Sweetmantra: Domain Name Strategy

To the Top with Bermuda's Smartest Entrepreneur

I love entrepreneurs, and I meet them in the most unlikely places. In this case, on a beach.

Earlier this year my wife and I vacationed in Bermuda. I had not been there since a child, and I was excited to return to the beautiful island and give my wife the grand tour.

I did not realize I would also meet the smartest entrepreneur in Bermuda.

For our day at the beach, I decided to take my wife to Horseshoe Bay, a spectacular public beach area featuring the famous Bermudian pink sand, all sorts of rocky coves, and great snorkeling. The weather that day was perfect for the beach: hot and sunny.

We took the local bus to Horseshoe Bay, and were dropped off at the main entrance, which is at the top of a steep hill that winds its way down for hundreds of yards. As we walked down the hill towards the changing room area, we started to pass people who were leaving the beach and making their way back up the hill on foot. It's a long walk uphill in the heat, and these folks looked pretty bedraggled, with sweat pouring off them. We realized that we'd probably have the same hot and sticky walk back up the hill when it came time for us to leave, and we were not looking forward to that.

But that would not be our fate, thanks to a brilliant entrepreneur named Dean Ming. For the last 11 years, Dean has been the owner and operator of the ultimate niche business, which he calls "To the Top." (Smart name, too.) His business does one thing, and one thing only, and it does it very well: gives tourists a quick ride to the top of the hill in a small passenger van.

Dean realized that after spending a day at the beach, then showering and changing into their street clothes, a lot of tourists didn't want to then spend 15 minutes walking up that long and steep hill in the heat. So for $2, he gives them a ride "To the Top," and during the two-minute drive shares a few tidbits of historical information about Bermuda. I estimate that on a good day Dean is pulling in about $200 an hour operating his service. Not bad for one man and his van.

Dean's sign says it's the best two dollars you will spend that day, and I think most of his customers would agree. This is a great example of an entrepreneur identifying a very specific need and then fulfilling that need. Smart. Simple. Successful. We can all learn from entrepreneurs like Dean.

Six Amazing Experiences I am Grateful For

For my first post after my unofficial 'sabbatical' from blogging, I thought I'd share some photos and observations from some of the more memorable positive experiences I have had over the last eight months. I am truly lucky that I get the opportunity to travel for work and pleasure.
 

Had dinner by the beach in beautiful and eclectic Key West, Florida with some fellow domainers (domain investors) who had gathered from around the world. The people I was dining with at this table manage portfolios of several million domains. I was there attending a business event hosted by Sedo, but it was the networking and informal social interactions that proved to be the most valuable.

Took my wife for a surprise helicopter ride over New York City at sunset. (Interestingly, it was one of the domainers at the Key West dinner that gave me the idea for this.) I never even realized you could charter a helicopter and do this, and I highly recommend it.

Scuba dived a Soviet warship off the coast of Cuba. I had visited this wreck 10 years earlier but had run into some complications and had to cut short my dive. This time around I was better prepared and brought along my camera.

Drove through Death Valley with one of my team members (who took this photo) and visited Zabriskie Point, which I have wanted to visit ever since seeing the Antonioni film of the same name. Despite its name, Death Valley is teeming with life, and my colleague and I had a great time exploring this amazing landscape en route to another domain conference.

Learned the fine art of "The Throw" on a balcony overlooking Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras. You learn a lot about marketing and negotiating doing this. Seriously. This was another domain conference, yet despite its more informal nature provided a great opportunity to really bond with new and existing business partners.

Explored The Crystal Caves in Bermuda, which I first visited as a child. They were first discovered by two teenage boys who were looking for their lost cricket ball. Thanks to the curiosity of kids, we can now all experience this natural wonder of the world.

It was amazing experiences like these, which I am very grateful to have had, that counterbalanced the negative energy of the deaths in my inner circle during the same time period. Here's to more of the former and less of the latter in the coming years.

I Have Some Explaining to Do.

Wow.

