however, in order to find out if you ’ re sitting on valuable digital real number estate, you ’ ll need to know what makes a domain valuable in the first position. fortunately, this is not closely as complex or time-consuming to figure out as you might expect. In practice, estimating the value of your domains plainly requires you to do a little research .
In this article, we ’ ll discuss the importance of domain evaluation. We ’ ll besides explore some of the most critical factors that determine a domain ’ second worth, and show you what you can do to estimate your own sphere ’ sulfur price. Let ’ s arrive started !
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An Introduction to Domain Valuation
Whether you ’ re planning on selling a domain, or you merely want to know how much one you own is worth, you ’ ll be looking to perform a process called domain valuation. This can besides be referred to as domain appraisal, but the principle remains the lapp. Either way, this is a method acting for estimating the value of a specific domain list .
Before moving on, let ’ s promptly recap some sphere name basics. A knowledge domain name refers to the main part of a site ’ randomness URL, which visitors use to entree the main page of that web site. For exemplar, our world list is dreamhost.com .
In turn, a knowledge domain list consists of two primary components :
- Second-Level Domain (SLD): This refers to the independent part of the URL, which most normally contains the identify of the web site or the commercial enterprise that owns it. In our model, this is “ dreamhost ” .
- Top-Level Domain (TLD): This is what comes at the end of the world diagnose, which in our lawsuit is .com. There are hundreds of TLDs available to use, but some of the most popular include .com , .net , .org , .gov, and .edu .
To add a world name to your web site, you ’ ll want to register one with a seller known as a knowledge domain registrar. You can besides buy sphere names from respective hosting companies. In fact, DreamHost specializes in domains by providing an easy interface to search for, purchase, and manage your assets. This can be particularly useful if you want to get your web site host and domains from the same supplier and keep the administration of your stallion web site under one roof .
once you ’ ve purchased a world name and linked it to your locate, you ’ ll much give it little more attention. however, sometimes it ’ randomness worth finding out how valuable a knowledge domain you own is. The independent cause to do this is when you ’ re considering selling a world you ’ re not using, or one you no longer need. In these cases, it ’ south smart to find out how much your sphere is deserving ahead of time, so you know if you ’ re sell it at a fair price .
What Makes a Domain Name Valuable
Regardless of your reasons for wanting to find out, estimating the value of a sphere doesn ’ t have to be excessively unmanageable. however, it will ask you to understand what makes a domain desirable in the inaugural target .
Of course, it ’ randomness significant to note that as with most evaluations of this nature, this is not an demand science. A domain will always be worth what people are will to pay for it, and the bottom wrinkle is that sometimes the theory may not line up with the practical reality. By calculating the estimated worth, however, you ’ ra providing yourself with a handy baseline — so you don ’ t end up selling a valuable domain for pennies .
With that in mind, let ’ s look at some of the features by and large considered important when it comes to domain names. These include :
- The Top-Level Domain. A domain’s TLD can be a big part of what makes it desirable. For example, .com remains the most democratic option ( as it ’ second recognizable and coarse ), indeed many buyers will gravitate towards it. however, newer alternatives can besides become trendy ( and valuable ) .
- Popularity and traffic. If the domain name is presently used for a particular web site, the level of traffic that site receives can become a vital factor in calculating the knowledge domain ’ s worth. The reason for this is reasonably square. If the domain comes with an existing audience attached, the buyer can leverage that dealings for their site good away. If the domain has been active for a while, this can besides help its Search Engine Optimization ( SEO ) for the new owner, which may make it even more appeal .
- Keywords. Including the right keywords in your sphere name is another crucial aspect of SEO. According to a study by Higher visibility, in most industries, a majority of sites include high-quality keywords in their domains. For example, the top-rated web site for the search engine question “ hotel ” is www.hotels.com. As such, if your domain contains a desirable keyword, this could increase its value .
- Brandability. While a world ’ randomness brandability can be very difficult to define, it ’ second besides an crucial retainer many site owners make when choosing a name. Many of the most travel to websites in the universe have clear, memorable, and alone domains, such as twitter.com , youtube.com, and facebook.com. If your world is similarly catchy and attention-grabbing, it may make buyers take special poster .
