How I Gave the JoeTorre.com Domain Name to Joe Torre Back in 1999

Morning Folks!!


So it is back in 1964. Joe Torre was the first autograph I ever got as a kid when he was a catcher visiting the Mets at Shea Stadium and with the Braves I think before Atlanta. I was a kid so it ia bit fuzzy. Fast Forward to 1999. I own JoeTorre.com. Joe Torre is the manager for New York Yankee's. The 1998, 1999 and 2000 World Champions


I want to get the domain to Joe Torre. What to do? What to do? So I wrote the following letter to the New York Post. Don't think I ever heard back from the post but I did hear back from Joe Torre's folks. I asked nothing in return but they did send me a few autograph baseballs and that was more than enough.


Joe
Torre2


Hi,


My name is Rick Schwartz. I own about 3000 .com addresses.
The reason I am writing this is because one of the .com domain addresses that I
own is JoeTorre.com which I registered in mid 1998.


As time has gone on, the word “Cybersquatter” has entered our
lingo. I have been made aware of the subtle differences of what is and is not
allowed in reference to domain names and trademarks. The line is so fine that the courts are
clogging up with these type cases.


I also want to call attention to “Corporate bullies” that
intimidate individuals and small business people into giving them domains that
they have no legal rights to. A perfect example is the Lawsuit in which Lilly
Industries is involved in with the fight over goofoff.com. “Goof off” is a
common word found in Websters and goof-off is a paint remover that few have
heard of. Details can be found at http://www.goofoff.com/lilly.html


Point is it is important to define the line between
cybersquatting and the rights of legitimate domain owners. In our case we have
a 10 year plan for development of our domains and now that what is and what is
not considered infringement is getting more clearly defined, I am going thru
our list to see what domains could be over that line.


While Joe Torre may be a common name, there is only one
“Famous” Joe Torre. It is in this regard that I would like to turn this domain
over to the rightful owner.


I would like the NY Post to do the honors. I figure it is
easier to get a hold of the Post than Joe Torre.


Thanks for your time!!


Regards,


Rick Schwartz

-----

Why The Internet Collapsed at the Turn of the Century.

Morning Folks!!


One of the things that surprises me the most is the lack of historical perspective so many have about domains and the Internet. Traffic, traffic flow, what works, what does not and WHY.

Are you with me so far? Does this all make sense? Are you ready to see why the Internet collapsed? This was my blog post of April 7, 2007. Nothung I had not written before but now it was in ink.

Morning Folks!!


Before we go forward we must STOP and look back. In 1999 things were popping and it seemed you could do no wrong. Surprise!
I predicted an Internet collapse back then and of course they laughed and thought I was exaggerating. It was inevitable as I weighed the mounting evidence. Just a matter of time, but few could see it coming. I saw a storm brewing and my job was to survive and thrive while others were washed away.
While I have heard dozens of reasons there was one or two CORE reasons from where I sit. One was because advertising on the net was based on 'IMPRESSION BASED ADVERTISING.' This type advertising was the root of all evil on the net imo. It was charging you for a customer whether he got to your website or not. It was more like 'Billboard advertising' or static magazine ads and folks basically paid for NOTHING. But it was based on traditional advertising formulas and that did not exactly match up with Internet characteristics. So folks would overpay and get a bag of smoke. Any rational person would do it once, get burned and never do it again.
Ahhh....bring in the 'KNOW NOTHINGS' for reason #2. The KNOW NOTHINGS did the rational businessman one better. They had 'Burn' money and they did a GREAT job burning it. They burnt it so well that advertisers actually believed in the Impression based advertising model and so everyone was so happy. Until of course the KNOW NOTHINGS ran out of money because thru all the plans and all the MBA's they never built a machine to turn a profit. They had no formula. Just some dream based on NOTHING but a fancy and phony business plan and a bunch of other people's money that they could care less about. Nobody ever told them in school that to run a successful business you need to turn a profit. That you can't give everything away for free.
So it was only a matter of time before the collapse. And I said back in 1999 that 'AFTER the crash, from the burning embers, will rise the REAL INTERNET.' And today you are witnessing the the real Internet. The new Internet based on 'CLICK THRU ADVERTISING.' With this type advertising you actually get a physical visitor to your site and you have a shot at closing him if your mousetrap (Website) works. If it works you buy more and if your mousetrap works, you will outbid your competition because you will close more sales.

