The domaining world is wide open. While potentially seeming dry and data-driven, the flexibility of the data and the ways it can be used in producing a limitless amount of website concepts is mind-boggling.
In short, as domain names are connected to every website in some way or another, working backwards, the potential of creativity in domaining echoes the potentialy of creativity of the web itself.
Sometimes, thinking in a different way, or approaching a problem with fresh eyes can uncover a solution that has yet to be tried, which can be tried on a big scale, or which may even rely on such a big scale.
Multiplicity
It’s nice if you can find a good and available (or affordable) domain name, but much better if it fits within a set of available domains sharing a unifying principle, allowing you to scale that which would successfully turn one domain into a network triumph.
This kind of thinking obviously leads to more risk in investment, as the purchasing of a batch of domains obviously costs more, even with bulk discounts. Plus, bigger scale projects make it that much more likely that you won’t act on your investment. But as is always the case, the greater the investment risk potential, the greater the reward potential. There may be issues to address regarding the management of a network of sites, but there is the potential of just multiplying success.
Year Concepts Example
As an example of this kind of scaling, consider domains with calendar year numbers included. Sure, valentinesday.com is taken, but what about valentinesday2012.com? What about every year? Do people search or browse based on the particular year, such that a site catering to that your would be advantageous?
If the answers turn out to be positive, the correct course of action (budget permitting) could be to buy the next 5, 10, or who knows, 50 years worth of year-domains.
In this example, one year becomes pretty much dead as the next year comes, but this is not always the case. While the scale concept is more valuable and worthwhile with timeless sites and compounding value, the example shows how one concept can apply to multiple domains, and if it can work once, the success of that one can multiply.
The strength is in the efficiency of it all, especially if you intend to build on these domains. Once you put the time into establishing the concept and even potentially building a framework or design, you can in many ways reproduce it and milk more out of your initial time and money.
Finding Scale Opportunities
Keep an open mind, think big, and think out of the box. Look at expiring/expired/for sale domains for inspiration, as you may see bad ideas that can be done better, or something completely new based on a concept you’ve drawn from elsewhere.
Also, get familiar with keyword research tools, as seeing what people search and to what degree can also be inspiring as a domainer or webmaster in general.
