Afternic - Official Thread

[GoDaddy]

Hello NamePros!
By popular demand, we have launched a dedicated feedback thread for Afternic, the GoDaddy-owned domain name marketplace.

We have created this thread as a way for you to tell us what works, what doesn't work, and what features you'd like to see at Afternic (please be constructive with your feedback). We're looking forward to hearing from the domain investment community to help us shape the future of Afternic.

We will also be sharing Afternic product updates in this thread.

Please note that this thread is not meant for support. Please email our support team at [email protected] for assistance.

 

[LoveCatchyDomains]

Hi @LoveCatchyDomains
Afternic has an integration with Dynadot through List for Sale - this allows customers there to directly list their domains for sale at Afternic without visiting Afternic.com directly.

Dan.com doesn't have the same relationship with Dynadot or other registrars. Listings at Dan.com and Afternic are also entirely separate - except for Dan.com's distribution network integration for Buy it Now listings. Therefore, your domain listings at Dan.com should be resolved through NS3 or TXT verification.

Thanks for clarifying that,
Hopefully, in the future, Dynadot-direct Afternic listings can be automatically propagated to Dan--if the seller chooses that as an optional feature.

 

[campout]

There's some bug effecting verification right now. It's manifesting as part of the background layer bleeding in front of the "Verify domain ownership" window, and the "Verify Domains" button does not work.

Tested on both Chrome and Firefox and both were glitching like this.

 

[campout]

There's also a couple different bugs going on with exporting of spreadsheet.

1. When you click download, it downloads 2 identical spreadsheets. Not a big deal but it's evidence of some erroneous programming.

2. This bug does matter: some of the columns have completely wrong information. Specifically: the columns pertaining to whether you have LTO enabled or not. I have about 75% of my names in LTO but the spreadsheet says that less than 1% of my names are in LTO. That's a massive issue for people with thousands of domains trying to monitor/manage things! The spreadsheet also is misidentifying the selected Sale Lander.

tldr; The spreadsheet is pumping out systemically wrong information in the LTO and Sale Lander columns.

 

[GoDaddy]

There's some bug effecting verification right now. It's manifesting as part of the background layer bleeding in front of the "Verify domain ownership" window, and the "Verify Domains" button does not work.

Tested on both Chrome and Firefox and both were glitching like this.

Show attachment 252140

Hi @campout
Thanks for reporting these; we'll ask our engineers to investigate and resolve them.

 

[GoDaddy]

A fresh new look for Afternic․com is on the way!

Over the next week, we are gradually rolling out a brand new Afternic.com, showcasing the latest features along with guidance for sellers on effectively using Afternic’s platform.

Over time, we will introduce new elements to Afternic.com, enhancing the experience to make selling domain names better for everyone. User feedback will play a crucial role in shaping the future development of Afternic.com. If you have feedback, we’d love to hear it via [email protected].

https://blog.afternic.com/fresh-new-look/

 

[Future Sensors]

A fresh new look for Afternic․com is on the way!

Over the next week, we are gradually rolling out a brand new Afternic.com, showcasing the latest features along with guidance for sellers on effectively using Afternic’s platform.

Over time, we will introduce new elements to Afternic.com, enhancing the experience to make selling domain names better for everyone. User feedback will play a crucial role in shaping the future development of Afternic.com. If you have feedback, we’d love to hear it via [email protected].

https://blog.afternic.com/fresh-new-look/

Sounds good. Will the dull BIN lander also get a new design?

 

[tonyk2000]

https://blog.afternic.com/fresh-new-look/

With all due respect, I'd prefer to use afternic via API (in all aspects, be it add domain, delete domain, pricing, etc) instead. The look may or may not be fresh or new, it is a matter of personal taste, but, at least, API is expected to be operational - while the GUI has a lot of post-upgrade issues, as we see right in this thread.

 

[silentg]

Why is the advanced search only available to Domain Academy members? IMO it makes sense to let it be accessible to everyone. More sales to sellers and more revenue for GD.

