Some domain investors consider outbound as a moral debate. I consider it a tool. Some names deserve a quiet landing page and patience. Others deserve a short, targeted push. Here is the decision tree I actually use when I’m looking at a domain and deciding: outbound or silence.
Step 1: Risk check first
Before I get excited, I try to talk myself out of trouble.
Any obvious trademark landmines, brand confusion, celebrity names, or “sounds like” a protected brand: silence, or I drop it.
If the only buyers are the trademark owner or their competitors trying to block them: silence. Not worth it.
If it passes that, I move on.
Step 2: Can I explain it in one sentence?
I ask a simple question: can I tell a normal person what this domain is for without a paragraph of explanation?
If it is a clear product, service, category, or outcome, it is a candidate for outbound.
If it is “brandable” but vague, I usually lean silence unless it has unusually strong qualities (short, clean, easy to say, no spelling traps).
Outbound works best when the value is obvious fast.
Step 3: Buyer density in 15 minutes
This is the big filter. I open a doc and try to build a real buyer list quickly.
If I cannot find 10 legitimate prospects in 15 minutes, it gets silence.
If I can find 25+, outbound moves way up the list.
I’m not looking for “might be interested” companies. I’m looking for businesses that already sell the thing the domain describes, or are clearly building toward it.
Step 4: Do the buyers have money and intent?
I only outbound when the buyer profile supports a real price.
Quick signals I use:
They run ads, have a serious SEO footprint, or have a mature product lineup.
They are hiring in marketing or growth.
They have funding, strong revenue indicators, or obvious commercial intent.
If the list is mostly small side projects, local one person shops, or early ideas, I go silence and wait for inbound.
Step 5: Can I defend the price without wishful thinking?
Before I email anyone, I need a pricing story I can stand behind.
If I have comps, great.
If comps are thin, I need a logical anchor: lead value in the niche, conversion intent, category size, and what the name replaces (ads, clicks, brand confusion).
If I cannot justify a range confidently, I do not outbound. Silence protects me from negotiating against myself.
Step 6: Can I make it about them, not me?
If I can’t write a personalized reason in one line, I do not send.
Good outbound is: “Here’s why this name fits your situation.”
Bad outbound is: “I own this domain, are you interested?”
If I cannot connect the domain to something specific they are doing, I stay quiet.
Step 7: Tight outreach rules
When I do outbound, I keep it disciplined:
20 targets max per domain.
Short email. One clear ask.
One follow up, maybe two if the fit is perfect.
If it is not moving, I stop and let inbound do its job.
The truth is this: silence is not laziness. Silence is portfolio management. Outbound is reserved for names with clear use, dense buyer lists, and buyers who can pay. Everything else gets a clean lander, a fair price, and time.