770 trusted members. £196,448 in actual sales. since 2009.
Most auction sites impose large fees on sellers to sell their inventory. Normally, one is charged 10% or more to sell a domain name. But what exactly do these auction houses charge domain owners for? Determined buyers are likely to contact the domain owner anyway. Listing domain names in online "forsale" catalogs doesn't really help attract serious buyers, perhaps just wanderers. The only thing is missing for the seller is the ability to run the auction in public, so that other potentially interested parties and domain investors know that the sale is taking place and can freely join in the bidding. Why pay 10% to the largely useless middle-man? Here comes DomainLore with free auctions.
Domainlore Auctions is a new auctions platform to trade domain names. There are no fees to pay to buy or sell domains. But, there is a fee when one does not sell domain names. The seller is charged 10% of the starting (or reserve price) if the auctioned domain name does not sell. Now that is elegant!
Read more about unsold domain fees
The auctions consist of two sections: “Premium Auctions” and “Hidden Gems”
Premium section eligibility criteria:
- generic, single dictionary words, popular keyword phrases and 2-3 letter .co.uk domain names.
- any domain which received advanced bids.
- any domain which received an opening bid from another customer.
"Hidden Gems" section eligibility criteria:
- meaningful, keyword-rich domain names.
- brandable domain names.
Kindly note that we do not accept typos or TM domains.
Domainlore is an eBay-like open marketplace and we have no intention to hide sellers from buyers or vice-versa: you deal with each other directly and we encourage open communication.
Once you list a domain name, you are entering into a contract with the highest bidder. You are obliged to sell your domain name at the highest bid price, with the Reserve Price auctions as the only exception. Also, you cannot sell that item to anybody until the auction you started has ended. If the highest bid does not meet your reserve, you are under no obligation to sell. In all other cases, you are obliged to sell the domain name to highest bidder and transfer it within 7 days after the payment is received.
Once an auction has started, sellers can not change the starting bid, or reserve price amounts.
You must be a registered user to bid on domains. By bidding, you are stating that you are ready and willing to purchase that domain name for your bid amount, plus pay domain ownership transfer charges to Nominet (which is historically being paid by a buyer) and Escrow fees if you must use that service. If you are outbid, or your bid does not meet the seller's reserve price, you are under no obligation to buy. But in all other cases, you are entering a contract with the seller to buy the domain name and to deliver payment within the time period specified. If you can't pay, on time, don't bid! Your bids are final and non-retractable.
Sellers may choose to set a Reserve Price that is above the minimum starting bid. Bidders can see if an auction has a reserve price, and whether it has been met or not. (This is indicated above the bids display table). The actual amount of the reserve price is not shown to bidders, until it has been met or surpassed. The seller is not obliged to sell if the reserve was not met, nor is the high bidder obligated to purchase. If the high bid meets the reserve price, then both parties are obliged to carry out the transaction.
Normally, an auction closes at the scheduled time as displayed within the listing. However, if there are successful bids entered within the last 10 minutes of the closing time, then the auction will go into overtime. The auction is extended until there are no further bids for a continuous period of 10 minutes. This is similar to an auctioneer continuing to take bids until there is no further interest. For example, if a new bid comes in with 4 minutes left in the auction, then there will be 6 minutes of overtime, unless more bids come in. It is possible for auction to be extended continuously, but the longest overtime normally wouldn't be more than 20-30 minutes.
Overtime helps dissuade "snipers" or last second bidders. For example, you may have spent considerable time achieving your high bid status at an auction. Without overtime, someone could time their bid entry to within a few seconds of the closing, leaving you without enough time to notice the bid and enter one in response. This is a common practice at online auctions, and unfair because you would not know that this person is waiting to pounce on you. At a live physical auction, at least you can see your competition, and the auctioneer will continue with the auction to give you a chance to respond. This is precisely why DomainLore employs an overtime system at our auctions. We have found that 10 minutes is enough time to receive an outbid email from our system, log in to our site, and place a bid.
