@barman , here's my answers to your questions:
Outbound is tough for sure, even with great domains. A better domain typically has more potential leads, but better domains also require more research for leads and contact info, more outbound calls and emails, more education on pricing, and more follow up (and sellers are typically less flexible on pricing). I can at least get a response from the vast majority of prospects assuming the emails/information I'm tracking down are valid. The key to getting a response is follow up (and the body of the email which I will answer below). I set a reminder for every 3 days, and I send 4 emails (all with tracking of course). I prefer not sending outbound emails on Mondays as they tend to get buried or delayed in the prospect's inbox. Or at least wait until late Monday night so their inbox can get caught up from the weekend. And same for Fridays unless it's early morning.
It's hard to put a number on stats of success rate of cold emails turning into sales but probably 1-3% success rate. But again, the key is follow up and having a good system of staying on top of it (snooze on gmail, pipedrive, etc). The bigger and better the prospect the more ways I will try and at least elicit a response from someone. This might sound obvious, but it's a very important part of the process. Not all prospects are equal from that standpoint.
For linkedin, I go for the top dogs (founder or ceo preferred, but maybe cmo, cto, or head counsel). I might even message all 3-4 key people within minutes of each other so I can try and penetrate through to someone if I'm not getting responses elsewhere. The success rate of getting a response is still relatively low. You for sure need to have a professional linkedin account if you want them to take you seriously.
Cold emails and linkedin messages all look like this:
subject line:
domain.com for sale
The domain in the subject line is for sale. Let me know if interested.
Thanks,
Brian Harbin
Domain Broker
Sales is like fishing. You have to set the hook before you start reeling them in. I get salespeople spam everyday on linkedin and daily emails with sales pitches. Almost EVERY single salesperson goes right into their pitch (i.e reeling) with 3-4 paragraphs on why I should hire them or pay for their services. If it's longer than sentence or two, then I delete. It's because they didn't set the hook and grab my attention with a need. And I can almost guarantee that every major decision maker does the same. You have to peak their interest quickly and succinctly. Almost every response I get from my outbound email (or 'hook') is: "i'll bite, how much" or "how much?" Then you can have your pitch email ready to send (which starts the "reeling"). But you can't start pitching ("reeling") until they have at least taken the bait or expressed interest.
Again, I prefer going for the top dog in the company the majority of the time. If you get their buy-in, then they can disseminate the information to whoever needs to approve it at that point. They are the top dog for a reason, and they like for major decisions like this to be 'their idea' so they can get the credit. Egos in big companies are way more important than most people realize so use that information to your advantage. You don't want an underling to present the idea, get the credit, and potentially mess up the hierarchy (i.e. their bosses' ego or job security) which can squash even the most brilliant ideas.
About 20% of my deals come from straight cold calling to sell a domain. It's the hardest type of domain sale to make (and the reason few brokers do it consistently), but the most valuable since so few people are able to do it successfully. Having a good mix of inbound, buy requests, working warm market, etc helps keep the deal flow consistent.
The benefit of a lower priced domain you are selling is that there are typically fewer decision makers in that size company and a better chance of getting them on the phone. A higher priced domain usually requires a larger sized company which is harder to find and talk to the decision maker. So with a lower priced domain, use the phone or hire someone that can help with that part. This is a great place to start for outbound (in the $1k-$5k range) to start getting in some practice. Help companies drop the 'the' or find a domain that should be a no-brainer for them to want to upgrade.
Quick story to wrap up: There is a NY Times best selling author that I saw recently launched a company. I saw his domain started with 'the' so I checked that the owner (of the same domain minus the 'the') might be open to selling, and I then reached out to the author. I tracked down his cell phone and sent a text. Even though he was on vacation with his family, he immediately texted me back "yes, i'm interested in that domain." We spoke on the phone the next week and secured the domain for him. It was a relatively small purchase, but he has already sent me 4 leads to his friends and clients. I am now his 'guy.' So maybe instead of going out and buying domains, help people upgrade their domains, charge a minimal and reasonable fee that is transparent, and you can start to build a network of people that use you to help with domain acquisitions. It's a way to make money in this business with no investment of funds on your part and only an investment of your time. Less risk since you aren't taking on debt by buying domains you aren't sure someone will want to eventually buy. I think the future of domains involves at least one or two brokers on every major domain purchase. So start building a network now. As W. Clements Stone says "Little hinges swing big doors", meaning that focusing on the little habits makes the biggest difference in the long run.
Hope that helps!