the extension provide authority? ## 3. Impress Will the extension help recruit people? ## 4. Raise Will the extension influence your fundraising? ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") Your Dot Really Does Matter. A primary reason .com domains are valuable is the implied trust they come with. No matter how big or small you are, there are millions of companies branding behind a .com address. This **collective marketing over the last 25 years** has made the .com extension the ultimate signal of trust online. Remember the expression, “Trust is something you earn”. The .com (and .org) domain name extensions are two of the best examples online, both earning a trusted reputation from years of use and marketing worldwide. **What about .io, .co, .ai and other popular extensions?** Some of these extensions have enormous trust based on wider adoption today. However, there are hundreds (maybe thousands) of extensions which have no real value except sounding nice for a marketing campaign. If you are starting a company, looking to upgrade a domain name or thinking of rebranding then contact us. Let’s go over your options together and get you the right extension. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) FAQ What is the minimum budget required?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What is the minimum budget required?](#collapse-6-9324) We have no set minimum budget requirement for domain name acquisitions. However, the budget must provide for a reasonable chance of success. For example, if you are trying to acquire a one-word .com for $1,000 then we (and likely every other broker) will pass. Typically we provide a recommended budget based on the domain name’s profile and then you can decide whether to engage us or not. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What is a domain name buy service?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What is a domain name buy service?](#collapse-6-9314) A domain name buy service (also called a domain name acquisition service) is where you engage a professional domain name broker to acquire a domain name. Essentially, choosing a domain broker is like hiring a real estate agent to buy a home, an architect to design a home, or a wedding planner to create the perfect third wedding. Good domain name brokers understand the many nuances of acquiring a domain name including: - Best strategies towards a successful acquisition - Contractual needs - Transitional questions - Offer strategies - And much more… If you are starting a new company, launching a new brand or simply want to acquire a domain name for another reason, then consider adding a domain name professional to your team. Very few domain brokers have long, successful track records. We do. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How do I pay for a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How do I pay for a domain name?](#collapse-6-9305) We use trusted third party escrow services for most transactions. These services include licensed escrow services and attorneys. The exact details for payment will depend on the terms of an acquisition and parties involved. For many trusted clients we also offer credit card and cryptocurrency (BTC, BCH or ETH) payment options. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How can I acquire an expired domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How can I acquire an expired domain name?](#collapse-6-9251) The domain you want is expiring so it’s natural to think *“Great, I will register the domain name when it expires”.* Sorry, if the domain name of interest is any good you likely have zero chance of getting it alone. The domain name aftermarket is a billion-dollar industry. Hundreds of companies (and individuals) have spent millions and millions of dollars building technology to catch domain names milliseconds after they become available. Some expired domains never even make it to general availability but go directly to auction. The expiring domain name sector is probably the most fascinating and consistently profitable (by measure of ROI) area of domain names in general. The odds of catching a domain name depends on factors such as: - What registrar the domain name is registered? - What technology you are using to “catch” the domain? - What status the domain is in? – expiration is not the only stage - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and learn about more acquiring an expired domain name. We literally catch them all the time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How long does it take to acquire a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How long does it take to acquire a domain name?](#collapse-6-9258) Good question. Every domain name acquisition is different. While many acquisitions take only a few days (from the time terms are agreed), others may take weeks or months. Some domains have even taken years to acquire. Ask Elon Musk – it took him almost 11 years to acquire Tesla.com The most common elements contributing to timing of an acquisition are: - Who owns the domain name. - The number of owners of the domain. - Is the domain listed for sale? - Is the owner using the domain? - Does the owner have email attached to the domain? - Who is representing the owner? - The technical resources of the owner (for transitioning current use) - And much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today to learn more about our private domain name acquisition service. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) A domain name is not in use – How can I acquire it?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [A domain name is not in use – How can I acquire it?](#collapse-6-9262) The comment we most frequently hear is “the domain name is not in use”. What exactly is use? Take for example the domain name LuxuryHotels.com – Marriott owns this domain name and, for years, it didn’t resolve. Would this lack of “use” mean they don’t think the domain is valuable? No. This domain has significant value to a company such as Marriott and maybe it was an internal decision (or simple oversight) not to redirect the domain. Whether or not the domain name resolves to a website often has very little to do with value. Valid forms of use can include: - Defensive Registrations - Email (domains only used for email) - Internal Resources - IP Protection - Name Servers - and more… Thousands (and thousands) of great domains do not resolve. It usually doesn’t make them less valuable to the owner. [Contact us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") to discuss the right strategy for acquiring the domain name you want. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How much will the domain name cost?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How much will the domain name cost?](#collapse-6-9227) The cost of a domain name is subject to a number of X factors unique to that particular domain name. Automated appraisals, and even comparable sales, are often worthless comparison points. You really need to talk to an expert – The best first step is to contact us. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What information do we need to acquire a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What information do we need to acquire a domain name?](#collapse-6-9221) Almost every domain name acquisition starts with one thing – **The Domain Name**. We can talk in general about domain name budgets, the acquisition process and other elements. However, knowing what domain name you wish to acquire is the most important place to start. All transactions have unique X factors such as: - Who owns the domain name? - Why they own the domain name? - When they acquired the domain name? - How they use the domain name? - What other IP is associated with the domain name? - Is there any sentimental value? - How much did they pay for the domain? - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and get a strategy recommendation for acquisition. We are always [happy to sign a NDA](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/will-we-sign-a-nda/ "Will we sign a NDA?"). *Pro Tip… Tell us any back story. We work for you. The more we know the better.* [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Do we charge a broker fee upfront?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Do we charge a broker fee upfront?](#collapse-6-9214) No. We never charge an upfront fee to explore a domain name acquisition. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Will we sign a NDA?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Will we sign a NDA?](#collapse-6-9200) Of course. We can provide a NDA or sign yours. Note that Brands hire us all the time – sometimes years in advance of launching a product or brand. We are often part of the confidential naming process. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Brands We Have Worked With. Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets. We recognize and value that trust. ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-nvp-260x185-transparent.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-dexcom-260x185.png "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-deserve-260x185-transparent.png "Deserve.com Logo → NameCorp") ![Sound Ventures Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-sound-ventures-260x185-transparent.png "Sound Ventures Logo → NameCorp") ![Forrester Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-forrester-260x185-transparent.png "Forrester Logo → NameCorp") --- ### [Most Expensive Domain Name Sales Of All Time](https://namecorp.com/most-expensive-domain-name-sales-of-all-time/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Most Expensive Domain Name Sales Of All Time Domain names were once available for free, but that is no longer the case. Almost all good dot-com domain names are registered, and the aftermarket is thriving with millions of dollars in reported sales every week. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## # What is categorized as a domain name sale? A domain name sale is categorized as the sale of a “raw” domain name — a sale where only the asset is sold, and not the underlying business. For instance, Quinstreet’s 2010 purchase of CarInsurance.com for $49.7 million would be a prime example of a business selling and not just a domain name. Facebook’s acquisition of FB.com, on other hand, would be classified as a domain name sale. It’s also important to note that many of the domain names listed below have been re-sold in private transactions since the original, reported purchase date. Examples include Drugs.com and Singapore.com. Below is a list of the most expensive reported domain name sales from a variety of sources, including DNJournal.com and Domaining.com. Note that many industry experts believe over 75% of domain name sales are “unreported.” – For example, we never report sales and know other brokerages that don’t either. The reason is pure and simple — most high-end sales require confidentiality. --- ### [Sell Your Domain Name](https://namecorp.com/sell-your-domain-name/) **Published:** December 14, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # DO YOU OWN A PREMIUM DOMAIN NAME? Talk to us today. Over 20 Years Experience and $100M+ in Private Transactions. Published On: [![Techcrunch Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/press/) [![Quartz Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Quartz Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/press/) [![Business Insider Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/press/) Contact NameCorp® to discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. ## Email ## WORLDWIDE [(212) 709-2000](tel:+12127092000) ## WEST COAST [(415) 579-2000](tel:+14155792000) [## About NAMECORP®](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) [Learn More](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) Company This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit --- ### [CCTLD](https://namecorp.com/country-code-top-level-domains/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Expand Your Brand. Secure your brand across the world. Talk to a country code Top-Level Domain Name Expert today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-cctld-faq-1200x600-main-100-more.png "international domain names → NameCorp") ## 1. Expand Expand your brand globally. ## 2. Protect Protect your brand name. ## 3. Trust Benefit from local trust of the extension. ## 4. Relate Show a local commitment. ## 5. Ensure Consistent use of your brand name. ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") Why Secure International Domain Names? Most companies will never need an international domain name. Think of a local dentist, a small ice cream shop or a local restaurant. Many of those really only need a good website on a memorable domain. However, if you are going global, selling internationally, or dream of making it big one day, then consider registering some international extensions. Think about it like this: **Would you expect Bob’s Ice Cream from Anyplace, USA to use Italy’s local .it extension?** The answer is probably No. **Would you expect Microsoft to own Ireland’s version of Microsoft – Microsoft.ie?** The answer is likely Yes. There is a tipping point where some brands become so well-known that consumers (and employees) are expected to own their international domains. The best time to acquire these domains is usually before you get too famous. Most international domain names are relatively inexpensive (under $100 a year) but once they are gone then you are subject to aftermarket conditions. Some domains may be for sale, others may not be available. A few may even point to vice or topics that could embarrass your brand. If you can afford to get them now then it’s likely a wise decision. Talk to us today about securing international domain names for your brand – **even if they are taken**. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) FAQ - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-us-1200-630.png ".us domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-us-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-russia-1200-630.png "russia .ru domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ru-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-netherlands-1200-630.png "Netherlands .nl domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-nl-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-italy-1200-630.png "Italy .it domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-it-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-ireland-1200-630.png ".ie domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ie-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-hong-kong-1200-630.png "Hong Kong .hk domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-hk-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-france-1200-630.png "France .fr domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-fr-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-eu-1200-630.png "European Union .EU domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-eu-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-germany-1200-630.png ".de domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-de-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-colombia-1200-630.png "Colombia .co domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-co-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-canada-1200-630.png ".ca domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ca-domain-name/) What is a local presence requirement?[Alan](https://namecorp.com/author/caymanbrac/)2020-12-09T07:44:02+00:00#### [What is a local presence requirement?](#collapse-7-9486) Many country code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) have a local presence requirement. How a “local presence” is defined will vary by registry. Some common requirements, **specific to the country the domain name extension represents**, include: - Registrant must be a citizen of the country - Administrative contact must have a local address - Technical contact must have a local address - Registrant must hold a Trademark for the country or area (EU for example) - Organization must be registered with a recognized government department - and more… Many domain name registrars offer local presence services. Don’t rule out getting your desired domain name before speaking with an international domain expert. There is typically a workaround available. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How do I register different country code domain name extensions?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How do I register different country code domain name extensions?](#collapse-7-9253) Many countries have their own country code domain name extensions such as .ca (for Canada), .co.uk (United Kingdom) and .ie (Ireland). In fact, the popularity of these extensions are almost (or more) popular than .com in some areas. Do you want to own your brand in local extensions? While many countries have no restrictions on who can register a domain name, many do have restrictions such as: - Local Contact Required - Local Presence Required - Limitation to the number of domains a single company can own - Restricted words - How the domain name is used - and much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and speak with an international domain name expert. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Brands We Have Worked With. Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets. We recognize and value that trust. ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-nvp-260x185-transparent.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-dexcom-260x185.png "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-deserve-260x185-transparent.png "Deserve.com Logo → NameCorp") ![Sound Ventures Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-sound-ventures-260x185-transparent.png "Sound Ventures Logo → NameCorp") ![Forrester Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-forrester-260x185-transparent.png "Forrester Logo → NameCorp") --- ### [International Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/international-domain-names/) **Published:** October 18, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # International Domain Names Do you need to expand your brand’s domain name presence to local markets? Hire experience in global domain name management and registration. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Are you in Ireland, Vancouver or Los Angeles (or anywhere) looking to expand you global domain name portfolio? NameCorp has over 20 years of experience managing domain name portfolios. We specialize not only in helping companies comply with domain name registration requirements, but also help build brand protection strategies worldwide. - Did you know a local presence is required for many European domain names? - Did you know that dispute resolution procedures for ccTLD domain names are different than for dot-com domains? - Did you know that some countries have multiple country code extensions? If you need a local ccTLD ([country code top level domain name](https://namecorp.com/country-code-top-level-domains/ "CCTLD")) for Ireland, Hong Kong or Singapore, we can help. If you want to conquer the world and register domain names in 100 different country code extensions, we can do that, too. We can help develop a domain name acquisition strategy and simply your life with: ![login](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/login.png "login → NameCorp") A single login to manage all your different ccTLD domain names. ![invoice](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/invoice.png "invoice → NameCorp") One invoice with quarterly or annual billing. ![Customer Service](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/Customer-Service.png "Customer Service → NameCorp") Customer service from people who know domain names. We manage domain names from all over the world. CountryccTLDCountryccTLDCountryccTLD Canada.caColombia.coIreland.ie China.cnAustria.atItaly.it France.frBelgium.beLuxembourg.lu Germany.deSwitzerland.chMexico.mx Hong Kong.hkIsrael.co.ilNetherlands.nl India.inMexico.com.mxSweden.se India.co.inDenmark.dkSweden.nu Japan.jpSpain.esPoland.pl Singapore.com.sgEuropean Union.euPortugal.pt Singapore.sgFinland.fi South Korea.krGreece.gr United Kingdom.uk United Kingdom.co.uk --- ### [Blog](https://namecorp.com/blog/) **Published:** September 24, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Domain Name News, Questions, Stories and more. - [ ![What is a category killer domain name?](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-featured-what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name.png "image-featured-what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name/) - [ ![Nissan.com Domain Name Case](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-nissan-com-battle-featured-300.png "Nissan.com Domain Name Case → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/nissan-com-a-20-year-battle-for-nissan-domain-name/) - [ ![18 government agency domains](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-government-agencies-300.png "18 government agency domains → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/18-government-agencies-and-their-dot-coms/) - [ ![100 companies who understand domain names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-100-companies-who-understand-domain-names-300-300.png "100 companies who understand domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/100-companies-who-understand-domain-names/) - [ ![Seva.com Domain Name Sale](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-seva-com-300-300.png "Seva.com Domain Name Sale → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/seva-com-a-310000-lesson/) - [ ![Ethereum Crypto Wallet Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-crypto-ethereum-wallet-names-300-300.png "Ethereum Crypto Wallet Domain Names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/ethereum-wallets-the-crypto-name-game/) - [ ![Bitcoin NASA Gemini Twins](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-gemini-bitcoins-nasa-and-twins-300-300.png "Bitcoin NASA Gemini Twins → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/gemini-com-a-brand-story-of-bitcoins-nasa-and-twins/) - [ ![Knock Knock Wordpress Blog](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-wordpress-knock-knock-300-300.png "Knock Knock Wordpress Blog → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/knock-knock-wordpress-acquires-blog-for-19-million/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-25000-is-not-crazy-for-a-domain-name-300-300.png "25000 is not crazy for a domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/25000-for-a-domain-name-is-not-crazy/) - [ ![Catch All Emails](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-catch-all-emails-300-300.png "Catch All Emails → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/30-days-of-catch-all-emails-wow/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-tesla-acquires-tesla-com-featured.png "Tesla acquires Tesla.com domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/why-tesla-motors-finally-acquired-tesla-com/) - [ ![Why you need the perfect domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-why-you-need-the-perfect-domain-300-300.jpg "Why you need the perfect domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/why-you-need-the-perfect-domain-name/) - [ ![Billions Registered](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-billions-registered-300.png "Billions Registered → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/billions-registered/) - [ ![China Domain Name Market](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-chinese-domains-data-300-300.jpg "China Domain Name Market → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/china-and-domain-names-its-all-about-data-now/) - [ ![China Domain Name King](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-china-domain-king-300-300.jpg "China Domain Name King → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/china-the-new-king-of-domains/) - [ ![Google Alphabet XYZ Domain Name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-google-alphabet-xyz-domain-name-featured.jpg "Google Alphabet XYZ Domain Name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/google-alphabet-a-naming-lesson-for-mortals/) - [ ![Look inside your brand](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-look-inside-your-brand-300-300.jpg "Look inside your brand → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/look-inside-your-brand/) - [ ![The real value of a domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-the-real-value-of-a-domain-name.png "The real value of a domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/the-real-value-of-a-domain-name/) --- ### [We Love Domains](https://namecorp.com/we-love-domains/) **Published:** February 5, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** - ![We Love Domains](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-header-we-love-domains.png "image-header-we-love-domains → NameCorp") We Love Domains®. We Really Do. Contact NameCorp® to discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/email.png "email → NameCorp") **Email** ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/worldwide.png "worldwide → NameCorp") **Worldwide** [(212) 709-2000](tel:12127092000) ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/west-coast.png "west coast → NameCorp") **West Coast** [(415) 579-2000](tel:14155792000) ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/about-us.png "about us → NameCorp") **About NAMECORP**® [Learn More](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) Instagram This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/ICON-Landing-Page.png "ICON Landing Page → NameCorp") ## Brands Like Us. So Should You. Whether it’s starting with the wrong domain, waiting on a funding announcement before inquiring about a domain name or choosing a social handle similar to a popular one used for vice. We have seen it all. Talk to us today about a private domain name acquisition. --- ### [Process](https://namecorp.com/process/) **Published:** November 27, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Get The Perfect Domain. How a Private Domain Name Acquisition Works. