Share Your Domain Investing Predictions for 2014

For many of us, the first Monday in January is the end of the holiday season and it’s back to business. Today is that day, and it’s effectively the start of the new year for me and for my business.

I hate making predictions for the new year, but I know there are people who enjoy making predictions. There are also other people who enjoy reading predictions, and some who enjoy making fun of other people’s predictions 🙂

Yeah, this is sort of a cop out blog post in some ways, but I thought I would open up the floor and let you share your domain investing business predictions for 2014.

There will be many changes in the space in 2014, and I invite you to share your predictions for this new year.

Elliot Silver
Elliot Silver
About The Author: Elliot Silver is an Internet entrepreneur and publisher of DomainInvesting.com. Elliot is also the founder and President of Top Notch Domains, LLC, a company that has closed eight figures in deals. Please read the DomainInvesting.com Terms of Use page for additional information about the publisher, website comment policy, disclosures, and conflicts of interest. Reach out to Elliot: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn
  1. I think .com pricing will remain strong. Pure city .com’s will continue to increase in importance. Google payouts will remain same or stagnant even though Google will post record ad derived revenue.

  2. 1. Many gTLD’s will be surprised to find out just how uninterested the general public is in domains and the new extensions.

    2. Those who have made “Top down” forecasts will be very surprised.
    Example: There are 8 million people who use XXXXX, if just 1% of those buy our .XXXXX domain, we will have 80,000 customers the first year.

    I have seen A LOT of projections like this, but no “Bottom up” forecasts. Explain to us how you will get your FIRST customer and then tell me what it will take to replicate that process.

    Assuming a flood of buyers just because these gTLD’s are available will prove to be foolish, IMO, in 2014.

    Aron

  3. Increased awareness in the space through the roll outs will bring with it a lot of reg fee investors who ignore the advice of spending on quality rather than quantity.

    A number of these new investors will hit all the domain blogs and preach incessantly about the value of .whatever Ad nauseam.

    Retrospectively in 2015-2016 we will see that at least one person, who starts off, investing purely in .whatever became a player in the domain space.

    One of Bitcoin, Facebook or Twitter will be worth 2x as much as it is today, one will lose 80% of its value.

    Bitcoin $1000
    Facebook $56
    Twitter $65

    For posterity (06/01/2014)

  4. My prediction for 2014: GoDaddy continues on a downhill slide for small domain portfolio owners and small business owners. (Large portfolio owners may be spared). Customer Service continues to erode into 2015. Customer Service reps will continue to be less knowledgeable as they have become and be more focused on the “upselling” of products………Example, I am unable to call regarding my portfolio without someone trying to sell me something, they are barely able to answer the basic questions but then want to sell more..??????….Personally I tend to avoid places with such a “cheesy” marketing strategy, so I may be moving in 2014………

  5. 2013 was a great year for selling Premium Domain names and I personally feel that the overall Domaining Aftermarket will continue to increase and result in the highest gross dollar volume to date in 2014. The excitement over GTLDs is causing end-user businesses who previously had not considered purchasing high-end domain names to start spending significant amounts on their online identity. This in turn will translate in to not only GTLD sales but in increased pricing and sales volume of .COM domains. 2014 will be another exciting year for the Domain Investing community.

    (CCTLDs will also be an interesting thing to keep an eye on)

  6. 1)My prediction is the majority GTL’S registrants will be domainers and only a small fraction end users, And by years ends, domainers will again regret their investments.

    2)Dot com sales will continue to be strong, completely unscathed by GTLD’s

    3)Namescon will set a new precedent where TRAFFIC will have no choice but to follow in their lead.. For once, Rick and Howard will actually be organizing conventions for the benefit of the industry instead of themselves.

    4)With the introduction of GTD’S, Domain Forums will accelerate their decline in member participation, Yes, the site with 330,69 members and only 142 ACTIVE members will be reduced to under 100, most of which will be noobs.

    5).Net and .Org sales will have their highest sales year on record… Get ready DNJ.

    6) We had 40 Million uninsured Americans before Obamacare, we will have well over 100 Million uninsured by years end.

  7. I think the new domain extensions are going to be harder to convince the population to accept than what companies/domainers are hoping for and can even see it resulting in confusion for normal users. We’ve been down this road before in the domain industry so we’ll see if history repeats itself. Hopefully not because if this fails then it’s going to be on a much more massive scale.