Maybe you are seeing things connecting. The next thing you might ask is why is a domain owner so concerned with closing more sales? GREAT QUESTION!! You are paying attention if this is on your mind. The simple answer is I am just copying folks like AT&T. When they came out with their 800 numbers some 30 plus years ago, they trained folks for free. They had all types of schooling and wanted to help you answer the phone and do it in a professional manner so that you would close more sales. WHY?? Because then you would spend more time on the phone and your 800 bill would go up and so your sales would go up and so they would sell you a bigger yellow page ad and they would all MAKE MORE MONEY! So by explaining how to increase sales by buying TARGETED and potent traffic and having an effective mousetrap that can close more sales translates into added value to the traffic that they produce and at the same time increases the value of domain names. EVERYONE comes away a winner!
That is why the future is bright and payouts will continue to rise for years to come. When traffic was selling for a fraction of a cent my only question was 'What is the value of a click if I sell a $20 million plane?' How much is that visitor worth? I believed then and I believe NOW that a clicks value is directly proportionate to the product or service you are selling. That is directly related to the value of a domain name. That is why I STRONGLY believe that anyone selling their domain for a multiple of 'X' TODAY is short changing themselves more than they realize. Sometimes the best way to make the most money is to DO NOTHING!
Have a GREAT Day!
Rick Schwartz


Posts That Stand the Test of Time. Line in the Sand

Evening Folks!!


The posts I try to make are ones that can stand up on their own years later and still be relevant. They usually have some assumptions and a theory behind them. For me it is fun to go years back and see what I wrote then and how it has played out since. I have some very strong beliefs when it comes to the Internet and on April 5th 2007 I re-wrote a post I had made many times before but had to do it from scratch. People are free to argue with my points. But just know going in that you are wrong. Period! Not debatable. Why? Maybe after all these years it is time to figure it out cuz I ain't budging!

The line in the sand





Let me start with a foundation of things I believe. These few points are not debatable from where I sit. So unless you get to this point, you will likely not understand nor accept anything else I have to say.

1. Getting a GREAT domain name is/was a 'Unique opportunity in time.'

2. No other commodity in the history of mankind has ever gone up in value faster than a GREAT domain name. No stock, no diamond, no gold, no land.

3. Just like land may have 'Mineral rights' such as oil, a GREAT domain may also have mineral rights in the form of 'Type in Traffic' from folks typing in your domain name directly into the navigation bar. If someone types in CubicZirconia.com and spells it right do you think they are not qualified? Not targeted? Is that visitor not valuable? Maybe even more valuable than most traffic because of the closing ratios they achieve? I'll talk more about closing ratios in a moment.

4. Fuel runs an automobile, TRAFFIC is what fuels the net. You can have a million dollar auto but without fuel it won't be going anywhere on it's own power. Same with a website. You can spend millions in development but until you add targeted visitors and can CLOSE A SALE you really have nothing. It just sits like the car with no gas.

5. Nothing on this planet happens until a sale is made. Nobody goes to work, not a truck rolls, not a plane takes off not a factory opens not a thing happens. Nothing happens until a sale is made and then you don't actually EAT until you turn a PROFIT. So you don't have to be a genius to sell hundred dollar bills for $79.95.

6. If you sell a product or service on the net via your website and your CLOSING RATIO is not your guiding light, not on the tip of your tongue, not on your radar.....Then you are lost. It is what I believe to be the single most important piece of data no matter what you are selling and less than 1% of all folks that run a site can answer that question. They are lost and are like a captain with no map, no compass, no plan. Your ratio is how many visitors do you need on your site for you to close ONE sale and then repeating those sales? Many sites are incapable of closing any sales. It may be for many reasons or even a single simple one....like the visitor can't find the checkout button.

If you have 10,000 visitors and you only sold one order I would ask why you did not close TWO out of 10,000 or FOUR or FIFTY? Or more? I would ask what you did with those other 9999 customers? I would ask 'Is the traffic no good or is it the website that is no good?' You MUST isolate and figure out both sides. You absolutely MUST! But almost nobody does. They are working in the blind and building without a plan.

TEST, TEST, TEST. Tweak, Tweak, Tweak, experiment, experiment, experiment. And when the result is worse, go back to what worked better and find out WHY it worked better and build on that.