It's been a long time since I posted something on my blog, especially given the fact that for a couple of years I had gotten into the habit of blogging weekly. The truth of the matter is that my absence wasn't because I forgot about my blog, or had no interest in blogging. Blogging, as much as it pains me to admit this, got de-prioritized in my personal and professional life during the last eight months. Every week I'd want to post something, but I had trouble finding (or making) the time, and I didn't want to push myself too hard or stress myself about it because that wouldn't be healthy. Yet, every week, there'd be the same nagging voice in my head giving me grief for not blogging, again.

Looking back on the last eight months, now that life has settled down a bit, I am starting to see that it was a "perfect storm" of too many things, bad and good, that consumed the energy I would have normally had for blogging. The good news is that this storm (especially the bad stuff) has passed.

It may sound like I am making excuses, and maybe I am, but life is about making choices, and for a while I chose to focus on other things. What were those other things? On the personal front, there were three deaths in my inner circle (all people my age), which were three too many in my book, but there were also three weddings, a new niece, and some amazing trips. On the professional front, the business I run has grown by leaps and bounds, but it was crazy busy for a while. I've now put systems and people in place to make things less pressurized. Don't get me wrong; I love my job, I have a great team, and I am excited about all the new things we are working on.

I've decided to stop nagging myself about blogging, to stop pressuring myself to stick to a specific (and arbitrary) schedule, and just post when and if I feel like it. So that's what I'm going to do. I'm also not going to be so rigid about writing solely about Internet marketing or domain names. On some occasions, and starting with my next post, I may share professional and even personal observations and experiences that are of significance to me and, with any luck, of value to you.

Thanks for your patience and understanding. It's good to be back.

Why It's a Wrap for my Movie Domain Name Website

Like many of the ventures I have launched over the years, the idea for Hollywoozy, my site where I would review movie domain names, came to me out of the blue.

At the time, I thought it would be both fun and educational to use movie domain names (the good and the bad) as a springboard to discuss what makes a good marketing domain name.

I also wanted to create an outlet to share my amusement and frustration with the idiotic domain names chosen by the marketers of movies.

I feel that I accomplished both those objectives, and the reaction to Hollywoozy has been very positive.

Since launching the site, I have had the opportunity to discuss movie domain names with studio executives, filmmakers, marketing folks, and intellectual property lawyers. In doing so, I gained a deeper understanding of why most Hollywood movies end up with less-than-ideal domain names. It was an eye-opening experience.

Here are some of the reasons why movie domains are the way they are (and won't likely change anytime soon):

1. Since the bulk of a typical Hollywood movie's marketing dollars are spent on traditional, offline media (mainly television and print), the online marketing component is given low priority, little attention, and relatively tiny budgets. Finding and obtaining the best domain name is not seen as a priority, and any money spent on purchasing the domain name(s) will come out of the already squeezed budget for the movie's Website.

2. Many movie marketers refuse to deal with domain investors who might already own the ideal domain name. It's become almost a matter of principle that Hollywood would rather pay $10 and register a brand new but inferior movie domain name than pay someone else $500 for a much better domain name. Hollywood feels it has been 'burned' too often by cybersquatters (or what Hollywood perceives as cybersquatters) and wants nothing to do with even the legitimate domain resale market.

3. Because the online marketing of a movie is treated as a low priority, there is little to no measurement done, which means there are few opportunities for the powers to be to learn how having a better domain name would impact their overall success.

4. Since the main focus of Hollywood movie marketing is to generate buzz and put bums in seats for the movie's opening weekend, most of the marketing activities are geared towards that tiny window of time. Having a better domain name is not seen as having much of an impact on this either.

5. The studios don't really care that they don't have the perfect domain name. They figure that because they will be spending millions to market whatever domain name they do have, they will still get tons of traffic to the movie's Website. And they also figure that the search engines and popular movie portals like Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb will also drive organic traffic as well.

