Notes
Plain answers to the usual questions
Missing a question? Send it. Gemma would rather answer a direct question than guess what you wanted to know.
Why did you write to my company?
Because the name we mentioned describes what you do, where you do it, or both. We look at a company's own website and the words its customers use before writing, and we only write about one name at a time.
How is the price set?
By what comparable .com names have changed hands for, how common the term is in searches and conversation, and how many businesses it could serve. You receive one figure, and we will explain the reasoning if you ask.
Is the figure open to negotiation?
We try to quote a fair number the first time so nobody has to haggle. If the name fits but the timing or the budget does not, say so; paying over time may help.
Can we pay in instalments?
For larger amounts, yes, through the escrow service. The name stays in escrow's care and transfers to you when the last payment has cleared.
How do we know the name will actually arrive?
The money never passes through our hands; an independent, licensed escrow firm holds it. It leaves escrow only once you have told them the name sits under your own login.
Will our current site and inboxes be affected?
Nothing changes until you decide. A common first step is forwarding the new address to the site you already run, and moving email later if at all. We are glad to help with the records after the transfer.
Will this affect our search rankings?
Forwarding a new name to your current site with a permanent redirect is routine and harmless. If you later make the new name your main address, a planned move with redirects keeps what you have built.
We already have a similar name. Does this matter?
Often it does. The customer who guesses the plain .com version of what you sell lands wherever that name points. Owning it means the guess reaches you.
What if we are not interested?
Reply with a single word such as "no" or "stop" and we will not write about that name again, nor to your colleagues about it.
Something we did not cover?
Write with the name and your question. A real reply comes back on the same or the next working day.
Ask Gemma