EMDs "running out" - worth collecting as domains only?

[Chris Kent]

I remember when there were still 4-letter domains available.

Then I remember when there were still plenty of dictionary terms left.

Then I remember when there were still plenty of IDNs left.

Then I remember when there were plenty of EMDs for high CPC terms, even getting 5,000+ exact searches.


Doing some keyword research today, I've noticed that the supply of EMDs for >$1 CPC and >1,000 monthly exact searches is dwindling and fast.


Is it worth buying and holding these? I can foresee a time in the not too distant future (e.g. 2 years) when they will be very hard to find.


What do you think? Am I thinking along the right lines here? Would be interested to hear your opinions.

PS I posted in this section as it relates to EMDs.

[dadamson]

Just because the good domains have been taken it doesn't mean this is permanent.

There are millions of domains expiring every day so if you want 4-letter or even 3-letter domains for cheap check out services like freshdrop.net which allows you to search with filters (ie; all 3-letter domains expiring).

Don't just assume it is unavailable if you can't buy it new

[Chris Kent]

Originally Posted by dadamson

Just because the good domains have been taken it doesn't mean this is permanent.

There are millions of domains expiring every day so if you want 4-letter or even 3-letter domains for cheap check out services like freshdrop.net which allows you to search with filters (ie; all 3-letter domains expiring).

Don't just assume it is unavailable if you can't buy it new

No I know that. But if it's a dropping domain of value then it will go for higher than hand-reg fee. Which is exactly my point i.e. is it worth buying and holding to get a return?

Dropped domains will help put a ceiling on prices, but it's all part and parcel of the same thing i.e. the secondary market.

[discustipated]

EMD's are not running out lol there will be a million more when the next hot product drops. Just open your mind and stop looking in typical niches.

[outwest]

Again so many EMD groupies on the board obsessed with EMDs
I dont know frankly how any of the other board members who are not fans of EMDs possibly make any money without them. We must be geniuses.

[IM Ash]

The ranking weightage on EMDs isn't what it once was, so their value is negligible.

I just saw a site in the SERPs the other day that did something really unique to gain the EMD advantage. This person purchased the hyphenated version of the EMD that looked like this www-exactmatchdomain.com and he redirected the www to non-www. So the www version of the site was www.www-exactmatchdomain.com but with the redirect it appeared as www-exactmatchdomain.com

It's amazing what people do to get the EMD, but that approach was really inventive.

[outwest]

I saw a guy once who went out and purchased domains like this


that when he added a subdomain it looked like he owned the .com when he in fact did not
it was a very sly maneuver i dont want to get into detail about but that was when the EMD meant a lot more than it does now

[dadamson]

Well I recently read this report which should give you more ideas on buying and selling domains for a profit: Buying and Selling Domains for Profit

@Eleva8 - LOL I haven't heard of that one before, Ahh, the ways people try to trick the big G

[IM Ash]

Originally Posted by outwest

I saw a guy once who went out and purchased domains like this


that when he added a subdomain it looked like he owned the .com when he in fact did not
it was a very sly maneuver i dont want to get into detail about but that was when the EMD meant a lot more than it does now

Hey, that's also pretty innovative. Even RetailMeNot the coupon site have an awesome approach but their EMD is in the URL itself like... "www.retailmenot.com/view/hostgator.com"

[myonnet]

a subdomain in front of a such domain will look weird isn't it? Like mysubdomain.www-warriorforum.com ...

Originally Posted by outwest

I saw a guy once who went out and purchased domains like this


that when he added a subdomain it looked like he owned the .com when he in fact did not
it was a very sly maneuver i dont want to get into detail about but that was when the EMD meant a lot more than it does now

[dadamson]

Originally Posted by myonnet

a subdomain in front of a such domain will look weird isn't it? Like mysubdomain.www-warriorforum.com ...

