Here is a sobering page.
http://zooknic.com/Domains/counts.html
For those who started domaining in the 2000's, many usually wonder what could have been if they started earlier, or if they had known 'back then' what they know now.
The link above shows the progression of domain name counts going back to 1998. I bought my first domain in early 2000, even though my regs back then weren't too great by today's standards (something most people will admit when they first started out). Then I quit for a few years over the dot-com crash before eventually getting tuned in again.
Looking at the chart at Zooknic, in January 2000 there were a total of 10,008,475 .com/net/org domains registered. Of these, there were 779,950 .org, 1,216,750 .net and 8,006,100 .com
Only 8 million .com's and under 1 million .org's regged when I first started out.
The .info and .biz extensions didn't even exist then. It's a sobering thought. Imagine being able to go back with the knowledge you have now and check for domains at register.com (where I first bought from). I can only imagine the quality that was still available at the time.
It's fun to think about the 'what if' scenario from time to time, but not something that should be dwelled on for too long!
This is a great post and serves as a guide to all newbies who question whether or not it is "too late" to get involved in domains. There are simply too many good names to consolidated by one of the few large domainers i.e. Kevin Ham, Reinvent, Rick Schwartz etc... And there lies the opportunity for all the smaller player, myself included. It is important to be very selective and shrewd in your dealings, but there is plenty of opportunity for people with the courage, prudence, to venture forth into this industry and make a buck. Notice i didn't say a quick buck.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, and although it is unfortunate that it is not 1996 in the domain world and that we cannot hand reg business.com, money.com or any of the obvious super domains that exist. In closing it wont be easy but nothing worth doing ever is.
All the best.
There is just as much opportunity in 2008 as there was in 19996 if you know where to look.
ReplyDeleteFirst, examine todays opportunities or you will likely be spending April 13th, 2020 lamenting about how I and a handful of opportunists grabbed them all in 2008.
Make sure that you are getting outside the domain bubble and look at the changes going on in the world today, this very minute.
At any moment you can jump in and make a gold mine. Did anyone else buy gold as it rose to $1,000 oz? Did you know when to sell? Were you invested in Euros because you were aware that the dollar was falling? How many missed investing in oil futures? Nanotechnology? Biotech? Alternative fuels? Who still doesn't believe in global warming?
Do you have a teenager? Know one? They are psychic indicators of the future... Texting,cellphones, virtual reality, gaming, morpg, (look it up!), 3D, cash free society, ecommerce, mcommerce....
In other words, there are tons of new terms being popularized every minute. Start paying close attention and register them. Meanwhile step outside domaining so that you don't miss any other opportunities that are floating buy.
You can make money in a recession just as easily as losing it!