As a domain seller, I’m always looking to maximize my ROI; Sedo’s platform offers some room for negotiation.
However, the use of the pre-selected options is rather minimal and some are rather useless. For example, “Please justify your asking price” sounds like a time-wasting response.
There is one option that is quite ominous and that’s “This is my final offer“.
When placed by the offer-maker, it’s an indication that he’s ready to pull out of further acting upon the domain.
Or is it?
A week ago I was in the middle of one such negotiation, when the deal stalled. My asking price and the placed offer were quite apart.
Then, the potential buyer played the “This is my final offer” card.
Big mistake.
When the gap is large, making such a statement won’t push me into “surrendering” the domain. Domain buyers beware: if you use Sedo to attempt to buy domains anonymously, you immediately indicate that you don’t want to negotiate directly; after all, my contact info is in the WHOIS.
So I typed up a nice response to the buyer, explaining why his offer was laughable; for a domain registered before 2000 he was instantly gaining Google juice for the exact terms. I didn’t forget to send him a couple of other potential buyers, using ZFBot as my search tool.
Then I waited. On the last day of the offer, he accepted my asking price.
Epic triumph.
So don’t go around playing the “Final Offer” card to a domain seller that knows when you bluff.
I have had many final offers coming up in my negoiations on sedo much like you mentioned very far apart, and the final offer usually comes up after one counter. Let’s face it, the majority of time we are opening up $60-$250 sedo offers on pre 2004 .com domains which have considerable upside take away $50 sedo commission, not very motivating to sell thse domains when your on the hook for a 20-90% commission.
Sedo takes forever to respond to messages especially during US Business hours, when time is money, and the back and forth, and the heat of the negotiation are important, waiting 24 hours on a back and forth response is like a 1200bps modem, just won’t work in todays marketplace.
Many people choose to use sedo’s marketplace to perform a deal, maybe they do not know about whois or what not, but the final offer is an amateur play bluffing a domain seller to think that a small percentage of something is better than the buyer walking do not give in, hold your ground. Many times I have countered a final offer, and we usually go a few more rounds, its just a shortcut to try and close a deal quick.
It is getting harder to repalce good .com’s stop giving them away.
John – Here’s a little known ‘secret’ that I will share with you, hoping it’s not going to be abused. 😉
If you call Sedo on the phone, asking them to promptly review and release a pending custom comment instead of waiting for 24 hours, they are usually very helpful. This can speed up negotiations and lead to a sale versus a stalemate.
I particularly hate that auto reply
“Please justify your asking price”
I did lobby sedo for months to get them to add the following options for the seller to reply to that one.
~ “Please justify why you want to pay peanuts for a superb domain name,do you think I’m a desperate moron”
~ “Please justify your existence”
~ “Do you know any more jokes? Coz yor latest offer just aint funny”
~ “Is there a lowballers convention? If so I offer $1 to buy my ticket”
Sedo failed to reply!
PS Congrats on the sale!
You got lucky, congratulations.
“So don’t go around playing the “Final Offer” card to a domain seller that knows when you bluff.”
But this makes you look foolish. You didn’t know anything otherwise you wouldn’t have done a bunch of selling – you weren’t willing to sell for the price he offered and countered. You aren’t psychic and you had no idea what he was thinking.
Andy – My sentiments, exactly.
William – I don’t think you understand how I operate with regards to “anonymous” offers via Sedo. A “Final offer” that isn’t even close to my initial asking price is an evident bluff. Sure, if I’m “foolish” after tripling the amount offered I’d love to be one such fool every time 🙂