Making Money From Your Computer

Dec. 3, 2008 - PRLog -- It’s not a scam, but it often delivers quick riches. It can turn $10 investments into $1,000’s, sometimes within minutes. It’s the creation, buying, selling and management of worldwide web domains, or Internet addresses and websites.

Any word, phrase or combination of letters or numbers can be registered as a domain.  There are hundreds of domain-registration agents on the web, typically offering one-year registration for as little as $8. Popular registrars include SEDO, Afternic , GoDaddy and Dotster.

British Internet services company NetCraft reports that as of November 2008, there were 185,167,897 websites in existence, and that number was growing by nearly three million a month.

If a domain has popular appeal, it can be sold immediately, often for astounding returns. Buyers include businesses (who will use the domain to attract customers), and investors (who buy domains in the expectation of reselling them for considerable profit. DN Journal, a weekly on-line domain industry newsletter, highlights new sales every Tuesday. The November 18, 2008, edition, for example, reported these new sales, among others:

LowFare.com $365,000
Banners.com $360,000
Alice.com $250,000

While you’re waiting for your domains to sell, you can also use them to generate revenue in a few different ways.

You can build a website at the domain, filling the page with interesting or useful content, with the aim of attracting visitors looking for information on your theme. Google, through its free AdSense service, allows you to place advertising wherever you like on your pages. Each time visitors to your site click on an ad, you will earn cash.

One web firm, aeiou.com, will create and market an attractive, fully functional website at your domain for a one-time fee of just $250. You own 100% of the website, including content, design elements, and the ongoing results of the marketing campaign.

A simpler and totally free way to turn your domain into an instant money-maker is to “park” your domain with a “domain monetization” (or money-making) service like Revenue Direct. You still own your domain, but people who type in your address will be taken to a page filled with advertising links, all of which, when clicked, earn your money. You can let Revenue Direct pick the ads, or you can customize the selection of advertisers based on key words. You can also add photos, background colors and headlines to build traffic and promote clicks. There are no costs to you for any of this.

Is it hard to think up a new domain? Not at all. One trick is to scan news headlines and pick out interesting words or phrases.

Early in the election season, it was reported that many Democrats were drinking a cocktail called the Obamatini. That name was quickly registered as a new domain (www.Obamatini.com).

There’s no official recipe. FBWorld (Food & Beverage International) magazine offers this version:

Glass: Martini
Method: Muddle, Shake w/ Ice & Strain
Garnish: 3 Skewered Blueberries
Ingredients: 8 Fresh Blueberries, Muddled
11⁄2 oz. Zodiac Vodka
1⁄2 oz. Blue Curacao
1⁄2 oz. Fresh Sour MixMuddle blueberries in shaker. Combine remaining ingredients in shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain loosely into martini glass. Garnish and serve.

Obamatini.com is now for sale; offers can be submitted at http://www.obamatini.com.

Other valuable domains for sale include: ObamaAgain2012.com, SarahSixPack.com (a reference to Sarah Palin), AffluentTravelers.com, WhoCanWeSue.com (http://www.WhoCanWesue.com, an ideal client magnet for lawyers) and BreakfastShortcuts.com. Offers can be submitted at each of these domain pages.

If you’d like to start your own domain sales website, consider buying the address Domains-to-Cash.com.