Wanted to post a short hand-picked list of exact match keyword domains that are available (as of 7:15am) for hand registration…

• zerointerestbalancetransfers.com

• computergeneratedanimation.com

• discontinuedeappliances.com

• alaskadentalinsurance.com

• restoremylaptop.com

• insurancequotingsoftware.com

• roofskirack.com

• ergonomicscrewdriver.com

• phdcomputerscience.com

• mobilehomefurniture.com

That’s it for today. If you are interested in receiving future available domains, you can subscribe to my free available domains e-mail newsletter here and follow me on Twitter at @DomainTweeter.

MobileSoftware.us - Expired domain auction at Dynadot - current bid $9.99

SearchEngines.mx - Expired domain auction at Dynadot - starting bid $41.99

VideoMonitors.org - Expired domain auction at Dynadot - current bid $11.75

Niagara.org - Pre-release name at Namejet - current high bid $77.

Charlottesville.co - First .co name I’ve ever blogged about, but if you are into .co, nice GEO domain closeout with a $5 Buy Now price at Godaddy.

TwoLineCordlessPhone.com - available for hand reg

GourmetFruitGiftBaskets.com - available for hand reg

DataFaxModem.com - available for hand reg

MeasureBloodPressure.com - available for hand reg

4gbMemory.com - available for hand reg

8gbMemory.com - available for hand reg

PlusSuits.com - available for hand reg

MultifunctionColorLaser.com - available for hand reg

40YearFixedLoan.com - available for hand reg

TranscriptionistCourses.com - available for hand reg

ProjectEstimatingSoftware.com - available for hand reg

PrivateHealthCareProviders.com - available for hand reg

CeilingLCDMounts.com - available for hand reg

That’s it for this morning. If you are interested in receiving future available domains, you can subscribe to my free available domains e-mail newsletter here and follow me on Twitter at @DomainTweeter.

People who constantly reach into a pocket to check a smartphone for bits of information will soon have another option: a pair of Google-made glasses that will be able to stream information to the wearer’s eyeballs in real time.

According to several Google employees familiar with the project who asked not to be named, the glasses will go on sale to the public by the end of the year. These people said they are expected “to cost around the price of current smartphones,” or $250 to $600.

The people familiar with the Google glasses said they would be Android-based, and will include a small screen that will sit a few inches from someone’s eye. They will also have a 3G or 4G data connection and a number of sensors including motion and GPS.

Also thought it was pretty funny that the URL of the story (possibly it’s original title) contains ‘Google to sell terminator style glasses by years end’.

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/21/google-to-sell-terminator-style-glasses-by-years-end/

Domaining.com is accepting names for a special newsletter scheduled to go out on Monday January 9th, 2012. The newsletter will also be sent to DNForum and DomainState members, so it looks like a good way to get your name in front of a lot of fellow domainers.

Here are the details as well as a few recommendations…

• They are accepting one domain per person and selecting a total of 100 names - all extensions welcome, but .COM recommended. It should go without saying (for the first three), but the submission page states ‘no typos, hacks, cyberquatting, or adult’.

• Sales commission is 10% with 2 week exclusivity after the newsletter is delivered.

• Domain sales handled by escrow (included in commission) via Domaining.com’s ECOP escrow service.

• In order to increase exposure, the submission page states that the sales commissions generated will be reversed to the most active bloggers and lists the following participants so far (I believe in order of who blogged about the event first) OwenFrager, DNEXpert, AvailableDomainNames, DomainingTips, DomainWealth, DomainMichael.

Recommendations…

• Since the submission page mentions ‘priced for domainers’, this is probably not the place to look for end user pricing.

• The submission process uses Valuate.com’s (owned by Domaining.com) automated appraisal process, so if you are trying to decide between a few different domains to submit, might be a good idea to run them all through Valuate.com since this may be used as a significant factor in domain selection.

• As with any automated service, its algorithm may favor certain types of names (e.g. high CPC / search demand, etc.), so you might want to factor this into your selection decision.  For example, I haven’t decided on which name to submit yet, but am considering one which has a $7,100 valuation due to a $12+ CPC.

• The submission page also has an optional short slogan or note - always a good idea to fill out to bring additional attention to the name and to list anything that makes it special.

Here’s the link for the submission form:

http://www.cax.com/submit/newsletter/

Best of luck on an early domain sale in 2012!

Wanted to pass along the following article from SearchEngineLand…

A new study from Microsoft Research confirms what most SEOs have known for years—that domain names are a crucial element for capturing clicks and conversions from search results. Unlike what’s been published in most search marketing forums, however, this research was not focused on SEO techniques or search engine ranking algorithms, but rather on observed searcher behavior, offering insights about how people actually respond to what’s presented to them in search results.

Here’s the link to the Search Engine Land article….

Domain Name Matters: Searchers Pick Brand Over Quality, Study Finds

As well as a link to the research paper…

Domain Bias in Web Search

Update 10:15AM: Just saw that Michael Berkens covered the study last week in his ‘Microsoft’s New Study Showing That Domain Names Are VERY Important‘ blog post.