I can go on all day long talking about #6. But that is for another day and you may be asking what the hell does a domain owner know about this? All I can tell you as I know how to close sales on the net and back in 1996 and 1997 and 1998 I made a name for myself by increasing the bottom line of websites by 15% in just FIVE MINUTES! There are certain NAVIGATIONAL MISTAKES that almost everyone makes. Fix those, change the font, change the color, change the location and sales can go up dramatically.


7. All the dead guys that built the corporations so many work for today are rolling in their graves because those in position of power and leadership largely missed the greatest opportunity of their lifetime, their fathers lifetime and their fathers before them!
8. Not all traffic is created equal

9. SHIT traffic and TARGETED traffic likely costs the SAME

10. If you don't know the SOURCE of you're traffic you better find out and re-read #6 until you are blue in the face. Imagine what it would do to your business if your site (Your MOUSETRAP) could only close ONE sale in 10,000 visitors while your competitor is closing 50 sales with the same amount of visitors. He is EATING your lunch and you better start paying attention before you head to Monster.com and look for a new job.



So here we are......
This may sound pretty basic to domain owners and developers, however it is GREEK to those outside the industry. They will doubt these beliefs. What they don't know is we are armed with stats to back up what we say. So my target audience is those outside the industry that still have a misconception of what GREAT domain names represent.
Have a GREAT Day!
Rick Schwartz

April 5th 2007


So now 2013. Still make no sense? How far have we come? How far do we still need to go? Still relevant today?


Have a GREAT Weekend!
Rick Schwartz

April 5th 2013



-----

First Time Ever Released! My Entire 1996 Domain Portfolio

Morning Folks!!


I am a bit of a pack rate. An electronic pack rat for sure!! My electronic files go back to 1996. Once and a while I will open a file and take a look back. Today I opened a November 1996 file that contained my entire portfolio after 10 months collecting domain names. With the exception of about 59 adult domains, this was the actual list from that time.


My first year. NO PPC. No real way to monetize a domain at that time, The adult industry was just starting to sprout. Mainstream wasn't even called mainstream yet nor was much there. But even back then my portfolio was always heavily weighted to mainstream, Main Street type domain names, that I always believed would have much greater value in the future.


Of these a couple never made it to my account. I let 1 or 2 expire as I learned about trademarks. I sold about 5 for a total of about $800,000. 1 or 2 may have even been hijacked. The rest I still own.


Probably Gaysex.com is the one on the list that has generated the most revenue over the years. That $100 slot machine play has spit out well into the 6 figures over the years and still spitin'.


Here are 168 of 227 domains I owned in November 1996. Some good, some not. But there was no road-map back then. Most of them were not even hooked up yet or were just in the process of getting activated. See the ISP's wanted $39.95 PER DOMAIN to hook up back then. So I had to find a guy capable of hooking them all up for much less. So I finally found a guy that would charge me $250/month for all the domains and that was really the start of things and figuring out which domains had value and which did not. I just try to follow human nature the best I could. And still do.































