As the internet has matured, more and more companies – from small businesses to global enterprise organizations – are realizing a fundamental truth of the internet age: the domain name is a vital part of your brand, and it has significant value. Identifying that value and negotiating buy-side acquisitions and sell-side Domain Name transactions is what we do every day. But by any measurement, the transaction we announced today was special.
ICE.com was just sold in a private deal for $3.5 million. We are pleased to announce that Brannans.com represented the buy-side acquisition interests in what will likely be the largest publicly-announced premium domain transaction of the year.
But there is really something else special about this particular premium domain name transaction.
Deal Quality Matters in Domain Name Valuations and Deal Success
Yes, closing such a big deal – with the invaluable support of our industry partners Grit Brokerage and Escrow.com – is satisfying due to the size of the deal. We’ve done quite a few six and seven-figure deals and they’re always exciting and engaging to work on. But this particular deal is also very satisfying due to the “quality” of the deal itself. Let me explain.
When we are working on the buy-side to help a business acquire the perfect domain name that supports their brand, we know that we are helping them succeed. This kind of purchase is more than buying office furniture or sourcing commodities. It’s about helping them get the right branding and marketing platform for their business. The perfect, short, .COM domain can make a huge difference helping a business grow – from start-up entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 enterprises.
When we are working on the sell-side, we are usually working with an existing entrepreneur or investor that acquired the domain a long time ago and used it to run their business or maintained it as an asset. Usually, they need to maximize their return to launch their next venture.
The ICE.com domain name sale we just closed was the best of all possible worlds.
The Perfect Domain Name Sale – Everyone Wins
The ICE.com transaction announced today really was a pleasure because everyone maximized their potential benefit and improved their positions. Our client – who has asked to remain anonymous for now – has obtained a premium, brandable platform with a domain name that is short, one-word, memorable, a .COM, and is uniquely both generic and brandable. On the sell-side, a business that thrives on serial entrepreneurship has fully capitalized a digital asset valuation under current market conditions and is going to reinvest those funds in new businesses and growth.
We also had the pleasure to work with Brian Harbin of Grit Brokerage and Jackson Elsegood of Escrow.com on this transaction – two long-term industry professionals who are trustworthy and great to do business with. We look forward to working with both of them again.
See … everyone wins.
The story has been picked up by MarketWatch.
You can read all the details in the official press release here.
We always love to read the solid Domain Name industry reporting at DNJournal, who covered the story.
And a special tip-of-the-hat to Konstantinos Zournas, who covered it as well, along with many others in the domain name industry media.