(Source:DNJournal.com)

Ron Jackson from DNJournal.com has just released this month’s cover story, Skip Hoagland. The interview is an outstanding read and full of great information. If you truly want to understand how to manage your time and build your empire efficiently, then this is a must read.

Skip covers his secret strategies to his success. Along the way, he mentions key people who have assisted him in this journey. It not very often you find a successful person who is willing to put the spot light on others, rather than themselves. Skip is an all around sound businessman and a great friend that few have had the pleasure of calling a friend.

Ron has done a great job with this story and I hope that all of you enjoy reading the article and are able to apply a few strategies to building your domaining empires.

On a different note, I have been out of the loop for the past week. I have an enormous family emergency going on and it will last for the next couple of months. Please understand that I will not be posting as often as I would like. My priorities are to take care of the home front, then move forward. Look forward to seeing everyone at the Geo Expo this week. It is going to be a welcomed break for me, with the current stress level.

Thank you for your continued support.

(Source: DNJournal.com)
(Interact with Philip Corwin on GeoDomainer.com)

Philip Corwin is legal council for the Internet Commerce Association (ICA). A few months ago, I informed readers I would try and get some answers to common questions and concerns from the legal standpoint of what ICA has done to protect the domain industry. Philip has done an outstanding job presenting a very informative interview for your reading pleasure. If you wish to ask Philip questions, please be advised that he will be attending the Traffic Show this week and may not be able to respond timely until he returns from the show. However, he will address comments as time permits.

(SMO) Since launching the ICA in December 2006, how has ICA impacted the domain industry by battling corporate America?

(PC) The ICA was launched in the fall of 2006 by a group of domain name industry leaders who believed that, like every other industry, it needed to organize to tell its story and defend its interests. The .com settlement between ICANN and VeriSign was the catalyst for its formation, but I don’t believe that the ICA is best defined by who it’s against but by who it is for — and it is for its members. Whether the issue is assuring that our voice is heard as ICANN develops its policies; that the rights of domain registrants and trademark owners are appropriately balanced; that the UDRP is really uniform, fair, and predictable; and that the industry’s advertising partners operate transparently in a competitive marketplace; we will be a strong, consistent, and hopefully effective advocate for those individuals and companies in the domain name space who support our efforts.

(SMO) What are some major threats facing the domain industry and what can people do to make a difference?

(PC) The biggest threat to this industry is that it may let others define it in a negative way, because if that happens the door is open to all sorts of other threats. The domain investment and development industry has a great story to tell about innovative and hard-working individuals creating a visionary new enterprise that fosters e-commerce and serves consumers in innumerable ways. And many of our most successful leaders are giving back to the community in a multitude of generous ways. One of the ICA’s goals is to raise sufficient funds for a positive public relations effort in order to dispel the notion that we’re about nothing more than cybersquatting, a falsehood promulgated by those who would like to unfairly appropriate the value that domainers have created.

(SMO) The Snowe Bill is a hot topic in the industry. What is the biggest threat domain owners face with this proposed bill?

(PC) Domainers investing thousands or even millions of dollars in a domain name are going to be very careful that it can’t be taken away in a UDRP action or under a national law like the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA). Nobody’s going to spend that kind of money on an infringing name, and while there’s always some uncertainty, we have a pretty good idea of what passes muster under those rules. The biggest problem with the Snowe bill from our viewpoint is that it would have set up yet another set of rules in which domains that are fine under UDRP or ACPA could become infringing and subject to challenge and confiscation by overzealous trademark owners. That’s fundamentally unfair and that’s why we fought the proposal from the day it was introduced. Of course, from the public’s viewpoint the bill has another glaring deficiency in that it’s labeled an anti-phishing measure but it would have little or no practical effect in stopping online financial fraud.

(SMO) What has ICA done to protest this proposed bill?

(PC) The ICA took a multitude of actions against the Snowe bill. These included:

* Immediately initiating discussions with the offices of members of the Senate Commerce and Judiciary Committees as to why the bill was ineffective against phishing and why it was wrong to establish a new and more onerous regime of trademark-like protection..
* Providing information to our members regarding the bill’s threat and deficiencies, as well as instructions on how to effectively contact their Senators — and thanks to all the many who did so, because it made a real difference!
* Reaching out to technology-oriented interest groups and trade associations to ask them to oppose the legislation or at least refrain from endorsing it. That’s why we saw groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation come out against it, and why you didn’t see major financial services and technology trade associations that get harmed by phishing jump onboard.