 

[freety85]

Is it just me or the same happening to you guys in the last few days? I am unable to list any recently registered domains with alternative extension on Afternic even if I wait a few days. Previously I had no issues, something must have been changed. When I add domains they go to pending review and in a split second disappear. James and Service Desk are looking into this, just wondered if it is an isolated case or happens to most of you. If so would welcome some workaround if any. Thanks

 

[campout]

Countless aspects of Afternic broke in recent days. I documented some above. There's glitches everywhere now. I also noticed the system is mis-identifying some .com domains that are at GoDaddy as not being fast-transfer eligible. It's telling me "transfer them into an eligible registrar" despite them already being at GoDaddy.

 

[Mister Funsky]

From the link above:

"The Afternic advanced search tool, along with Domain Academy’s entire syllabus and toolkit, is included in GoDaddy’s Discount Domain Club’s premium membership."

Too bad they have not come up with a tiered price structure for this 'membership'.

I'm still very active on the auction place (although my buy numbers are greatly reduced) and I've completed many transactions through Afternic at their 15% commission level, but I get no significant discount on DDC.

So, in the last several months I've been spending my auction dollars elsewhere...I have to admit I never knew the quality of names dropping through other marketplaces. In the last several months I've picked up a couple hundred names...I never would have strayed from Godaddy had they not hiked the price so much.

Maybe someone will see the light and offer a significant discount code based on longevity/activity/sales.

 

[Domo Sapiens]

I was pleasantly surprised to see the data provided on the new Afternic dashboard >>> Leads >>> Brokered deals >>> More >>> All

Great info to have for when re-pricing... (not necessarily to lower prices)

 

[GoDaddy]

Sounds good. Will the dull BIN lander also get a new design?

Hi @Future Sensors,
Our GoDaddy BIN landers are performing well, and we'll continue to test and iterate as we always do. Beyond that, there are no immediate plans on redesigns.

With all due respect, I'd prefer to use afternic via API (in all aspects, be it add domain, delete domain, pricing, etc) instead. The look may or may not be fresh or new, it is a matter of personal taste, but, at least, API is expected to be operational - while the GUI has a lot of post-upgrade issues, as we see right in this thread.

Thanks for your feedback @tonyk2000,

Why is the advanced search only available to Domain Academy members? IMO it makes sense to let it be accessible to everyone. More sales to sellers and more revenue for GD.

Hi @silentg
Afternic's inventory is available on over 100 resellers and partners and the premium network generates 85 million search queries per month. For anyone looking to take a deeper dive into the inventory, we chose to include it as a value-add tool for Domain Academy members. While this thread isn't about Domain Academy, we're providing value to Domain Academy members while focusing Afternic's attention towards our network, landers, and other core services and features.

Is it just me or the same happening to you guys in the last few days? I am unable to list any recently registered domains with alternative extension on Afternic even if I wait a few days. Previously I had no issues, something must have been changed. When I add domains they go to pending review and in a split second disappear. James and Service Desk are looking into this, just wondered if it is an isolated case or happens to most of you. If so would welcome some workaround if any. Thanks

Show attachment 252180

Hi @freety85
This is being investigated, James or the team will reach out with more information.

Countless aspects of Afternic broke in recent days. I documented some above. There's glitches everywhere now. I also noticed the system is mis-identifying some .com domains that are at GoDaddy as not being fast-transfer eligible. It's telling me "transfer them into an eligible registrar" despite them already being at GoDaddy.

Hi @campout,
The "Verify Domains" modal has been fixed. We're looking at the on-screen Fast Transfer statuses based on other customer feedback, too. We'll let you know once this has been adjusted.

 

[LH1]

Hi @LH1
Your Sale Lander column indicated the lander setting for domain names pointed to Afternic nameservers (e.g ns1.afternic.com). If your domains are pointed to other nameservers (e.g ns1.dan.com), then our interface will not reflect that.

Some of my names are pointed to ns3/4. do you recommend swithing to ns1/2 or does it not matter?