- Spelling. This may seem obvious, but making sure your domain is spelled correctly can be critical. After all, few buyers will be swayed to use something that looks sloppy and unprofessional. At the same time, using unexpected spell can sometimes be a benefit, as it could make the world more brandable. For exemplar,
fiverr.com and tumblr.com have taken technically wrong spellings and used them to create memorable, durable brands .
- Length. A general rule of thumb is that the shorter a world is, the more people will pay for it. This international relations and security network ’ metric ton always the shell – brevity alone international relations and security network ’ t going to make an otherwise awkward sphere like zz0xy2c.org more appealing to potential buyers. however, a concise sphere is frequently considered rare and therefore more valuable. This is due to shorter domains being more memorable, easier to share, and more marketable .
These points are all worth paying attention to as you research your domain ’ s likely value. however, remember that there are no guarantees, and that the measure of a world can shift dramatically over time .
Related: The Top 11 SEO Best Practices for Domains
How to Determine the Value of Your Domain Name (In 3 Steps)
theory is all well and good, but to find out how much your sphere might be worth, you ’ ll need to get hardheaded. To do this, we ’ rhenium going to show you how to perform a world evaluation in three simple steps .
Bear in mind that these steps don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate need to be performed all at the same time or in this specific order. however, what follows is a commend process that can help you get a clear and comprehensive understand of your sphere ’ sulfur worth. Let ’ s pay back started !
Step 1: Research What Similar Domains Are Sold For
To figure out what people may be bequeath to pay for your domain identify, you need to know what people are charging for similar domains. We mentioned earlier that the value of a given domain can shift dramatically over fourth dimension, so you credibly can ’ t use what you initially paid for the knowledge domain as a baseline .
At this stage, you will need to do some dig to see what domain names are presently being sold for and compare them to the ones you own. fortunately, several sites collect data about domain sales. One of these is DN Journal, which can tell you about the past three weeks ’ highest reported sales .
Another locate that does something similar is Domain Name Wire. On its blog, you can find regular roundups of big, late knowledge domain sales .
If your sphere is concise, you may find ShortNames specially utilitarian. This web site besides collects recent sales, but specializes in ( you guessed it ) short world names .
These sites are all handy resources to help you track what names are selling for the highest amounts. For case, if we take a look at the most recent list provided by DN Journal ( at the time of this publish ), we can spot respective domains that match the criterion we outlined earlier .
Featured prominently in this list are short, memorable, clear, and keyword-heavy domains. If one of your domains is very exchangeable, you might be sitting on a electric potential goldmine. These roundups can besides help you catch late trends in knowledge domain names .
however, if you want to find data about sales for domains that are more directly comparable to yours, you will need to dig a little deep. Let ’ s look at how to do that adjacent .
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Step 2: Use an Appraisal Service
A domain appraisal avail is precisely what it sounds like. It ’ s a web site that enables you to find information about your world, helping you estimate its value and compare it to similar names .
This kind of service will do a draw of the hard work for you. It automatically compares your domain against similar names and collects information about what those early domains sold for. It will besides measure your domain ’ randomness worth, based on many of the factors we outlined previously. If you ’ rhenium serious about putting an calculate price on your domain, this is one of the easiest methods for getting an educated answer .
While there are many appraisal sites you can use, we ’ ra going to look specifically at one of the most long-familiar. Say hello to EstiBot .
EstiBot is the most widely used sphere appraisal tool, with over two million appraisals performed on a daily basis. To try it for yourself, you can start by entering the domain you want to check in the field on the home page and clicking Appraise .
At that point, you should be presented with a composition on the specified sphere .
At the exceed of the page, you ’ ll see the estimated respect and some basic information about the sphere. however, if you scroll down, you ’ ll find more details regarding how EstiBot arrived at this value. For example, you can see the total amounts that similar domains sold for .
You can besides view a huge sum of statistics and analytics for the sphere, giving you an even clearer picture of its ultimate worth .
All of this data should give you a pretty effective picture of what you could potentially ask for your domain. You may besides want to use some appraisal tools to get an even better average, by comparing their different evaluations. For this, you could use DomainIndex and NamePros, to name a few options .