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-namecorp-process-steps.png "namecorp → NameCorp") ## 1. Inquire Ask us about a domain name. ## 2. Explore We explore the domain name. ## 3. Strategy We recommend a budget and strategy. ## 4. Engagement You engage us formally. ## 5. Acquisition We acquire the domain name. ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") A Proven Process. Hiring the right domain name broker is a big commitment. While the basic transaction (money for a domain name) sounds simple, the process is often a lot more difficult than it sounds. You need a partner who understands domain name registries, domain name registrars, geographical extension requirements, domain name transfer rules, how to maintain privacy from public WHOIS api’s, what kind of WHOIS privacy is really private and so much more. Factor in the wonderfully various personalities of domain name owners, how they prefer payments, email and website transition periods, how to transition email and website questions, contractual terms which understand digital assets and… the list goes on. Anybody can buy a domain, but not anybody can do it right. At NameCorp, our team has been involved with over $100,000,000 in acquisitions so we have a process that works. The process (most of the time) looks like this: 1. **Inquiry:** We are asked to explore a domain name acquisition (no contract at this point). 2. **Explore:** We explore the current ownership of a domain name to see if there is a willing seller and what possible price point is desired. 3. **Recommendation:** We present and discuss a strategy recommendation based on the information found during the exploration period. 4. **Engagement:** We execute an agreement to proceed with an acquisition. 5. **Offer:** If terms and price work, we then execute a purchase ad sale contract with the seller. 6. **Closing:** We use trusted third-party escrow to facilitate the funding and transfer of the transaction. 7. **Possession:** We transfer and assign the domain name to you. If this is you first time privately acquiring a domain name, it’s important to understand almost every transaction has unique elements. The following are some frequently asked questions about private domain name acquisitions. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) FAQ What is the minimum budget required?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What is the minimum budget required?](#collapse-8-9324) We have no set minimum budget requirement for domain name acquisitions. However, the budget must provide for a reasonable chance of success. For example, if you are trying to acquire a one-word .com for $1,000 then we (and likely every other broker) will pass. Typically we provide a recommended budget based on the domain name’s profile and then you can decide whether to engage us or not. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What is a domain name buy service?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What is a domain name buy service?](#collapse-8-9314) A domain name buy service (also called a domain name acquisition service) is where you engage a professional domain name broker to acquire a domain name. Essentially, choosing a domain broker is like hiring a real estate agent to buy a home, an architect to design a home, or a wedding planner to create the perfect third wedding. Good domain name brokers understand the many nuances of acquiring a domain name including: - Best strategies towards a successful acquisition - Contractual needs - Transitional questions - Offer strategies - And much more… If you are starting a new company, launching a new brand or simply want to acquire a domain name for another reason, then consider adding a domain name professional to your team. Very few domain brokers have long, successful track records. We do. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How do I pay for a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How do I pay for a domain name?](#collapse-8-9305) We use trusted third party escrow services for most transactions. These services include licensed escrow services and attorneys. The exact details for payment will depend on the terms of an acquisition and parties involved. For many trusted clients we also offer credit card and cryptocurrency (BTC, BCH or ETH) payment options. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How can I acquire an expired domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How can I acquire an expired domain name?](#collapse-8-9251) The domain you want is expiring so it’s natural to think *“Great, I will register the domain name when it expires”.* Sorry, if the domain name of interest is any good you likely have zero chance of getting it alone. The domain name aftermarket is a billion-dollar industry. Hundreds of companies (and individuals) have spent millions and millions of dollars building technology to catch domain names milliseconds after they become available. Some expired domains never even make it to general availability but go directly to auction. The expiring domain name sector is probably the most fascinating and consistently profitable (by measure of ROI) area of domain names in general. The odds of catching a domain name depends on factors such as: - What registrar the domain name is registered? - What technology you are using to “catch” the domain? - What status the domain is in? – expiration is not the only stage - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and learn about more acquiring an expired domain name. We literally catch them all the time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How long does it take to acquire a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How long does it take to acquire a domain name?](#collapse-8-9258) Good question. Every domain name acquisition is different. While many acquisitions take only a few days (from the time terms are agreed), others may take weeks or months. Some domains have even taken years to acquire. Ask Elon Musk – it took him almost 11 years to acquire Tesla.com The most common elements contributing to timing of an acquisition are: - Who owns the domain name. - The number of owners of the domain. - Is the domain listed for sale? - Is the owner using the domain? - Does the owner have email attached to the domain? - Who is representing the owner? - The technical resources of the owner (for transitioning current use) - And much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today to learn more about our private domain name acquisition service. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) A domain name is not in use – How can I acquire it?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [A domain name is not in use – How can I acquire it?](#collapse-8-9262) The comment we most frequently hear is “the domain name is not in use”. What exactly is use? Take for example the domain name LuxuryHotels.com – Marriott owns this domain name and, for years, it didn’t resolve. Would this lack of “use” mean they don’t think the domain is valuable? No. This domain has significant value to a company such as Marriott and maybe it was an internal decision (or simple oversight) not to redirect the domain. Whether or not the domain name resolves to a website often has very little to do with value. Valid forms of use can include: - Defensive Registrations - Email (domains only used for email) - Internal Resources - IP Protection - Name Servers - and more… Thousands (and thousands) of great domains do not resolve. It usually doesn’t make them less valuable to the owner. [Contact us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") to discuss the right strategy for acquiring the domain name you want. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) How much will the domain name cost?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [How much will the domain name cost?](#collapse-8-9227) The cost of a domain name is subject to a number of X factors unique to that particular domain name. Automated appraisals, and even comparable sales, are often worthless comparison points. You really need to talk to an expert – The best first step is to contact us. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) What information do we need to acquire a domain name?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [What information do we need to acquire a domain name?](#collapse-8-9221) Almost every domain name acquisition starts with one thing – **The Domain Name**. We can talk in general about domain name budgets, the acquisition process and other elements. However, knowing what domain name you wish to acquire is the most important place to start. All transactions have unique X factors such as: - Who owns the domain name? - Why they own the domain name? - When they acquired the domain name? - How they use the domain name? - What other IP is associated with the domain name? - Is there any sentimental value? - How much did they pay for the domain? - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and get a strategy recommendation for acquisition. We are always [happy to sign a NDA](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/will-we-sign-a-nda/ "Will we sign a NDA?"). *Pro Tip… Tell us any back story. We work for you. The more we know the better.* [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Do we charge a broker fee upfront?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Do we charge a broker fee upfront?](#collapse-8-9214) No. We never charge an upfront fee to explore a domain name acquisition. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Will we sign a NDA?[Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/author/alandunn/)2020-12-09T07:30:50+00:00#### [Will we sign a NDA?](#collapse-8-9200) Of course. We can provide a NDA or sign yours. Note that Brands hire us all the time – sometimes years in advance of launching a product or brand. We are often part of the confidential naming process. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Brands We Have Worked With. Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets. We recognize and value that trust. ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-nvp-260x185-transparent.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-dexcom-260x185.png "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-deserve-260x185-transparent.png "Deserve.com Logo → NameCorp") ![Sound Ventures Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-sound-ventures-260x185-transparent.png "Sound Ventures Logo → NameCorp") ![Forrester Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-forrester-260x185-transparent.png "Forrester Logo → NameCorp") --- ### [Subscribe](https://namecorp.com/subscribe/) **Published:** October 21, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Stay Informed. Sign up for our newsletter. We rarely send one. Email address [I have read and agree to the terms & conditions](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Leave this field empty if you're human: [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Domain Stories](https://namecorp.com/domain-stories/) **Published:** January 16, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # ## 20 Years. 