Tag: Domain registration

Meet Our Customers: Apex Media

Apex Media With Simon Heller 

Simon Heller, Co-founder at Apex Media and Okens Domains client, sat down with Okens to discuss the power of SEO, why regulators need to work together, and how emerging technology is changing SEO.

Apex Media Ventures is an SEO firm that creates successful SEO campaigns for their clients to grow their company with organic traffic. Simon Heller co-founded the consultancy over a year ago and says that SEO is a strong marketing tool, if not the strongest. 

On The Power Of SEO

“The ultimate advantage of using SEO is that the client can save a large amount on ad spend as soon as their web presence performs in organic search results,” said Heller.

But Heller says that he thinks that SEO has become more difficult over the past several years and that the primary challenge is content. 

“Today’s content needs to be top-notch, and your link-building strategy must be on point,” said Heller. The biggest issue with Google is the sheer number of updates, which are scrambling the SERPs each time, making planning resources and strategy alignment very challenging.”

Regarding new technologies, Heller says that the company has been looking at the opportunities artificial intelligence (AI) can provide to their clients. 

“We’re not fans of completely AI-generated content, but it sure helps as a supplementary tool,” said Heller. “It also helps with project management and many other workflow issues which benefit our company and, in return, our clients as well.”

On Emerging Technologies And SEO

It’s been obvious to me and other people in the industry that Google was blindsided by the sudden emergence of AI content. Google had already become significantly stricter about indexing new content, but the sheer volume of content that webmasters can churn out with generative AI has created new challenges for search engines like Google.

The recent “aggressive” Google Updates made it obvious that Google is trying to adapt to the flood of (mostly low-quality) content into the SERPs. For example, high-authority sites have profited even more than they already did in updates in recent years because Google assumes these sites offer more trustworthy content naturally. This, in my opinion, is also the reason why we suddenly see a lot of foreign high-authority news sites like OutlookIndia in the top search results now – often with spammy or even misleading content, so this approach obviously is not ideal either.

Google seems generally overwhelmed by generative AI’s new possibilities, which will likely result in even more super volatile updates soon. As SEO experts, all we can do is deliver the highest-quality and user-friendly content possible that provides genuinely useful information and makes the appearance of pages visually appealing. This results in positive user signals, which I speculate might also become more important in upcoming updates.

Also, it’s important to keep in mind that Google is NOT against AI-generated content in general. As long as it is helpful to the reader, it shouldn’t matter, and I don’t think it’s possible for any algorithm to differentiate a well-written AI article from a human-written one.

On Working With Okens

Apex Media hosts its domains on Okens and says that these are the domains on which its money site runs. 

Heller says Okens offers a lot of opportunities to protect their confidential information as well as their client’s information. client’s confidential information. 

“A big plus for us working with Okens always has been the personal communication,” said Heller.  “No matter if I have a technical issue, questions, or just want to transfer another domain to Okens, I can email them, and everything gets resolved ASAP.

Heller says this personal communication differentiates Okens from most other registrars who only offer the typical outsourced technical support. “Especially in SEO, you need to be able to sort out potential issues immediately without taking a hit on website rankings and, of course, conversion,” adds Heller.

“The value of a domain to our business is invaluable; the domain service and strategy we get from Okens gives us confidence that if something goes wrong out there, we know we are just one call away from resolving it and fast,” said Heller.

Okens Brokerage Services

Get The Domain You Want With Okens Brokerage Services

The Rolling Stones said you can’t always get what you want, but Okens Domains thinks you can. Introducing our new Okens Brokerage services that help you acquire that coveted domain you want to grow your business, even if that domain is already registered.

Traditionally, a brokerage service is a business or service that specializes in buying and selling domain names on behalf of clients. Sometimes, individuals or companies may own domain names they no longer need or want. In contrast, others may be interested in acquiring specific domain names for their projects, businesses, or investment purposes.

Okens Brokerage will handle everything from valuation to negotiation and domain transfer. We facilitate buying and selling domain names using different tools, platforms, and our extensive global contact database.

Another benefit of Okens Brokerage is the service of helping you value your unused domains to see if you want to keep them as an investment or value them for sale. The services will also negotiate on your behalf to ensure you get the best price for the domain.

Here is the entire process for brokering domains with Okens Brokerage services:

The Buyer: The person or parties who want to purchase the domain. The buyer can ask for a particular domain or the range of markets they are interested in, and we help them find domains in that industry. It could also be related to specific countries, TLD’s, etc.

The Seller: This is the person or party looking to sell the domain but may need more time or resources to research the domain’s value to the industry.

The Valuation: There are many variables to consider when it comes to the valuation of a specific domain. Okens investigates to see if we can help with the request and look at domain requirements and pricing to create a market value of the domain. Once we do this, we communicate to the customer so they can decide on selling or retaining the domain for a future sale.

Listing: We proceed to the listing phase once the customer agrees to sell. In the case of the seller, Okens will create a domain listing in our platform and then update any interested buyers.

Negotiation: Okens Domains team has extensive expertise in domain business and valuation experience. We understand the domain’s value and have an educated sales team that helps negotiate and guarantees our customers the best price.

Managing The Selling Process: The full scope of the process from valuation to negotiation and transfer of ownership is done by Okens Brokerage Services. Buying and selling a domain involves investigation, communication, source of information or channels, communication, payment, and transfers, for starters.

Transaction: Once an agreement is reached, Okens Brokerage brokers and facilitates the transaction process which includes handling the transfer of ownership and ensuring a smooth and secure exchange of funds.

Escrow Services: Okens Brokerage Services use escrow services to protect both the buyer and the seller. Escrow services hold the funds securely until all aspects of the transaction are completed, reducing the risk of fraud.

