Why Do I Keep Getting Offers to Buy My Domain Name?

Every week, I write something new for this website.

And lately, apparently, someone else would like to own it.

I keep getting emails asking if I’m interested in having a conversation about selling DawnAnderson.com.

I don't respond.

Then another email arrives.

I don't respond to that one either.

And then, just when I think they've probably gotten the hint, another one appears in my inbox.

At this point, I'm becoming more interested in how long they're going to keep emailing me than I am in actually answering them.

I’ve Owned DawnAnderson.com for a Long Time Now

I have been on the internet for over three decades.

Originally, owning your own name as a domain wasn't necessarily part of some brilliant long-term digital strategy. The internet was a very different place.

There was no Instagram. No Facebook. No YouTube. No TikTok.

Google itself paled in comparison to the behemoth Yahoo.

I certainly wasn't sitting there thinking, You know what? I should grab this domain because someday it could become a valuable 25-year-old digital asset.

I just wanted my name.

Turns out, that wasn't such a bad decision.

Today, DawnAnderson.com has been around for more than two decades, and I'm now using it.

Maybe that's why someone keeps asking if I want to sell it.

Why Would Someone Want an Old Domain Name?

Naturally, the emails made me curious.

Why would someone keep pursuing a domain when the owner isn't responding?

An established domain can have things a brand-new domain doesn't.

It has history.

It may have existing links pointing to it.

Search engines may already know it exists.

It may have been associated with the same person or business for years.

And in my case, it's also my actual name.

That's a fairly important detail.

There are lots of domain names I could replace.

DawnAnderson.com isn't really one of them.

The Funny Part Is That I’m Still Building It

This isn't an abandoned website that I forgot about 15 years ago.

I'm actively working on it- albeit.

I publish something new just about every week.

And when I publish a new post, I don't simply throw another page onto the internet and walk away. I link it to other relevant things I've written. Older posts connect to newer ideas. Newer posts lead people deeper into the site.

Little by little, the website becomes more useful.

And, presumably, more valuable.

Which creates a slightly funny situation.

Someone keeps emailing me to see if I want to sell DawnAnderson.com while I'm over here quietly giving myself more reasons not to sell DawnAnderson.com.

So, Should You Sell Your Domain If Someone Contacts You?

Maybe.

That's the wonderfully annoying answer.

If you own a domain you're doing absolutely nothing with and someone offers you enough money to make you happy, selling it might make perfect sense.

But don't assume an unsolicited email means you've just won the domain-name lottery.

And don't assume that because someone wants your domain, you need to name a price.

You don't.

Before selling, I'd think about what the domain is worth to you, not just what someone else might be willing to pay for it.

Could you use it for a future business?

Does it represent your personal brand?

Does it already receive traffic?

Have you spent years building content or recognition around it?

Would you regret selling it five years from now?

And perhaps the most important question:

Could you ever replace it?

In my case, there are plenty of other domain names in the world.

There is only one DawnAnderson.com.

Sometimes the Best Thing to Do With a Good Domain Is Use It

This whole experience has reminded me of something that applies to far more than websites.

Sometimes we don't recognize the value of something we already own until somebody else wants it.

A domain name can sit quietly in the background for years and not seem particularly important.

Then one day you start building on it.

One article becomes ten.

Ten become fifty.

People begin finding things you've written.

Those pages begin connecting with one another.

You develop ideas for things you might eventually create, offer or sell.

And suddenly that little domain you registered years ago isn't simply an internet address anymore.

It's an asset.

That's what I'm doing with DawnAnderson.com.

I'm not in a hurry with this site. I'm enjoying writing, sharing things I've learned, exploring ideas and seeing where it all goes.

Maybe someday it becomes something much bigger.

Maybe it doesn't.

I'm actually enjoying not knowing yet.

And About Those Emails...

Will they eventually stop?

Probably.

Although I've thought that before.

Will somebody eventually stop asking whether I'm willing to "have a conversation" and actually put a number in an email?

Now that could be interesting.

Until then, I suppose we'll continue our current arrangement.

They'll keep emailing.

I'll keep writing.

And DawnAnderson.com will keep becoming a little more Dawn Anderson every week.

As always, if there is anything you feel I can help you with, feel free to reach out to Dawn@dawnanderson.com.

Yes, I realize the irony.