A story about a domain

[retired_member16]

It sounds very much as if you are getting your answers from someone at the company that knows nothing or at least very little about domains, let along the process for registering/transfering.

In a company of 1000 people, I would think there are 4 or 5 that manage the names and have any idea what names are held by the company and perhaps just 1 person in a technical role who will have to liase with 1 or 2 from a marketing role who can go on to actually make the decision to sell it.

If you are not hitting that 1 person in 1000 with your emails/calls, then you are going to get no-where at all.

 

[woopwoop]

If the domain was registered under a Company ,firstly was the Company under a CVL liquidation order Administration order(served) or bankruptcy,or struggling (companies house register) ,if so you could ask the LLP for a breakdown,when the company has served time it should be published on the companies house register (i think its a quid to download) and dont forget if the assets was not sold for market value then you could have it reversed (i have done this many times) if it is a simple company to company transfer then they could tell you to f**k off...because they don't have to tell you anything...

Company wasn't in liquidation. The last part about them telling me to F**k off could happen - but if they are a PLC I think there'd need to be more transparency. I'm not sure how abbreviated/itemized a PLC's financial statements are...

It sounds very much as if you are getting your answers from someone at the company that knows nothing or at least very little about domains, let along the process for registering/transfering

The person I was dealing with was the patents and licensing director. their department and email were listed as the registrants for this domain name.

 

[Edwin]

Large companies may itemise transactions in the multi-million pound range perhaps, if you're lucky. Even then, maybe not - it depends how "material" they are to their core business lines. Take a peek at a few annual reports sometime to see what I mean - they're generally freely available (often under "investor relations" or similar) You'll see just how little transparency there is once companies get "big".

 

[Edwin]

Likewise, when you're dealing with huge entities, there's no "they" speaking with one voice. At the end of the day, every contact will be with individuals - some knowledgeable, some not, some helpful, some not, some empowered, some not, some relevant, some not...

 

[retired_member16]

The person I was dealing with was the patents and licensing director. their department and email were listed as the registrants for this domain name.

That wouldnt be good enough for me. I would have bypassed them and gone on to someone else straight away. Start with Marketing, the girls there are normally dumb enough to give you a name higher up the chain if you give them a bit of chat.

 

[Bailey]

Kudos Edwin, for taking the time to give a basic business lesson to someone who clearly will benefit.

I'm still gobsmacked! by the lack of reasoning and misplaced motivation behind the original post.

 

[ScottJ]

That's my right

From what you have said you are neither the buyer nor seller nor major shareholder.
I think many people have had similar issues, when I bought TVs.co.uk the company had higher offers but getting the right person sometimes at the right time with the right manner can go a long way, if Edwin chose not to fill you in on the specifics then that's his choice, it may have been bad luck, bad timing, the wrong contact or your choice of language & approach. Trying to call our Edwin here is not going to help your cause, I'm sure if you managed to buy it Edwin would not have created such a thread, it's business.

Who wants to move on from a losing situation without learning a lesson?

I'm afraid we are all self-employed, it's nobody role to school you, trial and error, there should certainly be enough here already for you modify your approach in future and perhaps you will be successful next time, you did say you tried for years so you can't say you didn't get a fair crack at it.

 

[alex]

That wouldnt be good enough for me. I would have bypassed them and gone on to someone else straight away. Start with Marketing, the girls there are normally dumb enough to give you a name higher up the chain if you give them a bit of chat.

I find that quite sexist Lee and suggest you consider rewording it.

Woopwoop, I can understand wanting to find out what happened, but at the end of the day, as others agree, it's luck of who you get hold of. I usually ask reception to talk to those responsible for domain names and websites and I'm usually put in the right direction, but more often than not no one seems to know who to speak to or what their Nominet details are etc. I know what it is like because it's happened to me with domains I've been following for months, even years, but that's the industry. On the other hand there are some I've done very well with. Best of luck next time.

 

[domainseller200]

From what you have said you are neither the buyer nor seller nor major shareholder.
I think many people have had similar issues, when I bought TVs.co.uk the company had higher offers but getting the right person sometimes at the right time with the right manner can go a long way, if Edwin chose not to fill you in on the specifics then that's his choice, it may have been bad luck, bad timing, the wrong contact or your choice of language & approach. Trying to call our Edwin here is not going to help your cause, I'm sure if you managed to buy it Edwin would not have created such a thread, it's business.

I'm afraid we are all self-employed, it's nobody role to school you, trial and error, there should certainly be enough here already for you modify your approach in future and perhaps you will be successful next time, you did say you tried for years so you can't say you didn't get a fair crack at it.

Brilliant post Scott

 

[retired_member16]

I find that quite sexist Lee and suggest you consider rewording it.

I fear you may be considering that for some time as it will never happen.

 

[namealot]

That wouldnt be good enough for me. I would have bypassed them and gone on to someone else straight away. Start with Marketing, the girls there are normally dumb enough to give you a name higher up the chain if you give them a bit of chat.

Yes how dare you suggest everyone in marketing is female…

 

[woopwoop]

Kudos Edwin, for taking the time to give a basic business lesson to someone who clearly will benefit.

I'm still gobsmacked! by the lack of reasoning and misplaced motivation behind the original post.

Seriously - are you done with the brown nosing Bailey.
As I said in earlier posts I'm a sore loser. The discrepancies in the seller and buyer's stories are what kept me hung up on this hunt for info.

...Trying to call our Edwin here is not going to help your cause, I'm sure if you managed to buy it Edwin would not have created such a thread, it's business....

I'm afraid we are all self-employed, it's nobody role to school you, trial and error, there should certainly be enough here already for you modify your approach in future and perhaps you will be successful next time, you did say you tried for years so you can't say you didn't get a fair crack at it.

