Just got this in via email from DotSter.com:

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With each new year comes new opportunities.

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And the fine print:

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Go get your buy one get one free domain at dotster today!

I read an interesting post in Elliot J Silver’s blog about a recent UDRP case lost by former eBay CEO, Meg Whitman.

I’m not a lawyer, and I don’t play one on TV, but after reading some quotes from the panelists that made the decision to deny the complain (without the respondent even offering a rebuttal), it almost sounds like the panelists are saying that Meg Whitman is not “famous enough” to have her name protected:

From the panelists:

“fame alone is not sufficient to establish common law trademark or service mark rights in a personal name. Rather, the Complainant’s personal name must be used such that a relevant segment of the public comes to recognize her name as a symbol that distinguishes her services from those of similarly situated service providers. “

For example, Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods is a globally known name who’s “brand name” notoriety spans many genres and sectors. People immediately associate their names with something.

It sounds like they are saying that Meg Whitman’s name, while known in tech circles, is not immediately known across the board as being attached to something. Like her personal brand isn’t as universal.

However, looking at this quote from the panelists:

“Unlike the complainants in Monty and Pat Roberts, Inc., and Steven Rattner, supra, the Complainant here has presented no evidence of the actual use of her name as a source indicator in connection with the services she is claiming.”

It seems like they may be saying that Meg Whitman (the complainant), simply did not present enough compelling evidence to prove that her personal brand is as widely associated with a specific service.

There’s a lot of talk in social media about the idea of “personal branding“. This seems like one of those factual based examples that support the argument that you need to work to establish yourself as a brand.

Although I have never personally heard of Monty Roberts, it seems he presented enough evidence of his personal brand in this UDRP case to convince the panelists that he should hold the rights to a .org domain name containing his name.

How’s your personal brand doing?

I just read Mike’s “01/05/2009: Domain Newbies and Junkies… When is enough, enough?” post at wannadevelop.com where he talks about “domain junkies” and “domain newbies”.

I know Mike probably doesn’t know me from Adam, but I just wanted to set the record straight that this “DomainJunkies” doesn’t fit the profile of the “domain junkies” that Mike observes :)

I started this website in 2000, way before most of the domaining boom started. I’m not a major player by any stretch of the imagination, but I’m hardly clueless about the value of domain names and the state of the industry. I tend to avoid vanity and country extensions unless it’s a strong keyword for a site I will develop personally. I still don’t get .tv, and I’m openly prejudiced against anything that is not .com

I honestly prefer to develop a domain name into a great website, and most of my domain name purchases happen after I get yet another idea for an amazing website. Not all my ideas turn out to be great, a couple have actually made it to amazing status, but over the years, my todo list gets longer and longer.

To be honest, I actually agree with some of Mike’s observations (and the ones in Jamie’s post) about the state of sales threads in domain name forums. They could definitely use a bit of an overhaul. At the same time, a savvy developer can find some gems for sale if they keep an eye out. Like my grandma used to say “one man’s regfee is another man’s treasure”. Yep, she was a forward thinker, my nana.

I just read a great post at dotweekly.com about feeling like an “end user” when buying a domain name.

I was typing out a comment and it accidentally turned into a book, so I figured I’d post my “reply” here:
(I wonder if longwindedcommenter.com is registered)

I’m actually going through that End User love and feeling right now as well.

Although I sell some domain names, I also like to develop them. Seeing things from an end user perspective can be very enlightening (and sometimes frustrating :)

For example, as a domainer, with a “good” domain listed on Sedo, I hate it when I receive lowball offers. My usually reply is an offer that adds a few zeros to their first offer. Although I shouldn’t, I think I sometimes feel insulted by the low offers, as if the person is trying to get something for nothing. But when I think about it, who doesn’t want the lowest price on the domain name they want to buy.

Yesterday, as I was domain Christmas shopping for myself, I saw a good domain on Sedo that sort of fit my criteria for a site I wanted to develop. This domain probably would sell at a decent “wholesale” price if it was listed on a domainer forum like NamePros or DNForum, but I think because I was bidding through Sedo, the domain owner may have been worried that I might be some big fish corporation trying to throw a lowball offer, so they did what would I have done, and added like 3 zeros to my offer (which made me promptly end the negotiations :) Thinking about it from their side, what seller doesn’t want to get the most for what their trying to sell.

Sometimes, I think not knowing anything about the buyer like in a Sedo setting can really hinder negotiations. Sellers may feel that if the bid is coming through Sedo, they may have found that “dream” end user with big pockets instead of dealing with a real person with realistic budget and plans for the domain.

At the same time, knowing too much about the buyer can also lead to unrealistic expectations of domain value. Most domainers will do all types of Sherlock Holmes worthy research when they receive an unsolicited email inquiry about one of their domain names. If they find that the buyer is really a rep from MegaCorp Inc, listed on the Fortunate 500 list, this can artificially inflate the sellers value of the domain name. This overvaluation based on the buyer can cost domainers $1000’s of dollars. If they are thinking “miiiiillions” and the buyer is thinking a strong 5 figures, domainers could pass up a realistic offer from one of the best buyers they could ask for. Just because the company makes billions, doesn’t mean they will spend millions on your domain name. Some will, most won’t.

For me, as a domainer that leans slightly towards the end user side because I like to develop websites, that’s one reason why I love the domainer forums. You can find some nice hidden gems. When a domainer only sees type in earnings, extension strength, or resell value, a developer can see long term potential earnings value. I don’t know if that would make me “domainer curious” or “end user curious”?

As a domainer, how do you swing? What have you learned from putting on the “other side’s” shoes?

Although not everyone agreed with the move for domaining.com to switch to a paid monthly membership model, I can say from first hand experience that their domain for sale listings do generate sales!

I listed a domain for sale this week and a buyer was found within a few hours! I woke in the morning to a nice notification email from Francois saying the domain had been sold, the payment had already been collected, and all I had to do was transfer/push the domain name to the buyer (who was cc’d on the email).

I replied right away and the whole transaction was completed by Noon. Buyer had their shiny new domain, I received my payment (minus commission) from domaining.com and there was peace in the world. Well, the peace in the world part was an exxageration, but it was a pretty nice feeling to sell a domain that I had listed for sale on namepros a month earlier with no luck.

One of the keys to selling any product or service is that you have to have to put your product in front of the *right* buyers. Domaining.com puts your domain in front of a larger volume of interested parties, which gives your domain a much better chance of selling.

I think this method of monetization for domaining.com could fit a very nice gap in the domain name aftermarket. It was nice to not have to haggle back and forth or bug the buyer about payment. When I got the sale notification, the payment was already taken care of and all I had to do was push the domain to the buyer. I like things easy :)

I’m happy to be one of the Latest 10 Sales on the domaining.com homepage :)