So what's the best strategy? If you have the time and enjoy hanging out at online auctions, then wait until the last few minutes of an auction to bid. Your competition will have 10 minutes to respond, but maybe they are not available. On the other hand, if you do not have the time to attend the closing of an auction, then use the Proxy Bidding method. Together, these two features save you considerable time online, while still protecting your chances of winning auctions.
The DomainLore system will send notifications to both the highest bidder and the seller after the end of a successful auction. Both the buyer and seller are expected to contact each other via email, within 3 days after the end of the auction. (Email addresses can be found in the notifications). After email contact, you might wish to exchange phone numbers to speed up communications. If repeated emails go unanswered by either party, you should notify Domainlore via a contact form at http://domainlore.co.uk/contact. We will then release the other party's phone number.
Once contact has begun, the payment arrangements, domain transfer arrangements, and expected dates should be settled upon. The goal is to complete the transaction within 7 days of auction closing. This may vary a little, depending on payment type, how long to wait to clear, when Escrow is used, etc. Basically, the specific dates should be worked out between the buyer and seller, and each party should follow through with their part of the schedule. You might need to exchange several emails or phone contacts, updating the other party with every step. However, if after 14 days the transaction is not successfully closed and the domain name is not transferred, our system will issue a final reminder to the buyer and to the seller. The purchase will be deemed failed and is cancelled if there is no further action after 7 days of the final reminder. The system is not able to determine at whose fault this has happened, but it presumes a buyer's fault. This will negatively affect buyer's competence score, however seller might also incur a small penalty. For sellers this will not affect their overall competence level in a significant way. The situation for the buyer is different as it could be a one strike rule. We will not tolerate non-paying / non-responding buyers on DomainLore.
Every verified member starts with CL = 2. The competence level increases with every successful purchase by 1 point and decreases by 2 points for buyer in a failed transaction and by 1 point for seller. When the CL reaches zero, the member can not place any more bids, unless competence can be increased. If CL falls below zero, the member becomes permanently banned from using DomainLore Auctions.
Seller with CL >= 10 and with 10 or more sales becomes a 'Trusted Seller'. This adds a 'trusted' badge to his auction pages. Trusted sellers do not receive penalty for failed sales of their domain names.
Seller is charged 10% of the starting or reserve price (whichever is higher) in case the
auction finishes without bids and the domain doesn't sell. There is no unsold fee if the
domain name is approved for 'Premium' listing and starting price is £50 (min. starting price).
Sellers are requested to top up their account for the chargeable amount in advance, before the auction starts. Top ups are currently accepted via Paypal (can be paid with Paypal balance, credit cards or bank transfer).
If the domain name is sold, seller can request any unused topped up amount to be refunded or keep it as a balance for seller's next auctions. PayPal transaction top-ups can be refunded for up to 60 days.
Domainlore members are expected to conduct business with the honor system in mind. All members in good standing have shown their integrity by registering, and following through with any commitments they have made. But we are all human, and mistakes and miscommunication can lead to disputes. If you find yourself in a situation where you and another member are at a disagreement, contact us. While we cannot promise a satisfactory resolution, we will try to contact both parties and help mediate the situation. Any illegal activities, violation of a contract, or outright statements of falsehood should be reported to us immediately. The DomainLore staff will cooperate with any law enforcement agencies if needed, and will at the least terminate the offender's membership.
With our long experience in the industry, we have found that most UK domainers are exceptionally honest, and trustworthy people. We are extremely confident that members of the Domainlore Auctions will behave in an honest manner, and be able to resolve any minor differences by themselves.
DomainLore membership can be terminated for any breach of the DomainLore Rules and/or based on the DomainLore sole decision for any reason and without further explanation. In a case of termination, member loses the ability to request refunds of any unused fees and will have all account balance forfeited.