Having learned all of this, I have decided it is pointless of me to keep making fun of Hollywood and its often silly choice of movie domain names. If anything, I've become very forgiving of Hollywood and its domain name foibles. I know the domain names are lame. You know the domain names are lame. And, yes, Hollywood knows the domain names are lame as well.

Since this situation isn't likely to ever change, and since I have a long list of ideas for other ventures I want to turn into reality, there will be no more updates to Hollywoozy.

I've had a ball creating and updating Hollywoozy, I've loved the discussions and learning and relationships that have flowed out of it, and I hope its visitors enjoyed reading it.

Cut.

Print.

That's a wrap.

Career Reboot: How to Reinvent Your Professional Self

Over lunch the other day with a business associate, I was discussing my rather eccentric career and offering them a bit of advice as they tried to make the transition from one career path to another.

Then I remembered that I had a written an article for The Globe and Mail about this exact topic, for which I coined the term "career reboot", way back in 2004. I dug up the article this past weekend and have decided to share it via my blog since I know a lot of people these days are considering, or are being forced to consider, a career reboot.

For me, the timing of sharing this article is perfect since I did a second career reboot myself two years ago this month. After over a decade of working in the digital marketing space, I walked away from a great job at a big ad agency to pursue my passion for the domain name investing world. I don't regret that decision for a moment, but I won't pretend it was an easy one to make at the time.

That was career reboot number two for me. The article you are about to read discusses my first career reboot. I hope you find it helpful.

- - -

Career Reboot:
How to Reinvent Your Professional Self

In 1991, I had what many would consider a dream job: I was a producer at a popular television station working alongside a talented bunch of people in a fun environment. Then I did the unthinkable. I handed in my notice.

Friends and colleagues were in shock. Some were convinced I'd lost my mind. "Did I have a new job lined up somewhere else," I was asked. Nope. Instead, I was about to embark on my "career reboot," the toughest - but ultimately wisest - decision I've ever made.

Where is it written that you can only have one career in your life? Nowhere! Who says that once you've been trained in one profession you have to do that for the rest of your life? Not me!

Lots of people head down a career path and then, after years or even decades of working in their chosen profession, realize that it's no longer the right fit for them. In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with this. We're humans, not robots, and it's normal for our interests and priorities to change over time.

The only thing worse than being unhappy in your current field of work is doing nothing about it. Whine and complain all you want, but that's not going to solve the problem - although it may lead to you being fired. That's where the career reboot fits in. If you'd rather be doing something else for a living, then get out there and do it. Reboot yourself and start heading down the path to a new career.

My journey began in 1990. I was working in television but had begun to notice how computers were increasingly being used as creative tools in a relatively new communications medium known as "new media" that gave the viewer control over the media. The interactive nature of new media fascinated me. The more I investigated it, the more I realized I was witnessing the birth of something new, much like I imagined film and television had evolved in their early years. And I wanted to be a participant in this revolution, not just an observer.

Before you dive headfirst into a career change, make sure that it's not just your current job that you are unsatisfied with rather then the field as a whole. It's a lot easier to switch jobs than to change careers!

Assuming you still want to execute a career reboot, the biggest hurdle you are likely to face is you. I'm not going to pretend otherwise; this can be scary stuff, and you'll probably resist making the switch. I know I did. But don't give in to your fears.

So, what does it take to perform a successful career reboot?

You need to focus on the task at hand, stick with it, and be willing to learn a ton of new things. You should be financially stable enough to be able to survive with little or no income for at least six months. And you should be prepared to make some short-term sacrifices in your life. Most importantly, you will need to project and maintain a positive attitude throughout the reboot process. Believe in your objective, which means believing in yourself.

There are also a number of things I recommend you have in place before you press the big, red "reboot" button.

To start with, you need to develop a game plan and have (or make) the time to execute it. My first goal was to learn as much as I could about the new media industry. Keep in mind that something like this can be done while you're still in your "old" career.