    Personally, I’m pretty excited to see what Fashion Metric brings for Morgan & Daina Linton in 2014. They’ve done such a good job with their start up and I think we might be seeing them all over the news this year.

  8. Many domain investors will be taking a close review of the names that they registered in the new gTLD space trying to determine if there is any value in the names, as renewal time approaches.

    Domain name development will steadily increase as many portfolio holders will start to explore this avenue to unlock value in their names. Think about this. If one to two percent of the existing TLD’sand cctld’s that are registered and parked, were to be developed into website’s and business, the new gtld’s would be up against a force that few would have planned for or anticipated. The ultimate success of the new gtld’s will how many are developed and promoted. I do not anticipate that investors that have considerable dollars and time invested in their portfolios to just lay down and let the new kids on the block erode the value of their holdings.

    The Leafs will win the Stanley Cup……HaHa The day that happens I will register a .sucks (I’m a habs fan)

  9. I feel that hobbyist domain holders will continue to realize that 90% of their portfolio is even less valuable.

    I think that more website builders will pop up, and more people will start using microblogging platforms instead of focusing as much on their domain name itself.

    Why buy a big .com when you can get the same exposure from a solid marketing campaign?

  10. I do not reinvent the wheel. I am aware of a small group of savvy North Americans who have invested or more apply described as taken a first charge on the English / Hindi speaking future 1.3 billion domain markets. Interesting future market where currently the bollywood bunch feed off a small pond, home consumers must develop or GNP will die and western democracies cannot allow that to happen !!!

  11. 2014 will usher in new best practices and innovative methods for selling premium domains. Brokerage firms who are committed to building external social media “distribution” systems to strategically align buyers and sellers will have a strategic advantage. There has been too much emphasis on building proprietary domain marketplaces vs. external media distribution outlets that enable domain sellers to reach qualified end-user audiences in new ways. Domain brokers will need to start taking on more risk for their clients and become “marketing partners” by approaching the business much like an agency relationship.

    Traditional methods for selling domains such as call centers which employ large groups of sales reps is now an outdated sales practice. Small is the new big. The reason for this is that the role of the Domain Broker has evolved. This profession now requires a unique combination of skillsets such as executive level consulting, sales & marketing expertise, a proven sales track record and most importantly a trusted network of “c” level contacts across multiple industries. It’s that personal relationship that a broker might have with a venture capitalist that can bring offers to the table or connect them to other key influencers when needed. Look for an emphasis on broker training and education this year as domain sales will increase in importance to portfolio holders.

    Domain brokers will now have an opportunity to play a role in gTLD pre-sales, however I believe that the adoption lifecycle is probably 5 – 7 years away for the small handful that gain traction. Premium domain sales will remain robust in 2014, and outpace 2013 in terms of overall sales volume, however it’s my hunch that if all reported and non-reported premium sales were tallied together as an aggregate, (which is impossible due to NDA’s) the average sales price of premium domains would see a decrease in value compared to prior years. This is based on the vast amount of unreported premium domain sales which are divested and simply not accounted for but none-the-less still makes up a large portion of the domain ecosystem.

    Domain sales will remain healthy, however buyer-side demand will play an increased role in valuation.

  12. Amazon and Google buy up most of the top gTLDs, and hold most of them for their own corporate use.

    ICANN finds a way to spend nearly all of the gTLD money on meetings and staff, leaving very little to help poorer nations develop their internet connectivity.

    Numeric and 2 – 4 letter .Coms get more interest, the rest of the .Com aftermarket continues about the same, then starts booming in a year or so as people begin to realize the value of “Main Street” and fears of .whatever prove exaggerated.

    SeaHawks win the SuperBowl. Tip- the Hawks have a wide receiver, Percy Harvin, who has been injured all year. He may be OK for the playoffs. If he is, watch out!

  13. 2014 will be the year that Corporate America really (and belatedly) notices the new TLDs … now that the rollout is finally happening. I expect there will be a lot of confusion, even panic, as corporate marketers try to wrap their heads around this brave new world of hundreds of new .whatevers. Confusion and panic, however, spells opportunity for many of us. This will be a great year if you’re a lawyer, consultant, marketer, or professional domain broker.

