Should you choose a .com domain?
Choosing a .com domain extension gives you an advantage in:
- credibility in the eyes of your potential customers
- more type-in traffic
- branding
If the .com name that you want is not available, don’t worry. Choosing a .net, .info or other domain extension will not affect your search engine ranking. As Google continues to refine their algorithms more and more (e.g. Panda), the type of domain extension you choose will likely become less relevant.
Make sure if you are using a domain extension that is not .com, that you use the full address with the domain extension as the name of your website. You should also display the full address prominently in your marketing materials. Downplaying the fact that you are not using a .com domain will lead to customer confusion and your customer may end up on the website of your competitor.
Should you consider other domain extensions in addition to .com?
Should you also buy the other domain extensions such as .net, .info, .biz, .me, and .org?
I’ll answer that question with a question for you: How you would feel if someone else registered the .org and the .net versions of your site and did much better than you in Search Engine Results?
Four reasons why you should buy the .net, .org and .info versions of your domain name:
- When your site becomes big you will regret not owning the other extensions
- Your competitor can set up their own site with the same name but different domain extension to compete with you
- Someone can hold the other versions of your site as ransom, offering it to you with a price tag you can’t afford
- You can set the other domains to redirect to your main site, capturing more customers
For the average cost of $10 per domain per year, it is worth the peace of mind and the potential increase in web traffic to purchase the other versions of your domain name.
For more information, check out our other articles on Choosing Your Domain Name:
Who Owns Your Domain Name?
Is the .com domain still the most popular?