I’m happy to say that the bill looks like it’s on the back burner for now, but I fully expect the interests who backed it to regroup and come back at us next year in a new Congress.

(SMO) Besides the Snowe Bill, what other advances has the ICA initiated to protect the domain industry and domain owners?

(PC) We are active every week in Washington. We’ve talked with key individuals on Capitol Hill and in the Commerce Department about the future of ICANN, and we submitted a lengthy statement and spoke at a February Commerce Department forum looking at whether the U.S. should terminate its oversight of ICANN when it’s up for review in the fall of 2009. Just this month I sat down with a Counsel for the House Antitrust Task Force to discuss the state of competition in online advertising and the future of Google and Yahoo! By taking the initiative on issues like this, by being available to explain our industry and views to key decision makers and journalists, we advance our members’ interests.

(SMO) What are some future plans the ICA will deliver to stay proactive against corporate America that will impact domain owners favorably?

(PC) While you can’t foresee every issue that will pop up you can anticipate most. For example, 2009 will mark the tenth anniversary of the enactment of the ACPA and I’m being told that there’s some chance the next Congress will review and possibly amend it. So we’re already having discussions within the domain community about what changes we’d like to see that benefit domain name owners, even as we’re engaging in discussions with a variety of interested parties regarding the legitimate interests of domain name registrants and how they can best be balanced against those of trademark owners.

(SMO) Many readers do not have a clue on expenses involved in protecting the domain industry against the big guys. How expensive is it for the ICA to combat lobbyists and corporate America on important topics affecting the domain industry?

(PC) If the ICA had the resources we would expand beyond lobbying in Washington and representing domainers within ICANN. We really should have some presence in Brussels because the Internet is global and the EU is the next biggest market after the U.S. We’d like to support domainers in critical UDRP and trademark actions that can set good or bad precedents for the entire industry, and that takes funds to retain the services of top counsel. We need to have a positive P.R. capability to define ourselves positively as well as react to any negative stories before they gain traction. All that costs money — for example, you can imagine that it is not inexpensive for Michael Collins and I to attend the three ICANN meetings this year in New Delhi, Paris and Cairo, but it’s absolutely indispensable that we be there for our members. I have consistently said that to do the job right we need to aim for at least a $1 million annual budget. That may sound like a lot, but that is a very tight budget for an effective trade association and it really is achievable considering that the industry’s assets are worth billions of dollars and that we generate more than $1 billion a year to Google and Yahoo! We’re just about halfway toward that goal and I am optimistic that we will get there as domainers see the difference the ICA is making.

(SMO) How has ICA worked with ICANN to improve the domain industry?

(PC) ICA was admitted just a few months ago to ICANN’s Commercial and Business Constituency so now we have a formal role in its policy making process. I think we had a very positive effect last year when we publicly asked some tough questions about the collapse of Registerfly, an event that victimized many domainers, and we saw a very substantial change in ICANN’s attitude and actions soon thereafter. We’ve been supporting actions to eliminate abusive domain tasting because that activity creates a negative image for the entire industry. We’ve been very vocal in demanding that ICANN open up the closed door meetings of its Government Affairs Committee because that is an internal group that has produced some of the policy proposals of greatest concern to us. Overall I think our presence within ICANN has dispelled a lot of misimpressions and gained our industry a new degree of understanding and respect.

(SMO) In closing, please share any additional information you would like readers to know about the future of the domain industry and the importance of supporting an organization like ICA.

(PC) I think the domain industry has a bright and prosperous future as long as those who work within it support an organization like the ICA. Every other industry understands that it is of critical importance to define itself in the most positive way to policymakers and the press, and to be an active and tireless advocate, and that the only way to do that is to support an organization to act as a collective eyes, ears, and most importantly a unified voice. Change is inevitable – the question is whether domainers want to shape the changes that are coming in a positive way or be the passive victims of negative changes. The domain comuunity is made up of strong, self-starting winners, not passive losers, so I really think the community will see its self-interest in sustaining the ICA — and our support has been growing with each passing month, for which all of us involved in the Association are deeply appreciative.

(Interact with Mike on GeoDomainer.com)

Mike is Chairman and Founder of WashingtonVC, a private equity group whose portfolio of companies share resources, talent and technologies to deliver innovative digital products and services.