  14. If the last two weeks are any indication of what’s in store for 2014, then it’s going to be another big year for premium domain sales. One thing the GTLD rollout is providing is an increase in general awareness which is always a good thing. Whether it’s a CNOBI or a new TLD, companies want and need new brands, investors will be looking for new opportunities, and owners will want to maximize sale prices. As long as this pattern continues, and the economy stays strong, there will be ample opportunity for professional industry players who are consistently producing positive results for their clients.

  15. Be a great time to buy .com’s as there will be SOME panic sellers selling at low prices with all the new .whatevers hitting the market.

    N, NN, NNN, NNNN will increase in value in .com, as will L, LL, LLL, and CVCV LLLL will become stronger and increase in value in .com and in the case of L, N, in .tv, such I have personally seen with Chinese buyers on my LLLL.com’s, and mine P.tv, and 9.tv. Chinese is really going after this short market, especially .com’s and .tv’s.

    History will repeat itself with all the gTLD’s coming out, 95% domainers will get burned, but won’t realized that until 2015, and see what % renew which will show how bad most will do.

    Google will continue to “F*ck people, domainers will say this is the year they will develop and than 95% won’t.

    Rick Swartz will get another 7 figure sale.

    Michael Berkens who brokers many of my names will continue to be the greatest and nicest guy in the industry along with Elliott Silver.

    My wife will bitch at me everytime I buy a domain, but than love me when I sell a domain(lol)

    Still waiting for IDN’s in Chinese, Korean, Japanese to do something, bought mine in 2000, and losing hope.

    Virtual Currency, Bitcoin, but many others as well is going to play a HUGE ROLE as a payment method and I personally haven’t seen a WORLDWIDE movement like this since I been buying domains since 1998, and that is where I am putting my money on.

    Should be an exciting year, won’t be going to any domain conferences this year, except DBR fest which is lot’s of fun!

    Thanks, Jim Holleran

  16. * Dot com’s will hold (if not increase in value)

    * Geo-Based dot com’s will hold (if not increase in value)

    * A few Geo-based gtld’s may prove to have value.

    * Most new gtld’s will be incredibly poor investments.

    In summary: Most new gtld’s will be a hard sale to not only investors when they go live, but also to small business owners. Why? because most proponents of the new gtld’s seem to be overlooking the fact that the new extensions will likely not resonate with most small business owners. If they don’t resonate with business owners, then you can be certain that their customers will care even less. I predict that by the time any of the new gtld’s gain enough traction to “shake up” the dot com market (10-15 years from now) as others have predicted, there will probably already be a paradigm shift in how we use technology to communicate, making domain names and domain investing, obsolete.

  17. I predict the following for 2014-2015:

    1. Many gtld registrars will hold back the good names to prevent them from being scooped up by those wascally non-developing domainers.

    2. The same registrars will then try to auction or sell the premium names for big bucks.

    3. Sensing a lack of public interest (See Tia Wood’s insightful comment above), domainers will not participate and, soon thereafter, the gtld’s will all fail and die horrible deaths.

    4. I predict that .Tattoo will get under 10 legitimate registrations.

    5. I predict that .Club will get under 14 legitimate registrations.

    6. I predict that .Sexy will get under 15 legitimate registrations.

    7. I predict that .Restaurant will get under 8 legitimate registrations.

    8. I predict that .Construction will get under 7 legitimate registrations.

    9. I predict that anyone who bought and developed a .whatever will get burned when their house of paper-thin cards built on a flawed foundation comes crumbling down and their gtld sponsoring registrar ultimately pulls the plug on the financially non-performing gtld.

    10. Those who stayed in the .com space will come out unscathed and see their cyber property escalate in value.

    11. Those who attended NamesCon will all wish they had taken the airfare, hotel, taxi and convention registration money and, instead, purchased one good .com.

    I predict the following for 2015-2016:

    12. Banks will recognize domains as valuable collateral and will make loans against .com names.

    13. Just as it is normal to get a mortgage on physical property, it will be possible to obtain a mortgage on a .com.

    14. It will become a necessary evil to obtain such a loan for those graduating college who want to be taken seriously online. Alternatives such as .net and .org will still exist and cost less, but if you want to be taken seriously, you will need to have a .com extension.

