Expiring Domain Catching

[S Isaac]

I previously spent too long thinking about buying a .co.uk domain name for $1k, When I finally decided I should, it had expired.

Thinking this was the perfect opportunity to 'catch it' using one of the services, I watched a few people interested in it bid all the way up to about £500. Think I was going to snap up a deal, I bid and me and one other bidder pushed it all the way to over £2.5k (Yes, I got caught in the moment and wouldn't pay so now even if offered it for say £2k).

The thing is, that was a year ago and the domain is due to expire soon and be open for catching/bidding again soon.

It's an ideal domain name for my needs, and doubt they'll allow it to expire after spending £2.5k on it last year. But, if they do does anyone have any advice/tips on which service(s) to use to try to catch it this time?

 

[DontAsk]

My advice is create a new name and set your marketing around that. You could be waiting forever.

 

[Nathanto]

But, if they do does anyone have any advice/tips on which service(s) to use to try to catch it this time?

UKbackorder is one of the biggest catchers, they use hundreds of other drop-catcher's Nominet quotas and so have a much higher chance of catching a domain than all the one-man bands.

Backorder UK Domains | ukbackorder.uk

Backorder UK domains or auction your own with UKBackorder.uk. Our platform offers a seamless process to secure expiring domains and sell your own UK domains through auctions. No catch, no fee.

ukbackorder.uk

The downside is that if the domain is that good then you won't be the only one after it so it will almost certainly end up going to auction again...

(Yes, I got caught in the moment and wouldn't pay so now even if offered it for say £2k).

My take on this is how much extra profit could you have made over the last 12 months if you'd bought this 'ideal domain name for my needs' for £1k or even £2k a year ago? If the answer is 'not much' then perhaps your hard-earned could be better invested elsewhere?

 

[S Isaac]

My business doesn't rely on getting this domain name. It's already up and running, but this domain would be the perfect addition to it.

I forgot to add that when I got outbid, I bought the .co domain but not sure that that's much use?

 

[Nathanto]

My advice is create a new name and set your marketing around that. You could be waiting forever.

While that is clearly an option, the "right" domain name costing a couple of grand could easily save that much and more in marketing costs every single year for the rest of the life of the business.

A domain name is an investment, it may have a high upfront cost but after that it's just a negligible ten quid or so every year to renew it.

If you've chosen the right domain then day in, day out, it should be benefitting your business in multiple ways and there's also a good chance it will still have value years down the road when you no longer need it. That's why week in, week out, brand-able and SEO domains are selling for thousands.

P.S. For transparency, yes I have been know to sell the odd domain name every now and again.

 

[Nathanto]

I forgot to add that when I got outbid, I bought the .co domain but not sure that that's much use?

Others may disagree but I think a .co domain could do more harm than good as both humans and bots alike assume it's a typo of either .com or .co.uk

 

[fisicx]

My business doesn't rely on getting this domain name. It's already up and running, but this domain would be the perfect addition to it.

How? People use their phones, most don’t even notice the domain name anymore.

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

You've lived without the domain for a year, so, how important is it, really?