domain appraisal
domain appraisal - The definition of a domain appraisal is an estimate made by someone about how much a particular domain name is worth. The value of a domain name is highly speculative and the estimation is made according to various factors. Here we will look at some of the considerations that go into what effects the value of a domain so you can use the information to create the most prized name possible.
1. Is it a top level domain? If it ends in.com it is perhaps the most valuable, with other popular endings like.org and.net close to follow.
2. Is it too long? Shorter names can be typed easier and with fewer mistakes, which could lead to other sites which may be competing with yours.
3. Is it easy to spell based on how it sounds? This would be useful for when someone is mentioning it at a party or hearing it over the radio.
4. Is the meaning vague or specific? Vague but well understood meanings, such as clothes or movies, can be more valuable than a specific thing such as epidemiology.
5. Is it suitable for commercialization and sell products?
6. Is it easy to remember for most people?
7. Have people been searching for the domain name words a lot in the recent past?
8. Has it been around for a long time? If it has, it is more valuable than a brand new domain name.
9. What have similar domains sold for in the past? This could affect the value of your name if it had sold for extremely high or low prices.
10. Does it have numbers attached? This will generally lower the estimated amount of value.
11. If it looks like another domain name but with a misspelling, you might get lots of traffic but are risking getting sued due to trademark laws.
Once you understand the definition of a domain appraisal, these factors should make sense. All of these affect the appraisal because they are related to how people are going to respond to your website name. When they are based on a name that has existed for a long time, there will be different considerations based on what the needs are at the time. If someone wants to place an ad for the general public, they will more highly value a website with a higher traffic rate. If they want to target the audience of an underground society of moon worshippers, they will want a website that already has some of these people clicking on it.
There will be many people who feel they have some great secret about domain name appraisal and some of them may be right. It is a growing art, one that is expanding and changing with the times to accommodate current interests and internet trends. If you keep in mind the factors above, you will be better able to understand how domain value is determined.