Hosting Coupons and Hosting Specials

1. Received an e-mail with advance notice of HostGator’s Black Friday sale. Right now they are offering 20% off, but as of midnight tonight, they will be offering 50% of all hosting services, including shared hosting, reseller hosting, VPS hosting, Dedicated servers and Windows hosting (but not including domain names).  The special will run for one day, and will not require a special coupon code.  Here are some of the pricing examples given in the message.

• Shared hosting: As low as $4.95 Now only: $2.48/month (pre-paid)
• Reseller Hosting: As low as $24.95 Now Only: $12.48/month (pre-paid)
• VPS Hosting: As low as $19.95 Now Only: $9.98/month (First Month)
• Dedicated Servers: As low as $174 Now Only $87/month (First Month)

If you’re like most domainers, you probably already have a hosting account which lets you host unlimited domain names. However there are a few reasons to have more than one ‘unlimited’ account….

• For a few extra dollars a month, it’s nice to be able to spread sites across a different hosting accounts.  If you’re using shared hosting, you’re site’s probably been down a few times over the last year.  With multiple servers, even bad outages only affect a small percentage of sites.

• Some domainers mirror all their sites on two different hosting accounts - that way they always have an online backup.  Also if a host is having an extended outage, they can just change the DNS for the sites to switch to the live server.

• Multiple IP addresses - For SEO purposes, some domainers choose to link different sites to each other.  From a SEO standpoint, tread carefully.   Cross link everything and you run a good chance of being penalized, do it where relevant and you may get a nice SEO boost.  Since shared accounts typically use the same IP address or IP range, linking sites using two different hosting companies can carry more wait than linking sites on the same server since the sites are probably being hosted on a different IP range.

Not sure if I’ll pick up an extra account at midnight, have been thinking of getting trying out their VPS Hosting account, so I may give it a try.

2.  Not sure what Dreamhost’s Black Friday special will be yet, but noticed that they are running a Thanksgiving special (good till midnight tonight) offering a year of hosting for $9.24 cents. This one requires a coupon code - which is ‘777thanks11′ and is good until midnight tonight.

3. Fatcow Hosting is offering $3.15/month shared hosting including unlimited domains and bandwidth (65% off). This special is for the next 3 days and does not require a coupon.

I’ll live blog this post and keep adding to it, but wanted publish what I had so far, since the Dreamhost special ends in about 90 minutes.

In the meantime, if you come across a good special, please feel free to add it as a comment or e-mail me and I will post it here.

First, it’s helpful to stop thinking like a domainer and start thinking like an average end-user.  Most end-users aren’t familiar with whois and check to see if a domain is available by one of two ways:

1. They simply type the domain name into their browser…

• If they see the name is owned by a company in their business, they likely stop right there.

• If they see an error message or a un-configured hosting page, they likely stop right there.

• If they see a parked page, and there’s no prominent and obvious indication that the domain is for sale, they likely stop right there.

Why not make it easy for them?

If your names aren’t developed and you’re not making a lot of money from parking, consider creating a simple ‘domain for sale page’ and pointing your domains to it.   At the bare minimum, the page should clearly indicate that the name is for sale and tell visitors how they can go about purchasing it. Even better, assume that the end-user probably hasn’t bought an aftermarket domain before and…

• Talk about the importance of having a good domain and explain the advantages (e.g. professionalism, memorability, SEO, better response rates from off-line advertising, etc.).

• Reassure the end-user that these types of transactions are easy and safe to complete.

• Include your contact information, or an unintimidating form that the end-user can use to get in contact with you.

How to do it

You don’t have to be a web developer or have any major web design skills.

One way is to set up a simple page using WordPress. If you already have a web hosting account with a popular hosting company like Dreamhost or Hostgator, you probably already have the ability to create an unlimited amount of sites for free and to install WordPress with one click.

Once WordPress is installed, you can select from the many free themes that most hosting companies include and configure a simple page in about an hour or so.

Or if you don’t have a hosting account or aren’t familiar with WordPress, you might want to use a service like Wufoo which makes it pretty easy and has a free plan for simple pages.

Summary

Either way, once you have your page on-line, end users who type in your name will have no doubt that it’s for sale, may start to warm up to the idea of purchasing it (vs. hand registering an inferior available domain) and will have a clear cut way of contacting you and initiating a dialog.

In the second part of this post, I’ll discuss the other primary way end users check availability and a very easy way to get your names directly in front of them along with some specific pricing tips and strategic advice.

15 Link Building Predictions & Recommendations For 2011

The post includes link building tips from 3 well known SEO / link building consultants…

• Eric Ward (definition of old-school link builder - Helped Amazon.com with their initial launch and worked with other heavy hitters like PBS, Warner Brothers and Weather.com)
• Debra Mastaler (offers link building training and operates Linkspiel.com)
• Julie Joyce (operates a link development firm and is a founding member of SEOChicks.com).

If you’re interested in receiving an advance copy of the list or are looking to buy certain types of names (specific keywords/niches, high CPC, geo, etc.), email me or DM me on Twitter.