This year Domainer Mardi Gras went with an online only auction which was hosted by SnapNames.com. I applaud DMG for not having a live auction. Coming off of two shows (T.RA.F.F.I.C. and DOMAINfest) there was just no room to hold a third live auction in less than 30 days.

Their online only auction closed today with a total of 35 domain names selling for $41,622.

Sales above $1,000:
artdealer.com $14,030.00
softmusic.com $3,530.00
yogurtmaker.com $2,300.00
ilovenyc.com $2,200.00
ticketplus.com $2,155.00
3x.org $2,000.00
myreversemortgage.com $1,950.00
redlips.com $1,716.00
exerciseplans.com $1,606.00
t4.org $1,000.00

To see a list of sales under $1,000 visit SnapNames.com.

My favorite three and what I believe to be great deals…ArtDealer.com, YogurtMaker.com and ILoveNYC.com. Instead of siding with the negatives, I think the auction did good with very little promotion.

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T.R.A.F.F.I.C. – Rick Latona’s auction closed yesterday with a grand total of 60 domain names that sold for an estimated $835,000. The top sale for this auction was LongIsland.com at $379,000. Based on the total sales and amount of domain names sold that is an average of $13,916 per domain.

DOMAINfest – Moniker’s auction closed yesterday with a grand total 201 domain names that sold for an estimated $1,319,037. The top sale for this auction was LoanCalculator.com at $215,000. Based on the total sales and amount of domain names sold that is an average of $6,562 per domain.

So which auction was better?

DOMAINfest sold more domain names, which comes as no surprise considering they had about 450 more live attendees than the T.R.A.F.F.I.C. show. Does this mean that their auction was better? Well, if you go by the amount of domain names sold, then yes. But if you go by the average domain sales price, no.

My personal opinions:

• Both auctions had overpriced domain names.
• LongIsland.com sale saved the T.R.A.F.F.I.C. auction.
• Deals will get done afterwords. The perfect example is Guns.com which was in the DOMAINfest auction. The highest offer was just shy of the $1mil reserve. I’m confident a deal will get done on this.
• No the sky is not falling and the domain industry is just fine. Domain name investors are more cautious, they want to make sure they are getting a deal. The principle of an auction is to pit bidders against each other which relies on emotions to raise the sales price.

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Make sure to get your bids in for the T.R.A.F.F.I.C. and DOMAINfest auctions ASAP, both end tomorrow!

T.R.A.F.F.I.C. / Rick Latona auction brought in an estimated $456,000 in sales during the live auction. The extended auction ends tomorrow at 1pm EST.

Top ten domain name sales so far:
$65,000     Fly.co.za
$50,000     GoFish.com
$49,000     Dietfood.com
$41,000     CatFood.com
$35,000     MotorcycleHelmets.com
$30,000     MensSuits.com
$25,000     Gels.com
$20,000     SEU.com
$19,000     Smelly.com
$10,500     Antihistamine.com and Antihistimine.com

DOMAINfest / Moniker auction brought in an estimated $1,071,000 in sales during the live auction. The extended auction ends tomorrow at 3:15pm EST.

Top ten domain name sales so far:
$215,000   LoanCalculator.com
$65,000     GolfLessons.com
$50,000     PearlEarrings.com
$45,000     Husband.com
$45,000     GolfShirts.com
$40,000     FederalAid.com
$30,000     SalaryCalculator.com
$27,500     OrganicCosmetics.com
$26,000     TabletComputer.com
$22,500     Dating.org

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January 8th, 2010 –New Orleans, LA – Domainer Mardi Gras announced today that it will partner with Moniker® to incorporate a special showcase auction into Domainer Mardi Gras 2010, a premier domain names conference, scheduled for February 11-13, 2010, at the New Orleans Marriott in New Orleans, LA.

Showcase auctions typically feature premium domain names oriented toward a vertical industry or content theme. While the auctions are conducted online over a two-day period, the Domainer Mardi Gras showcase auction will run online from February 9 to February 16.

“As any domain name investor knows, auctions have become a solid component of any successful conference,” stated Michael Ward, Executive Director of Domainer Mardi Gras. “This industry is changing rapidly and while we devote significant time toward that discussion, we also want to ensure attendees have chances to find new investment opportunities.”

Names can be submitted until January 26 at:
http://showcase.snapnames.com/2010/02/generic-keyword-auction

“This combined effort between Moniker and Domainer Mardi Gras is a new and interesting way to promote an auction,” said Moniker founder Monte Cahn. “Our online auction technology allows any conference to cross-promote an online auction for the benefit of attendees, without the need to invest in on-site logistics at the conference itself..”

Domainer Mardi Gras tickets are currently available at the low rate of $995 with an additional $300 savings if attendees also book a hotel room at the New Orleans Marriott. Visit DomainerMardiGras.com to get your tickets today.

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Latonas.com Beta now live and it’s pretty!

If you recall, back in mid November I shared a press release with you all about Rick Latona’s new auction company supporting WhyPark’s charity domain name auction sometime in December.

Well it’s that time. The auction is starting today. It begins December 14th at 3pm and is due to end December 18th, giving Rick Latona’s new auction platform, Latonas.com, a test drive. Latona’s new platform is strictly an online auction without any auctioneers.

The winning highest overall bidder gets to select which charity receives the auction proceeds, which I think it a great idea and incentive to get the domaining community involved with this charitable event. Many times people pass up great opportunities like this to get involved because they are not necessarily interested in the particular charity that is being supported. The way this is set up though, if you win you get to pick where the proceeds go ensuring the organization you have the most passion for reaps the rewards.

I can’t wait to hear the news on how successful the auction was and also to see how well the new platform worked for everyone.

For a full report from Rick Latona himself visit RickLatona.com.

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