Negotiations can be tricky and may not always go according to plan. Keep these tips in mind and you’ll be on your way to a successful negotiation.
Make a counter offer!
The fact of the matter is that buyers want to pay as little as possible and sellers want to sell for as much as possible. This is true whether you’re negotiating for a domain, a house, or haggling at a local market. If you’re trying to buy a domain via DomainAgents and the domain owner has come back with a counter offer that is too high, it doesn’t cost anything extra to make a counter offer, so why not give it a shot and see? With a little back and forth, you might be able to find a number that both of you are comfortable with.
For domain name owners, making a counter offer after being presented with an opening offer gives the other party an idea of what you’d be open to selling for, regardless of what the initial offer may have been. An opening offer is just that – an opening offer, and buyers are generally open to counter offers. Even if there’s a gap initially, the results may just surprise you! We regularly see a low opening offer become a deal for thousands more.
A little extra information can make a big difference
You can send a short message with your counter offer or declines via DomainAgents, but what sorts of messages should you send?
A buyer may wish to elaborate on their plans for the domain, or perhaps ask questions related to the negotiation. Similarly, a domain owner may have questions or may want to share their own perspectives on valuation. Sometimes it’s not obvious how an owner is using a domain and that may impact what they are willing to sell the name for if there are costs related to moving to a different domain. We’re also happy to facilitate the process and pass along any messages to the other person on your behalf if you’d like to elaborate further. Simply reach out via our Support page or to one of our dedicated Negotiation Liaisons. If you do decide to send a message, honesty is the best policy. Lying or otherwise negotiating in bad faith can have serious consequences.
Keep in mind that we have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to rude or derogatory comments. Yelling at the other party because you don’t like their offer doesn’t help anyone.
Do your research, but be respectful of the other party’s perspective
In some cases, it may appear that a domain name is not being used, but there can be email, intranet, brand protection issues or a variety of other reasons why a domain owner may be resistant to selling a name. Is there back-end functionality tied to the domain, such as email addresses? Does the owner have any sentimental value attached to the domain? How about any past/current/future plans for the domain?
On the other side of the coin, buyers may have a specific budget in mind or they may make offers without being aware of the current asking price, if any, as this can vary greatly from owner to owner.
Since these factors (and more) go into domain name valuation, it isn’t always immediately clear what an owner might be open to selling for or the size of a buyer’s budget.
The best way to know is to ask and take it from there.
Automated appraisal tools aren’t much help
There are a number of sites and tools that you can use to get the estimated value of a domain. Unfortunately, none of them are very accurate and can be flat out wrong for particularly valuable domains. Ultimately, it is up to the domain owner what they think the domain is worth and what they are willing to sell for.
The value of a domain for a buyer also varies depending on how they hope to use it. A domain for a personal blog will have a different ‘value’ than a domain needed for a national advertising campaign.
You can see what domains have sold for in the past on namebio.com. Do keep in mind that much of the data on NameBio is from auctions and it’s best to think of the figures there as the wholesale prices. It will help you get the general idea or relative value of a name, rather than an exact number.
Don’t hesitate to reach out to DomainAgents Support to let us know how we can help further!
We’ve put together a handy FAQ page to answer some of the most commonly asked questions we’ve received. Please check it out! http://support.domainagents.com/support/home
If something’s still not clear, we’re here to facilitate the process and clear up any confusion, so please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns. We’re happy to help and will make sure to provide a response as soon as possible.
Happy negotiating!
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