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































ACCENTFURNITURE.COM
ANTIQUE FURNITURE.COM
ANTIQUECLOCKS.COM
ANTIQUEJEWELERS.COM
ANTIQUEPALACE.COM
ANTIQUESWANTED.COM
ART-ANTIQUES.COM
ASS.NET
ATHENSHOTELS.COM
AUCTIONSONLINE.COM
BESTIDEA.COM
BESTMAN.COM
BESTODDS.COM
BIGGESTDISCOUNT
BINGONIGHT.COM
BINGORAMA.COM
BIRTHDAYPARTY.COM
BOOKIEONLINE.COM
CASINOGAMBLERS.COM
CASINOGAMBLING.COM
CASINOGAMBLING.NET
CASINONLINE.COM
CASINOPALACE.COM
CASUALFURNITURE.COM
CHEAPDATE.COM
CHEAPESTAIRFARES.COM
CHEAPESTFARES.COM
CHEAPESTPRICE.COM
CHEAPESTPRICES.COM
CHEAPLAND.COM
CHEAPTHRILL.COM
CHEATING.COM
CHRISTIANNET.COM
CYBERASS.COM
CYBERGAMBLER.COM
CYBERTRAMPS.COM
CYBERWHORE.COM
DAILYDOUBLE.COM
DATENOW.COM
DISCOUNTPRICE.COM
DISCOUNTPRICES.COM
DISCOUNTRESERVATIONS.COM
EBINGO.COM
EFURNITRUE.COM
EMOVIE.COM
EXOYICWOMEN.COM
EXTRACASH.COM
FLOWERDEPOT.COM
FLOWERLAND.COM
FURNITUREDISCOUNTERS.COM
FURNITUREDISCOUNTERS.COM
FURNITURELEASING.COM
FURNITURESALE.COM
FURNITURESHOWROOM.COM
FURNITUREWHOLESALE.COM
GAYSEX.COM
GETHOT.COM
GIRLS.NET
GIRLSWANTED.COM
GOLD-DIAMONDS.COM
GORGEOUSWOMEN.COM
GREATASS.COM
HANDICAPPER.COM
HIGHPROFIT.COM
HORNYWIVES.COM
IMPORTEDFURNITURE.COM
INDIANCASINO.COM
INETCASINO.COM
INTERNETBETTING.COM
INTERNETGAMBLING.COM
JACKPOTBINGO.COM
JACKPOTSLOTS.COM
JCHRIST.COM
JESUS LOVESYOU.COM
KEMP-POWELL.COM
KEMP2000.COM
JESUSNET.COM
KINKYSEX.NET
KISSASS.COM
LASVEGASGAMBLING.COM
LAWTIPS.COM
LIVEDATES.COM
LONDONHOTELS.COM
LONELYPEOPLE.COM
MAKEOUT.COM
MODELHOMES.COM
MRAMERICA.COM
MRUNIVERSE.COM
MSAMERICA.COM
ONLINECASINOS.COM
ORIENTALGIRLS.COM
OUTDOORFURNITURE.COM
PARTYPALACE.COM
PLACEABET.COM
POWELL-KEMP.COM
POWELL2000.COM
RICKSCHWARTZ.COM
ROLEXFORSALE.COM
ROMEHOTELS.COM
SAMSTOWNCASINO.COM
SAVEME.COM
SCREWYOU.COM
SEXGODDESS.COM
SEXYMODELS.COM
SINGLEPEOPLE.COM
SOFTWAREFORSALE.COM
STAMPSFORSALE.COM
STARVINGARTISTS.COM
STREETWALKER.COM
SYDNEYHOTELS.COM
TICKETSFORSALE.COM
TIGERGOLF.COM
TIMEISMONEY.COM
TIPLINE.COM
TIPSHEET.COM
TITTYBAR.COM
TOCHRIST.COM
TOJESUS.COM
TOKYOHOTELS.COM
USGIRLS.COM
VBANC.COM
VBANKS.COM
VDATES.COM
VIRTUALAMERICAN.COM
VIRTUALASS.COM
VIRTUALASSHOLE.COM
VIRTUALAUTODEALER.COM
VIRTUALAUTOLEASING.COM
VIRTUALBANC.COM
VIRTUALBEDROOM.COM
VIRTUALBODY.COM
VIRTUALBOYFRIEND.COM
VIRTUALCARDEALER.COM
VIRTUALCRAPS.COM
VIRTUALDATES.COM
VIRTUALDIET.COM
VIRTUALDOCTOR.COM
VIRTUALGIRLFRIEND.COM
VIRTUALGOLFPRO.COM
VIRTUALHOOKERS.COM
VIRTUALKENO.COM
VIRTUALLEASING.COM
VIRTUALMENTOR.COM
VIRTUALMUSEUEM.COM
VIRTUALNUDITY.COM
VIRTUALPLAYBOY.COM
VIRTUALPLAYGIRL.COM
VIRTUALPRIEST.COM
VIRTUALSECRETARY.COM
VIRTUALSHOWROOM.COM
VIRTUALSLUT.COM
VIRTUALSTRIPPER.COM
VIRTUALTEACHER.COM
VIRTUALWHORE.COM
VIRTUALWHOREHOUSE.COM
VISIONSEX.COM
VSECRETARY.COM
WAGERONLINE.COM
WEALTHONLINE.COM
WEBNETCASINO.COM
WEBSLUT.COM
WHOLESALEFURNITURE.COM
WHOLESALEJEWELERS.COM
WHOLESALEJEWELRY.COM
WHOLESALEWATCHES.COM
WIFESWAP.COM
WORKSMARTER.COM
WORLDCHAMP.COM

Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz



Information Age or MIS-Information Age?

