Forum becoming unusable?

[Brassneck]

Don't know the exact numbers, but currently it seems 90 per cent of the threads are sale threads, and about the only activity seems to resolve around 'comedy' threads as people tear to pieces the over-optimism of new posters.

Is there anyway we can try to bring a bit more structure to the forum. I am as guilty as anyone of touting my domains, but I think we are reaching the point where this forum is going degenerate beyond any usefulness. If I was an outsider it would seem to all be pretty desperate to me.

It would be a great shame if the forum reached the point of no return.

Stephen.

 

[Edwin]

One issue is that people seem almost too "forgiving" of genuine no-hope cases. There is enough information out there (on this forum and elsewhere) for anyone who truly cares to learn the difference between a valuable domain name and a worthless one to gain a first-class education. Everything they will ever need to know has already been written and is FREELY available if they only bother to look (which is in massive contrast to 10-15 years ago, when some of us got our start and had to pretty much make it up as we went along)

Indeed, there have been a few "newbies" who have come to Acorn and showed a willingness to learn and have blossomed as a result. And that's great to see. But in domaining, as in law, "ignorance is (or should be) no excuse".

It helps nobody to pretend that a domain name that is either A) worth £0.00 or B) a lawsuit waiting to happen is anything other than a huge "fail" - and sidestepping that in appraisal threads just adds fuel to a dangerous fire of misplaced belief in the ability of the thread originator to pick winning names.

Better a short, sharp shock followed either by a rapid reassessment/readjustment which may eventually lead to success and/or a quick exit from an industry which has shown time and time again that randomly registering names is about the quickest way to waste money known to man, short of stepping out on the front lawn and setting fire to a pile of cash.

I believe it's this relentless cascade of repetitive, virtually unchallenged false hope that has driven a lot of regulars who used to post some great material to leave the forum and others to post only sporadically.

If a domain name is worth nothing, zip, nada, then have the decency to call it as it is. There's no particular need to be rude about it, but there's also no need to pretend that the reality of the situation is something it's not.

Yes, things are harder now than they have ever been, especially for those seeking to break into the industry. But that's just a "fact", something to be faced up to. It doesn't mean that newcomers should be given more slack to somehow "compensate" them for having basically missed the boat - if anything, it's the opposite since it's harder than ever to put together a valuable portfolio and easier than ever to tilt at windmills...

 

[Blossom]

Drive the change you want to see.

 

[websaway]

The forum is in the doldrums.
The activity that's occuring is not what most members would welcome, mostly portfolio sales of unwanted domains some of which seasoned members probably wouldn't register let alone buy. When business is slow people lose interest and focus, so, as with all things, it has it's challenges but it will bounce back when sales start to move again.


It might be a good idea to have a basic induction page which maybe includes a warning to new members of the problems related to automatic valuation systems.

 

[Admin]

Maybe I'll just ban new members from asking for Appraisals as that's what seems to be getting people's backs up lately.

I'm open to any suggestions.

Admin

 

[Edwin]

One sales thread a day across all sales forums (that's still 365/year which should be enough really when you think about it - if not, you'd better have a REALLY strong case!) and no bumping of sales threads (disabled in the forum software) would make the "real" discussions stand out a bit better.

 

[julian]

great idea


- anyone who's been here say.. more than 4/5 years ought to be cut some slack for premium section posts - after all these are the people that are providing the content.


- also anyone with over 1500 posts should get a share of forum profits

Maybe I'll just ban new members from asking for Appraisals as that's what seems to be getting people's backs up lately.

I'm open to any suggestions.

Admin

 

[SF]

Why not just ignore the sales part Edwin? Who are you to tell people not to buy and sell?

I think its always the normal moaners worrying about themselves, i say go and promote some of your domains and you will have less time to moan about everyone elses business.

And there is always Dale Hubbards failed effort of a Domain Forum.

 

[Admin]

The sales threads / bumps are already throttled but it's where most people post as they want to sell domains so I get complaints when I impose stricter rules.

I was actually thinking of introducing some kind of master domain database here where people can post all their domains for sale to save posting each one in turn in threads. That way members could search through each others portfolios for names of interest (by keyword etc.) - thoughts?

Effective immediately, users are now required to have 50 or more posts before they can ask for a domain appraisal.

Admin

 

[Edwin]

Why not just ignore the sales part Edwin? Who are you to tell people not to buy and sell?

Can you really make a logical case for allowing more than 365 sales threads/year/user? Because that's what you're in effect defending.

 

[scottmccloud]

The sales threads / bumps are already throttled but it's where most people post as they want to sell domains so I get complaints when I impose stricter rules.

I was actually thinking of introducing some kind of master domain database here where people can post all their domains for sale to save posting each one in turn in threads. That way members could search through each others portfolios for names of interest (by keyword etc.) - thoughts?

Effective immediately, users are now required to have 50 or more posts before they can ask for a domain appraisal.

Admin

Will this not just result in some new users spamming a load of useless posts just to get their post count up so they can use the appraisal section?

 

[Edwin]

I was actually thinking of introducing some kind of master domain database here where people can post all their domains for sale to save posting each one in turn in threads. That way members could search through each others portfolios for names of interest (by keyword etc.) - thoughts?

Isn't that pretty much what Sedo does already?

 

[Brassneck]

Isn't that pretty much what Sedo does already?

I actually think that is a worthwhile idea. There are a lot of domains which are worth low XXX which are usable but on Sedo the commission takes a big dent. Also, dealing directly with buyers / sellers gives more opportunity for negotiation and I have found in the past you can build up business relationships which might have other spin-offs.

Stephen.

 

[Edwin]

I actually think that is a worthwhile idea. There are a lot of domains which are worth low XXX which are usable but on Sedo the commission takes a big dent. Also, dealing directly with buyers / sellers gives more opportunity for negotiation and I have found in the past you can build up business relationships which might have other spin-offs

Then why not just direct the names to your own sales page, with your contact info on it? That way, you have the chance to build up a one-to-one relationship with every single interested party...

 

[Admin]

Isn't that pretty much what Sedo does already?

Yes except there wouldn't be any commission to pay plus a lot of members here steer clear of Sedo these days.

Admin

 

[Edwin]

Yes except there wouldn't be any commission to pay plus a lot of members here steer clear of Sedo these days.

Admin

I'm still missing a piece of the puzzle, I think... where's the traffic going to be coming from? Or will it be a requirement of listing domains on this future SiteX that they also be "parked" so as to drive traffic to it?

 

[Brassneck]

Then why not just direct the names to your own sales page, with your contact info on it? That way, you have the chance to build up a one-to-one relationship with every single interested party...

All my domains (which I haven't developed) are parked at Bodis and that is exactly what happens as they provide a nice contact link and don't get in the way of negotiations as they are simply a parking company.

Admin's idea provides a searchable database - yes it's available via Sedo but you then have to use their platform to negotiate. This would be different.

I'm sure quite a few of us would be happy to pay for some sort of managed database of UK domains for sale if it was promoted and administered properly.

Stephen.

 

[Admin]

No my thought was rather than members feeling the need to create endless Sales Forum Threads, members could browse each others portfolios in a database search.

Example, you want to purchase a "bingo" .co.uk only domain, you could search the central members domain database and if it throws up any results you like, it would tell you which member to contact with your enquiry.

This would reduce the number of sales threads and give people who would normally post in the "wanted" section a ready insight into what members have to offer.

Admin

 

[Aaron Clifford]

Actually.....not very good at getting my point across...

 

[retired_member22]

Actually.....not very good at getting my point across...

There are loads of other places apart from acorn, lets not kid ourselves