Domain investors take varying amounts of time when responding to a purchase inquiry or offer. Some people feel that responding quickly can yield better results and others believe waiting to respond to an offer for a certain amount of time can yield better results. I’m not a sales expert, so I’ve sort of done what feels right to me.
When I receive an offer to buy one of my domain names, I tend to respond quickly. I have felt that when a person submits an offer or inquires about a domain name, they are either ready to buy or on a recognizance mission to get pricing data. I don’t really like the idea of waiting to reply for the purpose of waiting.
If someone is ready to buy a domain name , responding quickly can help close a deal if the price works for their budget. I feel like many buyers have a short list of domain names and taking too much time to even give a price can encourage them to find something else in the meantime. I like engaging the prospect when they are most interested in discussing the domain name. I happen to think this is when they submit their inquiry. I’ve heard that from other large portfolio owners who focus on domain name sales.
Even on inquiries for my most valuable domain names, I tend to reply quickly. My initial replies don’t vary all that much, so I don’t need to take a ton of time to send a reply. I don’t generally price my domain names in my first response, so I don’t need to do any type of market analysis right away. It’s usually just a cordial reply to let the person know their offer is far too low or to get an idea about why the person is interested in my domain names. I guess for these names I do a bit of slow walking, but I don’t put it on the back burner for the purpose of making the prospect wait.
When it comes to my inventory quality domain names I can replace (generally names worth less than $10k), I am not worried about milking a prospect for every last dollar. I rely on cashflow from my domain sales, so I need to sell domain names regularly. To me, I would rather strike while the iron is hot and that means responding on someone else’s timeline. I am sure I leave some money on the table.
I understand the way I do things may be different than the way other successful investors run their operations. I know what my business needs and I also know what makes me enjoy this business. Responding quickly to offers and inquiries works well for me.