Morning Folks!!


I guess I just see things differently. I like facts and hate bullshit. People swallow the BAIT of mis-information just like dumb fish swallow the bait with a hook attached and then are on a dinner table a few hours later. Guess after a few million years the word has not gotten around to the fish community to stop taking the bait.


But are we as humans any different? How much bullshit did you swallow yesterday? I guess if you haven't been paying attention, probably a few mouthfuls! All day long you are bombarded with stuff. So much of that stuff is just some wording to lure you in. Eat it, smell it, taste it, buy it.


But you need to be careful with information. Ignorance is a disease that has killed more people than all other diseases combined. Think about that before you just react to it.


For all that we know, we really know so little. There are frontiers we have yet to discover or even search for. Our understanding is underwhelming. We are at the cutting edge of nothing because in so many aspects of life we have actually regressed and have gone backwards. Much of that is from mis-information.


So just remember, facts do count and when you do find a fact that is against what you thought before, it is up to you and me to adjust or we are just being baited and we are the bait.


Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz


Blast from the Past and the Famous 18 Wheeler Story

Morning Folks!!


The 'Test of time' is another big thing to me. To prove something it must be able to stand up against time. So does the following post still stnd up years later? Not 100%......but more than ever!!!


Chew on this while we get organized




From April 4, 2007


Good Afternoon Folks,


A few weeks back my friend Frank Schilling asked me to write a guest column on his very popular 7mile.com blog. Frank started in domains around 2000. Others had already decided that all good domains were taken. They were wrong and they defeated themselves before they even began. Along came Frank and not listening to the naysayers, built a portfolio that earns more than any other single domain owner in the world today. So like I will tell you a little bit later....'If you believe you CAN....you are RIGHT! If you believe you CAN'T....you are also RIGHT! Which way your 'Right' is will depend on the decisions you make and how you think. So I am going to republish the post I made for Franky cuz I think folks here will enjoy it and maybe it gives you a little peak into my inner workings and what makes me tick.


I usually write very straight forward and basic. It is rare I write things that are cryptic though it is always important to read between the lines. Here is a mixture of both. Some rambling thoughts designed to make you STOP and think. I’ll ruffle a few feathers to get you there. The first thing you need to do in life to change course, to change your destiny, is to STOP IN YOUR TRACKS, take a deep breath and re-evaluate where you are and where you are going. If you don’t start at a STOP, you lose before you begin. (Got that?)


Everyone runs around and says they want to make a million dollars. But that is truly silly. It is the same thing as climbing to the top of a building or a mountain without a staircase, ladder, elevator, gear or some device to get you there incrementally. The map to making a million dollars is not making a million dollars. It is making a dollar a million times. It is making a PENNY 100 million times. So if you are STOPPED as I suggested, this is your first change. When you make a core change like that it affects other decisions down the line so now you have to reanalyze many things. Invent once and then repeat, repeat, repeat. The more you repeat and the faster you repeat it will determine everything else. $1 million, $10, million, $100 million, it’s all based on the same recipe.


There is “No courage in Corporate America.' That's what I learned at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. EAST 2006 and how true those words are. No spine, no vision, no dreams, no ideas, no nothing but spineless jellyfish only interested in a paycheck on the 1st and 15th. No courage is something that may be able to be exploited. I see so few great IDEAS out there. I think they are coming. I think a foundation is being laid. I think sparks can and will be created. But corporate America won't care until you can lose $100 million and they can pay $500 million to rescue your company. They have such an interesting way of overpaying and make everyone think they are so smart. So my next piece of advice is don’t look to corporate America to sweep you off your feet and bring you to the promised land. They would rather knock you off your feet and bury you once they figure out how badly they goofed and how they missed the single biggest opportunity in any of their lifetimes, their father’s lifetimes and their grandfather’s lifetime. While Wall Street and Main Street traded manipulated and sometimes worthless stocks and Madison Avenue ignored us, they missed the commodity that has gone up faster in value than any other commodity ever known to man. No gold, no diamond, no land no nothing has ever gone up faster and further than a great domain name. Besides that, they lost the most magnificent self maintaining lead generation system ever devised. Imagine getting a million qualified leads for $6 a year. Imagine that? They can’t!! But IMAGINE how it will change the landscape when they actually do figure it out? When they STOP in their tracks and see what many of us see.