Yes, but it might be subdomain.warriorforum.com instead of warriorforum.subdomain.com

So the main domain is actually "subdomain.com" not "warriorforum.com"

[outwest]

Originally Posted by myonnet

a subdomain in front of a such domain will look weird isn't it? Like mysubdomain.www-warriorforum.com ...

nope thats not how it was done
send 100,000 dollars to my Paypal and I will be happy to tell you

[Chris Kent]

Well EMDs will always have some SEO value, even if it gets reduced. After all, tons of people search for site names (including branded ones) by typing directly into Google.

Besides, EMDs have not just SEO value but are also highly brandable. This is the idea behind 4-letter domains and dictionary domains. The SEO considerations for buying those domains is secondary compared to the brandable value.

I'd say the same thing goes for EMDs. Maybe not 5-word EMDs sure, but 2-word ones definitely and also some 3-word ones too.

I know that EMDs will never run out due to new products but there are many evergreen products for which EMDs will run out. With more and more companies looking to get an internet presence, you have a limited supply and ever-growing demand.

Some of you are overplaying the SEO angle. Just because people use EMDs for micro-niche sites due to their SEO value does not mean that SEO value is all that EMDs have.

[IM Ash]

Originally Posted by outwest

nope thats not how it was done
send 100,000 dollars to my Paypal and I will be happy to tell you

Too late... I already caught it Time to undercut you: send $50K to my PayPal and I will be more than happy to tell you

[UMS]

Originally Posted by Eleva8

The ranking weightage on EMDs isn't what it once was, so their value is negligible.

I just saw a site in the SERPs the other day that did something really unique to gain the EMD advantage. This person purchased the hyphenated version of the EMD that looked like this www-exactmatchdomain.com and he redirected the www to non-www. So the www version of the site was www.www-exactmatchdomain.com but with the redirect it appeared as www-exactmatchdomain.com

It's amazing what people do to get the EMD, but that approach was really inventive.

Similar to an acquaintance of mine who registered a domain like:

com-scam-review.info

and then created subdomains for all the affiliate products he was promoting, eg:

sixpackabs.com-scam-review.info

[IM Ash]

Originally Posted by UMS

Similar to an acquaintance of mine who registered a domain like:

com-scam-review.info

and then created subdomains for all the affiliate products he was promoting, eg:

sixpackabs.com-scam-review.info

Now that is just brilliant... what a huge cost saver! Just shows that working smart has its advantages!

[Chris Kent]

Jeez, talk about a topic getting hijacked lol

[IM Ash]

Originally Posted by Chris Kent

Jeez, talk about a topic getting hijacked lol

Hey Chris,

Sorry man - I played my role in the hijacking

[outwest]

Originally Posted by Eleva8

Now that is just brilliant... what a huge cost saver! Just shows that working smart has its advantages!

If I thought .coms were of any value
I would go do that myself but , Unless you are branding, and get the name of your company.com

I dont see much value in EMDs

I thought I found the perfect name for my new company last week, and it was a great name
(brand site)

the EMD.com WAS available

only problem is
when you search google for that name?
there was already a company doing business under that name but the idiot did not buy the .com name for his company

sure I could have bought it , but it would have created confusion since he already had tons of sites with that name on it (albeit , not the EMD.com) plus he could theoretically could have taken the name from me in court, since he was doing business first under that name, before me

[outwest]

Originally Posted by UMS

Similar to an acquaintance of mine who registered a domain like:

com-scam-review.info

and then created subdomains for all the affiliate products he was promoting, eg:

sixpackabs.com-scam-review.info

thats somewhat similar however
I dont know how google views those types of domains

they MUST be smart enough to figure out what the real domain is,
they werent born yesterday

every time someone thinks they are smarter than google , they soon learn otherwise

[Chris Kent]

Originally Posted by Eleva8

Hey Chris,

Sorry man - I played my role in the hijacking

hehe well you weren't the only one, others got carried away too!


So back on-topic, does nobody have an opinion on this? We've only had one but I think he overplayed the SEO value in comparison to the branding value.

[down]

I'm not a domain hunter, but when I found that I like, I never waste time and definitely buy it. Sometimes I don't know what must to do with that domain.
Each year I pay more than 300 domains that I just parked, and that's domains don't make money at all (most of them have 4-6 years old). But I'm sure one day my investments in this domain will not be useless.