Bodis Trend Continues

I think I posted a while back how I switched back to Parked.com from Bodis because it seemed liked Bodis did not have its act together (not even close). Well, today I got an email from Bodis saying how their terms of service were changing. No longer were they promising to pay people 45 days after a month's worth of revenue. No, now the terms say you will get paid from 45 to 60 days after the month. Nice. Their trend continues. In what direction, I think it's obvious. Glad I bailed. Happy sailing, those of who are still onboard.

The Bourne Domainer

Over the holiday, I finally watched the three Bourne movies. That guy is a badass, even though I still think of Matt Damon as that annoying punk in Goodwill Farting or whatever, where he cries because idiot-supreme Robin Williams says it's not your fault. Yeah, right. Horrible.

I forgot this is a domaining blog -- with the recent slew of comments (thanks), I'm going to make it a goal to get a hosting service and get more familiar with WordPress. Here are, in my opinion, some decent domain-name candidates for my next build out. Whenever I see these names (and my other names), I have to take a step back and admire my skills all anew. Damn, I'm brilliant. Just look at these names, dude. Put Bourne in front of the computer with GoDaddy and he'll register pure dog feces. Maybe TreadStoneHurtMyFeelings.com or WhyAreTheseAssesChasingMe.com, etc. But, here is a sampling of my brilliance for your enjoyment:

FlavoredAlcohol.com
529Comparison.com
HELOCInformation.com
Austin6thStreet.com [kind of like Bourbon street, but in Austin]
LowCalCandy.com
LongtermRehab.com
TaxEstatePlanning.com
TermLifeInformation.com
LocationSearching.com
EnglishTeacherBlog.com
ScienceTeacherBlog.com
InteriorLED.com
GreenAmerica.info

Unfortunately, I have a day job that keeps pulling me back in, working for the man. But once the millions of Orcs, uh, I mean web surfing drones, start clicking on my ads, the good life will begin. I can work on my tan, shave all hair, and train for Mr. Olympia. I can also get some extra passports, never eat or sleep, have unlimited cash, jump off of ten story buildings, and always look pissed or confused like Bourne. He should be happier--I bet he has an amazing amount of frequent flier miles.

And, thanks to the higher number of visits lately. I notice I somehow got picked up on dnhour.com. Not sure how it happened, but I'm not complaining.

Developing a Website

Anybody out there have any *new* sites or tools to help develop a domain name quick-and-dirty? I tried Bodis a while ago, which I guess could be characterized as a hybrid parking site and development site since it allowed you to write your own content on the landing page. But, that experiment went under as several of my posts chronicle. Also, I "developed" my PhotosNewYork site by putting it on Blogger and loading it up with Amazon ads and some rinky-dink content just to see if it would get indexed. That has maybe gotten 1 order and a few clicks/visits over the past few months. Any suggestions about that site would be appreciated.

Now I'm interested in finding a simple, maybe automated, way to develop a site quickly and at low cost. Is Blogger my best bet? Just load it up with Adsense and affiliate links along with some decent content? Should I use a hosting service and learn DreamWeaver or some similar software? My friends are starting to do well with their site HoneymoonTripIdeas.com, which was built-out pretty quickly on a hosting service. If I feel ambitious I may do the same with one or two decent domain names, but if there is a quicker way to run a test site or a decent starter site before I plunge in more seriously, let me know.

Domainer Christmas

So, what do domainers do for Christmas? This amateur one checked his Parked.com stats about 3 or 4 times. I made about $0.20! That totally rocks. Glad I checked. I can do some serious after-Christmas shopping now with my newfound riches. So, the other domaining thing I did was check the GoDaddy domain name "firesale" to see if there were any good names out there for $5. I figured maybe there'd be a good one that didn't get snatched up immediately since it was Christmas and all. I poked around for about 30 minutes searching, but nothing much of interest. There were a few decent names with "blog" in them (my current favorites), but I didn't buy. I think I am breaking my acquisition habit. A good thing. I've got a little less than 6 months to dump my 130 or so names unless I get inspired to build-out my winners. If not, maybe I'll start a new niche blog called the Retired Domainer.