10,000 Stories. [Domain Stories](https://domainstories.com) – a podcast hosted by Alan Dunn, a 20-year domain name industry veteran. Listen to domain name stories and hear from other experts and founders around the world. Available on Apple, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify and more. # ### **We do not disclose domain names or parties involved.** [Visit Domain Stories. A Podcast about domains.](https://domainstories.com) [![Domain Stories Podcast with Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-domain-stories-1024-512.png "Domain Stories with Alan Dunn → NameCorp")](https://domainstories.com) Discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Domain Name Broker](https://namecorp.com/domain-name-broker/) **Published:** October 29, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Your Domain Name Matters. # Hire Experience. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Domain Name Broker FAQ The domain name industry can often seem like the wild west. However, an experienced domain name broker can help navigate you through the industry. From recommending strategy to contacting private domain name owners to WHOIS due diligence, engaging a professional domain name broker can result in a smooth acquisition of your desired domain name. NameCorp® clients use our domain name broker service for many reasons including: ![Experience](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Experience Over 20+ years experience with private domain name acquisitions. We’ve seen everything. ![Private Access Icon](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Private We never report transaction details. Never. ![Success based](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Success Based Your success is our success. Our fees are primarily earned on success not for just trying. ![Success based](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Speed We work timely so we can both focus on the next project. Time is money. ![Community](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Trust We think handshakes are important. Trust is a core value here. ![Advisors first](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### You are First. Our business model is based on referrals, not one-time fees. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## A Few Brands We have Worked With ![SelfScore Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "SelfScore Logo → NameCorp") ![Discord Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Discord Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Facebook Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Facebook Logo → NameCorp") ![Salesforce logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-logo-salesforce.png "Salesforce logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Gauranteed Rate Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Gauranteed Rate Logo → NameCorp") ![Happy Chef Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Happy Chef Logo → NameCorp") Published on [![Business Insider Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-business-insider-300x300.png) [![Techcrunch Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-techcrunch-300x300.png) [![Quartz Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Quartz Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-quartz-300x300.png) # # Have Questions? [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Domain Name Buy Service](https://namecorp.com/domain-name-buy-service/) **Published:** September 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Domain Name Buy Service Get the domain name you **really** want. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## No Upfront Fees Acquisition fees are success based. ## Domain Pricing We help you understand domain name pricing. ## Strategy Recommendations based on Experience ## Privacy Confidential Process from A-Z ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") Somebody else owns the domain name I want? Of course they do. This is probably the most common question we are asked. The trust is no matter how smart you are, the odds are someone else already thought of the name and registered the .com domain. The Internet is an impressive, imperfect market and people/companies often try to stake the same claim on domain names. While we likely can’t physically wrestle a domain name away from someone, we can certainly create an acquisition strategy based on years of experience. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Why Hire NameCorp®? ![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-computer-what-we-do.png "NameCorp → NameCorp") Most generic domain names including dictionary words, first/last names, and common word combinations are gone. Some of these are owned by investors, others are owned by brands. There are some exceptions that help companies use trademark laws to obtain names but very few true exceptions really exist. The more common (and successful) way to acquire YOUR domain name is to engage proper representation. At NameCorp® we understand the current markets for domain name acquisitions. Our primary goal at NameCorp® is to exceed your expectations. We may have all the tools but ultimately our success is measured only by YOUR definition of success. This is something where a paragraph on a Web page doesn’t seem like the best forum for discussion. Contact us. We love to talk about domains. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Brands We Have Worked With. Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets. We recognize and value that trust. ![Salesforce Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-salesforce-260x185-transparent.png "Salesforce Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-nvp-260x185-transparent.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-dexcom-260x185.png "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-deserve-260x185-transparent.png "Deserve.com Logo → NameCorp") ![Sound Ventures Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-sound-ventures-260x185-transparent.png "Sound Ventures Logo → NameCorp") ![Forrester Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-forrester-260x185-transparent.png "Forrester Logo → NameCorp") [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Agency](https://namecorp.com/agency/) **Published:** February 20, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # We Make You Look Good. Marketing Agency, VC or CMO – We can help. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## Domain Research We find great domains. ## Domain Pricing We understand domain pricing. ## Suggestions We have great ideas. ## Privacy Confidential acquisitions and more. ![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27128%27%20height%3D%27128%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20128%20128%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27128%27%20height%3D%27128%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Domain exploration → NameCorp") **Explore** You have a good idea and need the perfect domain? We do the research so you know what’s really available. ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/Landscape-check.png "Landscape check → NameCorp") **Landscape** Is your potential brand name already in use? We review the online landscape to help avoid surprises. ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/Budget-recommendations.png "Budget recommendations → NameCorp") **Budgets** We understand pricing and strategy for successful domain name acquisitions. ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/Experienced-suggestions.png "Experienced suggestions → NameCorp") **Experience** Hire a domain name expert. We know this industry just like lawyers, accountants and real estate agents know theirs. Why Hire a Domain Name Expert? ![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-computer-what-we-do.png "NameCorp → NameCorp") We are so much more than buy and sell brokers. NameCorp® is consistently involved in naming projects. In fact, some of the world’s well known brands we named, and some really cool ones coming. Think of us as **YOUR industry expert** for insight into the domain name world. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![Man with laptop pointing up](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-with-laptop-pointing-up.png "Man with laptop pointing up → NameCorp") Better Workflow. Better Ideas. - Your client wants a new name. - Ideas flow, clients fall in love, logos designed, names are chosen. - You go to acquire the domain names and get nowhere. Unfortunately, we see this far too often. Many agencies and companies contact us too late in the naming process. Save time. Add us to your naming team. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Brands We Have Worked With. Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets. We recognize and value that trust. ![Salesforce Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-salesforce-260x185-transparent.png "Salesforce Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-nvp-260x185-transparent.png "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Dexcom logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-dexcom-260x185.png "Dexcom → NameCorp") ![Deserve.com Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-deserve-260x185-transparent.png "Deserve.com Logo → NameCorp") ![Sound Ventures Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-sound-ventures-260x185-transparent.png "Sound Ventures Logo → NameCorp") ![Forrester Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/logo-forrester-260x185-transparent.png "Forrester Logo → NameCorp") [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [About Us](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) **Published:** September 24, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # ## Domain Names. ## It’s what we do. Seriously. We love domain names. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) NameCorp® was imagined years ago. We are a boutique firm with over 20 years experience in the domain name industry. Millions of people see [our work](https://namecorp.com/work/) every day without realizing it. Clients range from Families to Founders and we are entrusted to help manage digital property all around the world. ![Alan Dunn NameCorp](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%27200%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20200%20200%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27200%27%20height%3D%27200%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Alan Dunn NameCorp → NameCorp") Alan Dunn **Managing Director of NameCorp®** Alan Dunn is Managing Director of NameCorp®. A senior digital naming expert and brand consultant with over 20 years experience. He is the former Managing Director of Domain Holdings and a contributor to TechCrunch, Business Insider, Quartz and other key publications. Alan regularly speaks about the domain name industry, has been interviewed by BBC Radio 1, [profiled by DNJournal](https://www.dnjournal.com/cover/2017/february-march.htm) and nominated to the TRAFFIC Domain Name Hall of Fame in 2014. NameCorp® has worked with brands around the world to explore and execute millions of dollars in private domain name acquisitions. We have never publicly reported transaction details. ![Business Insider Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp") ![Techcrunch Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp") ![Quartz Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Quartz Logo → NameCorp") Just A Few Brands We Have Worked With ![Facebook Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Facebook Logo → NameCorp") ![Block Show Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Block Show Logo → NameCorp") ![Adabisc logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Adabisc logo → NameCorp") ![Reply App Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Reply App Logo → NameCorp") ![Happy Chef Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Happy Chef Logo → NameCorp") ![Discord Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Discord Logo → NameCorp") ![Travelers Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Travelers Logo → NameCorp") ![Focus Script Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Focus Script Logo → NameCorp") ![Gauranteed Rate Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Gauranteed Rate Logo → NameCorp") ![Amare Global Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Amare Global Logo → NameCorp") ![Blend Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Blend Logo → NameCorp") ![Norwest Venture Partners Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Norwest Venture Partners Logo → NameCorp") ![Swarm Fund Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Swarm Fund Logo → NameCorp") ![Techland Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20260%20185%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27260%27%20height%3D%27185%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techland Logo → NameCorp") **Have Questions for us?