Side tangent: I don’t think PalmSprings.com is a typical generic domain.

It’s got brand written all over it and spilling over the sides. And the initial core branding began along time ago, before Vint Cerf began surfing.

First time i’d ever heard of Palm Springs was in the early 70’s, and i’m from the backwoods of Canada.

Comparing domain for domain is not very realistic IMO, all premium domains are not created equal.

Both fantastic names but the Geo one would most definetly be my choice between the two.

Yes, your assessment that the client’s reaction was partially due to my excitement in 1998 is correct, but only to a certain degree. The site’s ability to generate reveue for our Palm Springs clients has always been its best selling point and I credit the name PalmSprings.com as a huge factor. How do I know? Because in 1998-1999 I often came face-to-face with the sales reps from TheDesertSun.com, PalmSpringsLife.com, etc. Many times the client would have us all in the same room. I would use the power of the name PalmSprings.com in my sales pitch and I could see the tide start to turn in my direction. And even though the other sales reps had the established local reputation and glossy press kits, I beat them many more times than I lost. In fact, many times having the name PalmSprings.com was the only advantage I had over them. You also have to realize that I’ve been in sales a long time and I can easily tell what makes a difference. Having that name in my sales arsenal gave me a distinct edge (or I would have stopped using it). The exact sales strategies I used in 1998 are used today by everyone on CCIN’s sales team.

Interestingly, my brother saw my post last night and came to the same conclusions about FuneralHomes.com that I did. We’ve been analyzing other non-Geo sites because we can’t use the same sales strategy with our Geodomains like PalmSprings.com as we will for our Non-Geos like Whisky.com and Kennel.com. Every site has a different advertising market and when you start selling advertising you enter a whole new ballgame than PPC. When you start selling advertising you basically start to become your own advertising agency. And that is why we steer clear of telephone solicitations.

I went to the play “Twelve Angry Men” (about a jury deliberation) and there was an ad in the playbill by the sponsoring law firm, Lathrup and Gage.
Anyway, what really intrigued me is the domain they were advertising: http://www.beentherewonthat.com/
Been There. Won That.

Sure enough, the minute I got home I took a look at their site to see what lawsuits they had won. I though that it was a VERY innovative marketing idea and a very creative use of a domain for a 120 year old firm.

They always say that the Midwest is the last to catch on and I think that Kansas City is starting to take the bull by the horns! Hang on tight for the domain ride!!

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Since we own many prime domains more then anyone I wish that was the case. We also own and run a number of real world businesses with over 120 employees combined and from experience, when it comes to selling, a domain on its own won’t get you far. Take a look at some of the top parked domains out there, do you think anyone you call on to advertise has any idea of their value? Anyone you call on understand what “direct navigation” is? Business owners in the real world know very little about the internet and most likely absolutely nothing when it comes to domains. Hack, most reporters who suppose to do research before writing about domains know very little about them.

I would say sales pitch is a sales pitch is a sales pitch. Having a generic domain in your sales pitch is as good as having a made-up domain. It is not the domain that sells, it is the sales person.

Sahar

In September 1997, when I first started out, I made a phone call and said basically the same thing when I started monetizing BoyntonBeach.com. It went something like this:

Me: Hi, this is David Castello with BoyntonBeach.com. BoyntonBeach.com is the most popular and intuitive web site for Boynton Beach and I’d like to discuss promoting your Boynton Beach business on the site.
Business: Hmmm…hold on a second. “Yo Joey! Some guy’s on the phone representing BoyntonBeach.com! They want to promote us! OK, I’ll tell him!”
Nah, we’re not interested right now…

That was the first and last telephone solicitation I or anyone with CCIN ever made (think about it - have you ever replied to a phone solicitation?). No one at CCIN is allowed to solicit anyone via the telephone.

As you know from our success, there are obviously much, much better ways to sell. And YES (for the umpteenth time) the name plays a BIG part in selling. I should know because I was doing it myself from 1998 - 1999 when I was selling advertising in Palm Springs. How do I know? I could see the reaction in their faces when I told them I was representing PalmSprings.com.

And it’s not just Geodomains. We have started to monetize Whisky.com and yesterday had a major advertising agency tell me, “Well, I can’t see my client ignoring advertising with a name like Whisky.com.”

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David,

I would really not believe that in 98 local business owners understood anything about the value of a domain name. Hack, we can try this today if you wish, go to a business owner, state a prime domain, and look at their faces. What most likely you will see is a “doh” moment. The excitement you saw on their faces was most likely the response of dealing with a great sales person - you. Their excitement was a reflection of your excitement.

And as far as the telephone in sales, the telephone is still responsible to more sales today then any other method. I won’t tell you how to run your business however, I will tell you that by not using the telephone you are most likely missing on many multiples of what your sales numbers could have been.

Yea, when you’re in town, let’s get together. I’m sure will see you in Orlando and/or Roundtable?

Sahar

A great domain can make the sales process a little smoother by giving some credibility to the organization. Of course the people give the ultimately credibility but a great domains helps if nothing else to make the sales pitch more memorable.

I’ll bet a great majority of those prospects your guy called on still remember the domain rather than saying “Where was that guy from again?”.