    15. Google and Amazon will use their gtld portfolio solely to provide free email addresses to their customers, .LOL!

    16. It will be disclosed that the money that ICANN reserved for legal fees will not be nearly sufficient to deal with the flood of claims originating from failed businesses, most of whom claim that ICANN knew or should have known that the gtld concept was ill-thought out from day one.

    17. The facts will show that the claimants are correct.

  18. Here are some of my predictions.

    – gtlds will have slow uptake in 2014. Most domainers have become de-sensitized to new tld landrushes and won’t fully participate as with previous landrushes like .mobi, .me, .co, etc. Most businesses and people who need a domain name have one right now. The new gtlds will depend on NEW businesses to adopt them, which is a much smaller pool to draw from, plus many of those will choose an existing legacy extension.

    – I predict I may buy a few gtld’s if I can get a really good word to match the extension (e.g.: NewYork.homes, Insurance.web)

    – .com sales will continue to be strong, but I’ll still look at many sales on the DNJournal weekly chart and wonder how THAT domain could sell for SO much, or SO little.

    – Country Code domains will continue to be the next biggest leader in domain sales, after .com.

    – Lots of public confusion in 2014 over all the new gtlds, leading to mis-directed traffic.

    – Record UDRP’s, RDNH attempts, and domain disputes.

    – More exciting ways to engage in social networking.

    – Google, Apple and Facebook will buy more startup companies.

    – SnapChat will regret not taking the $3 or $4 billion dollar offer.

    – Greater awareness of the potential of Chinese internet companies, and their stocks/shares.

    – One or two more tech startups no one has heard of now will have billion $$$ valuations before the end of 2014.

    – Gold and precious metals prices will bounce back.

    – Winter Olympics will be great. Hockey gold for Canada!

    – World Cup in Brazil will be an awesome display of soccer talent!

  19. just what exactly is a premium domain

    a single dictionary word or 3 letter or a geo long tail that makes sense

    looking at the godaddy auction results i am flabbergasted at what some people will pay thousands for and wonder just what they will ever do with these domain names.

    I personally don’t think the new tld’s have a snowballs chance in hell but i also believe some of the so called premium dot com’s are just as useless.

    domain investors may make lots of money selling stupid names to other domain investors, but why would an end user ever want a name that means nothing but just happens to have a couple of dictionary words.

    I believe that the future for the domain industry will be in domain names that make sense to end users regardless of the fact that domain investors might view them as non premium, as my mother used to say: beauty is in the eye of the beholder not in the rhetoric of the investor who only wants a pay day.

  20. So many predictions; so little time!

    (1) New gTLDs will usher in a new golden age for Phishing scams. These will become so widespread that the mainstream media will begin to cover them. Consumers will begin to associate new gTLDs with scams. Such hesitation will ultimately be felt by the companies who have branded themselves or their marketing campaigns on untrusted, untested extensions. So, after initial curiosity, many people will recoil from novelty extensions.

    (2) Registries and registrars will ply prominent domain brokers and bloggers with lucrative incentives to promote their new extensions. Not all bloggers will allow their views to be distorted by the money, but most will. As a result of this, blog readers and average domainers will be lured into spending more money than they ought to on new-extension speculation. As domainers divert their funds to speculation in new gTLD channels, the wholesale domain market will become very depressed. Domainers’ money will be spread so thin that the domainer-to-domainer trading prices will reach an all-time low. Smart investors will save their money and buy up premium .COM domains from domainers desperate to liquidate their inventory.

    (3) Business owners will react with hostility to overtures from registries and individual domainers to sell them the Left.Right that matches the LeftRight.com they’ve been using for years. The public’s perception will be that this is a form of extortion. And this will taint the reputation of the domain industry as a whole.

    (4) Businesses that experiment with Left.Right domains will decide by the end of 2014 that they actually need the LeftRight.com domain as well. They’ll react with frustration when they realize the LeftRight.com domain was available before the “new opportunity” of their chosen novelty extension was introduced. By now the .COM’s price will be higher, since they’ve clearly committed to the novelty extension version. So consumers will begin to realize (mostly too late) that, far from introducing a new opportunity, this new gTLD initiative actually represents a new tax.

    (5) Out of consumer frustration, we’ll see a sharp rise in UDRPs filed by people using Left.Right domains who want the LeftRight.com version they originally fail to procure.

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