** We are here to help. Reach out today. [Contact US](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![Man looking at phone](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-man-looking-at-phone.png "Man looking at phone → NameCorp") ***A Little More About NameCorp®*** NameCorp® was imagined years ago. We are a boutique digital agency specializing in corporate domain name management, stealth domain name acquisitions and online brand protection for brands. With over 20 years of experience NameCorp® offers a wide range of digital asset and naming services including: - Domain Name Acquisition - Domain Asset Management - Premium Domain Sales - Start-Up Naming - Social Naming Guidance Clients entrust us with some of their most personal assets and we both recognize and value that trust. At some point in our lives (call it a Mad Men moment if you will) we decided to leap forward and bring our own ideas under one roof. We also wanted to revive the old-fashioned personal touch approach without worrying about meeting quotas. Our clients come from many backgrounds. From high-wealth individuals to start-up companies to charitable organizations and more. We encourage you to contact us at , even if just for a second opinion. ![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27132%27%20height%3D%2746%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20132%2046%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27132%27%20height%3D%2746%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "alan-signature → NameCorp") ![Alan Dunn NameCorp](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27285%27%20height%3D%27300%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20285%20300%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27285%27%20height%3D%27300%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Alan Dunn NameCorp → NameCorp") *“We are not an agency for everyone but we are THE agency for many.”* --- ### [Stories](https://namecorp.com/why/) **Published:** October 17, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # ## Why Upgrade Your Domain Name? Don’t just ask us. Listen to other Founders and Entrepreneurs explain why they acquired the best .com for their brand below. [![Buffer App acquires Buffer.com domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-buffer-com.png "Buffer.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://open.buffer.com/acquired-buffer-com/) **Buffer acquired Buffer.com: Here is how they did it** Great article explaining the long road to finally acquiring the Buffer.com domain name. [![Prosper rebrands to Copper.com](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-copper-com.png "Copper.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://www.copper.com/blog/hello-copper) **From ProsperWorks to Copper – Copper CRM** Great read on the re-branding of ProsperWorks to Copper and the acquisition of Copper.com [![Why Cover acquired the Cover.com domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-cover-com.png "Cover.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://entrepreneurshandbook.co/you-should-never-spend-825k-on-a-domain-but-heres-why-i-m-glad-i-did-7139f9c00728) **You should never spend $825K on a domain — but here’s why I’m glad I did** Read why Karn Saroya, Co-founder & CEO at Cover, purchased the Cover.com domain name. [![Extend acquires the Extend.com domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-extend-com.png "Extend.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://domaininvesting.com/why-extend-acquired-extend-com/) **New URL…who’s this? Extend’s new home at Extend.com** Woody Levin, Founder of Extend, explains his joy of acquiring the Extend.com domain name. [![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-contact-us.png "NameCorp → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) [![The story of acquiring Fair.com domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-fair-com.png "Fair.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://medium.com/markupgrade/names-with-stories-the-story-behind-fair-com-89ec5801e241) **Names with stories: The story behind Fair.com** An interview with Scott Painter, CEO at Fair about acquiring the Fair.com domain name. [![Why Pillows.com was a great domain name purchase](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-pillows-com.png "Pillows.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://www.namepros.com/blog/inside-interview-why-buying-pillows-com-was-worth-every-penny.1067555/) **Inside Interview: Why Buying Pillows.com Was Worth Every Penny** Craig Clark, a Co-Founder of PacificPillows.com, explains the successful re-brand to Pillows.com [![Why Woven acquired the Woven.com domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-woven-com.png "Woven.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](https://domainnamewire.com/2019/09/10/woven-com-story/) **How Woven.com got its domain name** View why former Facebook CIO Tim Campos thought it was so important to acquire this domain name. [![How Ring acquired the Ring.com domain name for alt=](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-stories-ring-com.png "Ring.com Domain Name Story → NameCorp")](http://www.dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2018/dailyposts/20180307.htm) **CEO Confirms He Paid $1 Million for Ring.com Domain** Ring CEO & Chief Inventor Jamie Siminoff explains the unforgettable brand power of this domain name. Discuss a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Domain Name Appraisal](https://namecorp.com/domain-name-appraisal/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Domain Name Appraisal While there are many automated tools that provide “appraised values,” the most important factors for domain name valuation are usually not measurable by an algorithm. These critical factors are often intangible, tied to specific party needs of a single transaction. How much is your domain name worth? Everybody has heard a story of a domain name selling for tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars. Surely, yours (which is not as good) must be able to fetch a fraction of that, right? Not Necessarily. There are well over 350 million domain names registered today, and the turnover in aftermarket sales is a fraction of one percent of the total domains registered. That is still a lot of data to help develop appraisal valuations; however, intangible factors play a huge role. Some of these factors include personal desires, the relative value of money, a seller’s need, a buyer’s budget and more. Furthermore, many high-value domains are acquired from desire and not because of their value. We could name hundreds of privately acquired domains which have little standalone resale value (but have tremendous value to the one particular brand who purchased the domain name). Domain names that do sell typically fall into one of three categories: - Investment Grade - Premium Short Domains - Specific Needs Valuating a domain name is part science and part art. The X factor to form a reasonable foundation of value is experience, and we have over 20 years and $50 million of it. Domain Name Value Opinion When we provide a value opinion, we break down the value of the domain name into several different categories, including: ![wholesale value](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Wholesale Value The value of a domain name to domain name investors. ![end user value](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### End User Value The value of a domain name to developers or small businesses that have a use for the domain. ![Brand Value](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Brand Value The value of a domain name to a brand. Why Should You Get a Professional Opinion? Brands need a professional domain name opinion for many different reasons. We help by providing a comprehensive report detailing market prices, market data, value ranges and more. Our valuation opinion reports provide not just an opinion of value, but also enough data for a domain name owner to understand the broader complexities of selling a domain. You get the guidance needed to analyze which avenue may best fit your goals. Facebook This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit --- ### [Upgrade](https://namecorp.com/upgrade/) **Published:** October 21, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Upgrade Your Domain Name We specialize in private domain name acquisitions [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # # [+1.212.709.2000](tel:+12127092000) ![What kind of domains do unicorns use?](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-upgrade-no-unicorns-use.jpg "What kind of domains do unicorns use? → NameCorp") ![How much unicorns use a dot com domain name?](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-upgrade-98-percent-use-dot-com.jpg "How much unicorns use a dot com domain name? → NameCorp") ![71 percent of unicorns use a dot com domain name 8 characters or less](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-upgrade-71-percent-8-characters.jpg "71 percent of unicorns use a dot com domain name 8 characters or less → NameCorp") Source: NameCorp® analysis of primary domain names used by Fortune’s 2016 Unicorn List published January 19, 2016 Brands Upgrade All The Time. These are just a few of the companies that have upgraded their domain name. ![think](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/think.png "think → NameCorp") Think About It… UberCab had no chance of ever becoming a verb. Imagine if Amazon was called AmazonBooks? Does your domain name match what people call your company? How many times do you have to repeat your email address? How often do you have to spell your domain name out? # ## Great Reads And No, We Didn’t Write All Of These. [![Namecorp Icon](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ## Change Your Name – by Paul Graham](http://www.paulgraham.com/name.html) Paul Graham, Venture Capitalist and Co-Founder of Y-Combinator, wrote an essay entitled “[Change Your Name](http://www.paulgraham.com/name.html)”… a worthy read about dot-com domain names for any founder. [![Namecorp Icon](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ## $25,000 for a Domain Name Is (not) Crazy](https://medium.com/namecorp/25-000-for-a-domain-name-is-crazy-192a88d41e98) A worthy perspective on [the value of a domain name](https://medium.com/namecorp/25-000-for-a-domain-name-is-crazy-192a88d41e98), with comparisons to the traditional media you are already writing checks for. ![Namecorp Icon](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ## The Story of StockPhoto.com – Cash Flow Positive Great story and engaging title “How to ask your wife for permission to spend $250,000 on a domain name”. [![Namecorp Icon](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ## Fred Wilson (VC) Speaks about the Importance of Domains](https://avc.com/2011/04/finding-and-buying-a-domain-name/) “Don’t obsess about getting a name that is descriptive. It’s great to be Kickstarter if you are building a funding platform for creative ideas but it is not required. Do focus on a word that is short, catchy, and memorable.” – Circa 2011 [![Nissan.com Domain Name Case](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-nissan-com-battle-main-1300.png "Nissan.com Domain Name Case → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/nissan-com-a-20-year-battle-for-nissan-domain-name/) A 20-year battle between Nissan Motor Corporation and a man named Mr. Uzi Nissan. A truly worthy read for trademark lawyers, naming experts, founders