Here on DomainingTips, I frequently say things that aren’t exactly in my best interest.

As a domaining blogger, you’re tempted to see the industry through rose-colored glasses, as if it’s somehow the best thing since sliced bread. Now don’t get me wrong, domaining is without a doubt awesome and in my case, it has literally been life-changing.

But do you know why it ended up being life-changing for me?

Because I approached domaining as a realist and did my best to see things as they actually are.

Today, I’ll help you do the same by sharing a few of the things I think beginners should know about domaining:

1) The industry is smaller than you realize. Lots of people try to portray the industry as huge but in fact, it’s anything but. If you were to only consider those who earn a living via domains domainers, my best guess is that we’d have a low to mid 4-digit number of active domainers. If you also include part-timers in the mix, the number does indeed to up quite a bit but still, domaining is without a doubt a cottage industry

2) Most people make less money than you think. Anyone can brag on the Internet, lots of people talk the talk but a ridiculously small minority actually walk the walk

3) The stories people tell about their domaining career don’t necessarily paint an accurate picture. Domainers are human beings and as such, tend to be let’s say a bit subjective when analyzing their careers. They tend to tell you all about their winners and conveniently overlook the idea of giving equitable exposure to their losing deals as well

4) Making money today is harder than it was ten years ago… but easier than it will be ten years from now

5) Never blindly trust anyone, I’m not an exception, gather information from as many sources as possible but always think for yourself. The decision making process is something you should not outsource

6) New gTLDs kind of suck from a domaining standpoint. There may very well be some winners down the road but for the most part, a better risk/reward ratio can be found elsewhere. As mentioned on more than one occasion, I know this pisses off half of my potential advertisers but seriously, I fail to see why people would take new gTLD investments seriously when there are far better opportunities out there

7) DomainingTips is the best website on the Internet, 100% certified fact 🙂

That’s it from me, feel free to leave a comment if you’d like to add to this list.