As he usually does, Sahar Sarid gives some great suggestions on starting out in the domain business from scratch (and no cost) by become a deal hunter. For people who are new to the industry and have strong negotiation skills, this is a must read. I also highly recommend Sahar’s Blog. He has created successful businesses online (FuneralHomes.com as an example), and he has very smart people working with him. He is always on the leading edge in the domain investment/development business, and he is someone to emulate.

I just received an email from Moniker notifying me of the price increase on domain names. On October 15, 2007, the price of registering .com and .net domain names is increasing by $.50. While this 7.2% price increase may not seem too bad, it can add up depending on the size of a person’s portfolio. I haven’t received an email like this from other registrars, but I imagine everyone will be in the same boat.

“INDUSTRY WIDE PRICE INCREASE – OCTOBER 2007

As you may (or may not) have heard, there will be an industry wide price increase on October 15th 2007. .com and .net prices are going up approximately $.50 each. If you own domains that you’re looking to hold onto for long term, save money by renewing and/or registering today!” — Source: Email from Moniker

Over the past year or so, I’ve noticed a huge increase in the amount of domain inquiry spam I receive, and others have noticed, too. With the Domain Research Tool (DRT), people are able to research domain names based on various search queries, providing huge lists of domain names that meet the user’s requirements. Unfortunately, DRT can also append the email addresses of the domain name owner for each name on the list, making it far too easy for users to send out mass quantities of spam.

Although this “spam/mass email strategy” must have worked at some point, I think people should realize that it has become a nuisance for domain owners. Perhaps 5-10 owners will respond out of 5,000 emails, but for the other 4,990 people, the emailer will have tarnished his reputation and be known as a “spammer.” Just look at this thread as evidence.

In my opinion, DRT mass emails are spam by nature as they are bulk emails of a commercial nature for which the recipient cannot opt-out. Personalized emails aren’t done in bulk and are fair game. When I am interested in acquiring a domain name, I tell the owner of my interest and make a legitimate offer for the name in the initial email. When sending out mass emails, making a reasonable offer out of the gate is impossible. I believe this is what distinguishes the real offers from spammers.

I wonder if the registrars are behind some of these mass spam email campaigns to encourage users to buy their privacy guard upsell!! (Just joking)