My current mission is to make a $1 a day domain be a $20 a day domain and then a $200 a day domain and then a $2000/day domain. Can you imagine what it would be like to multiply your entire income by 20 or more?


Yeah I know it can't happen, it won't happen blah, blah, blah. And to that I would say it CAN happen and it WILL happen and it HAS already happened. It will take on many forms and it will be duplicated 1 domain by 1 domain but the folks that can make that happen are soon going to meet each other and a new day is going to dawn. I have watched payouts go from 1/10 of one penny to many dollars. So the leap I described above is not as far as the ones we have already accomplished.


But, if you can't dream it and you can't believe it, then you can't do it. I accept that and completely understand it. But it does not affect me whatsoever. Not only do I believe it, I know I am actually underestimating what is soon to happen. Hey listen, I don't expect anyone to agree or even see what I see, but all I can do is share what it is I see and just how strong I see it. This will raise all of our overall net worth's. Your holdings are going to do very well IF you have good commercial domains or social domains with lots of eyeballs. Like anything else….If you believe you CAN’T….you are 100% right. And if you believe you CAN……you are also 100% right. YOUR CHOICE!!


If today is your first day of being a domain investor, good luck. Your job is to copy old paths and forge a new path. A new direction. You are never too late so don’t defeat yourself. The publisher of this very blog “Came to the game too late” and was able to outperform all others that got here before him including me and every other domain investor in the game. He had no excuse and neither should you. With a solid plan and a few bucks in your pocket you can still get into the domain game and have it transform your life. I will tell you what I have told everyone before. “Your first domain is your most important domain.” If you choose that one right it makes your future easier than if you don’t. Take the time to learn what makes a good domain and a worthless domain. They likely cost the same. There are a lot of decent domains to be purchased on the secondary market for $500 to $2500. Learn how to pick out the gems and you will never look back. Good luck!


Before I put you all asleep, I’ll leave you with this. My famous “Truck story” and why helping each other has great benefits. With the spirit of giving in your heart you will receive more than you can ask for. That’s the “Magic” in approaching life from this side of the equation.


The 18 Wheeler Story……and The Crest of The Hill.


Years ago [in the domain business] many of us walked around searching for meaning. We knew we had gold and diamonds but were not sure how to turn them to cash. So the net was a true NET. We were forced to help and cooperate with each other for our very survival.


I have always seen the way things could and should unfold in a more uniform manner. Of course that is not possible but the way I have always seen it is in this picture I draw.


IMAGINE there are 10 trucks. All 18 wheelers and all lined up parallel. NONE of them have the power to get over the crest of this steep hill. Each truck has a driver and a helper. You see 10 trucks with drivers and you see 10 trucks with a guy behind it doing everything he can to push the truck over the crest. ALL are failing. Not a one has budged. They are stuck. Paralyzed in time.


The thing they don’t understand is that they have the power and resources right there to change their destiny and overcome the huge obstacle they are facing. Instead they are grumbling and frustrated and are losing money by not getting the goods to where they need to go. If they were to think a little more unselfishly they could easily garner the power they need to get moving again.


What if…..What if you took 9 of the 10 drivers and put them behind just ONE truck and what if you got all the other 10 helpers to also push that one truck? Well you would get the result they all wanted by cooperating and then they could go right down the line and REPEAT the process and formula and push all the other 9 trucks until they are all rolling again.


The day I created this story I also had a vision for a way to apply it. Maybe there is still a way. We talk about “Development” and I think that is what most of us ultimately are. Some develop at different speed, at different levels and for different reasons.


IMAGINE…..10 domainers with like minds get together. Their mission is each month, develop one domain name owned by one of the other members of the group and built by all other members as they donate a little time and talent and knowledge to the effort. At the end of the year each would have a site developed by some of the very sharpest people we know with talents beyond most and 10 chances to hit pay dirt. Imagine dozens of groups doing the same thing. Starting with a great domain, identifying a void, figuring a way to profit from that void and creating something that we would be proud of and move in a direction we all would like to go. We all have great land and nails and wood and brick and cement in our arsenal. Together we can build houses. Alone we may build frustration and feel like those truckers until they figure it out.


