Watch Out For The Domain Appraisal Scam
Watch Out For The Domain Appraisal Scam
Watch Out For The Domain Appraisal Scam
In the spirit of the Nigerian 419 scam, for the past couple of years, the domain appraisal scam has been doing the rounds on the internet.
It is very easy for unsuspecting domain owners to get caught up in this scam. However, with the info provided in this article and a little common sense, the only thing one might lose is the few seconds it takes to read an email.
Here is how the domain appraisal scam works:
You are contacted with an email that goes like this:
Hello,
We purchase/resell domain names and developed websites. Now we consider your domain. What is your price?
If you have other domains for sale feel free to send your list.
Looking forward to do business with you.
Regards,
xxxxx xxxxxxxx
CEO
xxxx xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx LLC
Now, if you respond with a price - say $5000, you'll get another email like this:
Hello,
5000 USD? Ok
Did you use zzzzzzxxxxxx.com before? I think this is the best place for domain/money transfer.
Do you have an appraisal certificate?
Domain name is an investment for me. In other words I'm going to sell your name later and make a profit. If I overpay I won't be able to make a profit in the future. It's very important for you and me to know the current market value of your domain.
Of course, we must be sure that you are engaging a reputable appraisal company. I heard many appraisal companies often made inaccurate appraisals. I will only accept appraisals from independent sources I know and trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies in a forum. They recommended (some appraisal company dot com)
If the appraisal comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. I also hope you can give me 10% - 15% discount of the appraised value.
After I get an appraisal from you we'll continue our negotiations.
Hope we can come to an agreement quickly fast.
Looking forward to your response.
xxxxxxxxxyyyyy
Basically, if you send money to their recommended company, you might get some phony appraisal or you might not. Bottomline, you'll that money you sent is lost. They'll never fulfill their promise and continue negotiations or buy your domain.
Many domainers fell for the scam and sent money for the phony because they were so eager to sell their domains.
Most of the domain appraisal scams take on this format. Other clues include:
1. They'll never address you by name. Email starts of with "hello"
2. They might be lots of grammatical errors in the email
3. They'll always accept the offer you send no matter how high.
4. The email is purported to be sent by a "ceo"
One more thing to bear in mind. Most appraisals are worthless. A domain is worth what a customer is willing to pay for it. If you want an appraisal - don't pay for it.
Do a search and find out what similar names have been sold for or post the name on a domain forum and get feedback from the users on that forum.
If you want to make the domaining business a profitable one, you must first buy well researched, quality domain names.
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