Domain Name Scalping

The activity of buying domain names and reselling for a higher price has been a practice on the Internet for some time. Where such domain names fall into the area of trademarks, it is a hotly contested battle in the courts with lawyers reaping the benefits of such disputes. There are many domain name brokers including domain name registrars on the Internet to support the buying and selling of domain names.

An underhanded practice is to be aware of domain names being searched and to register them with the intention of resale to the interested party. Someone wishing to engage in this practice can simply open up a domain name lookup service and use that as a source of searched domain names. I personally encountered this experience as described in my Domain Name Registration blog entry.

Buying domain names as an investment with expectations to sell much later in time is a method not unlike long-term stock buying for investment purposes, or buying land for long-term holding. The expectation is that a domain name will garner a higher value in the future. Shorter term buying and selling of domain names (domain flipping) is not unlike short-term stock trading.

Of late, domain name scalping is surfacing as an opportunity to make money as promoted by people offering ideas on how to make money on the Internet. Whenever there is the prospect of gold, there will be those who will jump in to sell shovels, picks and buckets. Is domain name scalping a lucrative business?

As with any business opportunity, success depends on factors such as knowledge, know-how, persistence, capital and timing. Search the Internet for the areas mentioned in this article and do your due diligence. Sign up with products and services of your choosing to help your endeavor. Start the venture small. You do not have to make a $1M in your first year holding 10,000 domain names and flipping a percentage of that holding.

Examples of lucrative domain name sales:
RedWine.com sold for $150,000 USD
Canadian.com sold for $60,000 USD
Pokie.com sold for $40,000 USD