Top Ten Signs You Are a Beaten Down Domainer

So, I've past the six month mark of being a part-time domainer. I've learned a lot. And not all of it is positive towards the domaining industry. Most of the press and the bloggers who get recognition speak of the glories of domaining, the promise, the riches, the groupies, etc. But, before you jump into this business, realize that it may not work out that way for you. Take a look at this top ten list and realize that you too, after a short six months, may feel like this and may suffer similar or identical symptoms.

Top ten signs that you are a failed or failing domainer:

10. You start a domaining blog with a custom, catchy domain name. Your traffic grows pretty well and you get a few links to other blogs. You may get a few Adsense clicks every once in a while. You weary of writing a post every day or every other day. You post once a month. You post once per two months. You give it up. You lose your adoring fans. You live in shame.

9. You spend 4 straight months acquiring domain names. You think you are clever as hell and register new domains. You think they will have type in traffic that was previously untapped. Each new domain you register mysteriously has the same inherent traffic figures -- zero, or near zero.

8. You think you could be making money off your 4 month's worth of acquisitions, if only you could find the PERFECT domain parking service. You go to Parked.com and get pissed because the money stinks for you. You switch to a startup like Bodis, but it is an even worse fit for you and you suspect it will go under any minute in a burst of scandal. You go back to Parked, and you actually feel happy if you make about $3 per month. You actually brag to friends and family when you make about $1 per day, and they think you have gone insane.

7. You listen to others who say to develop your domains - of course that's the only way to make money. You develop one or two, spending many hours designing and implementing a web site. You include Adsense on your page(s). You make zero. Your traffic still sucks.

6. You shop around for domains that already have good traffic. People act like you can just go "get" one and then you'll be set. The prices (surprise) have the traffic figures built in. You cannot find a domain name that doesn't include in its price 1, 2, or 3 years worth of traffic revenue. Sellers are not dumb. They're not going to sell a winner at a loss.

5. You give up buying a domain with traffic because it will take 2 or 3 year to recoup the cost. So, you assume that what you need to do is just wait - maybe type in traffic will just grow over time. You're wrong.

4. You try Ebay. Maybe you can find a good deal. No beans.

3. You try to ignore your portfolio. Maybe it will go away. Maybe I still have the few thousands of bucks in my bank account. Maybe I haven't wasted 6 months on a profession with returns that pale in comparison to a well reasoned stock/options portfolio. I think this is called denial.

2. You start to imagine ways to "dump" the business. You imagine yourself as Gordan Gecko staring out his window when he says, all pissed off: "Dump it."

1. You list all of your portfolio on all the auction sites. Cheap. Sell at or near a loss. Hmm. No bids. Imagine that. You're stuck with this dog until it goes unregistered. Fun.

Domain Doldrums

Thanks to Brian at DomainParkingMoney.net for guilting me into posting again. I'm ending my three week dry spell.

It's been 5 months since I broke onto the domaining scene. I started off strong, rising to the top like a young Al Pacino in Scarface. I registered some real winners out of the gate and starting hanging out with Michelle Pfeiffer who insisted on wearing her skimpy, bra-free outfit. Every night she would call out, "JailStar.com" over and over in the throws of ecstasy. Every new name I registered from scratch gave her the chills. The cars, houses, jewels. I couldn't keep track. I knew Frank Schilling would call begging to join my empire, since his portfolio looked so paltry and weak compared to mine.

But, what has happened lately? My empire has fallen faster than MC Hammer's. My days of 100 clicks from Geosniff.com are gone. The doldrums. Five months of the high life, and now Michelle has left me for Sahar and I'm registering crappy domain names, piling them up on my desk, and sniffing them all up my nose and onto Parked.com so that they can flounder and make me look and feel like a chump.

I will follow up with some more details to educate everyone on what it means to be a REAL domainer who makes no money. This, I believe, is the norm.

What the Hell

What the hell should I do with CantWrite.com and DeadBlog.com? Think I could flip either one for over $200 bucks? I was thinking of making one or both another blog, but I'm pretty much tapped out on writing from this blog, and I'm not even managing a post per day. If only I could sit and blog or write all day. I need some serious passive income. Maybe I'll load up each of those sites with some more Amazon, Ebay, and Adsense ads, along with a blog post or two occasionally and see what happens. Maybe ads based on writers' block or stuff about how to publish.

If it pays off even a little, maybe it'll be time for me to splurge for a hosting service instead of using Blogger all the time.