In ‘94 he founded Internet Interstate, which he sold to Verio in ‘97. In ‘98, he founded BuyDomains.com, the world’s largest secondary market for domain names, and sold majority interest to Highland Capital and Summit Partners in 2005, along with the “Seeq.com” search engine portal. Mike has sold more domains on the secondary market than anyone in the world.

Between ‘98 and ‘01, he served as the founding Chairman of ByteBack.org (501c3), which operates free computer training centers serving inner-city communities.

Mike is the Founder and Chairman of Grassroots.org (501c3), a global network providing free services to nonprofits and promoting social action. He also manages Make Change! Trust, a charitable fund that supports select 501c3 organizations. You can view GrassRoots.org and MakeChangeTrust.org to learn more.

(SMO) You have been involved in the domain industry for quite some time. How did it all start?

(MM) In 1998 I sold menus.com for 25K which I had been paying a $50/yr. registration for, so I found the profit margin intriguing and decided to buy and sell as many as possible, leveraging innovative technology and talent to assist.

(SMO) You were one of the first individuals in the domain industry to set up a sales platform to sell your own domains. Additionally, your team developed new technology in which you applied for patents. When did you realize you were on to a winning business plan with buydomains.com?

(MM) Day one.

(SMO) Having a large portfolio for sale, was it easy to spot enduser and investor trends in the domain industry thru purchases? How did this help you in acquiring additional domains?

(MM) We ran detailed statistical analysis on everything and only bet on the best ones dollar for dollar. Some sold at such high margins that it made up for the minority duds which were bought in buying frenzies.

(SMO) With such a large portfolio, you surely owned some outstanding geo domains for sale. How was the market for geo domain sales thru your experience?

(MM) While we sold some in the normal course of business, that had not been my specialty until recently, now we own much of the African country .coms and some others.

(SMO) How did you place value on geo domains in your portfolio? How big of a demand was there for geo domains, if any?

(MM) Each name price was based on detailed technical analysis with human insight added. We measured demand the same way.
(SMO) As a seasoned domain investor who has seen trends come and go, what role do you think geo domains will play as the internet and consumer behavior continues to evolve?

(MM) Geo is a broad powerful category encompassing cities, states, countries, and localities,each group being permanently powerful in its own right. Aggregating a consistentportfolio within one group or the other, and applying best web and marketing practicesover a long duration should be the ultimate way to monetize them, anything less will yield less.

(SMO) Do you still own any great geo domains, and if so, can you name a few and your plans for them?

(MM) Angola.com, NorthernIreland.com, BaltimoreWashington.com, VaticanCity.com, and many more, please see DomainMarket.com. The plan is tobuild carefully, in detail, one at a time, or sell to big bidders. Or keep forever and let values rise until my daughter’s retirement.

(SMO) Do you have any future plans in reentering the domain industry as a service provider?

(MM) We are already deep into some powerful things in the US and internationally since my “noncompete” expired. DomainMarket.com will be the base of our future activity.

See MikeMann.com and WashingtonVC.com to see how we add value to super premium domains (we build companies like Phone.com, Software.com, SEO.com, HappyBirthday.com.)

We will also launch the world’s most profitable parking platform in the future using tools and ideas so far unseen by the public, and without competition to date. Last but not least we will replicate the BuyDomains buy/sell/optimize model that I developed long ago, but only using the world’s best names, as opposed to huge numbers of good and great names like BD does.

(SMO) Why do you think everything has gone from a global concept to a local concept on the internet? Do you think the local concept has always existed, but never made it in the mainstream as global did, until recently?

(MM) We learned years ago to make the most impact we had to “personalize, customize, and LOCALIZE” each web experience, that is still the best way to go. Please see my free ebook which explains a lot of my theories in detail.

(SMO) There are thousands of domain investors who are always looking for advice from proven professionals such as yourself. Do you have any advice that you are willing to share for those old and new investors in the domain industry? Do you have any advice on the evolving geo domain industry?

(MM) The best advice is to only invest in the best .com domains since they will stand the test of time, and will be “flights to quality” in turbulent economic times. Also just buy the ones you take to heart, that you want to build a perpetual, powerful business on top of. And use the most modern best practices borrowed or hired from a myriad of the most profitable web people you can find.

(Interact with Fred on Geodomainer.com)

This week, we bring you the GeoView with Fred Mercaldo, owner of Scottsdale.com and Tempe.com. Fred is a proven business professional and owner to a variety of businesses. His other companies include Hospitality Tee Times (HTT), Butts In Seats Marketing, LLC which includes their brands LunchClub.com and DineSmart.com, and OutingSource, LLC, a golf and technology company in partnership with PGA Tour player Chris Perry and Desert Golf & Vacation Rentals, a 200 unit luxury property management company in North Scottsdale.(SMO) When did you register your first geo domain and what name was it?

