Allen’s E-Commerce Blog

How trying to find a job on a sidewalk can relate to domain names!

Posted by Kevin under Branding, Domain Name News, Domain Names, Entrepreneur, Humor, Marketing Resources & Tools, Money & Finance, My Thoughts On The Internet, News Stories That Interest Me, Online Marketing

An out-of-work banker who became a symbol of the looming financial crisis by trudging Manhattan streets wearing a sign advertising “MIT grad for hire” has landed on his feet - scoring a well-paying job at an accounting firm.

In a more hopeful sign of the times, Joshua Persky got rid of his sandwich board and demonstrated that creative people can bail themselves out without any help from the government.

I came across this news story You can read the full article here

But after reading it a couple things really hit me and how it his basic story applies to the internet, domain names, marketing and so much more. I think the first thing that hit me was having the courage or “balls” as I would say it since I tend to say it how it is rather some “PC” bullshit but anyways this guy had the courage to set aside his pride and take measures into his own hands and do what he needed to do to take care of his needs and his family!

I think a lot of domainers and for the most part entrepreneurs in general sometimes need to check pride and ego at the door and just do what they need to do. Whether that’s taking on a partner because your skill set alone isn’t able develop a web property, running and growing a business properly, marketing efficiently, web programming, cash flow/finances, or whatever it might be that your skill set or situation is missing for your venture to shine. Sometimes making some concessions here and there are needed to get a desired outcome and other times patience is needed for that. This guy did just that… Set up shop on the curb and pimped himself to bankers, accountants, stock traders and anyone in the financial district in downtown new york and had the patience to do it for a couple months.

The second thing that hit me was the simple notion that he “Got it”, You might be asking what it is he got, but us domainers, or real estate investors know this all too well… location location location. This guy parked his unemployed ass on a street exactly where his audience / customers would most likely come through the city streets in the financial district. Now that last sentence said a lot, but I will break it down a little… Location is one piece of the puzzle for businesses, the second thing was traffic which in my eyes was most important. You can have a great location with traffic or without depending on your particular situation/plan and what the location does for you, increases sales? brand awareness, raw materials, talent, etc….

He figured out that in the end it more effective to play the numbers game more effectively than sitting at home pressing the submit button to hundreds of online job applications, mailing and calling with no luck for hours on end. The best analogy would be going duck hunting with a sniper rifle from a long distance or sitting behind some brush by a pond that ducks ALWAYS come to with a automatic shot gun with a 30 round clip, then again shotguns don’t have clips last I checked but you get the point.

Choosing to setup shop in prime location, targeted audience of thousands of bankers, accountants, lawyers, stock traders, investors all walking the streets in the financial district every day who probably know someone who could use a banking / finance guy… How many streets in America or job sites could one find a comparable location and marketing opportunity to expose your talents, products, and or services?

You can’t!

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“In his weeks as a walking classified ad, he got several job interviews.”

“Obviously, I had vigorous interviews, but I think it was [the blog] which sealed the deal,” Persky said.”

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This is the same thing any Web developer, business owner, or domainer faces. For the developer its finding the right thing to develop at a given location in a specific time period of time. The business owner is very much in the same boat as the developer but he also faces picking the right location, having the right product or bait, and having traffic to feed his business… The domainer or e-real estate investor has to pre emptively forecast where people will want to be in the future for development whether for himself, other real estate investors, or someone else. The other argument a real estate investor can ask himself is can I broker or rent this space / traffic to someone else for a profit.

“The publicity I got from the sandwich board encouraged me to set up a blog to document my experience,” said Persky, 49.

A headhunter spotted the blog and brought it to Weiser’s attention.

“Obviously, I had vigorous interviews, but I think it was [the blog] which sealed the deal,” Persky said.

“It feels so great to be back at work. I went through some frustrating times, but every day I tried to be optimistic.”

He posted the happy news on his blog and got cheers from around the world.

Now the father of five - who declined to discuss his new salary - is looking forward to being reunited with his family.

His wife and youngest kids, 4 and 5, had moved to her parents’ home in Nebraska to save cash. But they’ll be returning to New York after the end of the school year.

“We’re looking forward to being back together,” he said. “It’s hard being a telephone dad.

“There is all this holiday spirit around me, all these holiday parties, and I’ve got such a lot to be grateful for myself. It’s like I’m celebrating twice this year.”

Online entrepreneurs should take note it can be done, you just have to position yourself to be ready when the opportunity presents itself.

Starting your business with a solid position vs Branding Something Unknown

Posted by Kevin under Branding, Domain Names, Online Marketing

I recently read a extremely important blog post by a person who I have competed aginst for quality domain names, as well as sold domains to in my early days…  But he sums up the online world in a short post he made.   What is the difference between Domainers vs Branding / Marketing Online ventures?   Well his post was quite simple…

Branding vs Branding vs Domainer

Morning Folks!!

What if I told you that this single post can make you a millionaire many times over? Well it will if you read carefully and fully get your head around this simple message. That’s exactly what can happen. I have made a lot of posts in my time, but none are more important than the one you are about to read. So close the door and give me a focused 10 minutes and I think I can share something that will make your journey just a little sweeter and more rewarding. To me it is the difference between a domain being worth $750 and $750,000 or $7.5M. The domain can be the same but the customers needs is different. Tapping into THAT need is the key. So if you focus on selling domains that is exactly what you will do. You will do what everyone else does. Buy for $100 and sell for $200. Sell for $300, Sell for $500. But how do you buy for $100 and sell for $1M?

