Domain name branding

H! :)

Regarding that question regarding getting TLDs besides a dot com. I'd like to share this free eBook by Michael Mann, domain mogul, where he emphasized to always get a dot com domain.

I'd do my best to emphasize to them that they need to buy all the dot variations of their name. You don't want someone here buying the .net page and putting up some site that redirects traffic away from their site. 

1. At a minimum own the main dot variations in each name, so buy the .net, .org etc.. The key is to own these sites so your competitors can't register them.

2. Always, always buy a .com name for your business, unless it's a hobby and you don't care. There is no such thing as an alternative, unless you're a country specific service where you could do .com.au or similar. End of the day people will type your business name with a .com extension (indeed my iPhone has a button that types just that) so it's a business must. There is always something available in .com, it's just a matter of being creative and looking, you'll often find that you can't get your first or second choice, but you'll end up with the 5th. Domaintools.com is a good suggest tool you can use when crunching potential domain names.

I don't believe there is a limit to the number of domain names a company owns...the challenge is the way you promote them. If you try to over promote to many domain names - you run the risk of diluting the brand... strong domain names are definitely a part of your branding strategy.

As for extensions other than ".com" it really depends on how you plan on promoting your website. If you are relying on search engine marketing, online advertising etc, then your domain name extension is fairly irrelevant (some SEO value given to certain extensions - i.e. ".edu").

However when you start using your domain name in offline advertising and promotion where  your audience needs to recall  the domain, then you could face some challenges:

- Is it easy to remember? most people expect domains to be ".com" or ".com.au / .co.uk" for specific countries. So if you take a different extension - make sure to promote it loudly

- Does the extension detract from your brand - some people might think less of websites with fad or unusual extensions.  Pick one that reinforces your website value. 

hope that helps...

Thanks Rene,

Let me try the question again, most companies I speak with want just one domain name. They do not want to own multiple domain names and if anything, seek to know the minimum number of domain names they should have. In other words if they have but one brand, one company name, would you recommend just one domain name.

Is there a rule of thumb for the *minimum* number of domain names they should have?

Thanks,         Jamie

Oh okay - Jamie.

If they want to know the minimum - then the answer is "one". Every company should have at least one domain name. There is no harm in having just one ...there's hundreds of successful websites/businesses that rely on a single domain name.

However, considering domains are so cheap, I would recommend acquiring multiple domains, and as Clay points out - these can be redirected back to the main website. Better to get relevant domains now - while they're available, rather than rue the one that got away.

When i am working with Australian websites, i always recommend they acquire both the ".com.au" and ".com" version of the domain if they're both available. This avoids someone else taking the international version of the domain. But I recommend that for brand protection...i don't believe there is a particular "rule of thumb" for *minimums*...

Hi Jamie,

I am not sure I understand the question exactly, however I like the single domain brand strategy.

However, this does NOT mean you dont buy more domains and redirect them to the main domain.

For example, www.minti.com is the domain for Minti, however if you type in www.minti.com.au you still arrive at www.minti.com ...

I agree with Jamie.  The domains are $10 each.  Why chance losing your .net or other domain to an affiliate marketer, the competition, or anyone else.

In most cases like this you should use 301 redirects.

I agree with you. Maybe I wasnt clear... the brand should be a single ".com" domain, however try the .net .biz etc for that domain.

For example for another website I am involved in we have acquired the domain www.minti.tv and redirected it to the main domain www.minti.com

Unfortunately sometimes the .net .org etc are already taken.

I think I am starting to understand the initial question   ... I like to buy a the .net , .org , .tv  and also any obvious misspellings of the main domain, and redirect all of them.

Hope this helps.