I wasn't trying to name Edwin - I think that this thread is newsworthy - it can help others (and me) from a real life situation of trying to get a domain name from a big company.

...Woopwoop, I can understand wanting to find out what happened, but at the end of the day, as others agree, it's luck of who you get hold of. I usually ask reception to talk to those responsible for domain names and websites and I'm usually put in the right direction, but more often than not no one seems to know who to speak to or what their Nominet details are etc. I know what it is like because it's happened to me with domains I've been following for months, even years, but that's the industry. On the other hand there are some I've done very well with. Best of luck next time.

Thanks Alex - I'm over it.

But it is my right to question things and contact anyone involved in a deal (especially when questions have been raised - company said it wasn't sold, new owner said it was). It's their right to ignore me, tell me the details or lie.

I really didn't expect this thread to be the biggest deal - After this domain coming up in conversation again I wanted to vent and for others to share stories about similar things or to shine light on something in my story that I hadn't seen so that this would make sense.

Some people have tried shining a light on it which is great and others (Bailey) really just want to brown nose Edwin which says something about them too.

 

[websaway]

Here's a story about a domain.

(A few months have gone by but the topic came up when speaking with a mate and I'm still hung up on it).

I was after a domain that was owned by a company (who became the new owners when they bought another company). They weren't using it and it didn't seem that they ever would. The name had personal value to me and so I tried for years to get it from the company.

Each time they said they'd get back to me, followed shortly by an email saying the business unit said it wasn't for sale. Then I noticed the domain had expired. The company said that they wouldn't sell. I watched as the status of the domain changed to "no longer needed" and wondered what was happening and why wouldn't they sell but it looks like they are going to throw it away?!

I then noticed that there was a new owner. I was gutted. I really wanted to make an offer at least have a fair chance to buy it.

So I contacted them and they said that it was a mistake and that they let it expire by mistake?! But the domain had only been in expired/no longer needed status for a few weeks... From what I had seen through my whois checks (later confirmed by Nominet) the domain had been transferred from the old owners to the new.

But why wouldn't they give me the chance to make an offer?
And why would they tell me they hadn't sold it - but it had expired by mistake?

I contacted the new owner (who is a member on here) and he said that he acquired it from the old owners.

I asked if he could disclose how much (if he paid £10,000 then I could forget about it and move on - above my price). He told me to mind my own business...

I pressed for info and after emails back and forth with the new owner about the strangeness of the old owners telling me that it wasn't sold - the new owner told me to check his earlier emails where he hadn't said that he paid for it, he pointed me to how he said he had "acquired it from them", now suggesting hadn't paid?!

The story now got more cryptic! Who gives away a valuable domain and says that they let it expire.


I may be a sore loser. I am definitely still hung up on this domain months after because of how hard I tried to get it and the strange circumstances and emails from both the old owner and the new owner.

The old owner is a PLC so if it was a sale then wouldn't it be on the books somewhere? I hate mysteries.

I wonder when you asked to buy it did you make an offer. I suspect if you did make a substantial proven offer you could take the matter further with the company and investigate best practice. If you were not prepared to put your neck on the line and make an offer that could not be ignored then it's likely someone else may have done, and there are some smart players out there.

 

[retired_member16]

I wonder when you asked to buy it did you make an offer. I suspect if you did make a substantial proven offer you could take the matter further with the company and investigate best practice. If you were not prepared to put your neck on the line and make an offer that could not be ignored then it's likely someone else may have done, and there are some smart players out there.

I refer you to my earlier post. You simply do NOT have to pay a lot of money for 95% of the names out there. I think that a lot of people go in with five figures because thats what they feel is expected of them.

 

[websaway]

I refer you to my earlier post. You simply do NOT have to pay a lot of money for 95% of the names out there. I think that a lot of people go in with five figures because thats what they feel is expected of them.

Yes I agree but if you don't go at it, and it's a name you want then you risk losing it to someone else and can't therafter complain.

 

[fish]

You go fishing to catch fish.
Not every time do you land them.
The same for domains.

 

[WealdDomains]

You go fishing to catch fish.
Not every time do you land them.
The same for domains.

Excellent quote, fish. Please excuse the play on your forum name, but ... “Sell a cold-caller a domain name and you feed him for a day. Teach a prospective purchaser the stresses and strains of how to make contact and negotiate effectively with a PLC and you feed him for a lifetime.”

woopwoop, others have already talked about the realities of corporate life. A good approach is to assume cock-up rather than conspiracy and that the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. Empowerment and innovation are typically inspirational buzzwords rather than part of the truly embedded corporate operating model.

For a great example outside the domaining arena, look at the the recent arguments within TfL between the two factions - the traditionalists involved with managing very significant third party contracts and the modern apps-oriented open data team. Whatever the eventual outcome, the journey (forgive the pun) is inevitably messy and unsatisfactory.

Regards,
David

 

[mally]

after reading all of this I still don't know what the domain was. (not that its any of my business, but I'm just curious.) :lol:

 

[theaffiliate]

An interesting story, albeit rather simple. I'm sure there will be some lessons learnt for your next attempt at purchasing from a domain owner!

 

[Bailey]

A double mention, must have touched a really raw nerve. I happily take criticism, however presented, particularly, when I can learn something. I thought under the circumstances my comments were fairly constructed given your 'Off the wall' rant and Edwins willingness to be drawn into given a rational explanation.

'Brown nose' yep in the required circumstance I can deliver that approach but, i've certainly nothing to gain from Edwin here at Acorn - You on the other hand child have a whole world to learn to navigate.