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Become a direct affiliate or get a buy out?

by uploadrich
6 replies
Maybe its just wishful thinking on my part, but I just want to see if I have an opportunity on my hand. Recently I decided to create a website about basketball. After thinking of a suitable domain name I finally came up with, "HoopLocker.com". I decided to create it into a Facebook page first and see how popular it would get then go from there. Obviously all the content that is on the page is related to basketball and the NBA. It has been about a week and the Facebook page is doing really well. I have a little over 50K likes and there is a lot of social interaction with commenting on the posts.
Now, I've been thinking about how I can make money from this and then it hit me, " Foot Locker "! I'm trying to be as creative as I can and think of any way I could make something happen that would benefit me financially. The main options that I see are either become a direct affiliate ( not go through Flexoffers.com ) or see if they would just buy the domain or the domain and whatever I have built. From a business stand point I could make the case that having the domain Hoop Locker could be another division of their company where they could create a more informational section pertaining to the basketball world and would be easier to connect with fans. I went to their Facebook page recently and they have over 4 million likes and average only a couple hundred likes on their posts because they basically just post some new sneakers and say click the link to buy it. I feel they could benefit from a domain like mine.
Anyways, what do you think and what would you do in this situation? I may be on to nothing, but I only paid $8 for the domain and created a free Facebook page so this is worth a shot!
#affiliate #business advise #buy #company branding #direct
  • Profile picture of the author MelanieandMiles
    Revenue, revenue, revenue... If they are going to buy it from you they will want proof of revenue to see directly how they will profit from it.

    There are a ton of affiliate offers for 'basketball Sports : Basketball - CBENGINE

    So, get to it! Start making some MONEY!

    An audience is one thing... A targeted audience you have a relationship with that responds to your content is a whole 'nother thing.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mark Davison
    I will second that, Revenue is key to this happening. Otherwise you are hoping that they see some potential but they have a FB page with alot more likes that they could just start using more and they don't have to pay you.

    Mark.
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  • Profile picture of the author Brent Stangel
    Anyways, what do you think and what would you do in this situation?
    I think if they were interested, they would already own it.
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  • Profile picture of the author uploadrich
    Those are both very good points! I am very confident I could grow the social media pages ( including the Twitter page) to over a million or so followers, even if it took me a year. I guess what I was really banking on is them wanting to secure the name, which I think is most valuable at all. After seeing multiple fan pages ( like Michael Jordan Fan club pages for example ) with millions of followers, I think getting followers would not be the hard part. The real value for them would be to have a part of their company with a similar name that could connect primarily with basketball fans which would help them sell more merchandise (basketball shoes being the most expensive).
    Now I'm trying to figure out what the smartest route to go is. Continue building the audience with targeted followers through social media, create an LLC for the name, trademark it and think of plans for developing the website......anything I miss?
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    • Profile picture of the author Steve B
      Originally Posted by uploadrich View Post

      I am very confident I could grow the social media pages ( including the Twitter page) to over a million or so followers, even if it took me a year.
      What would be the point? You would be working hard to get "likes" but there is no guarantee that "likes" will pay off in dollars. As others have said, it's all about revenue generated at the site, on a consistent basis, over a reasonable period of time (at least a couple of years so you can show a monthly track record of performance).



      Originally Posted by uploadrich View Post

      I guess what I was really banking on is them wanting to secure the name, which I think is most valuable at all.
      We all fall in love with our own domain names. It's not a good thing to "bank" on anything that is out of your control. I'm not so sure that Foot Locker would have any interest whatsoever in the domain, especially if they have to pay to secure it.

      The domain "hoopslocker(dot)com" is currently available for $2.95 as are a whole bunch of other names. So can you really "bank" on the fact that they will fall in love with your domain name?


      Originally Posted by uploadrich View Post

      . . . anything I miss?
      Yes, I would consult with a trademark attorney about the name you own. You may already be seen as infringing upon a trademark - you will never know until you check.

      Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author kilgore
      Originally Posted by uploadrich View Post

      I guess what I was really banking on is them wanting to secure the name, which I think is most valuable at all.
      If all they want is the name they may just sue you to get it. I'm no lawyer -- and this is no place to get legal advice -- so I'm not saying whether or not they'd have a case. But even if they don't have a case, they have far deeper pockets than you do and could win merely by having you rack up legal costs you can't afford (cases like these can cost $25,000 or more per month once it gets in court). As Steve mentions above, you might want to consult a trademark attorney.

      I think having an exit strategy is a good thing, but tying your exit strategy to becoming an attractive acquisition target by a major corporation all while trying to avoid the perils of trademark infringement might be threading the needle to closely.

      If you plan on keeping this page active, I'd steer as far away from Foot Locker in my content as I could. Make sure there's no way whatsoever that there might be consumer confusion between you and them. It might decrease your value as an acquisition target, but at least you'll be less likely to get taken down.
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