Nick, We have recently been contacted by a potential buyer. He is insisting that we pay for a third-party domain appraisal and that this appraisal be "manual" and not "automated". It’s my opinion that a domain or any “property†is only worth what a buyer is willing to pay for it and nothing more. Not what an appraiser or an mathematical equation says its worth. This view is reflected in a great article I found yesterday here http://www.igoldrush.com/sell1.htm . I would love to know your opinion on a couple matters: • Is it common for the domain seller to pay for an expensive, third-party appraisal before selling a domain? • What reputable, manual domain appraisal services do you recommend? How about Godaddy Certified Domain Appraisal? • What does a “Complete Domain Package†consist of? .com, .net., org, plurals, misspellings, anything else? • How much value is added to a domain when you have the “Complete Domain Package� 10%, 50%, 100% or more?
Forgive my ignorance and naiveté but what would be the point? What would he get out of this futile exercise? Simply "chucks and giggles"?
If it is a scam the scammer insists on the appraiser which he just happens to own. It may be legit, just be carefull, you pick the appraiser, better yet, have him pay, if he's truly interested in the site it shouldn't be a problem.
So in your opinion the buyer should always be the one paying for the appraisal? This makes much more sense to me but I wasn't sure which was the industry practice.
Personally I wouldn't pay for an appraisal if someone contacted me to buy my domain, there are instances where I might pay, but this isn't one of them.
Could you please give me an example of an instance when you would be willing to pay $50+ for a manual domain appraisal? What would be your criteria?
I'm very thankful for the valuable advice I've received so far but does anyone else have anything to add to this discussion and to my original question above?
No I can't, I really can't see myself doing that. I know how to estimate the worth of a site. I guess if I wanted to list my site for sale somewhere I might get it valued, but never at someone's request at my expense.
I'm with Roman on this. If they really have an interest in your site they should pay for it to be appraised. Keep your guard up
Thanks guys! I'm going to take your advice and suggest this buyer pays for the appraisal. Good advice from good guys, thank again!
Got your PM. I have tried my best to appraise the names. But still it will depend on you that for how much you wanna sell it.
• Is it common for the domain seller to pay for an expensive, third-party appraisal before selling a domain? It is not a common practice, however some sellers still go for it seeing the benefits of having an appraisal done, because after a good appraisal they know whether the domain is fit for being sold or not, whether it would actually sell, whether the domain will even get buyers, whether the domain needs development and the estimated selling price. Most of the sellers although, dont go for paid appraisals • What reputable, manual domain appraisal services do you recommend? How about Godaddy Certified Domain Appraisal? I would recommend GoDaddy in the first place because it is one of the most reputable online firms and the appraisals are pretty cheap too, they have those manual and automated appraisal choices, with the automated one being very cheap, so yes I will recommend GoDaddy. • What does a “Complete Domain Package†consist of? .com, .net., org, plurals, misspellings, anything else? A complete Domain Package excluding the website should consist of the following extensions - .com, .net, .org, .biz and .info, misspellings are not essential, although they contribute a good deal to the aura of the package, you must include the plurals ONLY if you think they can be used in confusion or in general practice. Also you must include a possible development article about the domains, as to how they can be developed, this often gives the potential buyer a good insight about the domain names and the future business possibilities with them. • How much value is added to a domain when you have the “Complete Domain Package� 10%, 50%, 100% or more? In my opinion, at least 70% more value is added to the domain when you have the full package as prescribed by me above, because it adds a good new glow to the domain name itself and the person buying it gets some real good value for the name. It gives you a good name in the domain selling business too in case the buyer is going to do some mouth to mouth publicity or if you are going to advertise your "previous sold domains". I hope I helped with my post, these are just a few guidelines towards selling domain names but I am sure they will help you a lot, if they do, add to my rep IT
• Is it common for the domain seller to pay for an expensive, third-party appraisal before selling a domain? - No it is not common But it is a common scam nowadays. • What reputable, manual domain appraisal services do you recommend? - None bcoz most are scammers. I have been cheated many times. The owner of domain name decides what it will get. EX: If I am owner of juhy.com and I think it is worth 1000 millions then it is worth 1000 millions to me. No matter what other tell me. • What does a “Complete Domain Package†consist of? .com, .net., org, plurals, misspellings, anything else? - A complete domain package is just another word invented by some domainers to stay in the market. In real all that matters is the .com version of that particular domain. Bcoz no matter what how many new tld's come in the market. Only .coms will be at the top. • How much value is added to a domain when you have the “Complete Domain Package� 10%, 50%, 100% or more? - I think 10 to 15 % only.
Potential buyer asking for an appraisal? This is a scam that has been going around for years. A genuine buyer is interested in your domain because of what he sees in the name not because some appraiser says it's valuable. Believe me, a ge=nuine buyer will not insist on an appraisal. It is NOT at all common to pay for an appraisal before a sale. Don't fall for it. For MOST domains, a 'complete domain package' is meaningless and carries very little value. If you have a good domain like single words or domains that target a specific commercial niche, then the other TLDs like .net, .org etc would have value. Plurals depends on the word and misspellings are only worthwhile to consider if it also common to mistype the words like 'downlaod' instead of 'download'.
Well read roman ... I've seen this several times over the last few years. If a buyer is truly interested, they already know what it is worth to them; beauty (and price therefore) is in the eye of the beholder (buyer). When in doubt, even when an appraisal already exists, a serious buyer would much rather do an appraisal of their choosing and expense for an objective look.
Can I disclose this scammer's information in this forum to help others know and avoid him/her in the future?
I see no harm in that; you're merely posting information as it was given to you. Further, liable or slander claims must substaniate untruths and giving the information as provided to you and even any opinions about it are not lies. I can say that I think that the information Acme Company sent me is a scam - that's my opinion, not stated as a fact, and hence neither slanderous or liable. Besides, sharing the information might help others
I share the same opinion so here is here all the information I could dig up about this scammer: TG Technologies [topmanagement@ToughGuy.net] Robert Hegglund, Ph. D. President TG Technologies
If someone sees value to your domain then he will ask for appraisal from various sources ( and pay for this ) It's logical to ask for the market value so that he will not be abused from your deal The 99% of the people asking for appraisal ( especially if they indicate their "favorite" appraisal site ) are scams However if you have doubts tell them that you work with professional reputable appraisal sources and suggest them sedo If they insist to their suggested site tell them that if they want to have the domain this is the only way Also remember that : 1. As domainers increase their numbers they create a target group for other people trying to exploit their weak point, the offer. Many domainers acquire some domains, hold them, nobody shows interest and then drop them. If in this time someone asks to buy one they get overexcited and many times become victims of scams. So keep your heart beat to normal levels and with a little help and luck everything will be fine 2. Appraisals are estimation from people that they work everyday with domains. Even if they tell you their opinion this is the "wholesale" price. Finding the proper end buyer may boost this number a lot