(FM) Although we did a large portion of our golf vacation and tee time business via the internet since the late 90’s, we didn’t enter the geo domain industry until August, 2004. Scottsdale.com was made available to me exclusively from its previous and original owner. He felt that since we were well established in the Scottsdale market, we had an excellent chance of making the site and business successful.

(SMO) Why did you decide to pursue the geo domain industry, instead of focusing a 100% of your time acquiring generic domain names?

(FM) I think, like many of us, registering major city.com names was not a priority or obvious opportunity. All of our other businesses had strong dot com names that properly described us…we always strived for a strong web presence, but I must admit, until the opportunity was presented to me, the geo domain industry was not a priority.

(SMO) Last year at the GeoDomain Expo, Scottsdale.com won best small-medium sized geo site. How has Scottsdale.com grown since then?

(FM) Our “to do” list is always growing and changing. We are in the middle of adding many new features designed to bring our visitors back numerous times each month. We are very pleased with the design and ease of maneuverability on our site. Believe it or not, there are 40,000 pages behind Scottsdale.com, yet we are still scratching the surface with our business directory and partnerships we continue to develop.

(SMO) The Super Bowl was in your area this year. How did this impact the traffic and advertising on your sites?

(FM) It was an incredible time for Scottsdale, as Super Bowl week was the same week we have our FBR Open, one of the most popular events on the PGA Tour. The traffic impact was strong, yet the advertising impact was consistent with other peak periods. We did however have our best month ever for hotel/attraction/travel and ticket revenue.

(SMO) How has development of your geo domains affected traffic and revenue growth over the years?

(FM) Businesses and advertisers are starting to “get it”. First, we had to build it. When we first took over the site, it received 7,000 unique visitors per month…we are now 100,000 PLUS uniques each month. Businesses are actually starting to budget a decent percentage of their advertising budget towards online advertising. We are developing “partnerships” by which a business will sponsor, or “partner” with us in a specific category…we even allow them to sell advertising within their category, and we do a 50-50 revenue share with them. This builds content, brings in new advertisers, and allows our “partners” to offset their costs to us.

(SMO) Since becoming a member of AssociatedCities.com, how has the geo domain industry grown?

(FM) We have been a member for over 2 years now, and I was fortunate enough to be elected to the Board of Directors this past year. With all of the responsibilities in all the ventures we have, Scottsdale.com and the future of Associated Cities is what I’m most fascinated with. I get to interact and work with The Castello Brothers, Dan Pulcrano and his Boulevards group, Josh Metnick of Chicago.com, Skip Hoaglund of Atlanta.com and MyrtleBeach.com fame, Sean Miller of NewYorkCity.com, Barry Hodge who is responsible for the incredible success of Richmond.com, Jessica Bookstaff of Durango.com and PigeonForge.com…these people are among the most talented and brilliant executives in our industry today. They are all visionaries, and they all share a strong work ethic. Their accomplishments are impressive. I am now firmly committed to the Geo Domain industry, and with these and many other “partners”, I predict that this industry is just scratching the surface of where we will be in 5 years time.

(SMO) What added features do you plan on adding to your geo domains in the near future?

(FM) We added Tempe.com last year, and recently purchased FountainHills.com last October, which we are in the process of developing. We continue to add daily editorial content, along with the most complete Event Planning calendar available in our market. We are in a unique position with Scottsdale.com…it is both a major city AND a vacation destination. So besides continuing to build local content, we also must concentrate on our out of state visitors, which make up 50% of our traffic. Along with many interactive services designed to have our visitors more “involved” with us, we may actually launch Scottsdale.com Realty in the coming year…maybe one of the first times a “brick and mortar” business evolves from an actual website rather than the other way around!!!

(SMO) What role do you think geo domains will evolve into as the internet continues to grow and more consumers come online?

(FM) Steven…that’s a great question. I continue to look at declining print advertising revenue at major newspapers, and wonder exactly what our world will be like in 10-15 years from now. Because of the Internet, we have become impatient and spoiled…not willing to wait until the morning paper to find out information…we go directly online. I expect this to continue, and major Geo Domainers have a serious responsibility to accommodate our customers, both advertisers and viewers, in order to maximize our potential.

