The Domain Broker Behind Home.Loans, Homes.ForSale, and Houses.ForSale Transactions

In today’s podcast, I go behind the scenes and discuss new top-level domains with one of the best domain broker’s in the industry, Jebidiah Burnett.

I had the pleasure of first meeting Jebidiah almost a year or so ago attending DNHouston Meetup, and then a few months later attending DN Seattle Meetup.

If you’re not familiar with Jebidiah, he’s a Senior Domain Consultant at Donuts, Inc. — the global leader in high-quality, top-level domains for unifying, managing, and amplifying digital identity.

In addition, Jebidiah currently owns 4 of the top 20 domain TLD sales, including the current record sale of Home.Loans.

Tune into today’s podcast to learn the story behind the transaction prices of Home.Loans, Homes.ForSale, and Houses.ForSale, as well as Jebidiah and I discussing the following topics:

• How he got his start as domain broker
• What it takes to be successful domain broker
• Why more and more companies are choosing new TLDs to represent their brand
• Whether or not it makes sense for brands to purchase match .com domain when using new TLDs

In addition, Jebidiah provided further domain brokering insight by answering a few additional questions.  Please don’t hesitate to contact Jebidiah should you have questions or interest in domain brokering.

Last but not least, special thanks to Jebidiah for making time and space for a very insightful conversation about the various aspects of the domain industry and brokering.

KC: What price range of domain brokering does a broker with your experience tend to focus on?

JB: I typically started with domains that are 50k and up. I believe there is a significant market place for these price points, especially in new TLDs. There are some amazing names available in these price points that almost any investor should consider — Domains like Bitcoin.News, Business.Coach, European.Vacations and Credit.Services. Having high keyword value and great brandability, right now is a great opportunity for new TLDs.  We are seeing buyers start to understand the value of new TLDs, so the price points are package purchases are increasing.

KC: What are the 3 top reasons buyers and sellers should consider working with a domain broker or brokerage?

JB: The simple answer is having a knowledgeable person on one’s side. Someone who understands the dynamic that you are representing and not just looking at dollar amounts. It’s also nice to have someone negotiate for you that is not directly involved in the business. It’s the same reason you have a real estate agent, a momentous purchase needs a second pair of eyes on it. And thirdly, the experience the broker can bring. A good broker has seen a lot. That expertise can be invaluable come negotiations.

KC: What are types/sizes of businesses are finding success using new TLDs to represent their digital presence?

JB: We are seeing success in all categories and what really excites me is that small to medium sized businesses are finding success and opportunity with new TLDs. A significant number of business owners are looking for opportunities to stand out, be out of the box if you will.  New TLDs provide that desirability and availability. Companies like KcDui.Attorney, SportsMed.clinic or WestSeattle.Dentist. Business owners are also looking at the value of new TLDs. They’re discovering they can get keyword-specific domains at a fraction of the cost of an older legacy domain (i.e., .com, .net, .org, etc.). This opportunity really speaks to them. In addition, we are now starting to see large corporations review and establish new TLD portfolios as well. Companies like T-Mobile, Amazon, McDonalds and Apple.

KC: In your opinion, how do you see new top-level domains impacting how a personal brand or business markets and advertises to reach more people?

JB: I believe that personal brand users have a tremendous opportunity right now with TLDs. The personal brand is more important than ever. What is even greater are the amount of platforms you need to have your brand on. Because of this, promoting the personal brand with new TLDs is a great way to own that space, across numerous platforms. PB.Social for social platforms, PB.News for informational emails or newsletters, .video for content etc., you can see the possibilities. Using new TLDs to own your presence across such a variety of platforms is essential these days.

KC: In your opinion, under what circumstances should a company consider or not consider using a new TLD?

JB: I think every instance a company should consider a new TLD. I think companies should always look at whatever option is best for them. I think immediately discounting any option, is simply bad business. Take Home.Loans as an example. Blake was very specific on the market he wanted to attract, and what better name to attract them than the simplest, shortest version of that market. Home.Loans. In this case, the name is the brand and the brand is its name. It’s a perfect fit. There are ways to approach this with each and every company out there. Another great example is hideaway pizza in Tulsa, they bought Hideaway.Pizza for their marketing. They still use the .com for the main site, but their marketing is short, concise and easy to remember.

KC: Based on your experience, what are the one to two critical items investors or personal/company brands overlook or under value pertaining to new TLDs?

JB: Opportunity. Simple as that. There are domains available today that have so much potential that in the right hands could be a category killer brand. Investing in these premium names, in the long term, could be very very beneficial. I think back to 3 years ago and breaking 5 figures for premium names was nearly unheard of.  But now, we are working on 7 + figure deals and that is only growing.

KC: In your opinion, how long should domain investors be willing to commit to investing in new TLDs at a minimum?

JB: I believe that 2-3 years is paramount. This program was launched 3 years ago. You have to give markets time to at least hit adolescent stage, not just infancy and out. I also STRONGLY believe that the amount of time you spend on your portfolio is important. I encourage investors to pick good, relevant names, not just based on price but based on desirability. Invest smart and you cannot register garbage names, do no research or outreach and expect to get mind blowing offers. Be smart, almost surgical and focused and you will be successful.

KC: What is the one or two things that have contributed to your success as a domain broker?

JB: I would like to answer this with a story. My son needed to do a school project and create a website. He created the site and bought a domain name. After the project was finished, I got to see it and noticed the site was on a .ninja domain. I asked him if he chose that because I worked for that registry. He said, no, I don’t know what you do, but ninja was cool. That made me realize that the market for new TLDs was not only right now, but the future of online users and ultimately entrepreneurs, are cool with new TLDs. That has helped me be successful because I believe in their future. I can see the uses, and I believe the future for these new TLDs is very, very bright.

KC: Anything else you would like to share?

JB: I encourage folks to have an eye to the future. There are significant opportunities for investors and brokers alike right now. I think of voice recognition as an example. What better way to capitalize on the voice application movement them by having a portfolio of amazing, key word, linguistic domains? Pizza.Delivery, Cleaning.Services. I just love where technology is taking the domain industry, and I am excited to be on the frontlines of that technology.