What potential (and ideas) for Telescope.info

[slobizman]

I own the domain name Telescope.info. I'm trying to determine just how profitable developing a site for the name would be. I see a few advantages to the name:

1. It's a highly searched term
2. It's a product type that people will need to research and become informed about before buying
3. Other than low-end models, it's not something easily found in local stores so going online to find information and to order would be very common.

Yes, it's an info name and not a com, but if I really make a big project of it and created a lot of unique and good information, the search engines will not care. Plus, info doesn't work for a lot of names, but it sure works for this one.

So, I'm thinking a very professionally done, information-packed site, with Adsense and links to one or more affiliates. I suppose I could have a forum as as, a gallery with photos taken from telescopes, blogs, etc.

Can I trouble you all with your thoughts on 1) it's potential and 2) any other ideas? Thanks!!

Note: Cost is not an impediment in developing the site.

(I also have airplane.info, which excites me as well, but that's another subject)

[davidwest]

i would look into the homebuilt side as well...

there is a lot of interest in building your own telescope, from grinding mirrors and lenses all the way to building enclosures for the scope itself... there is a lot of free software for doing lens calcs and many other points of interest regarding the home builder. In addition, the home builder wanna be is a good potential customer for a prebuilt telescope once they find out how much work it really is to build one....


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how did you like the lightning show?

[BILLBO]

Great domain name (and airplane.info).

Apart from being very lucky in the fact that cost of development is not an impediment I think you could also look at the following areas, perhaps as sub-domains in their own right as such:

1) Microscopy (basically considered the 'opposite' of telescopy)
2) Photography (telescopic lenses as an example)
3) Atlases and maps
4) Science, and of course the broad range of astronomical and physics based sciences.

With 'Telescope.info' the doors are open wide for providing academic information to students (and their lecturers) as well as general public interest (try and get RSS feeds from the varying space programs).

Monetising the site initially could be fairly hard work, but when established as a well developed site, IMHO, could well bypass the ubiquitous Google Adsense, Yahoo, and other such advertising brokerages and deal directly with banner adverts from publishers, TV companies, colleges, science based vacation camps, museums, optical equipment manufacturers, and the new and burgeoning tourist space travel industry that is developing. (There are of course numerous other possible advertisers who would also like to advertise on such a site.)

Such an independant advertising strategy would soon mean that you would be getting at least twice as much as you would from using one of the main intermediaries (also if you are thinking of subsequently developing airplane.info then any infrastructure established to handle advertising on Telescope.info could easily be applied to airplane.info).

If establishing a gallery then make it possible for visitors (members) to upload their own images (make sure that the site TOC's state that the site is given license by the owner of the image to use the images for commercial and non-commercial purposes without charge or further permission).

If establishing a forum the same condition/s should be applied as to a gallery (see immediately above).

One last point, but a major point I feel, if the site is developed showing images and/or with a forum then as it becomes relatively established make sure as many news agencies and companies know about it as possible. If they ever use an image or use the site as a source of information they will then have to 'quote' the site and this is free publicity.

Just a few off the cuff ideas.

[slobizman]

I very much appreciate everyone's ideas and encouragement. It sounds like it could be a very comprehensive site.

Any ideas on a great platform for this? A professional script with the core structure to build such a site, knowing I would require a developer to customize/modify it where necessary? It sure would be great to have a wiki as a core element too, as a complete reference for all telescopes makes that a natural, but all the wikis I've seen are so damn ugly, and not made for advertising, and certainly not very user-friendly. But to have the user community help describe each telescope would be terrific. Expression Engine has a wiki built-in, and a forum, but I don't know.

Ideas?

[slobizman]

Here's another question: are there companies that will take on the entire project of building a site like this, including developing the content. I know it would not be cheap, but I'm still interested.

[MacyT.]

Hi there. You have some great ideas - site has lots of potential. I sent you a PM re: the type of service you might be looking for.

Good luck the site!