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So got back home few hours ago, got some rest, new day!
I was on one panel, the panel was about PPC survival and its future. I had all my material on my iPhone ready to read, was about to discuss a “Doom’s day scenario” for a domain owner. Those who follow the blog know I talk a lot about liquidity and I thought to further talk about it, what if PPC dies tomorrow, what would you do, etc. The Castello brothers were ahead of me. During their time talking I looked around and I couldn’t grasp what I’m about to do: To talk about domain alternatives and exits when there were no domainers in the room! See, I looked around the room, I saw ONE domainer, and that’s it. The rest were business operators, service providers, and providers to service providers. So.. 30 seconds after I started, I froze. I stepped down, and walked out minutes later.
This for me was the most profound observation of the show. Domainers didn’t show up. The crowd that did for the most part was interested in providing various services to one another or to domainers. The show was extremely small, we estimate it to be under 150 total and that includes the sponsors and their employees. In term of quality of attendees, I know I got a great value. I spoke with few I highly respect for hours. That for me is well worth the conference tickets and some.
We also went to the show with a clear agenda to sign a number of top partners for a new and upcoming Bido program. That goal, our main reason of being there, was fully achieved. In addition we created new relationships, had various meetings with others we may partner with, and enjoyed meeting others in the space.
Keynote speaker Scott Klososky was great to listen to, and to chat with after.
All in all as I wrote before, I got my value from the show before the show even started.
Now, need to follow up with some, continue to work on stuff.
Have a great day!
Sahar
I still havent been to traffic yet but I really look forward to attending shortly
Im not shocked to here that numbers are down most people are scared to spend there and ppc is low so some dont have the same money as this time last year.
I look forward to hearing what Bido shall be doing next - Bido just keeps getting better!
—-answer—-
You will know in about 2-3 weeks what’s coming next. All partners which we showed this to really liked it. Now it’s a matter of taking a concept and proving its worth. Not an easy task but a goal well worth pursuing!
Cheers
Sahar
This is a subject I’d be glad to hear about but like you mentioned, not a lot of domainiers but rather the service people showing up. Hopefully, I’ll make NYC’s show this time.
Any chance we can discuss it on Bido during chat?
Maybe a smart marketing move for TSV and other conferences would be to cut their ticket pricing in half, stop playing the lame “only the best attend”, and do what a domain conference should do: Promote the value, benefits, new monetization paths, and “inclusion” of domainers that don’t fall into the same old circle. Not to diminish the importance of the appearance of the most prominent domainers, but what is that worth to those who already have a relationship with them?
Are we all trying to promote our industry, or host a status party with nothing new to say to NEW ears?
Sahar, your sad experience during your session proves the point — there is no point for you, an expert in domaining who can command the focus of hundreds of domainers, to give your expertise at a conference that doesn’t market domains to end users and the general domain investing crowd, which reaches across a wide demographic. This “elitist” angle is going to dry up quicker than Jodie Meeks wiping the sweat from his brow with a multi-million dollar sponsored towel.
NOTE TO DOMAIN CONFERENCE PRODUCERS:If you want to throw a party for your richest domainer buddies, go ahead, and that’s something everyone would want to be invited to. However, that takes a different marketing approach: Unless you were charging money for a charity, the event become a “if I don’t pay, I’ll be looked at as someone who isn’t a successful domainer.”
If you’re inviting only the biggest domainers in the industry to your event, and charging the highest prices for tickets, then make sure the event is a charitable one, and that you aren’t hiding behind some moldy “mingle with the best domainers” marketing goof, where YOU end up actually taking ADVANTAGE of your high-rolling guests’ celebrity status to try to sell tickets. Tsk tsk… weak.
The money made from your “celebrity-based” events would go much further to promoting the benefits and IMAGE of the domain industry, get more media coverage, have a better “Q Factor” rating if the event was held as a charity conference where all profits were going to feeding the homeless, curing cancer, etc.
Some of the producers of these events can easily afford to hold a two day conference where everyone attending can write off the cost as a charitable contribution. To make it beneficial for domainers at the low end, and exciting for those at the top end, make it a charity and open up the attendance to anyone who can afford to pay $995 for two dinners, a few topic sessions, and then feel good about where their money went. As an experienced publicist/advertising past exec, I can tell you that this type of promotion will carry your event further, along with augmenting the domain industry’s image to the public and business world.
The big question is now, do attendees of domain conferences feel their costs to attend gave them either a great ROI, or that some of their money was wisely given to a worthy charity in the name of the Domain Industry? Sadly, I feel that neither is being achieved at some of these conferences (except Domainfest 09).
If a domain conference was held with charity in mind, like having Hurricane Katrina rebuilding as the focus, and get Brad Pitt and Angelina appear at the event. (this is not that hard to do). I can see about 1000 AP and Reuters pickup taglines “Domain Industry raises $1 million for New Orleans relief effort. Several celebrities participate to encourage the huge crowd attending.”
Overall message: Domain name sale prices amaze audience and seem to indicate that the current economic times have not affected the value of owning a good domain name. Time to invest in domain names…”
That’s a NR I’d like to see.
Thx Sahar for the article…it was enlightening