What country are you based in?
I live in Los Angeles, California USA.
Do you feel your location has an effect on your domain investing?
I’d say yeah my location has had an effect on my domaining, as Los Angeles being the big city it is has a lot of other domainers and domain companies here. All of the DomainFest conventions were held here, which I attended all but one, along with the many LA Domainer meetups we had, and events that companies like Uniregistry and Minds & Machines and others put on. So I was able to network and make friends and contacts with many in the domain industry. It was also an easy drive to Las Vegas to attend the 6 NamesCon shows there.
How long have you been involved in domains?
I started buying domains in 1998, and sold my first one in 1999.
Are you a full time domainer?
Regarding making a living from it…no. But as a domainer…yes.
How did you find out about domain investing?
I caught wind back in the mid-late ‘90s of needing a domain name for my businesses which I finally registered. When I saw that any word could be registered, the ‘this is like Vanity Phone Numbers’ light bulb went off. And that led to going to Internet Conventions and talking with NetSol and other early domain related companies there, and then joining the early domain forums – Great Domains and Afternic (when it was a forum).
How many domains do you currently hold?
Currently I’m down to under 500.
What's your favourite non .com tld/nTLD/gTLD?
Of course .com, but .org, .xyz, and .io for now, though I do have various other gTLD domains.
What's the best advice you've been given by another domain investor, either directly or through something they've said on twitter or in an interview?
If you have ‘good’ domains, be patient.
Quality over Quantity. (so important)
If you wouldn’t want to build a business or website with your domain, why would others want to?
What kind of goals do you set yourself?
‘Waking up and seeing the ceiling each day!’ ..is a top one.
Basically my goal is to accomplish something productive everyday!
Who are your top 3 domain investors?
There are a lot of top domainers that I’ve met, learned from and looked up to thru the years, so kinda hard question. But …
-Michael Castillo was the first domainer I met in person, and has always been someone who’s advice and friendship I highly respect.
-Monte Cahn has always been very knowledgeable and straight forward domainer and person.
-Drew Rosener as he has totally conquered the domain game since he started.
What's the toughest part of domain investing?
Spending monotonous hours pouring thru expired and dropping domain lists ranks real high up there! Also as we all think our domains are ‘great’, deciding what is really not and needs to go, can get tough. What sounds great to you, isn’t always a good investment.
How do you structure the domaining part of your day?
No set structure per se. I do my portfolio updates and dropping domains hunt when I can, but mostly in the evening.
How do you manage your portfolio?
I use Excel spreadsheet with many columns of info and records. (sorry Jeff)
Do you also have any NFTs or Crypto in your portfolio?
I have some Ethereum and I do have one NFT – ‘TopGun Maverick – Jester’, which was a perk given at a special screening of the movie.
What's the most you've ever spent on one domain?
I’ve spent $5k on a name a few times.
Have you ever done outbound? If so, were/are you successful?
I sent a few emails out a long time ago, but no overall.
You're given $10k to spend on domains, how do you spend it?
“22, 22, 22…!!” (“” from Lost In America)
I’d probably buy a couple 500-1500 domains and a 5k-ish one, or one good $10k domain. Or I’d spend it getting Braden or Drew inebriated enough to give me a great domain for free! (nice to dream )
Outside of domains, what other business/wealth/personal growth figures do you look up to?
No particular one comes to mind, but I used to read a lot of motivational books so those authors were influential to me.
What do you do when you're not domaining?
Wait for Afternic, Sedo or Dan ‘Your Domain Has Sold’ emails to come in!!
I’ve run a business for 30+ years buying, selling and brokering bank and money handling equipment with my websites BankingEquipment.com and MoneyCounters.com and a few others. I’m also an actor so I spend a lot of time looking thru the trade sites for auditions and waiting/praying my agent calls with something.
What advice would you give to people just starting out in domains?
Truck driving is also a good option!
It’s not as simple as buying a domain and you’re on the way to riches. Before you buy any domains join a domain forum and read and read and read, especially the NamePros ‘beginners’ section. Read the blogs on Domaining, and get a feel for what’s happening in the DN world. Watch Domain Sherpa episodes and the wealth of knowledge shared there. And don’t think you know more than those who’ve been doing it for years. You don’t, so don’t take critiques personally. Of course the best thing for those starting in domains is, if you are really serious about domaining, spend the money and join DNAcademy (now the ‘GoDaddy Domain Academy’). So much knowledge and advice on domaining in there. You’ll benefit gratefully for doing so.