On March 30, 2026, domain investor AbdulBasit Makrani publicly shared his platform switching experience, market observations, and several core transaction cases, providing a practical and referential industry guide for small and medium-sized domain investors.
Platform Switching: The Transition and Challenges from Afternic to Efty and NamePros
Makrani left Afternic in mid-October 2025, first transferring his domain to Efty.com for about a month, and then switching to the NamePros.com landing page in December 2025. He simultaneously removed Afternic and Sedo marketplaces, relying entirely on direct leads for customer acquisition.
He revealed that sales were acceptable before leaving Afternic, but stagnated for the next two months until he completely left the platform. After migrating to the new platform, lead generation plummeted—from approximately 1200-1400 new leads per month with Afternic, this figure dropped to half after the switch. Furthermore, it was discovered that over half of the leads were generated by bots, making the lead reports unreliable; this issue urgently needs platform improvement.
While acknowledging the effectiveness of NamePros’ landing page and support services, sales fell short of expectations. Coupled with the impact of the US-Iran geopolitical conflict, inquiries further contracted. However, he still recognized the value of price request platforms—they allow for flexible price reassessment and adjustment of quotes, saving commissions and adapting to rising domain value trends to optimize revenue.
Practical Transaction Case Studies: Eight Transactions Reveal Negotiation Logic and Channel Differences
Makrani shared eight transactions covering different domain extensions, price ranges, and transaction channels, clearly demonstrating the negotiation patterns and customer acquisition paths in domain trading.
HMA.CO $9,000 (via WhatsApp). This domain had an asking price of $9,888 but after going back and forth, we settled for $9,000.
ClubSpot.com $50,000 – This domain was a BIN purchase via Efty marketplace. Special thanks to Doron (founder of Efty.com) for making this deal happen smoothly and professionally.
Directory.org $25,000 – This domain had an asking price of $29,888 but after negotiations, I ended up selling it for $25K.
Serafino.com $38,000 (via WhatsApp). The broker who acted on behalf of the buyer was pretty tough and took several months to close the deal. This domain had a asking price of $50,000.
Moess.com $14,000 – This one had an asking price of $19,888 but we settled for $14K NET.
Uniti.net for $8,500 – A broker reached out on behalf of their client. This was initially priced at $9,888.
StormBit.com – Received a $1K offer and quoted $9,888. Going back and forth for around 4 months of negotiations and eventually sold it for $8,500 NET.
MyBestFriends.com $18,500 – The buyer is from Turkey and I quoted $19,888. Negotiation took a couple of months before the domain sold for $18.5K. They’ve upgraded from MyBestFriends.com.tr which is a nice decision.
From a channel perspective, WhatsApp and direct leads are the core customer acquisition methods, accounting for over 80%. In terms of negotiation, high-value domains have greater room for negotiation; for example, Serafino.com has a negotiation rate of 24%, while ClubSpot.com requires no negotiation due to its precise targeting. Regarding domain extensions, .com and .org generic domains still command high premiums, while short-character domains are more likely to attract buyers.
Investment Advice: Platform and Strategy Selection for Small and Medium-Sized Investors
For small and medium-sized domain investors, Makrani offers two core suggestions: First, a hosting strategy. Investors holding a small number of domains should prioritize Afternic/Sedo hosting to maximize exposure and sales opportunities, leveraging the platform’s traffic pool to increase the probability of a sale. Second, self-management skills. Investors can manage leads independently through price requests, flexibly adjusting pricing to reduce commission costs and adapt to market value changes. Familiarity with lead processing and negotiation processes is also crucial for improving sales efficiency.
The current domain market is experiencing short-term fluctuations due to geopolitical factors, but the core value of generic and short-character domains remains stable. Drawing on Makrani’s platform switching experience and trading cases, accurately matching end-user needs and flexibly optimizing pricing may become the key for small and medium-sized investors to break through performance bottlenecks.
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