What are expired domains?

Expired domains are domain names that were once owned by someone but were not renewed after the registration period ended. This means that the domain is no longer in use and is available for purchase.

For example, let’s say that someone registered the domain name “bestrecipes.com” for a year. When the registration period ends and the owner does not renew it, the domain becomes expired and available for purchase by anyone.

Expired domains for SEO purposes

Expired domains can be used for various purposes, including SEO. This is because they may have an existing backlink profile, which means other websites have linked to them in the past. Backlinks are important for SEO because they signal to search engines that a website is reputable and relevant.

For instance, if “bestrecipes.com” has links from popular food blogs, it could be valuable for a food blogger looking to boost their SEO. By purchasing the expired domain, they can acquire those existing backlinks and benefit from the website’s previous authority.

However, it’s important to note that not all expired domains are valuable. Some may have been used for spammy purposes or have a poor backlink profile. This is why it’s important to use tools like expireddomains.net or spamzilla to evaluate the domain’s history and backlinks before making a purchase. Overall, expired domains can be a useful tool for SEO, but it’s important to do your research and make sure the domain you’re purchasing has a clean history and relevant backlinks.

How to analyze Expired domains?

There are various tools available for analyzing expired domains to determine their value and potential for SEO purposes. Here are a few examples:

Specialized tools for Expired domains

1. Expireddomains.net: This is a popular tool used to search for expired domains based on various criteria such as domain age, backlinks, and page rank. It provides a list of available domains that meet the specified criteria. It also provides information about the domain’s history and backlink profile. And It is FREE!
2. Spamzilla: This paid tool is used to analyze expired domains and their backlink profiles to determine their spam score. A higher spam score indicates that the domain may have been used for spammy purposes in the past, which can harm your website’s SEO efforts.
3. DomCop: This is a tool that provides information about expired domains that are available for purchase. It allows you to search for expired domains based on various criteria, including domain authority, page authority, backlinks, and age. It also provides information about the domain’s history and backlink profile, as well as an analysis of its potential value for SEO purposes.

General SEO tools

1. Ahrefs: This is another tool that provides information about a domain’s backlink profile, as well as other important SEO metrics. For example organic search traffic and keyword rankings. It can also be used to analyze your competitors’ backlink profiles and identify potential link building opportunities.
2. SEMrush: Another popular tool used for analyzing expired domains is SEMrush. SEMrush is a comprehensive SEO tool that provides a range of features for analyzing websites. This includes keyword research, backlink analysis, and site audit reports.
3. Ubersuggest by Neil Patel: This is a tool that provides a range of SEO metrics and insights. One of the best features is its cheapness. It costs only 12$ per month, or 120$ lifetime. It can be used to analyze the backlink profiles of expired domains to identify potential opportunities for improving your website’s search engine rankings.
4. Majestic: This tool provides information about a domain’s backlink profile, including the number of backlinks, referring domains, and anchor text. It can also be used to analyze the backlink profiles of your competitors. This helps businesses to identify potential opportunities for improving your own SEO.

When using these tools to analyze expired domains, it’s important to look for domains that have a clean backlink profile and relevant links from reputable websites. One of the most valuable backlink is for example from Wikipedia. When some expiring website has it, It is definitely worth a buy. It’s also important to consider the domain’s history and any potential red flags, such as a high spam score.

Study case: Neil Patel’s buy of Ubersuggest.com

Buying expired domains can be a lucrative investment for those in the SEO industry. One reason for this is that purchasing an expired domain with an existing backlink profile can save money on link building efforts. Rather than having to spend time and resources building backlinks from scratch, an expired domain can provide a head start in terms of backlinks. Ubersuggest is a great example of this, as Neil Patel acquired the domain on February 13th, 2017 for $120,000. This was considered a hefty sum at the time, but Patel recognized the value of the domain’s existing backlink profile This backlink profile included 38,000 backlinks and 8,400 referring domains. This was a substantial number of high-quality backlinks that would have been difficult and expensive to acquire.

In addition, the website was already receiving 110,000 monthly visitors per month. It is making this site a valuable asset in terms of driving traffic and revenue to Patel’s website. The fact that Patel was able to acquire all of this for only $120,000 is even more remarkable when you consider that it works out to just $3.15 per backlink. This is an incredible price for high-quality backlinks. Those backlinks significantly boosted a website’s search engine rankings and drive more traffic and revenue.

Backordering Expired domains

Backordering is a process where individuals or businesses can reserve an expired domain before it becomes available for purchase. This process involves placing a backorder with a registrar/or backordering company. They will attempt to purchase the domain on your behalf as soon as it becomes available.

The advantage of backordering is that it provides a way to secure high-value expired domains with an existing backlink profile before they become available to the general public. This can be particularly useful for competitive industries where high-value domains are in high demand.

However, it’s important to note that backordering does not guarantee that you will be able to purchase the domain. There may be other individuals or businesses placing backorders for the same domain like you. In addition, the success rate of backordering can vary depending on the domain registrar and the popularity of the domain.

Read whole article about this topic. Including where to place the order and more!

Conclusion

In conclusion, expired domains can be a valuable asset for those who are looking to improve their website’s search engine rankings. By purchasing an expired domain with an existing backlink profile, individuals and businesses can save time and resources on link building efforts and achieve faster results in their SEO efforts.