3 ms·

What's in a domain name?

4 points by terpua 19y ago

terpua 19y ago
Would you settle for a longer name that ended in .com or a shorter one that ended in a .net or .org? Or does it really matter?
- danielha 19y ago
  I lean towards .com, unless you can get a really good and distinctive .net. I probably would not consider a .org.
- imp 19y ago
  Depends on the audience and exactly how many characters you're talking about. Is the comparison more like A or B below? A. myphotos.net mycoolphotos.com B. photos.net thephotositookatthebarlastnight.com
  - palish 19y ago
    That last one is a great idea for a startup! You better not tell anyone. Hey, sign this NDA.
    - joshwa 19y ago
      already working on it.
  - terpua 19y ago
    The comparison is more between A and B and targeted towards a business audience.
dawie 19y ago
I think .com is the way to go especially if you are working on a web application. At grabagooddomain 99% of people request .com domain names.
iloveyouocean 19y ago
If you are securing a domain for a mass market application then you MUST get the .com. Even very clever and well known sites such as del.icio.us also own .com (delicious.com). Many people simply type in the 'name' of a site and let their browsers complete the address, which of course always adds .com. Why would you take the chance on .net or .org? Because it is easier for you to get a name or because it is easier for a user to remember and browse to it.
- socmoth 19y ago
  yahoo bought delicious.com when they bought del.icio.us they have the money to pay a couple hundred k for a domain. but it was after the fact, not before. that being said. having the .com is a very smart move.
rzwitserloot 19y ago
Ah, but, sometimes the '.com' pool is just completely void of anything useful. Shelling out half your startup budget just for a domain name seems silly to me. Disclaimer: My startup went for a non-.com name: tipit.to
- steve 19y ago
  I would say that if it's not a .com then it better be unique: eg. NOT .net or .org.
staunch 19y ago
Ask someone who's used a non-.com what they think :-)
nonrecursive 19y ago
My experience is that people are much more likely to remember .com . That's the default in people's brains, so if you end in .net or .org or .whatever , it's extra work for people to remember that. For example, I've mentioned justin DOT tv to several people, and they still try to go to justintv.com .
nonrecursive 19y ago
Also, I recommend doing some basic testing for domain names. Just buy the domain names you're considering, put an email signup or something on them (or have them redirect to a functioning site, whatever), then run identical ads for them and see which gets better click through.

4 points by terpua 19y ago

Would you settle for a longer name that ended in .com or a shorter one that ended in a .net or .org? Or does it really matter?

danielha 19y ago
I lean towards .com, unless you can get a really good and distinctive .net. I probably would not consider a .org.
imp 19y ago
Depends on the audience and exactly how many characters you're talking about. Is the comparison more like A or B below? A. myphotos.net mycoolphotos.com B. photos.net thephotositookatthebarlastnight.com
- palish 19y ago
  That last one is a great idea for a startup! You better not tell anyone. Hey, sign this NDA.
  - joshwa 19y ago
    already working on it.
- terpua 19y ago
  The comparison is more between A and B and targeted towards a business audience.

dawie 19y ago

I think .com is the way to go especially if you are working on a web application. At grabagooddomain 99% of people request .com domain names.

iloveyouocean 19y ago

If you are securing a domain for a mass market application then you MUST get the .com. Even very clever and well known sites such as del.icio.us also own .com (delicious.com). Many people simply type in the 'name' of a site and let their browsers complete the address, which of course always adds .com. Why would you take the chance on .net or .org? Because it is easier for you to get a name or because it is easier for a user to remember and browse to it.

socmoth 19y ago
yahoo bought delicious.com when they bought del.icio.us they have the money to pay a couple hundred k for a domain. but it was after the fact, not before. that being said. having the .com is a very smart move.

rzwitserloot 19y ago

Ah, but, sometimes the '.com' pool is just completely void of anything useful. Shelling out half your startup budget just for a domain name seems silly to me. Disclaimer: My startup went for a non-.com name: tipit.to

steve 19y ago
I would say that if it's not a .com then it better be unique: eg. NOT .net or .org.

staunch 19y ago

Ask someone who's used a non-.com what they think :-)

nonrecursive 19y ago

My experience is that people are much more likely to remember .com . That's the default in people's brains, so if you end in .net or .org or .whatever , it's extra work for people to remember that. For example, I've mentioned justin DOT tv to several people, and they still try to go to justintv.com .

nonrecursive 19y ago

Also, I recommend doing some basic testing for domain names. Just buy the domain names you're considering, put an email signup or something on them (or have them redirect to a functioning site, whatever), then run identical ads for them and see which gets better click through.