3 ms·

Ask HN: Value of .com vs other TLD's

4 points by joeblau 13y ago

How much value is placed on a .com vs other TLD's? In this age of mobile apps, my co-founders and I are trying to figure out if it makes sense to get a crazier .com name or a simple .something-else.

27182818284 13y ago
From personal experience with a .me product, it is fine. There is like 1% who dont get it, but I also noticed they are the same people who mess up the non-TLD part of the address. (They just don't have great listening / reading skills)
ibstudios 13y ago
I think it depends on the audience.
- joeblau 13y ago
  We are looking to target a mobile audience. Our app will be the primary user interaction with our software.
smpatt 13y ago
It depends on the purpose of the website.
- joeblau 13y ago
  The purpose of the website of us is really just to serve as a landing/informational page for the mobile application we are building. Think of it like http://www.snapchat.com/ http://www.snapchat.com/, all of the rage for Snapchat is in the app, not really on the website. We're looking to go down a similar route.
dictum 13y ago
The additional revenue that comes from a perfect domain is roughly equivalent to the cost of building a bike shed. Actually, it depends on the audience, as ibstudios pointed out. A "mobile audience" isn't enough information to make a good decision; among potential users of mobile devices are such different groups as children, adults who raise children, adults who don't raise children, old people... These groups can be broken into even smaller demographics. If you're counting pennies, more alternative TLDs can be more expensive over time (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7069513 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7069513). If you can find a short but not too cryptic .com, go with it. An .io, for instance, has the advantage of shortness and more available English words. The domain name should be pretty low on the list of priorities for your app. Focus on design (for the app and for marketing pages), content and marketing copy, good customer service, and performance.

4 points by joeblau 13y ago

How much value is placed on a .com vs other TLD's? In this age of mobile apps, my co-founders and I are trying to figure out if it makes sense to get a crazier .com name or a simple .something-else.

27182818284 13y ago

From personal experience with a .me product, it is fine. There is like 1% who dont get it, but I also noticed they are the same people who mess up the non-TLD part of the address. (They just don't have great listening / reading skills)

ibstudios 13y ago

I think it depends on the audience.

joeblau 13y ago
We are looking to target a mobile audience. Our app will be the primary user interaction with our software.

smpatt 13y ago

It depends on the purpose of the website.

joeblau 13y ago
The purpose of the website of us is really just to serve as a landing/informational page for the mobile application we are building. Think of it like http://www.snapchat.com/ http://www.snapchat.com/, all of the rage for Snapchat is in the app, not really on the website. We're looking to go down a similar route.

dictum 13y ago

The additional revenue that comes from a perfect domain is roughly equivalent to the cost of building a bike shed. Actually, it depends on the audience, as ibstudios pointed out. A "mobile audience" isn't enough information to make a good decision; among potential users of mobile devices are such different groups as children, adults who raise children, adults who don't raise children, old people... These groups can be broken into even smaller demographics. If you're counting pennies, more alternative TLDs can be more expensive over time (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7069513 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7069513). If you can find a short but not too cryptic .com, go with it. An .io, for instance, has the advantage of shortness and more available English words. The domain name should be pretty low on the list of priorities for your app. Focus on design (for the app and for marketing pages), content and marketing copy, good customer service, and performance.