Domains. Anybody who has explored looking for available domain names knows the frustration when you have to opt for a domain that is less-than-ideal because somebody has already purchased your preferred domain. Most times we stop there, we get one that will do for now and then put all our eggs into that metaphorical basket. It shouldn’t be that way, and most companies, including Nike, Kellogs, and Wheaties, lead by example.
Taglines and Mottos Matter
Some companies are better known or at least more widely recognized, sometimes in multiple languages, by their taglines or their mottos than their actual names. Here’s some that I found in about 5 minutes of typing in the iconic taglines plus .com and seeing if they were taken. Sure enough…
Just Do It
It’s short, to the point, and easy to remember. All of those are perfect qualifications for a good domain name. Go ahead, just do it, click on justdoit.com and see where it takes you. I think Nike might know something about picking a good domain…
Snap Crackle Pop
It’s a classic. It’s also been years, maybe even a decade, since I’ve seen or heard this on a commercial, but it still lives in my head rent free every time I pour a bowl of the iconic puffed riced cereal. Take a wild guess as to where snapcracklepop.com takes you. Another great example of a catchy slogan that serves as highway for internet traffic to end up right where Kellogs wants.
The Breakfast of Champions
The breakfast of champions and the digital marketing strategy of them too! Wheaties has carved out their share of the breakfast cereal industry and no doubt have a multi-million dollar digital marketing and advertising budget, but they think that is was important enough to spend the $12/year on the domain breakfastofchampions.com
What Does This Mean For Small Businesses?
Your primary domain is arguably your single most important digital asset when it comes to running a small business or owning a website and, ironically, probably the cheapest. Your secondary domains are right behind. You should be exploring other options to digitally market yourself and your business and having secondary domains should be part of that strategy. Here’s some specific options you should consider:
Buy Your Tagline, Motto, and Slogan
Buy your tagline, buy your motto, buy your slogan. Even if you only buy those extra three domains, it would only cost about $40/year. A good portion of your target audience might only know your company by one of those branding elements and you want them to still be able to type that in and find what they’re looking for. You.
Buy Common Mispellings of Your Domain
Is your primary domain a made-up word or a word that most people would consider to be unfamiliar? It’s likely that some of your direct traffic could be typing your domain wrong thinking that it’s typed perfectly. If your domain or company name isn’t spelled phonetically, you should consider buying the domain for how most people would spell it if they had never seen your company’s name spelled out before.
Buy The Plural Version
It’s easy for potential clients, customers, and website visitors to hear your domain name and add an “s” to the end or assume that it’s the plural version of the word. Especially if you sell a product and your domain is named after or contains the name of your product. Customers might assume that you don’t just sell one of that product, but many, so their domain MUST be the plural version.
Buy The .com, .net, .us, etc.
“What it .co or .com?”
“What is .us or .me?”
Don’t let that confusion or bad memory be the reason that somebody doesn’t visitor your site and explore your products and services. You should definitely consider cornering the market on your primary domain with these TLDs. This is especially applicable if you were lucky enough to get the exact .com you wanted.