 

[Future Sensors]

Unfortunately, payment status information is still confusing within the Afternic environment.

 

[kor]

I am also facing the same problem.

I sold a domain name through fast-transfer network 3 days ago. The buyer has made the payment, the domain name has already been transferred.

However, there are no details about the payment to be made to me in the email or on Afternic 2.0

 

[silentg]

@kor
This happened to me on a sale and buyer was already using the domain. I called them to expedite the payment.

 

[campout]

We're looking at the on-screen Fast Transfer statuses based on other customer feedback, too. We'll let you know once this has been adjusted.

Thanks. I may be wrong, but it seems to be triggered by the act of approving a domain for fast transfer.

I bought a domain at GD closeouts 60+ days ago, received it, and added it to Afternic. Now, today (like normal) I got the Afternic email to approve it for fast transfer, which I did. And now I see that in my Afternic account notifications there is a notification that I should transfer that same domain to a fast-transfer eligible registrar, even though it's a .com at GoDaddy that I just approved for fast transfer today.

And yes I can confirm that the Verify Domains function has been fixed. Thanks for that.

 

[LoveCatchyDomains]

A very simple suggestion:

Can you place an immediate "In review" status on a domain in Afternic, when someone reports that they are the actual domain owner and want the unauthorized listing removed?

That immediately removes potential harm to a buyer, who inadvertently could try to buy a domain that a seller cannot actually sell. It also removes the interference with fair trade, as potential buyers may be turned off by what is often a higher price on these spurious listings than what the actual domain owner is willing to accept.

And a real plus would be immediate notification of the current seller and asking them to verify ownership.

 

[Armageddon]

New Homepage

 

[forge]

What the hell?

It's about as easy on the eyes as an ice pick.

 

[MasterOfMyDomains]

Thats ugly as sin. And I have to click three dots on mobile to open each one individually. All the paperwork is in order.



.

 

[411domains]

@GoDaddy

It's great that the team was able quickly re-word this, but is anyone actually working to resolve the underlying issue of the system not recognizing the registrars?

Deleting and re-adding until the system is finally able to detect the registrar isn't exactly what I would call ideal or simplified for that matter.

I can confirm that Afternic agents are also finding that they're required to resubmit multiple times in order get the system to recognize the registrar.

By the way, although the information is redacted, all of these names are Fast Transfer eligible.

PS. We're still waiting on those "enhanced features" and "simplified workflows."

 

[kor]

The new Afternic domain search page for buyers located on "godaddy.com/domainsearch/find" does not work on Safari browser.

Clicking on that magnifier icon does nothing, pressing enter doesn't send the form either. And refreshing the page doesn't change anything.

Instead of improving products, you constantly disrupt existing systems. You must hire A class developers, QA and UI/UX experts before it's too late.

If your goal is to make the current ecosystem unusable for buyers and sellers, state this clearly and I will consider switching to other alternatives.

 

[LoveCatchyDomains]

A very simple suggestion:

Can you place an immediate "In review" status on a domain in Afternic, when someone reports that they are the actual domain owner and want the unauthorized listing removed?

That immediately removes potential harm to a buyer, who inadvertently could try to buy a domain that a seller cannot actually sell. It also removes the interference with fair trade, as potential buyers may be turned off by what is often a higher price on these spurious listings than what the actual domain owner is willing to accept.

And a real plus would be immediate notification of the current seller and asking them to verify ownership.

As an update, apparently Afternc cannot do the InReview status" for an alleged fake listing if it is propagated from Dan.

On last check, about 2/3 of my potfolio was listed without my permission on DAN. Only one of these showed up on Afternic. AN customer support did track down that the problem was a propagation of a DAN listing. They cannot put a Dan-propagated domain in review.

The good news is that Dynadot has a feature to block all Afternic requests in one click. Fr those of you oerwhelmed with inexplicable Afternic Fast transfer requests, that may be a real plus. At the current time, a blocking is not available for Dan. Hopefully in the future, that will be an option as well.