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Domain name speculation is the art of determining the value of web domains and/or buying and selling domain names for profit. The domain speculation industry is rapidly growing as thousands of web sites are established every day. Thus, establishing a reliable domain speculation business can be an extremely profitable and lucrative endeavor. Most people do not know how to judge the value of a web site, and in order to set a fair selling price for their site they will hire the help of a domain speculation professional. Web domains are the hottest and most profitable form of real estate in existence at the moment, because every day the value of internet domains increases consistently. If you’d like to earn your share of this amazing industry then you may want to consider the following tips for aspiring domain speculation professionals.

Quantity vs Quality

Most amateur domain speculators have aspirations of making thousands of dollars from the sale of a single web site. While this is possible, it is not likely, especially if your are simply selling the domain name without an established web site. There is a lot of work involved with building profitable web sites and selling them, and there is no guarantee that the site is going to generate a profit. Therefore, it is better to focus on many domains at once, rather than putting all of your efforts into a single project. In the domain speculation industry it is more common for someone to make about $20-$100 profit from each domain than $1000 + from a single site.

Avoid Competitive Lawsuits

The domain speculation industry is highly competitive, and legal disputes are actually quite common. In fact, copyright issues and DMCA claims are often filed against webmasters that are infringing intellectual property rights online. Unfortunately, there is a fine line between what is legal and what is considered copyright infringement. If you are unsure about the legality of your decision then your best bet is to consult with a lawyer, or avoid any conflict whatsoever. Most of the legal disputes involve domain names being purchased that include copy written terms. For example, a domain name with the term “Coca-Cola” in it could be sued by the Coca-Cola company for using their branded name in the domain name.

Acquiring Expiring Domains

One of the best ways to generate a profit in the domain name industry is through the acquisition of domain names shortly after they expire. Using this technique it is possible to purchase a domain name that still has a lot of page rank and/or valid backlinks. Some recently expired domains will also retain their age statistics in the search engines, making them very profitable for domain speculators. If you want to get a head start and make as much money as possible with domain name speculation then you should strongly consider the benefits of purchasing expired domain names that still retain many of their desirable qualities.

The domain market is a massive and thriving industry, filled with eager buyers looking to capitalize and procure a valuable domain name while they are still available. Just as there is a sea of buyers looking for good domain names, there is an entire ocean of domain sellers, and some of them make their living off of selling domain names. The art of buying a domain name specifically to sell it is called domain speculation. There are entire companies that specialize in domain speculation. Some sites even go for hundreds of thousands of dollar, based on the name alone, with no active site included! Considering it only costs about ten dollars per year to register a domain name, domain speculation may be the best investment you could make.

The following tips will help you be successful in the domain speculation industry.

Do Not CyberSquat

Not to be confused with domain speculation, cybersquatting is an illegal practice that often results in lawsuits. Cybersquatting is the act of registering a domain that has been trademarked by another company, in the effort of extorting funds from the owner of the trademark for the domain. However, many times cybersquatters will focus on a domain name that has not yet been trademarked, but instead is a likely target of a particular company. For example, if your company name is RandomDomainCo INC., and your website name is RandomDomain.com. The cybersquatter may buy domains like TheRandomDomain.com, or even misspelled variations like RadnomDomain.com. If you want to start a successful domain speculation business, you should steer clear of dirty tactics like this.

Don’t Be Greedy

Being greedy is a sure way to fail in any business, especially in the domain speculation business. If you’re aiming to make thousands of dollars off of each domain, you’re probably going to be let down. The goal is to make money fast by selling as many domain names as possible. This means you’ll need to focus on realistic goals, rather than high value short .com domain names that are nearly unattainable.  You may even have the bankroll to buy a very valuable domain name in hopes of selling it, but before you jump to a conclusion, you’ll want to make sure you’re not overpaying, as you may never see a return on your investment.

Domain Swooping

Perhaps the best way to procure valuable domains is to snatch them as soon as they expire. There are currently more than thirty million domain names that have been purchased and are now expired. Some of these domain names are excellent, and some of then once housed profitable domains that may even still have live backlinks online! The most valuable expired domains are the ones that have just recently expired, as the marketing efforts of the previous owner may bring instant traffic if the website is resurrected in time. If you can manage to find a domain that has recently expired, has plenty of backlinks, and is still receiving plenty of traffic, you may be able to capitalize on it and sell it for a lot of money instantly. As I mentioned above it is not wise to depend on situations like this, but it is optimal to keep your eye open for such instances.