This leads to other things and I could see dozens of groups like this pulling this off. One domain at a time and success after success after success.


Just a vision I have had for a very long time and never have the mind or time or PATIENCE to put it on paper and explain it in a way that could be understood and embraced. I know I have tried several times. But I have not successfully articulated what is in my mind and heart.


Lastly, don’t listen to the naysayers. They are the ones sitting on the sidelines cheering for your failure. They build themselves up by ripping others down. Don’t fall into that trap. Don’t become a person on that side of the equation. They are mad at the world and the frustration built up in them is used to try and defeat you. Don’t let them. Your triumphs are illustrations of their failures. They have the power to change that at every moment of their life, but the first thing that has to happen is the first thing I mentioned. They have to STOP and reanalyze, rethink, and set the course. Something we all have in common and something we should all do periodically to make sure we are still on course.


I will leave you with my most important thought. When you leave New York and set sail for London and you end up on the shores of Africa…..your problem did not occur when you landed in Africa, it happened before you even set sail for New York. Point is……99.9% of ALL failures are due to a bad or quick decision in the beginning or the planning stage. So the likelihood of any success can easily be determined before you even begin. Usually a SIMPLE change can also change your entire future fortunes. If you walk east looking for the sunset you will likely become disappointed, angry and frustrated. Their frustration boils over and they last out at the world. Especially anyone telling them they are wrong. Just a 180 degree shift on one thing can change your destiny. But before you do that you MUST STOP. Stop in your tracks. If you don’t start at a STOP, you lose before you begin.


So welcome to my little world and to a MIND that just keeps them guessing!


Have a GREAT day!

Rick Schwartz





Posted on April 04, 2007 at 03:42 PM


Have a GREAT day!
April 04, 2013

Rick Schwartz



Rewind April 3, 2007: Domain King Announces Blog

Morning Folks!!


I guess we can call this my anniversary week/month for Rick's Blog. It all started on April 3, 2007. But of course it really started in 1996. The arguments I made in April of 2007 were valid then, were valid in April of 1997, valid today and valid in 2017.


FirstPost


Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz


Domaining WITHOUT Pay Per Click?! Do you Suffer From Googleitus?

Morning Folks!!


You may want to look at things differently if you PLAN to SURVIVE in domaining. See the dirty little secret is how many folks have failed and gone bye bye in this business. Some rather large players now gone. More will be joining them. Many more. Will it be you? Probably not. But it will be somebody you know.


If pay per click went away today so would 75% of domainers.


Guess what? I think differently because I did not have the tools or some say the handicap and crutches of things available now that make you see everything differently.


Was there Pay per click (PPC) when I started in 1995? NO! Not even a thought if it coming.
Was there Pay per click (PPC) in 1996? Nope!
Was there Pay per click (PPC) in 1997? Nope!
Was there Pay per click (PPC) in 1998? Nope! Google was born in September that year.


So imagine working the first without the benefit or the tools or the outlook of Google?


So while everyone has Googleitus, because that is all they know, I know a world without that disease. That limiting tool that sometimes works against your long term interests.


So what the hell was I doing? I was joining 'Recognized Groups'. Something I did not talk about for over 17 years until just the other day. Becoming part of an invisible franchise. So when youtube.com became the rage anything XXXTube.com was part of this 'Recognized Group' if it had MEANING. MyTube.com would be an example. Same with Facebook and those either starting with 'Face' or ending with 'Book'. That is how a new thing like the Internet expands. A second BIG success in any of those examples further solidifying and value that invisible franchise with no franchise fee. It is an instant trust.


That is why PIZZA is the only thing that needs to be on a sign to be seen 3 blocks away. Putting 'Ricks Pizza' would reduce the SIZE of the reach of that sign and only reach 1.5 blocks. Half the distance and half the audience. The only thing relevant to them is PIZZA! So if RICK is BIG and pizza is small, I have BRANDED LESS SALES. Period!


My strategy was focusing on domains I could see on TV, hear on Radio, placed on billboards and used in Magazines and other forms of print advertising before I even got to the part of the domain that paralleled a piece of property or even a full business. But not just any property, strategically placed property scattered throughout a city that had yet to be built. Manhattan 250 years ago. Repeating itself!


Adult was the first PPC for me. Roar I think. Circa 1998-1999-2000.