This should provide you with a substantial theoretical value for your world. however, as we ’ ve already mentioned, a knowledge domain ’ s real value is what person is actually volition to pay for it. As such, if you want a definite answer, you may need to go heterosexual to your likely buyers .
Related: The (Many) Hidden Costs of Cheap Domains
Step 3: Find Out What People Are Willing to Pay for Your Domain Name
Taking the time to do inquiry and use appraisal tools will undoubtedly be utilitarian. This gives you an theme of the electric potential price you may be able to charge for your domain. however, it ’ mho often best to go heterosexual to electric potential buyers for a authoritative answer .
For exemplify, a sphere could theoretically tick many of the boxes we outlined earlier, but inactive not be one that people are lament to purchase. It could be that the domain simply international relations and security network ’ thymine relevant to anyone, is excessively similar to an existing big web site, or it has an unfortunate connotation that makes it less desirable .
On the flip side, the face-to-face could besides be true. A domain that shouldn’t be peculiarly valuable might be fair what a particular web site owner is looking for. This can make it much more lucrative than anticipated .
The best room to find these things out is by putting the sphere name up for sale. That might sound drastic, specially if you don ’ t actually want to lose the domain just yet, but it doesn ’ t have to be a risk. In fact, many sites that enable you to buy and sell domains will besides let you set a military reserve monetary value for them. If you ’ ve ever sold anything on eBay before, this should be a familiar concept .
basically, a modesty price is a visualize you specify that serves as the minimum price you will accept. If the reserve is not matched or exceeded by any offers, the auction ends without a transaction actually taking place. This lets you put up a domain for auction and see what people are will to pay, without the gamble of selling the domain for less than you ’ rhenium meet .
Let ’ s try this out for ourselves to illustrate the serve. The site we ’ ll consumption is Flippa, which is an on-line market for domains .
To get started, you ’ ll need to sign up for an account. Bear in judgment that while accounts are free, actually selling a sphere costs at least $ 9 per list. As such, you should lone do this if you ’ ra bequeath to spend a fiddling money on valuing your world. other sites vary, but most charge like token fees .
If you decide that the cost of entry is worth it, click Sign Up on Flippa ’ randomness home page and enter your personal details .
You ’ ll then receive a confirmation e-mail to activate your account. Click on the attached link and you ’ ll be taken back to Flippa, where you ’ ll be asked if you ’ re signing up as a buyer or a seller .
naturally, you ’ ll want to select the latter option for now. When you do indeed, you ’ ll be asked some far questions, so add in your details as appropriate .
once you ’ ve done that, you ’ re ready to start selling. Select the Domains option, and enter the world you want to value in the text field that ’ s provided .
The following mistreat entails providing information about the domain and how you want to sell it. You should select the Auction method, as this will let other users set whatever monetary value they ’ ra volition to pay .
You besides need to specify a duration for your auction. fourteen days should generally be enough to give you a good estimate of your domain name ’ s rate. then, towards the bottom of the page, you can besides set the domain ’ s get down price and your Reserve price .
If you don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate want to sell the domain under any circumstances, you should set this value very high. In summation, make certain that the Show reserve price option is not checked, as users will differently be able to see it. Bear in mind that the highest you can set a military reserve monetary value on Flippa is $ 10,000 .
The adjacent few steps in this work will ask how much you want to pay for the list, which determines its visibility. Stick with the cheapest option for now, and provide your payment details .
once you ’ ve provided all your details, you can verify your list. When this is done, it will appear on the site, where other users will be able to bid on it.
You can now sit back and watch as the bids roll in, giving you an accurate estimate of your world ’ mho value to real users. If you ’ ra golden, person will take a fancy to your sphere, and may even bid above the reserve correctly away. Either way, at the end of this action you should have a much clearer estimate of how a lot your domain name is worth .
Valuation Nation
Whether you want to or plainly find out what it ’ randomness, performing will help you find the answer. By understanding what factors are essential in determining a knowledge domain ’ s measure and conducting a little research, you can promptly learn how badly other people might want to own it .
Do you have any questions about estimating the prize of a domain identify or sphere flip ? Join the DreamHost Community and start the conversation !