and more. What is the cost to NOT owning Nissan.com? [… On Page 26 of the opening brief, Nissan said it best:](https://www.nissan.com/Lawsuit/images/Appeal%20Opening%20Brief.pdf) Nissan Motor’s Internet Strategy Manager, Merril Davis, puts it in a firm-wide memorandum distributed in 1999, ‘our current proliferation of regional websites and URL’s creates confusion for customers and fragments \[the\] Nissan and Infiniti brands. --- ### [Media](https://namecorp.com/press/) **Published:** October 15, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # # Mentions, Articles and More. As a leading expert of the domain name industry we often publish and contribute to publications worldwide. View some of our highlights from sources as TechCrunch, Business Insider, Quartz and more. ![published on](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-bar-published-on-color-small.png "published on → NameCorp") [![Dot Complex by Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-dot-complex-1200-630.png "Dot Complex by Alan Dunn → NameCorp")](https://qz.com/994698/domain-name-registration-problems-are-going-to-become-a-lot-worse-when-we-run-out-of-names/) ## Published. From China’s number culture to the challenge of naming in a global economy. [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-business-insider-china-is-buying-up-the-internet.jpg "China is buying up the Internet → NameCorp")](https://www.businessinsider.com/china-is-buying-up-the-internet-2015-11) [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-medium-25000-is-not-crazy-for-domain-name.jpg "25000 for a domain name is not crazy → NameCorp")](https://medium.com/namecorp/25-000-for-a-domain-name-is-crazy-192a88d41e98#.dyutvrbyw) [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-new-domains-are-building-better-brands.png "New domain extensions and brands → NameCorp")](https://techcrunch.com/2016/03/12/how-new-domains-are-building-better-brands/) [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-quartz-china-short-domain-names-300.jpg "China short domain names → NameCorp")](https://qz.com/581248/chinas-latest-investment-craze-is-short-domain-names/) [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-techcrunch-china-is-making-domain-name-history.jpg "China domain name history → NameCorp")](https://techcrunch.com/2015/12/12/china-making-domain-name-history/) [![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-techcrunch-china-is-making-domain-name-history-chinese.jpg "China domain name history → NameCorp")](https://techcrunch.cn/2015/12/17/china-making-domain-name-history/) [![dot me 10 years and two percent of exports](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-dot-me-10-years-and-two-percent-of-exports.png "dot me 10 years and two percent of exports → NameCorp")](https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/10/me-10-years-and-two-percent-of-exports/) [![100 companies who understand domain names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-100-companies-who-understand-domain-names-300-300.png "100 companies who understand domain names → NameCorp")](https://medium.com/@alandunn/100-companies-who-understand-domain-names-dada60b04b7e) ## Mentions. Where people say our name. [![Elon Musk Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-quote-quartz-elon-musk-bought-a-web-domain-name-worth-millions.png "Elon Musk Domain Names → NameCorp")](https://qz.com/1026167/elon-musk-just-bought-x-com-the-domain-he-once-owned-from-paypal/) [![Great Domains for Sale](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-quote-quartz-one-of-the-last-great-pieces-of-the-internet.png "Great Domains for Sale → NameCorp")](https://qz.com/945272/the-domain-name-cats-com-is-up-for-sale/) [![Adapt or Die Alan Dunn](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-adapt-or-die-alan-dunn.png "Adapt or Die Alan Dunn → NameCorp")](https://www.dnjournal.com/cover/2017/february-march.htm) [![Newsday Article Domain Names NameCorp Quote](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-quote-newsday-article.png "Newsday Article Domain Names NameCorp Quote → NameCorp")](https://www.newsday.com/business/small-business-domain-name-1.31796494) ![NameCorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-computer-what-we-do.png "NameCorp → NameCorp") ## We Know Domains Whether it’s starting with the wrong domain, waiting on a funding announcement before inquiring about a domain name or choosing a social handle similar to a popular one used for vice. There are many reasons to outsource your domain name acquisition and management needs to experts. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ## Articles. From our own blog archives. Something for everyone. - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-france-1200-630.png "France .fr domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-fr-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-netherlands-1200-630.png "Netherlands .nl domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-nl-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-russia-1200-630.png "russia .ru domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ru-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-hong-kong-1200-630.png "Hong Kong .hk domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-hk-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-italy-1200-630.png "Italy .it domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-it-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-germany-1200-630.png ".de domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-de-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-eu-1200-630.png "European Union .EU domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-eu-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-us-1200-630.png ".us domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-us-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-colombia-1200-630.png "Colombia .co domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-co-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-ireland-1200-630.png ".ie domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ie-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-cctld-canada-1200-630.png ".ca domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-ca-domain-name/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-cctld-faq-1200x600-dot-org.png ".org domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/who-can-register-a-org-domain-name/) - [ ![What is a category killer domain name?](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-featured-what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name.png "image-featured-what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/what-is-a-category-killer-domain-name/) - [ ![Nissan.com Domain Name Case](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-nissan-com-battle-featured-300.png "Nissan.com Domain Name Case → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/nissan-com-a-20-year-battle-for-nissan-domain-name/) - [ ![18 government agency domains](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-18-government-agencies-300.png "18 government agency domains → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/18-government-agencies-and-their-dot-coms/) - [ ![100 companies who understand domain names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-100-companies-who-understand-domain-names-300-300.png "100 companies who understand domain names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/100-companies-who-understand-domain-names/) - [ ![Seva.com Domain Name Sale](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-seva-com-300-300.png "Seva.com Domain Name Sale → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/seva-com-a-310000-lesson/) - [ ![Ethereum Crypto Wallet Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-crypto-ethereum-wallet-names-300-300.png "Ethereum Crypto Wallet Domain Names → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/ethereum-wallets-the-crypto-name-game/) - [ ![Bitcoin NASA Gemini Twins](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-gemini-bitcoins-nasa-and-twins-300-300.png "Bitcoin NASA Gemini Twins → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/gemini-com-a-brand-story-of-bitcoins-nasa-and-twins/) - [ ![Knock Knock Wordpress Blog](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-wordpress-knock-knock-300-300.png "Knock Knock Wordpress Blog → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/knock-knock-wordpress-acquires-blog-for-19-million/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-25000-is-not-crazy-for-a-domain-name-300-300.png "25000 is not crazy for a domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/25000-for-a-domain-name-is-not-crazy/) - [ ![Catch All Emails](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-catch-all-emails-300-300.png "Catch All Emails → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/30-days-of-catch-all-emails-wow/) - [ ![](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-tesla-acquires-tesla-com-featured.png "Tesla acquires Tesla.com domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/why-tesla-motors-finally-acquired-tesla-com/) - [ ![Why you need the perfect domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-why-you-need-the-perfect-domain-300-300.jpg "Why you need the perfect domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/why-you-need-the-perfect-domain-name/) - [ ![Billions Registered](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-billions-registered-300.png "Billions Registered → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/billions-registered/) - [ ![China Domain Name Market](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-chinese-domains-data-300-300.jpg "China Domain Name Market → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/china-and-domain-names-its-all-about-data-now/) - [ ![China Domain Name King](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-china-domain-king-300-300.jpg "China Domain Name King → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/china-the-new-king-of-domains/) - [ ![Google Alphabet XYZ Domain Name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-google-alphabet-xyz-domain-name-featured.jpg "Google Alphabet XYZ Domain Name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/google-alphabet-a-naming-lesson-for-mortals/) - [ ![Look inside your brand](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-look-inside-your-brand-300-300.jpg "Look inside your brand → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/look-inside-your-brand/) - [ ![The real value of a domain name](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-post-the-real-value-of-a-domain-name.png "The real value of a domain name → NameCorp") ](https://namecorp.com/the-real-value-of-a-domain-name/) --- ### [Domain Name Management](https://namecorp.com/domain-name-management/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Domain Name Management Domain names are the core foundation for your brand online, and just like the need for a team of lawyers, tax specialists and IT professionals, you should consider domain name management experience. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) # # Domain Name Management “It can never happen to me” – An expression many believe until it happens to them. Domain names are the core foundation for your brand online, and just like the need for a team of lawyers, tax specialists and IT professionals, you should consider domain name management experience. From FourSquare to Microsoft to FEMA, there are many stories how brands have lost control of their domain name resulting in both embarrassment and financial loss. A few of those stories are below: [![Icon Namecorp](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Foursquare Goes Dark Too. Unintentionally.](https://techcrunch.com/2010/03/27/foursquare-offline/) [![Icon Namecorp](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### Regions Bank website down, domain not renewed?](https://www.al.com/business/2013/04/regions_bank_website_down_doma.html) [![Icon Namecorp](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ##### FEMA Allows Fema.com Domain To Expire](http://dotweekly.com/fema-drops-ball-allows-fema-com-domain-expire/) We Understand Domain Names. ![360](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/customer-service.png "360 → NameCorp") A 360° Perspective. Over the last 20 years we have been involved with every aspect of domain name management including: domain name monitoring, domain name consolidation, registrar transfers, CCTLD’s, advanced DNS management, stealth acquisitions, private sales and more. ![Privileged Access](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/password.png "Privileged Access → NameCorp") Privileged Access NameCorp® clients benefit from direct access to a network of industry contacts built over two decades by award-winning staff. ![Advisors First](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/advisor.png "Advisors First → NameCorp") Advisors First We understand value. At the very core NameCorp® is a trusted advisor to clients rather than a service provider. This is something we take great pride in. Anyone can sell, few can provide real value. ![Brand Experience](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/business-card.png "Brand Experience → NameCorp") Privileged Access NameCorp® clients benefit from direct access to a network of industry contacts built over two decades by award-winning staff. What We do. Domain Name Strategy One of our core services is working with brands to create a domain name strategy for brand, product and trademark protection. This service is customized around the individual client’s needs and involves traditional top-level domains, international domain names and, if required, new generic top-level domains. This process includes a thorough evaluation of current domain name assets, suggestions on acquisitions (including both available and aftermarket) and a complete insight into the landscape of existing top-level domains relative to the client’s needs. [Find Out More](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Domain Name Management We offer corporate domain name management where the client is always in control of the domain names. Our management has managed more than one million domains through almost every existing top registrar, and understands the mechanics of each one. The client will always have access to the domains and will never be charged an additional release or high transfer fee to move from one registrar to another. We believe in dual management, where the client always has access to make domain modifications (such as DNS changes), while we take care of the time-sensitive and organizational transactions such as billing, renewals, consolidation, transfers and more. Sometimes we do both. [Find Out More](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Domain Name Registration At times, clients will want to hand-register domain names. We have years of experience registering and managing domain names, including top level (.com, .net, .org) and country codes (.co.uk, .de, .fr, etc.). This experience allows us to provide and assist with much more than registration. We offer comprehensive insight into the nuances of international domain name registration, including solutions to achieve your acquisition targets working within the existing policies of TLD’s. [Find Out More](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Domain Name Acquisition Services Stealth acquisitions are a large part of what we do. Our management has participated in well over $50Million of aftermarket transactions and advises clients regularly on potential acquisitions. Some of the recommendations are to fix holes in a client’s existing portfolio, while others are based on new domain needs (such as new products, rebranding, etc.). [Find Out More](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Domain Name Dispute Services As with any brand, cybersquatting will happen. We have legal counsel specializing in domain name law to assist with recommendations on (potentially) acquiring domain names through dispute resolution services. Our counsel is well-regarded in the industry and focuses primarily on IP and domain name law, both internationally and domestically. [Find Out More](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) Portfolio Optimization and Monitoring Registering domain names is one thing, but what happens when you have a large portfolio? Many brands have domains timing out, domains pointing to old 404 pages, and even six-figure domain acquisitions with incorrect WHOIS information. For example, Marriott owned luxuryhotels.com for years and it only went to a blank page. We provide regular monitoring of all domain name assets, including WHOIS records, DNS changes and more. We also create specialized reports so your IT team is alerted to changes as they happen [Find Out More](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Thank You](https://namecorp.com/thank-you/) **Published:** October 16, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** **THANK YOU.** We will be in touch shortly. You can also email [hello@namecorp.com](mailto:sales@namecorp.com) /* */ ![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%271%27%20height%3D%271%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%201%201%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%271%27%20height%3D%271%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E) --- ### [Sell](https://namecorp.com/sell-domains/) **Published:** October 15, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** # Matchmakers. For Brands. Have a great domain that needs a good home? [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![Icon Namecorp](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/Icon-Namecorp.png "Icon Namecorp → NameCorp") Sell a Domain Name. Domain names have come a long way since their introduction 30 years ago. Today, millions of dollars in aftermarket sales happen every week. If you have a premium domain name, contact us. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![Price](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/debt.png "Price → NameCorp") The Right Price Do you own a great domain name? The answer is not always easy. Many important factors are intangible — such as buyer’s desire for the domain. Talk to NameCorp® today to explore your selling options. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![handshake](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/team.png "handshake → NameCorp") Proper Representation NameCorp® is dedicated to providing the highest representation and we carefully curate our inventory. Some of your domains may be worth much more than you think, some may be worth much less. Contact us for a comprehensive valuation. If your expectations are in line with ours then there is a good chance we can work together. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) ![buyer](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/review.png "buyer → NameCorp") The Right Buyer Finding the right buyer is not an easy task. However, finding the right agency to explore potential buyers is (you are already here). At NameCorp® we dedicate extensive time and money exploring potential matches between domain sellers and domain buyers. We like to think we coined the word “matchmaker” but in reality it probably was taken before (maybe). [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) --- ### [Reserved](https://namecorp.com/reserved/) **Published:** October 17, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![NameCorp Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/namecorp-logo-240-48-registered-optimized.png "NameCorp Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/) **THIS DOMAIN NAME IS RESERVED.** [hello@namecorp.com](mailto:sales@namecorp.com) --- ### [Oops](https://namecorp.com/oops/) **Published:** October 17, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** [![NameCorp Logo](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/namecorp-logo-240-48-registered-optimized.png "NameCorp Logo → NameCorp")](https://namecorp.com/) **OOPS.** So close yet so far away. This page has moved. --- ### [Matchmaker for Domains](https://namecorp.com/matchmaker-domains/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** ![Domain Name Matchmaker](https://namecorp.com/wp-content/uploads/image-matchmaker-main.jpg "Domain Name Matchmaker → NameCorp") *Published on:* ![Techcrunch Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Techcrunch Logo → NameCorp") ![Medium Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Medium Logo → NameCorp") ![Quartz Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Quartz Logo → NameCorp") ![Business Insider Logo](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20350%20150%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27350%27%20height%3D%27150%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Business Insider Logo → NameCorp") ## Email ## WORLDWIDE [(212) 709-2000](tel:+12127092000) ## WEST COAST [(415) 579-2000](tel:+14155792000) [## About NAMECORP®](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) Learn More About Us Explore a private domain name acquisition, sale or valuation. Phone This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit --- ### [Short Domain Names](https://namecorp.com/short-domain-name-values/) **Published:** October 19, 2019 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Do you want to acquire or sell a short domain name? Contact us to learn more about the value and/or availability of any domain name. **Over 20+ Years Experience.** Contact us below, message or call **212-709-2000** ## Email ## WORLDWIDE [(212) 709-2000](tel:+12127092000) ## WEST COAST [(415) 579-2000](tel:+14155792000) [## About NAMECORP®](https://namecorp.com/about-us/) Learn More About Us Facebook This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. ### GET STARTED - TALK TO AN EXPERT TODAY! First Name(Required) Last Name(Required) Company Email(Required) Services Needed(Required)Domain Name AcquisitionDomain Name ManagementClient SupportSell a Domain NameDomain Name ValuationOther Domain Name Phone ### Tell Us More. How can we help?(Required) How did you find us?(Required)ChooseGoogleReferralTechCrunchBusiness InsiderCrunchbaseOther Consent(Required) By ticking this box I agree that I have read and consent to the [Privacy Policy](https://namecorp.com/privacy-policy) and [Terms of Use](https://namecorp.com/terms/) Submit --- ## FAQs ### [What is a local presence requirement?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/what-is-a-local-presence-requirement/) **Published:** December 9, 2020 **Author:** Alan **Content:** Many country code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) have a local presence requirement. How a “local presence” is defined will vary by registry. Some common requirements, **specific to the country the domain name extension represents**, include: - Registrant must be a citizen of the country - Administrative contact must have a local address - Technical contact must have a local address - Registrant must hold a Trademark for the country or area (EU for example) - Organization must be registered with a recognized government department - and more… Many domain name registrars offer local presence services. Don’t rule out getting your desired domain name before speaking with an international domain expert. There is typically a workaround available. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** International Domain Names --- ### [Will we sign a NDA?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/will-we-sign-a-nda/) **Published:** November 27, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Of course. We can provide a NDA or sign yours. Note that Brands hire us all the time – sometimes years in advance of launching a product or brand. We are often part of the confidential naming process. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [Do we charge a broker fee upfront?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/do-we-charge-a-broker-fee-upfront/) **Published:** November 27, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** No. We never charge an upfront fee to explore a domain name acquisition. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [What information do we need to acquire a domain name?