Piggyback an Old Domain Name…good idea?

Hi everyone!

The domain name I would like to purchase comes available on 12-18 of this year.

My questions is, if this domain actually does become available, would it be a good idea to purchase it and piggyback on what the previous domain owner did or would it be better to purchase a fresh and new domain name?

Thanks so much!
Julie

Topic

[Bruce HoagParticipant]

Hi Julie.

What do you mean by “piggyback?”

Can you explain a bit more about what the previous domain owner has done?

Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy

1 user thanked author for this post.

Julie Ruiz

[Julie RuizParticipant]

Thanks so much for the replies! Much appreciated!

@Bruce
The current owner owns the domain I would like to purchase until 12/18/2017.

From what I can tell this is mostly a small company out of WI. Even though there is opportunity to make this site more prevalent on the web, it seems to have been ignored. It doesn’t look like they have done too much to get them into the search engines because a google search for the domain name didn’t return in the search results. Also, my thoughts are since they are an active business and I would like to use the domain for teaching, I am not sure if any confusion would arise, and if there was, if any of the counfusion would be outside of Wisconsin.

@Jenna
Thanks so much for that tip! I’m on my way to see if they even have anything I would like to piggy back off of!

PS still getting the hang of the site. Meant to make it’s own post but it is a reply Bruce’s. I’ll get it!

1 user thanked author for this post.

Jennifer Eick-Jakiela

[Jennifer Eick-JakielaParticipant]

Julie,
See, you’re getting the hang of it! 🙂

If you’re not used to internet forums, it is a real learning curve, and even if you are, this particular one requires some getting used to as well. Glad you’re picking it up!

One other source I didn’t think to mention is domain evaluation sites like Esti-bot. (There are more — just Google domain name evaluation, or domain name appraisal.) They will tell you how much a domain name is worth, so you’ll know whether it’s worth reserving once it expires. Just be careful, because that and other domain evaluation services are estimates at best. You’ll notice their estimates can vary greatly. But they are at least a starting point, as far as seeing the value of the domain.

Another good one to explore is the Internet Wayback Machine at https://archive.org/web/. You can type in the domain and often see a history of what the site looked like (and who had it registered) for years back.

All these tools together can help you make an informed decision on whether to purchase it.

I Use Reviews
Where I Only Review Internet Marketing Products and Programs
I Actually Use, Or Have Used
Visit My YouTube Channel!
Follow Me on Twitter @IUseReviews

1 user thanked author for this post.

Julie Ruiz

[Bruce HoagParticipant]

OK. I get it.

I wouldn’t worry about what the previous owner has or hasn’t done.

Domain name change hands all the time and so does the content. If it’s not even listed in Google, then it probably has been “parked” for awhile.

If you get it, then you’ll be the one that gives it its new “personality.”

Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy

[Jennifer Eick-JakielaParticipant]

H Julie,
Type the domain into Google to see how many backlinks it has pointing to it from other sites.

If it has quite a few other sites already linking to it, then it may not be a bad idea to purchase it, because you’ll have instant exposure. (Just see where the links are coming from, to make sure it’s the kind of exposure you want!)

You can also see how much traffic a site is currently getting. This post explains various ways to do that:
10 Little-Known Ways to See How Much Traffic a Website Gets

I Use Reviews
Where I Only Review Internet Marketing Products and Programs
I Actually Use, Or Have Used
Visit My YouTube Channel!
Follow Me on Twitter @IUseReviews

[Julie RuizParticipant]

That site you listed is a gold mine of linked information. Thank YOU!

I discovered the site I’m interested in only has links from itself. lol Not much to piggy back off of! But I still like the name if I can get it.

[Susan ParnabyParticipant]

As with anything do some careful checks first. Remember it is not just the domain name that could cause you issues. I have an email address that some responders don’t like. They have in effect blacklisted the domain. Sorry, I cannot remember how I discovered this. It is a domain I have had for over 10 years. I think it has been blacklisted because so many of the messages sent to that address have been seen as spam by others. I would be highly surprised if it is because of messages sent from that address as so few messages have been sent from it.

On the other hand because I know it is blacklisted I use it for things like my Facebook address where it possible to harvest email addresses. It has in effect become a throwaway address.

God's Lily is "a voice for those frustrated by the slow progress towards a fair society where the needs of the weakest are met in a way that it strengthens them rather than weakens them further" . If that includes you then hop on over and have a look around. If you like what you see it would be a good idea to sign up to receive our blog broadcasts. Oh and you will get a couple of pdf files that explain the what and why behind the site when

[Author]

Replies