Once again there is a lot of buzz surrounding IDN domain names and ccTLD’s within the domaining community… So lets see, is there really any money to be made with these kinds of domains in 2010 and moving forward? Yes there is but first you have to understand a couple of very basic principles and avoid the hype.

You gotta understand that when everybody is talking about something freely, that means that the opportunity has been mined and had…  Most bloggers and media is talking about it just because somebody else is talking about it and that doesn’t necessarily mean that the investment opportunity here in IDN’s or ccTLD’s is a good one but who the hell verifies anything this days? No need… Because they take you for a fool. Yes, you… They feed you all this bullshit and you just eat it all up because it sounds so fun and exciting… YUM YUMM!

I remember few years ago when a bunch of IDN’ers popped up onto Rick Schwartz private forum and they went at it non stop rambling about all of the potential, trying to brainswash myself and others… Trying to get us behind the whole concept and on the bandwagon before it’s too late.

We tried to understand them but unfortunately we were speaking a different language it seemed. Nobody could provide any proof or make sense of things. Those IDN enthusiasts and die hard supporters of the next big thing got banned from Rick Schwartz’ forum within a few days by the man himself.

Lets face it… Most domainers and other up-and-comers in the do it yourself internet business are sheep and have the follower mentality. Maybe one out of a hundred or even five hundred is an actual leader who can come up with original ideas and dig up their own niche-within-a-niche and capitalize time and time over and over again.

Rick Schwartz’ private forum had some of the greatest domain investors of all time and those IDN’ers failed to even make an impression or provide one sound argument… But nowadays, the messages and misinformation is being spread across various other channels.

There is some valuable IDN and ccTLD domains… The category defining ones with type-in traffic that can be converted into dollars one way or another. The cream of the crop. Unfortunately all of these domains were had a long time ago by insiders… Domainers and techies who keep their mouth shut. Ones who go about their biz quietly, avoiding the spotlight as much as possible and for a very good reason.

Lets rewind for a bit… In the early years of 2001, 2002, etc… while most non US based domainers in France, Germany, Italy, etc… were following what everybody else was doing in the domaining biz, which was buying up gTLD domains such as com/net/org because those were proven extensions and selling for big bucks, only a handful had the brains to invest and diversify into other extensions, such as ccTLD’s which had a well established internet infrastructure and penetration that was increasing consistently year over year over year.

So even all those hundreds and even thousands of local domainers in Spain, Italy, Germany, Japan, China, etc… couldn’t capitalize on their own ground… They missed their opportunities, in their own markets… They missed it on home soil. Most of them got the scraps left over from the real pros.

So I really find it quite hilarious seeing people from India, Mexico, Spain or Israel… Nowadays investing in ccTLD’s and IDN domains in Europe or Asia for example, when of course their kinda too late to the party. The biggest opportunity was right under their noses early on, and they had the edge by knowing local language, culture, economy, etc… But nope, they missed it.

Look, there is money to be made with any kind of traffic, but not a whole lot. Let me illustrate it this way which should make sense with a real life example: Somebody slips, falls and breaks something in a mall in Russia or Taiwan or Pakistan or Egypt or wherever… It’s highly unlikely that they are going to be able to file a lawsuit or win shit. They probably won’t even be able to get their medical expenses taken care of. They will probably get a kick in the ass and be told to go fuck themselves. That’s just the way it works in those parts of the world.

It’s really nothing new and that’s just the way it is in those countries, most countries in the world actually… While in the US, a slip and fall lawsuit can result in millions of dollars won in damages because the US justice system is well established and quite unique unlike any other. Now there are still some lawyers who handle cases and lawsuits filed in local courts in Russia, Mexico, China, etc… You just don’t get much as far as payouts go. A doctor’s malpractice will get you maybe 1/100th of what it would in the USA or Canada. You get what I am saying.

So traffic from all these international countries really isn’t all that valuable.. Even the most targeted. The US infrastructure and current internet ecosystem (publishing/advertisers) is very advanced, while the rest of the world is still playing catch up. Unfortunately all this killer ccTLD domains and IDN domains may have all this traffic but nowhere to convert into dollars, in other words to cash in. That is the problem that investors in these emerging markets have faced for 10 to 15 years… That is the problem you will face if you don’t do your homework.

We all know that category killer keyword domains get type in traffic and really, ccTLD domains and IDN’s are no exception, they get lots of traffic as well, but where the hell do you monetize it… How?? So before you decide to invest in any of these domains, ask yourself this question and you better be able to answer it, otherwise you will end up paying thousands or tens of thousands of dollars for domains that produce a whole lot of nothing… Just headaches!

So don’t believe the hype. Do due diligence. Seek the truth… It’s up-to you to put together the pieces of the puzzle and make sure that everything is 110% clear and makes sense. See first hand that this international traffic converts and then you can begin to talk about it with friends, blog about it and maybe even invest more heavily, just as you do with the proven top three gTLD’s which are .com/net/org which everybody just loves and for a very good reason… WORLDWIDE