Here’s probably somewhat of an obvious statement, but it deserves reiterating so we’ll say it: if you’ve got a business, you’ve got assets.
When it comes to your business assets, you probably already have quite the inventory. Depending on the niche of your business, this can be an extensive inventory that includes properties, vehicles you use just for work, and of course, that expensive office equipment and furniture.
However, don’t forget about the internet. You should also be considering your virtual assets, especially any domain names you own or acquire.
Digital Property is Essentially Real Estate
In the physical world, we know that real estate is considered a primary asset for people and businesses. As virtual goods (which notably includes both content and cryptocurrency, by the way) continue to gain and hold real value, it’s vital to consider your digital property among your assets, including domain names.
Assessing the Value of Your Domains
Sure, having a hunch is helpful, but how on earth do you value the domain names you already own (or may acquire from an existing owner)? Let’s look into your top two options:
- Research domain sales that occurred recently. Here’s an outstanding article from Inc. on domain name value. Keep track of various domain name trends with multiple resources available on the internet.
- Get an estimate. SitePrice, EstiBot, and Website Outlook can help you, as can researching the domain name price directly on sites like GoDaddy.
Know Your Trends
Finding the perfect domain has to do with understanding trends is about more than spotting the emerging trends on Google and on-site evaluators. Niche knowledge happens ahead of the fact, meaning you are the best resource to predict what will work. By this, we mean that when you see innovation in your industry, purchase those low-cost domains.
There is a chance they won’t be worth much, but you can always redirect them to your primary niche sites and increase their value. Additionally, there’s also a chance they will increase in value over time, which makes them an asset that you can retain or sell.
Should You Invest in Domain Names?
If you’re wondering if you should invest in domain names, it depends. But most of the time, the answer is yes.
If you have a knack for finding or generating domain name ideas that increase in value over time this might be an area that you can excel. Domain names are considered low-risk, low-cost investments in most instances. If you have even just $100 to invest, go ahead and try buying ten domain names through GoDaddy.
If you’re good at assessing trends in digital property, you may even see an increase in value over the next year or so – and the SEO value is excellent, as it can always point to your existing domains.
Why Do Some Domain Names Have Value?
In addition to trends, domain names can hold value for other reasons. Having a prime keyword in the domain can increase the entire SEO value of a page. If you sell handcrafted wooden chairs, it makes sense to purchase “handcraftedwoodenchairs.com” and “woodchairs.com.” You may want to choose something with local value like “woodchairsmontana.com.”
If you’re starting from scratch, choose the domain name with the most SEO value. The shortest, and easiest to remember should function as your primary domain name. Your other domains can redirect to your primary site or exist as separate sites with inbound blog content.
Changes in Digital Property Value
In the physical world, property value changes based upon a variety of factors including:
- Trendy hot spots
- The popularity or negative public opinion of the real estate owner
- Changes in the features of the property (buildings, adding a pool, landscaping)
Naturally, you should transfer these considerations to all of your assets. Think about how that translates to your digital property. For example, if public opinion about the domain name owner changes, so does the potential value of the domain and its brand.
Features are equally important. Consider these “features” of a digital property:
- Web copy
- Blog content
- Images with proper alt-tags
- Localized content
- And all the traffic, discussion, visitors, and user-generated content generated on the site
So remember: you can increase the value of your domain with whatever you include on the site. Even if you sell the site without the content, the property value will increase. This idea is similar to teardown properties, which are still actually pretty standard in certain areas.
Are You Ready to Assess and Invest?
If you’re ready to seriously consider your URLs as investments, you have three things to consider:
- Domains you own (and want to keep)
- Domains you may wish to transfer (sell)
- Domains you want to buy
Remember: it’s just like physical real estate. A real estate investor will have properties they want to retain for business or personal use, some they might want to sell, and others they want to invest in and grow.
Monetary value may determine what you want to keep and sell, but there’s more to it than that. You should strongly consider holding on to URLs with:
- Localization
- Branded keywords
- Your name
Track Your Domain Name Value
Like real property and the real-life stock market, you need to keep your eye on the market when it comes to your digital properties. Values can fluctuate.
Tracking domain value is also critical because assets bring with them other concerns and benefits, such as insurance and even mortgage value. Consider this: if your domain is highly valued and stable in price, why wouldn’t you be able to borrow against it just as you would a physical property?
The world is changing, and with more TLDs (top-level domains) becoming available, it’s an easy way for a creative person or niche expert to make an immediate, impactful investment.
TLDs are different domain name extensions (.com, .us, .biz, .club, .marketing) which you can purchase to connect to your hosted site.
The Reality of Domain Name Value and Investment
Regardless of what GoDaddy tells you, most domain names aren’t worth that much. However, some have real value, and it is even possible to borrow against the value of your domain name. For this reason, it’s best to select domain names that can make money for you while you’re waiting for their value to increase. This way, you can still make money while considering selling or transferring your domain down the road.
Ultimately, if you have a marketing brand, pick items that can redirect to your existing properties so they’re good investments no matter what you do with them in the future.
SEO Meets Domains and Value Explodes
Purchasing domains can provide ample opportunities and even possibly generate increased value, but remember that SEO is one of the ultimate means of value building in regards to providing heightened value to any of your domain names. Let us help you build the value you deserve and give your business the push it needs in the right direction digitally.
Contact Romain Berg for help with all of your e-commerce and SEO needs. We’re excited to work with you.