Thursday, August 28, 2008

medicaltourism.com ......going, going gone?


What's a domain name worth? Especially in the growth business of medical tourism.

The Medical Tourism Association (of which my Company is a member) has recently announced that it is handling the sale of the domain name medicaltourism.com, on a commission basis. A reserve price of around $100,000 has been put on the sale.

Which raises the question of how you value a domain name and what is one actually worth?

The domain medicaltourism.com was originally owned by Sparrow Mahoney, who ventured into medical tourism after experiencing low cost surgery in Croatia after a car accident. Sparrow has now flown the medical tourism roost.The domain has been bought by a third party looking to make a fast buck.

Here’s a few recent domain sale prices in the health sector:
  • healthstore.com $27,500
  • healthcaresolutions.com $10,700
  • healthinsurer.com $4,595
  • healthglobal.com $2,700

So, would you pay $100,000 for medicaltourism.com?

There is certainly some value in the domain name.The words within a domain name can influence Google rankings, but it's certainly not a major factor. There's value in a domain name if it's associated with a strong brand or an existing web presence.

With regard to medicaltourism.com:

Bidding will take place at the World Medical Tourism and Global Health Congress in San Francisco in September.

Any offers?

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ya you are right and I agree that medical tourism is a growing industry but still I believe that a Domain name cannot do any thing.Its your content, services and information that makes the difference.SEO and professionalism makes a site on the the top of of search engines.Domain can add additional value to your site but its not every thing. Nice information

Anonymous said...

Let's get the facts straight. The domain was never purchased by a "third party trying to make a buck". The domain is being sold by the owners of the domain who were early investors in the business that Ms. Mahoney started. So - the owners are selling the domain to recover some of our investment of a failed business endevour (we won't get nearly all of it back). Secondly, the resreve on the domain is set for $30K and not $100K. Feel free to debate the value of such a sale but typically the market settles this for all of us. However, it would be nice to know that posters of these blogs are actually speaking in fact. Next time please do a little research before you make your claims.

Keith Pollard said...

>>> The domain was never purchased by a "third party trying to make a buck".
I stand corrected!

>>>Secondly, the resreve on the domain is set for $30K and not $100K. .....please do a little research before you make your claims

I did do quite a bit of research. The "advertised" reserve is $100k. $30k is far more realistic. The "advertised" reserve will frighten away quite a few bidders. As you say the market will decide the value.

Keith Pollard

Anonymous said...

medical 'tourism,' itself a misnomer, can never "go"!

it is a question of timely, proper, authenticated medical help being provided by 'scrupulous' operators.

affordability is the main concern, apart from travel.

I have been in this field for the past 4 years now.

We have only received patients by word of mouth, and personal local contacts in the UK and USA.

The internet and our website only helps superficially.

Healthcare is a very PERSONALISED issue, in my opinion, thus the very fact that someone will trust their care to an unknown entity is self defeating.

However, you are doing a great job in opening up discussions on this elusive and perhaps changing scenario of "medical tourism"

do continue!

Dr Rajeev Rajan, M.S.
Chairman,
ARC INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL SERVICES
www.arcmedical-int.com

Anonymous said...

Just pointing out that many of the comments here are SEO attempts (look at the Glasgow cosmetic dentist).
This junk comments are everywhere on the internet, but perhaps you cand elete them.

Unknown said...

Did the domain ever get sold? What was the final price and the new owner?

The current site seems like it needs a lot of work.

Anonymous said...

The site as per my knowledge it is now owned by MTA (not Mumbai Transit Authority but Medical Tourism Association) CEO & President Couple Johnathan & Renee.

Pulsar Maniac said...

Medical Tourism Travel for Heart Patients
Medical tourism is a term used to refer to the process of travelling across borders internationally to obtain better healthcare services. The term has achieved widespread use today as it has been popularised by the mass media as well as travel agencies worldwide. Many governments have now acknowledged the existence of such an industry, and it is rapidly growing with a turnover of billions of dollars annually.

http://heart-consult.com/medical-tourism