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/what-information-is-required-for-a-private-domain-name-acquisition/) **Published:** November 27, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Almost every domain name acquisition starts with one thing – **The Domain Name**. We can talk in general about domain name budgets, the acquisition process and other elements. However, knowing what domain name you wish to acquire is the most important place to start. All transactions have unique X factors such as: - Who owns the domain name? - Why they own the domain name? - When they acquired the domain name? - How they use the domain name? - What other IP is associated with the domain name? - Is there any sentimental value? - How much did they pay for the domain? - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and get a strategy recommendation for acquisition. We are always [happy to sign a NDA](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/will-we-sign-a-nda/ "Will we sign a NDA?"). *Pro Tip… Tell us any back story. We work for you. The more we know the better.* [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [How much will the domain name cost?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-much-will-the-domain-name-cost/) **Published:** November 27, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** The cost of a domain name is subject to a number of X factors unique to that particular domain name. Automated appraisals, and even comparable sales, are often worthless comparison points. You really need to talk to an expert – The best first step is to contact us. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [A domain name is not in use - How can I acquire it?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/a-domain-name-is-not-in-use-how-can-i-acquire-it/) **Published:** December 2, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** The comment we most frequently hear is “the domain name is not in use”. What exactly is use? Take for example the domain name LuxuryHotels.com – Marriott owns this domain name and, for years, it didn’t resolve. Would this lack of “use” mean they don’t think the domain is valuable? No. This domain has significant value to a company such as Marriott and maybe it was an internal decision (or simple oversight) not to redirect the domain. Whether or not the domain name resolves to a website often has very little to do with value. Valid forms of use can include: - Defensive Registrations - Email (domains only used for email) - Internal Resources - IP Protection - Name Servers - and more… Thousands (and thousands) of great domains do not resolve. It usually doesn’t make them less valuable to the owner. [Contact us today](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") to discuss the right strategy for acquiring the domain name you want. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [Can I transfer the domain name to my preferred registrar?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/can-i-transfer-the-domain-name-to-my-preferred-registrar/) **Published:** December 2, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Yes. We work to ensure the domain name(s) acquired are transferred to your preferred registrar. Most transactions allow for an immediate transfer to your preferred registrar, however some may take a little longer depending on factors such as: - The domain extension - Registrar policies - Registry policies Note that a registrar transfer delay will **almost never stop you from using the domain name**, or getting possession. It just means you may have to hold the domain name at another registrar for a short time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Domain Name Transfers --- ### [How long does it take to acquire a domain name?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-long-does-it-take-to-acquire-a-domain-name/) **Published:** December 2, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Good question. Every domain name acquisition is different. While many acquisitions take only a few days (from the time terms are agreed), others may take weeks or months. Some domains have even taken years to acquire. Ask Elon Musk – it took him almost 11 years to acquire Tesla.com The most common elements contributing to timing of an acquisition are: - Who owns the domain name. - The number of owners of the domain. - Is the domain listed for sale? - Is the owner using the domain? - Does the owner have email attached to the domain? - Who is representing the owner? - The technical resources of the owner (for transitioning current use) - And much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today to learn more about our private domain name acquisition service. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [How do I register different country code domain name extensions?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-do-i-register-different-country-code-domain-name-extensions/) **Published:** December 2, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Many countries have their own country code domain name extensions such as .ca (for Canada), .co.uk (United Kingdom) and .ie (Ireland). In fact, the popularity of these extensions are almost (or more) popular than .com in some areas. Do you want to own your brand in local extensions? While many countries have no restrictions on who can register a domain name, many do have restrictions such as: - Local Contact Required - Local Presence Required - Limitation to the number of domains a single company can own - Restricted words - How the domain name is used - and much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and speak with an international domain name expert. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** International Domain Names --- ### [How can I acquire an expired domain name?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-can-i-acquire-an-expired-domain-name/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** The domain you want is expiring so it’s natural to think *“Great, I will register the domain name when it expires”.* Sorry, if the domain name of interest is any good you likely have zero chance of getting it alone. The domain name aftermarket is a billion-dollar industry. Hundreds of companies (and individuals) have spent millions and millions of dollars building technology to catch domain names milliseconds after they become available. Some expired domains never even make it to general availability but go directly to auction. The expiring domain name sector is probably the most fascinating and consistently profitable (by measure of ROI) area of domain names in general. The odds of catching a domain name depends on factors such as: - What registrar the domain name is registered? - What technology you are using to “catch” the domain? - What status the domain is in? – expiration is not the only stage - and so much more. [Connect with us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today and learn about more acquiring an expired domain name. We literally catch them all the time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name, Expired Domain Names --- ### [How can I sell my domain with NameCorp?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-can-i-sell-my-domain-with-namecorp/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** The best first step to having us potentially represent you on the sale of a domain name is to [contact us here.](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") **If you have a current offer and need to speak to someone immediately** then emailing is quicker. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Selling a Domain Name --- ### [Can I sell my domain name portfolio with NameCorp?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/can-i-sell-my-domain-name-portfolio-with-namecorp/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Yes and No. We represent a lot of portfolios owned by companies, brands and select individuals. However, we are very selective about the quality and type of domains to dedicate resources for. If you feel like your portfolio is worth sharing then [contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") here. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Selling a Domain Name --- ### [How do I pay for a domain name?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-do-i-pay-for-a-domain-name/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** We use trusted third party escrow services for most transactions. These services include licensed escrow services and attorneys. The exact details for payment will depend on the terms of an acquisition and parties involved. For many trusted clients we also offer credit card and cryptocurrency (BTC, BCH or ETH) payment options. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [How long does it take to sell a domain name?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-long-does-it-take-to-sell-a-domain-name/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Very good question. How long it takes to sell a domain name depends on a variety of factors such as: - The quality of the domain - The asking price - Trademark competition - and more… Many higher end domain name sales often result from longer marketing periods and/or simply finding the right buyer at the right time. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Selling a Domain Name --- ### [How much is my domain name worth?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-much-is-my-domain-name-worth/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Very good question. How much your domain name is worth can be a difficult question to answer. Some important notes to remember are: - Around 99% of all domain names registered have little or no liquid value. - Many published domain name sales were simply the result of one buyer wanting the domain. This doesn’t always make similar domain names valuable. - Automated domain name appraisals are not (almost always) a good indication of liquid value. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") If you think you have a domain that falls into the 1% of those with liquid value. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Selling a Domain Name --- ### [What is a domain name buy service?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/what-is-a-domain-name-buy-service/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** A domain name buy service (also called a domain name acquisition service) is where you engage a professional domain name broker to acquire a domain name. Essentially, choosing a domain broker is like hiring a real estate agent to buy a home, an architect to design a home, or a wedding planner to create the perfect third wedding. Good domain name brokers understand the many nuances of acquiring a domain name including: - Best strategies towards a successful acquisition - Contractual needs - Transitional questions - Offer strategies - And much more… If you are starting a new company, launching a new brand or simply want to acquire a domain name for another reason, then consider adding a domain name professional to your team. Very few domain brokers have long, successful track records. We do. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Buying a Domain Name --- ### [How long does a domain name transfer take?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/how-long-does-a-domain-name-transfer-take/) **Published:** December 3, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** Domain name transfer times vary depending on the registrar, extension and response time of parties involved. A large percentage of transfers associated with domain name acquisitions can take less than a day. However, sometimes you have to wait 5 days for a domain name transfer to complete. Some buyers opt to accept an account change at the domain name’s current registrar. While this can certainly expedite gaining possession of a domain name, it can also sometimes result in an extended transfer lock period. [Contact us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/ "Contact") today to talk about the domain name transfer details for your scenario. [Contact Us](https://namecorp.com/contact-us/) **FAQ Categories:** Domain Name Transfers --- ### [What is the minimum budget required?](https://namecorp.com/faq-items/what-is-the-minimum-budget-required/) **Published:** December 4, 2020 **Author:** Alan Dunn **Content:** We have no set minimum budget requirement for domain name acquisitions. However, the budget must provide for a reasonable chance of success. For example, if you are trying to acquire a one-word .com for $1,000 then we (and likely every other broker) will pass. Typically we provide a recommended budget based on the domain name’s profile and then you can decide whether to engage us or not. 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