So my question to you today is what happens if PPC is no longer an option? Do YOU have an answer other than the lame one. 'That will never happen'.


ok, fine it won't happen. But we all got a huge haircut from 2007.
What will you say when it goes down another 75%? I mean really....do you have an answer?


It was never part of my equation so I can adjust easier than most. But of course I started that adjustment in 2007 as I then watched payouts decline in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and did not stabilize to any degree until Frank entered the scene. That stopped the squeezing but since May 2011 PPC is DOWN not up.


I think we are at an ebb tide. See it is in Googles's best interest to finally get rid of the shit and focus on quality. They can no longer give their customers shit and say how good it is because they can compare results with other outlets. So quality is finally becoming a big deal.


But what if you have SHIT traffic? Do you really think Google is going to keep paying ya? I don't think so. That day is around the corner. And while PPC won't go away, it won't be available to many because their traffic quality has no quality.


So if you are not actively looking and planning for a day without PPC....wft are you waiting for? By the time Google figures out that quality is FLEEING from PPC, what will be left will be the shit and there goes PPC.


Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz



Today’s Pet Peeve

Afternoon Folks!!


Yesterday I talked about TRUSTING a site before they get your info. Today I want to talk about another pet peeve of mine. See the Internet is NOT A TV! So advertisers better start to LEARN to stop treating it like one. Learn that a 30 or 60 second spot on a website is INSANELY long!


30 seconds? Imagine waiting 30 seconds for every page to load. That would be like a 300 baud modem. Remember them? Sorry, got off the path. But do IMBECILES really expect me to watch a 30 second diaper ad? Really? 30 seconds. I just want to see the damn CONTENT. Don't waste my time! Don't waste YOUR money or whatever moron is paying you. Stop being desperate and focus on being good. Maybe even have something RELATED to what I am reading about you idiots!


Now I don't like any of those sites that force me to watch something......BUT IF YOU do FORCE me to watch some CRAP I could care less about and makes you look like desperate fools.........at LEAST cut it to 10 seconds.


Thank you!


And that is 'Today's Pet Peeve' ;-)


Rick Schwartz


Meet”T” Danny’s Secret Weapon

Morning Folks!!


I wrote this on Saturday when I returned home but wanted to digest a few days before posting it.


I wish you folks could be privy to the 'Training' that is going on. See, we are not just unleashing 12 people to do whatever. We are training them with a certain amount of strategies and how to approach an end user. They are representing precious assets and they need to do it in an effective manner. They can't just be a bunch of wildcats. That won't work for what we are doing here.


Plus we are not DESPERATE for deals. We will only do a GOOD deal where every party wins. We have teamed up with Escrow.com to take the worry out of any leasing transaction for both sides.


I look at this industry as a huge pie. So much success to share why would anyone waste their energy on anything not productive? The part of the domain industry built on success and character and enjoying life and achieving big things and having the PATIENCE to see things thru.


This was a VERY fulfilling week. Besides the birth of a product and strategy that would absolutely have Al and Bob and Frank nodding with approval even in their graves, I can tell you I witnessed something special this week and when you see what I see, you will KNOW why I am doing this and all doubts will be removed.


It's a good thing I have 11 acres and no neighbors up there. We screamed and yelled and hammered things out that few would have the patience or stomach for. Of course Danny has a secret weapon. And we do too! 'T'.


'T' is hard to describe. She is a very special in her own right. Believe me, I was the dummy at the table. But when you put certain ingredients together, EXPLOSIONS happen! Dynamite is just how you put certain ingredients together to cause a reaction. Those ingredients each sitting alone at a table mean much less. Put them together the right way and BOOM!


When Danny says he has been working on this before I even agreed to do it, this is not bullshit. This is almost spooky. I don't even know how he can organize himself like this. I saw a 4 hour, one man presentation the likes I have never seen in my life. Several of them. Covering more things than I could write about in a month. I may just give him his own seminar room at TRAFFIC and let him loose for 8 hours. Anyone that wants to listen and watch can, if not, the regular show will be going on.


Talk about LEVERAGING the POWER of the INTERNET. Harnessing the future and doing it in a given space of time. NEED, WANT, DESIRE, VALUE....will soon be reunited with SENSE OF URGENCY!


Domaining is about to be FUN again because folks are going to have more and more options. Stay tuned!


Have a GREAT Day!

Rick Schwartz