When I first read Jay Abraham’s Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got, it hit me how much of domaining isn’t about chasing the next shiny thing—it’s about uncovering the value that’s already sitting in your portfolio, your relationships, and your know-how. That mindset shift has made me far more money than any single “hot” auction ever did. Here’s how I apply those principles every day as a domain investor.
Start by mining your own assets
Before I shop, I audit. I look at my portfolio and ask three questions:
- What’s underutilized? Names with solid type-ins, industry alignment, or historical inquiries often just need better packaging. Rotate landers (BIN vs. inquiry), test copy, and make sure the benefits—short, memorable, exact match—are front and center.
- What can be bundled? If I can offer the .com with the .io or .co, or include the plural/singular pair, I increase deal size and reduce the buyer’s risk of competitors nipping at their heels.
- What has momentum? If two or three inquiries hit the same niche (say, AI recruiting or vertical SaaS), I curate a category page and pitch those names together.
You’ll be surprised how often a “stale” name sells once it’s positioned right.
Lead with preeminence (be the advisor)
Abraham calls it preeminence—acting as your buyer’s trusted advisor. In domaining, that means telling a founder, “Your idea screams ‘brandable,’ not ‘exact match,’ and here’s why,” even if it means steering them to a cheaper name. I’ve told buyers to pass on mine and grab an alternative that fit better. A funny thing happens when you do that: you win the relationship. Those people come back for the next venture, and they send friends. Preeminence compounds.
The geometry of growth applied to domains
There are only three levers for growth:
- Get more buyers. Capture and keep more leads: clear inquiry forms, fast replies, a short nurture sequence that educates (not nags), and a simple calendly link for serious discussions. Syndicate intelligently, but make sure you still build your own list.
- Increase average transaction value. Bundles, payment plans with a sensible premium, and value adds (a quick brand brief, logo draft, or mark screening referral) raise the ticket price without feeling like upsells.
- Increase frequency. Most founders are serial. A year later they spin up another project. Stay present with a quarterly “what’s moving” note and a handful of curated names relevant to their industry.
Remove risk and deals happen faster
Risk reversal converts fence-sitters. Options that work:
- Lease-to-own with a modest markup. They protect cash flow; you protect your price.
- Trial DNS for 7–14 days on qualified buyers so they can show the name to stakeholders and preview uplift.
- Buyback windows on higher-ticket names (e.g., 30 days minus a restocking fee) for established companies. You’ll seldom be taken up on it, but the confidence boost closes deals.
Spell the terms clearly and keep it boring—in a good way.
Relational capital beats ad spend
Abraham’s “host–beneficiary” idea is gold for domainers. Find people who already have your buyers’ attention—accelerators, branding studios, niche newsletters, category podcasts, even SaaS vendors. Offer a curated list of names that serve their audience and share upside. They host; you benefit. The first time I tried this with a vertical newsletter, I placed two mid-four-figure names in a week. No ads, just borrowed trust.
Borrow distribution, but own the follow-up
Marketplaces are great storefronts. Use them. But your landers should still capture inquiries, and your CRM (even a Google Sheet plus templates) should track every lead, status, and follow-up date. The platform introduces you; your process closes the deal.
Unearth hidden assets you already have
- Old inquiries. Revisit anyone who passed 6–12 months ago with a short, helpful update. Companies change directions; budgets change. Keep it human: “Saw your Series A—congrats. If ‘X’ is still on the table, I can hold pricing through the quarter.”
- Analytics. If a name gets steady type-ins, that traffic is a negotiating chip. Share a simple screenshot or monthly tally to anchor value.
- Content. One useful article (how to evaluate a domain, naming pitfalls, migration checklist) saves you time by answering the same questions at scale and positions you as an advisor.
Barter and performance deals (used selectively)
Sometimes cash isn’t the highest ROI. I’d trade a discount for a small equity slice, or swap a non-core name for agency services to brand out a microsite that lifts conversions across a niche portfolio. You don’t need to swing for the fences—small, thoughtful barters can turn idle assets into productive ones.
Give your portfolio a recognizable POV
“Premium domains” is not a USP. A clear point of view is: B2B service names under 10 characters, action-verb brands for SaaS, or two-word, radio-test clean consumer names. A recognizable curation style helps buyers understand what you stand for and why your pricing is coherent.
Test assumptions; retire myths
Pricing is a hypothesis. So are BIN vs. make-offer, and payment-plan acceptance. Test small. Change one variable per month per segment and track outcomes. If your $7,500 BINs never sell but $5,900 does, or if adding a 12-month plan triples inquiries, that’s a signal. Keep the wins, dump the rest.
Build a “Power Parthenon” of deal flow
Single-source investors go hungry. I want five reliable pillars:
- Expired auctions with tight criteria.
- Drop lists filtered by industry and length.
- Private sellers in niches I know.
- Wholesale rooms for occasional strategic flips.
- Inbound acquisitions via my content and partner referrals.
When one channel slows, the others keep the table full.
Systemize referrals
Referrals aren’t luck; they’re designed. After a smooth transfer, I send a two-line ask:
“If anyone in your circle is naming a product or newco this quarter, reply with an intro and I’ll prioritize them. I’ll also extend your client pricing.”
Make it easy; make it specific. Then honor it.
Turn your knowledge into artifacts
Checklists, naming briefs, do-it-yourself validation steps, email scripts for pitching a name to a board—those take a few hours to create and pay you for years. Put them behind a simple sign-up. Congratulations, you’ve started an audience that will buy, refer, or read your next market note.
Use your day job industry as a seedbed
If you work in construction tech, healthcare revenue cycle, or logistics, you already speak a language most domainers don’t. Mine that edge. Keep a running list of jargon, vendor names, emerging trends, and acronyms people use in meetings. That’s a naming goldmine. I’ve pulled five-figure flips out of throwaway terms I heard on calls months before they hit TechCrunch. More on this coming up tomorrow in my weekly NamePros article.
A 30-day implementation sprint
If you want a simple plan that moves the needle:
- Portfolio tune-up: Tag by niche, price tier, and inquiry history. Set BIN on the no-brainers and “make offer” on strategic names.
- Lander test: Split half your top 50 between two styles. Track inquiries and close rate for 30 days.
- Follow-up system: Load every past inquiry into a basic CRM. Send a short, helpful re-engagement note. Set reminders.
- Partner outreach: Identify three hosts (agency, accelerator, niche newsletter). Offer a curated list with a clean revenue share.
- Risk reversal: Add one new option—LTO, trial DNS, or a buyback policy—on deals over your chosen threshold.
- Referral script: Bake the two-line ask into your post-transfer checklist.
- Industry mining: From your day job, write a 25-term glossary that real buyers use. Register one or two smart, timeless plays—not buzzword bait.
Thirty days from now, you’ll have more conversations, better deal flow, and a healthier pipeline—without buying a single additional name you don’t truly want.
Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got is not a book about domaining. It’s about strategy. I bought the book in 2008 and reread it every few years. The lesson I keep relearning is simple: most domainers are hunting while their pantry is full. Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got isn’t theory; it’s a lens that forces you to extract value from what’s already within reach—your inventory, your judgment, your relationships, your reputation. Do that consistently and you’ll find the market feels a lot less random. Deals show up. Buyers trust you. And your “luck” improves—because you built it.
