My understanding was that the actual domain name doesn't make much difference? I setup http://www.drivinglessonslimerick.com for a friend (I'm not a web dev) and it is on the second page of results when I search for Driving Lessons in Limerick. $2200 seems way too much, the value here is in this Onion business not the domain.
It's definitely the domain if you understand the clientele. I'm also from GA and old southerners are pretty particular which can be both good and bad. They only will search Vidalia Onions in google so having that domain + some good SEO definitely delivers them to you. I bet repeat customers still search that term instead of going directly to the domain.
Their benefit is that they love local things such as vidalia onions or boiled peanuts that they know are grown locally. I'd wager most of this guy's sales come from the south.
I know quite of young people for whom Google basically is the internet. They never enter addresses in the address bar, and always do a Google search for the site they're trying to get to.
These aren't dullards, either. They're smart people who are talented in their own fields. They're just not techies and the Googling-for-everything workflow works well for them.