(SMO) What are some future goals and where would you like to be in 5 years with your geo domains?

(FM) Regarding our geo domains, my goal is to have our Scottsdale.com and Tempe.com brands dominate our market for everything media related. I embrace what David and Michael Castello have told us…that we “own the brand” in each of our cities, and we need to take the responsibility seriously, and develop our sites to the best of our potential.

In the coming 5 years I would like to play a significant role in helping other geo domain businesses attain profitability. LunchClub and DineSmart are 2 brands that we operate locally, and we are in the process of taking nationally. These are businesses that can easily be incorporated into the day to day operations of most city.com sites, and generate much needed income. We can talk about development of our sites all day long, but if resources are lacking, it becomes a difficult task. I would like to make a difference.

(SMO) Any advice you can give to new Geopreneurs entering the geo domain industry?

(FM) Yes. It is important to have the right people. Everyone needs to go find a “Becky Kelley” in their city. Becky has been an incredible asset in our growth and progress. Also, our technology group includes some of the best talent in the country. Michael Goldfarb and Mike McCallister worked tirelessly over the years to build our sites. Our sales managers, Brett Mitnick and Jennifer Shaw, are also very special and dedicated people.

You need to develop the site properly. Each city has their own specific identity and personality; you must identify exactly what these characteristics are, and build the site accordingly. You must be well financed, dedicated, and patient. Other than that, it’s easy!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It has been quite a while since the last GeoView on the blog.  There have been a variety of professionals who have been fully engaged and unable to complete their previous GeoViews.  I apologize for the delay, but work definitely comes first and it is totally understandable. 

However, we have stayed busy lining up some outstanding interviews.  Confirmed interviews in the works; Mike Mann of WashingtonVC.com, Neal Polachek of Kelsey Group, Bryan Allison of Vegas.com, Fred Mercaldo of Scottsdale.com, and Josh Metnik of Chicago.com.  I am sure I forgot a few, however, they will all be published in the coming months.

The plan will be to publish an interview once a week starting next month.  These professionals have a wealth of knowledge to offer and I think readers will really enjoy their perspective of the industry.  We will continue to line up key interviews for your reading pleasure. 

We are going to start picking things up as we announce some major events in the coming weeks.

Thank you for your continued support.

The Geo domain industry will continue to make unknown people, into popular internet rock stars in local media as great geo domains are developed.  This industry is great and SimplyGeo.com is doing all it can to help promote its growth, along with AssociatedCities.com and other sites to come SOON. 

AssociatedCities.com recently published an interview with the owners of SantaFe.com.  It is a great interview that gives you some insight as to what it takes to build your geo site up from scratch.  From my understanding, the site was launched this year.

There will be many great stories and interviews published as the Geo domain industry continues to mature.  

(via AssociatedCities.com) 

Associated Cities: What are the advantages and challenges of operating within a network like Associated Cities?
P/MF: The advantages of being with Associated Cities became obvious when we attended its San Francisco conference in 2007. We met a lot of innovative owners and managers (particularly from Scottsdale, San Diego, Chicago and New York City) who are a lot further down the road than we are. It was great sharing ideas and getting inspired. As our background is in real estate, we’re planning something special with that component.

This is something we’d like to share at the next Associated Cities meeting. Another bonus of the Associated Cities network is the access to talent. We hired out current president (Bob Shaffer) from Richmond.com. He told us he was ready for a change and he has been a gem to work with.

Associated Cities: What are your day-to-day responsibilities? How much of your energy is devoted to sales and marketing versus content and production?
P/MF: At this moment, our full-time staff is small: eight including the two of us. Pat and I do everything from marketing and selling ads to writing content and implementing growth strategies.

The eight of us work well together. In terms of specialization, Pat has been in sales and marketing for 30 years. That was the engine that drove our real estate company. I’ve published 20 novels and have written a business and real estate column for the last 10 years. Writing and editing come easily to me.
   

The Geo domain industry is developing into a main stream industry niche.  Recently, there has been alot of major news covering the industry.  DNJournal has just released their cover story for February.  The story is Dan Pulcrano.  He owns one of the most elite city.com domains in the world.  Alot of Geopreneurs have been waiting for this article to be released by DNJournal.  Ron continues to do a great job with his writing skills covering Dan and the geo industry.  Please check out the story and post comments about the article on the blog for readers.  

This is great for the industry and we will see much more to come in 2008.

(via DNJournal.com)