Since there was were so few books written about new media at the time, I started by conducting information interviews with people who were working in the new media field in Canada. I asked them how they got started, what they liked and disliked about the field, and what sort of skills and training would be required for me to make the leap. (I was surprised to learn that many of them were career "rebooters" themselves!) I also scoured the library, read trade publications, attended trade shows and events, and joined a recently-formed new media association where I began to network with others already in the field.

You may want to surround yourself with a team of supporters and trusted advisors, people who understand why you're doing this and will be there to support you when (not if) the going gets tough. Other career rebooters would make excellent candidates for your team!

A word of caution: While you might think that your colleagues, friends, and even family would automatically support your decision, don't be disappointed if some do not. People have different agendas, not all of which are apparent at first, and your plans to reboot may reveal a side of them that you've never seen before.

My wife was my biggest cheerleader (thank you), but some people did not understand my goal and tried to dissuade me. In retrospect, I realize they may have been jealous or felt threatened. Listen to what others have to say, but don't be pressured into doing what doesn't feel right for you.

Finally, after you've done all your research, mapped your plan of action, and assembled your team, you will be ready to walk away from your "old" career, which in most cases means resigning from your current job. Welcome to the most terrifying - yet wonderful - day of your life!

Once you've made this courageous first step, be sure to take a moment to celebrate your accomplishment. You've just done something that many have dreamed of but few have been able to.

Now is not the time to panic. Shortly after setting out on my own, I got very antsy about money and made the mistake of accepting a contract in my "old" field. This addressed my financial concerns at the time, but it also distracted me from my main objective, which was to move on to my new career. Remain flexible, however, because sometimes the best opportunities come from the most unlikely places.

It actually took me several attempts at my career transition before I got it right. In my first attempt, I tried pitching my film and TV expertise to the new media community. That approach didn't work, and I retreated to the world of television to plot my next move. Turns out I had gotten my approach backwards! When, on my second attempt, I started to help my film and TV colleagues understand new media, my career transition gained momentum. Over a decade later, I am no longer observing the new media revolution; I am a participant.

A career reboot doesn't happen overnight - it's a gradual transition. If you are patient and willing to stick with it, you will find your footing and eventually flourish in your new career. Good luck!

- - -

Re-reading the above article, which I wrote over five years ago, I can't help but be drawn to the part that reads, "sometimes the best opportunities come from the most unlikely places." Since then, I've found that to be especially true, and that's how I ended up making my second career reboot. But that's a story for another time...

My Five Most Popular Blog Articles

I'm on holiday the next little while so I thought I'd share some links to five of the all-time most popular articles I have ever written for my blog:

• 10 Twitter Tips for Professionals

• 10 Facebook Tips for Professionals

• Does Someone Want to Buy Your Domain Name?

• 12 Questions You Must Ask Before Doing SEO

• Ten Must-Have iPhone Apps for Marketers

Apparently blog posts with numbers in the title do very well. ;+)

I hope you enjoy these, and I look forward to resuming writing again later this Summer.

Want to Learn About Domain Name Investing?

You probably already know that I am fanatical about domain names.

How would you like to learn about the world of buying, selling, and monetizing premium domain names? From me. This summer.

In my role as the General Manager of YummyNames, a service of Tucows Inc., I am hiring a Domain Portfolio Assistant for an 8-week contract. This is a rare, entry-level opportunity to work with me and my team as we manage one of the largest domain name portfolios in the world.

You will learn a ton, work on some important projects, and make some great connections. And you'll do it from our bright and funky Liberty Village office in Toronto. This is an awesome opportunity for someone who wants to get some hands-on experience in the rapidly-evolving world of 'Internet Real Estate'.

To find out more about this contract position and how to apply for it, visit the following link:

http://snipurl.com/kvr4h

Thanks, and good luck!

Domain Name Disputes: Honey or Vinegar?

One of the more unusual aspects of my job as General Manager of a large portfolio of premium domain names is that I see all the "poison pen" letters from lawyers representing clients who believe (usually incorrectly, I should add) they are legally entitled to a domain name that we own. Since we own over 100,000 domain names, we get quite a few of these letters every week!

