Determining Domain Name Value: Part II

In Determining Domain Name Value: Part I, two important aspects of domain name value were discussed. Not only is it necessary to take a name’s extension into consideration when doing an evaluation, but keyword popularity is very important, too.

These two factors are just the tip of the iceberg. There are a variety of other indicators domain experts look at to determine the potential worth of a name.

How long is the name? Is it easy to spell?
The shorter a domain is and the fewer keywords it contains, the more valuable it is in general. Spelling, pronunciation, and brandability are also important. A domain like AttorneyAlley.com is much easier to remember, spell, and pronounce than AmazingAffidavitLawCentral.com, for instance.

A substantial market exists for very short domains, mainly .coms four characters and under as well as other TLDs with only three letters. These domains are not only short and easy to remember, but have great potential because of the large number of businesses and organizations using multi-letter acronyms. And if the three or four-letter name forms something pronounceable, it’s worth even more.

Check past sales.
Perhaps the best indicator of domain value is past sales. In the end, a name is worth only what someone is willing to pay for it. Recent sales figures will not only provide you with more realistic expectations, but can also be used to convince potential buyers that your domain is indeed valuable.

My favorite tool for tracking sale history is DN Sale Price. The database tracks domain sales from 2003 onward. It lets you search using a variety of criteria, such as keywords, length, and price. The best feature is the thesaurus option, which will also show you results for related domains.

Use DN Sale Price not only to see what similar names are selling for, but also to see how other things like the inclusion of a hyphen, TLD, and length affect price. The most recent sales are the best indicators.

Pretend I own a domain called proxymama.com and wish to put it up for auction. No name like it has ever been sold before, but I know it is proxy related and has two keywords. So if I did a search, I would limit results to 2-word .coms and include the keyword “proxy.” If I were selling proxy-mama.com or proxy77.com, it would be useful to include hyphens and numbers in the results. If researching EnglandVacation.net, it would be worthwhile to check “thesaurus” to get results for similar names like EnglandTravel.net or VisitEngland.net

Does the domain have any inbound links or PageRank?
If the domain has been used with a website website before, it’s very possible that it has incoming links and/or Google PageRank. If the name has a PageRank of 4 or above or a substantial number of backlinks, this will increase its value anywhere from 50 to 300 pounds, depending on the niche. When it comes to names already worth thousands of pounds, PageRank and links won’t make much of a difference.

Using both parts of this guide, you too can be a domain name expert. There are companies that will charge you up to one hundred pounds to do a domain name evaluation, but all they do is use the same guidelines mentioned here. Remember, a domain is not just a place to park your website, but a long-term investment.

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