Intelligence Part 3 – How to increase the intrinsic value of a domain portfolio

In the third part of our analysis of the importance of insights and intelligence in creating the right-sized domain name portfolio, it is important to understand how an organisation can ensure their digital assets are providing not only value, but also a return on investment.  All too often we speak to clients about the need to reduce their budgets for domain names, yet the trade-off is often too risky to consider.  Deleting domains comes with a concern as to who could pick up those names and use the lifetime goodwill that has been built up, or the intrinsic value of keywords, brands or even trademarks. 

One alternative approach to looking at where domain costs can be made by deleting domain names, is to look at the value the existing names in the portfolio are generating for the organisation.  The key to ensuring that a domain name portfolio constantly provides not only the protection a brand requires, but also constant return on investment is implementing a regular review schedule.  That review should include assessments on the relevance and usage of each domain name, but also on its potential to generate traffic and thus value to the organisation. 

A domain name review used to be a manual and laborious process, which was often the reason why many organisation’s portfolios became bloated and unmanageable, with little focus or control on costs, or the value each individual domain was creating for the company. It was rarely a strategic process, thinking ahead and aligning with the overall business goals and objectives, but tactical in nature, with short-term aims met to reduced budgets. 

However, there is a solution that domain name portfolio owners and IP managers can quickly implement that will give a more strategic assessment of the value of each domain owned, which can greatly help decision making on whether specific names should be retained, or even redirected in a more relevant and beneficial way for the organisation.  

Com Laude Intelligence is a registrar agnostic which combines automated analysis on a domain-by-domain basis, enhanced through artificial intelligence insights.  Each domain is assessed against a range of customisable measures, that ensures each name serves a specific purpose as part of an overall digital and brand protection strategy.  Not all domain names are created, or used, equally, and so it is important to assess them in such a way.  Whilst the platform is available as standard to all Com Laude clients, it is also a tool that can be utilised by organisations who manage their portfolios through other registrars, enabling them to gain the same valuable insights and recommendations. 

Using Intelligence as a guide for understanding the value of each domain means decisions on whether names are renewed becomes objective rather than subjective.  Regular portfolio reviews can focus on the relevance, return on investment and potential future value when utilising Intelligence and DNS traffic data. 

Domain names can be aligned with overarching business objectives.  This requires that each and every domain name resolves so that relevant stats and insights can be obtained and analysed. Unless a domain name is being actively used, it isn’t possible to understand the SEO value it could deliver.  By ensuring each domain serves a specific purpose in the overall digital strategy, whether for brand protection, marketing campaigns, revenue generation or future projects, means that it becomes easier to evaluate the ongoing cost to retain the name and assess whether the fee for each domain name is justified by its value, or potential value, to the company. 

Some domain names may have limited value to an organisation today, but emerging trends, new markets and product innovation could make them valuable in the future.  Using Intelligence allows organisations to categorise their domain names, using customisable criteria and easily measurable metrics.  Com Laude Intelligence is a live system, constantly gathering data on a portfolio, ensuring an organisation’s domain names remains present, protect and prosperous in the competitive landscape at all times.