I make sure that we respond to each and every one of these inquiries, and now that I've seen and dealt with hundreds of these letters I wanted to make a suggestion to the marketing community at large:

"You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar."

Admittedly, I didn't come up with this age-old concept, but I'd like to remind people that you will have better luck resolving a dispute - any dispute - by playing nice than by being hostile.

For instance, the next time you think that someone owns a domain name that you think you are legally entitled to, don't make your first move a "nasty lawyer's letter."

Instead, just reach out to the current owner with a courteous phone call or email (which you can get from checking the public WHOIS records) and let them know you have some questions or concerns. You might discover that the current owner is a lot nicer than you think, is not a hardened criminal, and is more than willing to negotiate in good faith. You might even learn that the original basis for your complaint is flawed and that - surprise, surprise - you aren't legally entitled to the domain name after all.

Not only will you save yourself the time, hassle, and significant expense of going the legal route (fighting a domain name dispute can cost many thousands of dollars), but you will begin the dialogue on a positive and constructive basis, not an adversarial one.

I go out of my way to help the small minority of folks who approach me nicely and are willing to listen to and consider our side of the story. Between us, we can usually resolve the situation within a few days. Unfortunately, I can count these "honey" folks on the fingers of one hand.

I'm not so sympathetic towards the "vinegar" folks - those who courier me six-inch thick stacks of legal documents that make all sorts of false accusations, ridiculous demands, and set unrealistic timelines for a response. (One law firm did this to me, quite deliberately, on Christmas Eve, two years in a row.) Sadly, these "poison pen" letters make up the vast majority of inquiries I receive. Sure, we respond to them as well, but I'm not going to cut them any slack or do them any favours. Why should I?

In the end, this boils down to one simple suggestion: be nice. ;+)

(A version of this post originally appeared on the Canadian Marketing Blog.)

10 Twitter Tips for Professionals

After the unexpected popularity of my article 10 Facebook Tips for Professionals, I figured I would follow it up with some tips for the micro-blogging platform known as Twitter.

Although Twitter has been around since 2006, it's only recently started to generate interest from the public at large. One of the things I like the most about Twitter is that it is an open platform and the uses for it are limited only by people's imagination. Every day I discover new and creative ways that people are using Twitter, some good, some bad. As with any new medium, there are and will continue to be growing pains as we all figure out what the ground rules are and how best to use this new tool. I, for one, still consider myself to be in my 'kindergarten' years with Twitter, however I have learned a few tips and tricks along the way that I am happy to share with you:

I hereby present my list of 10 Twitter tips for business professionals who want to get the most out of Twitter without making too many newbie mistakes:

1. Use your real and (length permitting) full name as your Twitter ID and Display Name - Don't start Twittering using some cutesy or cryptic alias; that just makes it hard for people to find you and figure out who you really are. If you can, avoid using an underscore in your Twitter ID: JaneSmith is way more professional than Jane_Smith and is also easier for people who are using mobile devices to type. And capitalize the first letter of your first and last name; it makes them easier to read.

2. Make sure you upload a photo of yourself right away - If you don't include a photo of yourself as part of your Twitter account, you will limit the number of followers you will get. And use a real photo, not an illustration, avatar, or your company's logo. People want to have a relationship with you, not an illustration. Choose a recent colour or black and white headshot of yourself, and make sure the photo is tasteful. For best results, the image should be a JPEG sized about 128 by 128 pixels, but remember that it will be displayed in much smaller sizes on different Twitter clients, including small screens on mobile devices, so make sure it is legible even when tiny.

3. Include a compelling and accurate description of yourself in your Twitter account - People will refer to this when deciding if they want to follow you. Make sure you include pertinent information such as the name of the company you work for, your job title, a brief description of what you do, and a link to your corporate Website or blog. Remember to keep search engines in mind and feature keywords that are relevant to your profession in your description. This will make it easier for new people to find you via Twitter search.

