Advice on selling a “Top Level”.ie domain name

I

igora

Registered User
Messages
134
Hi All,

Can anyone advise how to sell a premium domain name? I have a generic four letter word registered as a dot .ie for over 20 years, and now wish to sell it on. Any Google searches I have made have returned contact details of sellers that do not answer calls. Advice on how to proceed appreciated. Thank you
 
A lot of scammers operate in the area.

Can you identify the potential users of it and approach them? For example, if it's bang.ie, you could approach businesses with that name or explosive companies.

The domain registry refused me askaboutmoney.ie for years and then gave it to someone who had no connection with the site or the name. So how did they give you a name. Ah, you had a genuine use for it?
 
It was actually a word that I had in my registered trading name and I think I just got lucky as I had just requested the word/shortened name and then the domain registry rules changed to allow registration of generic words that you could prove a connection with. They later changed the rules again to allow it to be transferred /sold on. I wanted it as it was easier to remember that my actually trading name.
 
Hello,

Why not put a "for sale" banner up on the landing page, with an email address, so those potentially interested in acquiring it can contact you ?

I know there'll be some time wasters, but would think anyone interested in it might also reach out.
 
Last edited:
The landing page ad is a good idea. Next up then will be actually trying to put a value on it…. another difficult one for you.
 
Last edited:
That's a very difficult question to try and answer....

It's very much a case of what a buyer is willing to pay.

I would not be distracted by what you might be able to find online, in terms of sale prices for .Com addresses. The .IE domains are no where near as valuable, with extremely rare exception.

I assume you've got some stats, on traffic that the URL is able to drive to a website, on a daily / monthly basis. If you do, I think I would be tempted to illustrate the numbers on the "for sale" advert. That might help draw in an indicative bid.

If there's a specific business that might be a likely buyer for the URL, then I would be write to them and ask if they've an interest in buying it. Put a specific timeline on it, for them to contact you.

Make sure you the domain name due for the any time soon, and if it still, renew it now, for a period of years to come.
 
Last edited:
MrEarl said:
Why not put a "for sale" banner up on the landing page, with an email address, so those potentially interested in acquiring it can contact you ?
Click to expand...
If you aren't actually using the domain name to point to a website then this could work but surely that's not the sort of thing you should put on your website homepage if it's used for a business?

People who are familiar with your domain name or have any reason to go to the website it points to would possibly already have approached you by now if they wanted it.

I think a potential buyer is someone from a pool of those who don't realize your domain name exists or that it could suit them.

Brendan's idea to approach individuals or businesses who might be a match for your domain name might be more fruitful.
 
Last edited:
I suspect that the chances of making significant money from this venture are pretty slim. And maybe not enough money to justify putting much effort into marketing and pitching it.
 
I don't think it is a good idea for the website to be advocating the use of explosives and I find it upsetting and triggering.

I am surprised would a website devoted to financial advice would engage in such language.
 
Thank you..Brendan, ClubMan, Mr. Earl, CharlieMac and Armada for your insights.

I think possibly to approach certain entities that might have an interest in purchasing it directly with a timeline for offers etc.. would be the way to go. That said it’s very hard to approach without coming across as a scammer. The domain has been in use since the early 2000s, but was never used to sell online, or I never heavily invested in SEOs as there was no real need given the nature of my business. The name itself generated a lot of traffic to it anyway. The business has now ceased so a landing page ad is feasible as Mr. Earl suggested.
The name has huge potential.

I have actually recently renewed it again for a couple of years.
 
Why not post the web name here? That's all anyone is really interested in and you're as likely to find a buyer here as anywhere else.
 
Do you actually think you're going to make a decent amount of money here, or is there a sunk cost going on - you say you've never used the site, so why did you keep it?

Why not reduce the site to a simple "for sale" page and see what happens
 
walktothewater said:
I don't think it is a good idea for the website to be advocating the use of explosives
Click to expand...
Who advocated the use of explosives?

Regardless, the overwhelming majority of use of explosives in Ireland is in the course of legitimate pursuits, be that mining, military training, hunting, very occasionally in demolition, etc.. I don't think too many interested in illicit or illegal use would be too interested in registering a .ie domain.

The state of the climate is far more upsetting and triggering to many more people, that doesn't mean it should never be mentioned. I mean we'd have to ban all talk of the weather!
 
Last edited:
I didn’t say I never used the site. I did keep it updated for 25 years and used it for advertising purposes. It was created to give information and background on my business long before Facebook, and other social media sites became popular. It also was quite unusual at the time around 2001 for my industry (and a small business) to have a website at that time, so it also showcased it as progressive and current.

Anytime, I ever gave my email address to suppliers, other industry professionals or banks etc.. I was always met with disbelief that I owned that particular domain. Hence, I believe there is a possible value to it and huge potential to develop it.

I have now ceased trading and are tidying up loose ends and would like to dispose of it.

I don’t want to advertise here as I believe this is not a marketplace forum, hence why I never named the domain in the first place but I will take on board your helpful suggestions.

Thank you again for your replies.
 
Do you not get unsolicited emails about it pretending to want to buy it? I get them for askaboutmoney.com from time to time.
 
Brendan Burgess said:
Do you not get unsolicited emails about it pretending to want to buy it? I get them for askaboutmoney.com from time to time.
Click to expand...
Yes, I often do and also wanting to run ads on it. I never went down that road. I treated most of them as spam. I really don’t believe they were genuine offers.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top