Transfer of Ownership: The Okens Brokerage team oversees the technical aspects of transferring the domain name from the seller’s registrar to the buyer’s registrar and updating the domain’s registration details.

Post-Sale Support: The Okens Brokerage team supports the entire post-sale process with a smooth transition and addresses any issues. We are with you from start to finish and beyond.

Visit Okens.domains for more information about our services.

IGB London

iGB Affiliate London Here We Come

As Willie Nelson sang, ‘I just can’t wait to get on the road again’ – and that is where we are – on the road to iGB Affiliate London and ICE. We have a lot to share with you before the show. Including why a domain gap analysis can help you save your brand now and down the road, the threat of increased reverse domain name registration, and what you can do about it to our new offering, Okens Brokerage Services.

We will discuss the points at iGB Affiliate London, stand #E51.

Brand Protection

Let’s talk about domains and online brand protection because they are ground zero for everything that matters to your business. Domain names are critical to building your business brand protection. We’ve said it before and will repeat it, but you can’t protect it if you don’t know where the gaps are in your domain strategy as you build or grow your brand. This is everything from a failsafe strategy for future growth to setting up your domain with automatic renewals.

Registering your domain seems obvious, but registering your name with alternate extensions like .net, .biz, or .org, along with their alternative spellings, can go a long way toward protecting your brand. Spelling alternatives mean you give your visitors a better chance to access your website if they make a mistake entering your domain name. It also prevents others from capitalizing on your brand name in all its forms.

We will offer a complimentary domain gap analysis at iGB Affiliate London. If you are serious about seeing where you are vulnerable with your new brand or your established business, come by stand #E51 and talk to us.

Cyber Criminals

Now, onto those cyber criminals who make things more challenging than they should be. In 2023, reverse domain name hijacking and cybersquatting were at an all-time high. Not good. Domain Name Wire reported that nearly one in five denied complaints was reverse domain name hijacking.

Since we’ve just started 2024, it is the perfect time to look at what you can do to prevent this costly crime from happening to you and your business. It all starts with knowing where your domain is or could be vulnerable. Maybe you don’t have time to check all the ways your domain name could be hijacked, but guess what? We do! And we will work with you to identify where it could all go wrong and prevent that from happening. It is easier to do it before you get started than to fix it later.

Brokerage Services

The fantastic news is that Okens Domains is pleased to announce a new offering – Okens Brokerage. This domain brokerage service will help you acquire that coveted domain you have always wanted.

It sounds fancy, but it is about being practical and sticking to what we do best — personal, customized 1:1 services for our customers that can help them value their domains and unused domains. We research for you and bring you the best options to unload or invest in domains. It’s that easy. 

Talk to Alexander Kucherenko at iGB stand #51 about our new Okens Brokerage services and how they can help you get the value back on your domain investments. 

 

Photo by Benjamin Davies on Unsplash

Sigma Malta

SIGMA Europe 2023 Flashback

Everyone loves a trip down memory lane, and we are no different. Get ready to discover a few meaningful moments from SiGMA Europe 2023, as we take a closer look through the eyes of the one and only Greta Norkute-Simanauskiene from Okens Domains. We’ve got you covered from groundbreaking tech innovations to mind-blowing keynote speeches. So sit back, relax, and let’s dive into Greta’s highlights together.

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SiGMA Europe 2023 Flashback by Greta Simanauskiene

SiGMA Europe was once again a fascinating event. The conference sessions (located just next to the Okens stand) addressed many challenges and opportunities the iGaming sector faces. One session focused on the Sigma host nation, Malta (Malta’s European Odyssey: Navigating Rough Seas). While it covered local challenges to a fair extent, it represented the challenges faced in many markets. Through this session and others, we saw the following themes appear.

  • Keeping in step with regulations and adapting to them, especially when these fluctuate heavily from one year to another or one market to another.
  • There is a need to build agility into the core of every product and operation to keep pace with market changes but also to leverage technology changes fully.That agility is key to keeping pace with regulatory changes and elements such as the advent of AI or changes in the way Google operates.
  • And the requirement to keep pace with changes in user behavior. One session looked especially at the increase in women gamers and how the industry needs to adapt- just one variable amongst many to take into account.
Greta Norkute-Simanauskiene takes a look at some of the highlights from SiGMA Europe 2023.
Greta Norkute-Simanauskiene takes a look at some of the highlights from SiGMA Europe 2023.

At Okens, we may not be able to assist you with everything, but we can certainly help you safeguard your online presence and protect your valuable brand while also ensuring your privacy.

At SiGMA Europe last week, one of the most compelling sessions was centered around the challenges Maltese operators face in Europe. The session Malta’s European Odyssey: Navigating Rough Seas talked about reporting requirements and the technology expertise needed to make that happen.

The panel featured Olga Finkel (Co-Founder & Partner, WH Partners), Carl Brincat (CEO, MGA), Joseph Attard (Director of International Compliance, Entain Group), David Yatom Hay (General Counsel, Soft2Bet) and Abby Rachel Cosgrave (Chief Legal & Compliance Officer, LeoVegas) and George Westin (founder, Hero Gaming).

The takeaway from the session is there will be challenges for B2B providers from the technical requirements necessary to comply, quick transition from one regulation to another, rapid adjustment to the regulations and maintaining competitiveness in the market.

The panel felt it would be challenging regarding regulation uncertainty and managing business. If customers can’t be in a safe and sustainable area, regulation itself will fail.

According to Abby Rachel Cosgrave, Chief Legal Compliance Officer, a solution is to ensure that B2B providers have a strong and positive dialog with regulators versus guessing what is coming down the road.

See you next year at SiGMA Europe 2024.