4. Choose a professional looking Twitter profile design, or create your own - The Twitter account settings allow you to choose from a number of simple design templates for your profile. I recommend that you pick one that best (or at least better) aligns with your professional brand, or tinker with the colour schemes until you get something that works. If you really want to present a slick image, get a custom Twitter background design created for you. There are numerous free and affordable paid Twitter background design services. One of the ones I have used and can recommend is Twitbacks.

5. Understand the important difference between a public reply and a Direct Message (DM) - When you reply to someone that you are following, using the "@BillSweetman" syntax, everyone following you and them can see your conversation, and a permanent public record is made of the exchange. A Direct Message, using the "D BillSweetman" syntax, is strictly between you and that one other recipient (although in order for this to work both recipient and sender have to be following one another). Confuse the two and you could end up in an embarrassing situation.

6. Be judicious about Re-Tweeting - Twitter is about sharing, however if all you are doing is continually re-tweeting other people's posts instead of contributing your own original content, this will soon begin to grate on your followers. After all, if your followers really cared about what someone else was Twittering about, they'd follow them.

7. Watch your P's and Q's - Twitter is a public forum, and your posts are archived forever. While it is always advisable to avoid getting into a war of words with someone, Twitter is the worst possible place to have a dustup since everyone has a ringside seat. Sadly, that hasn't stopped some folks from getting into some very nasty, and very public, Twitter fights. Try to avoid making the same mistake.

8. Be careful about mixing business with pleasure - Consider creating two separate Twitter accounts, one for business use and one for personal use. If you tie your personal email address and a more 'casual' photo to your personal Twitter account, your friends and family will easily be able to figure out which is the right account to follow.

9. Follow but don't expect to be followed - While you are free to follow anyone on Twitter that you so choose, don't expect them to follow you back. Not everyone wants to follow hundreds or thousands of people, and just because you followed them doesn't mean they are obliged to follow you, nor should you be upset if they don't.

10. Don't try to "market" on Twitter; try to "share" instead - Just because Twitter allows you to post promotional messages 24/7 doesn't mean that anyone is interested in that kind of content. If you want to attract and keep followers, focus on contributing items of value. Let them know about something you just heard or discovered. Solicit feedback on a project or ask a question. Sing the praises of a product or person. Recommend other people they should follow. Or provide an update on what you are working on right now. Think sharing, not shouting.

Despite the feverish tone of the recent media hoopla around Twitter, I am very bullish about the future of Twitter. We've hardly scratched the surface of its potential. Twitter was originally dismissed by many as a quirky geek distraction (I admit to being one of those skeptics), but it is rapidly emerging as a flexible communication platform for both business and personal use. I hope my 10 Twitter tips will help you take better advantage of this new medium. And if you want to follow me on Twitter, my Twitter ID is BillSweetman. Good luck, and happy Tweeting!

Discover "Minivertising" at 2009 CMA National Convention

Forget about thinking big. You need to think small!

That's the rallying cry for a presentation I am giving at the Canadian Marketing Association's National Convention in Toronto on April 28, 2009.

The Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) has invited me to present my newest talk, "Minivertising", at Canada's largest marketing conference. This national convention is held each spring in a different city and welcomes thousands of attendees.

Here are the details:

"Minivertising" – The Big Future in Targeting a Tiny Niche
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
10:30 - 11:30 AM
Register for the conference

Forget about thinking big. You need to think small! Until recently, it was expensive if not impossible to market to a highly segmented target audience. Not any longer. Discover how marketers and entrepreneurs can use social media and emerging Web tools for affordable and effective mini-targeting. No matter what the size of your company is, you can learn how to become a dominant player in a profitable niche.

If you’re a marketer, you will learn how to use the principles of minivertising to generate interest for your client’s products and services, no matter how constrained their budgets are. If you are an entrepreneur or business executive, you’ll discover affordable and measurable ways to attract highly motivated customers to you, almost overnight.

For more information and to register, visit the CMA National Convention Website.

I hope to see you there.

P.S. Here is a link to the list of Minivertising Resources.