I heard the following phrase when I was 19 years old and it probably took me about 15 years to finally figure out what the hell it really meant. “When you see John Jones thru John Jones eyes, you will sell John Jones what John Jones buys.” That is the first principle. This is the most important one as well. But this is only an add on to the purpose of this post. Just a bonus to make it more understandable.

So how do you put this in effect? You have to look at an end user thru an end users eyes. At TRAFFIC in late September, Brad Geisen did exactly that. As an end user he shared his John Jones story of obtaining foreclosure.com and Property.com. He originally was the guy on the other side of the email telling folks they were crazy to ask $5000 for something they registered for $7. We all know the type. Well here is how this guy evolved from a mindset like that to paying tens of millions for a domain name.

When you see the end user thru the end users eyes, you will sell the end user the domain he buys. So the story starts. It’s so damn simple! It’s so natural. It’s untapped because until now it was difficult to articulate in a simple form WHY they would want the category killer domain. It took an end user to explain it and that is what he did.

Funny thing…..been into domains very early. Approaching 13 years. It took an end user to simplify what a great domain really means. If you missed TRAFFIC you missed some real words of wisdom from Brad Geisen of Foreclosure.com and the buyer of my Property.com domain name. He told us HIS story from the other side. How it cost him millions to brand a domain name with no end in sight to that branding. Here is his key thought about domains. The 1 over 2 simple theory.

NATURAL BRANDING

or

BUILD and CREATE BRANDING

This alone is worth the price of admission. Brad told us his story of spending millions and millions to advertise and brand with his original 3 word creative domain name. When he switched and used a fraction of those ad dollars to buy a category killer domain name, he transformed his business. The dollars he was using to brand was now freed up to do other acquisitions and grow his business in a more dramatic way. NATURAL BRANDING may be the simplest way to describe what a great domain brings to the table.

So it took an end user to make this old dog figure a way to articulate what a domain name does in a very quick manner and have folks understand. Have END USERS understand.

So a category killer domains gives you instant gravitas. Gives you instant recognition. And gives you something that saves many millions. in “Natural Branding.” The elements and benefits associated with a natural branding domain name overwhelm anything that advertising can do. But it is when you do both that the result is something that can not be obtained with most creative domain names.

I have never sold a stick of candy in my life. I know nothing about the business. What I do know is elbowing my way to the table with Candy.com is going to be easier than with chewonmycandy.net. Advertising Candy.com is easier than the alternative. Match it with good content and you have a winner before you start. How much does it cost that first day for chewonmycandy.net to get his 1500 targeted folks looking for candy? So one way you pay up front for an asset that returns dividends in the form of natural visitors and appreciates in value at the same time. Folks, this is really the ultimate no brainer for business and what it proves is obvious.

My friend Warren Royal knew nothing about bobbleheads, but it seems that it is easier to learn their business owning bobbleheads.com than folks in the bobble head business who don’t understand it and now will pay a penalty for them not getting it with a new competitor to contend with and what could be a giant new competitor. Oh you don’t think so?
Well then take my buddy Jeff Reynolds. A few weeks after 9/11 he bought a domain name, AmericanFlags.com. That was a life changing purchase both for him and everyone else in the flag business. Jeff took the ball and from what I understand, he is the largest or one of the largest flag distributors in the country and beyond. So here is another real world example of an industry not figuring out and a domain investor coming along and being an uninvited player in their industry. Taking market share only because they have THE domain in that category. The invisible cost of not understanding your own business. Your own space as it relates to domain names.

These stories can be repeated all day long. Sahar with FuneralHomes.com. He never intended to be in the funeral business but had an idea and a natural branding domain name and has made his mark.

How many more stories are like that? The most famous one of course is by Barry Diller who bought Hotels.com and forever changed the landscape of that industry.

A great domain name allows you to suck and still stay in business. I equate it to the pizza stand on the boardwalk by the ocean. Each day a new group of people come and each day you serve your crummy pizza. The pizza sucks, but you are always busy. Busy because nobody knows it sucks cuz they are tourists and are not coming back and the only reason they came to you in the first place was that you had LOCATION! Location, location, location. So that sucky pizza guy will always make money because of his location. On the other hand if he had a good product he would not only tap into the tourist, but his pizza place would become a destination and he could grow and expand and open new locations. So while the sucky pizza guy will always make great money, he will never be able to do what the guy with the great pizza does. So when you marry a great domain with a great marketing plan and a great base idea, you have something that will grow and expand and that is what it is all about. Catching that lightening in a bottle. Impossible to do unless you know what to search for and capture.

Brad started with the next phrase. One I myself know well. One I decided in my 20’s I would not have to use in life. He started his speech with the words and I will close my post with them, “If I knew then what I know now?” Then ask some questions. If Marriott or Hyatt or any other hotel chain knew then what they know now would they buy hotels.com? Would they all bid on it? What is the loss or gain that domain represents? There are still more questions than answers, but I hope this claws away at things just a little bit more. Gets us one step closer. Gets one more business to understand what the hell we are talking about and why it matters more to them than it does to us.”

Have a GREAT day!
Rick Schwartz

I can only hope you grasp this logic, I still am baffled why amazon.com did not buy books.com when it was for sale for a couple hundred grand or even 2.5 million….  The amount of money they keep blowing on advertising and branding could have been saved in the earlier years of the business.