Should I buy a premium domain for my new small business?
December 29, 2022 8:00 AM
I registered the .net and .org versions of my fledgling small business name for cheap. But the .com version is "premium," and GoDaddy is the registrar. Is it worth the time and expense (and navigating the possibly scammy vibes) to get it?
Additional details:
-I recently registered an LLC with my business name
-The .net and .org versions of my business name were less than $25 and listed as available through my current webhost that I already use for my personal website (Bluehost). I have already purchased the .net and.org domains through Bluehost, with domain privacy protection and automatic renewal.
-WHOIS information indicates that the .com registrant is DomainsByProxy.com (so I assume maybe someone else has it and is using DomainsByProxy to conceal their contact information?) and the registrar is GoDaddy
-The .com version is currently listed as unavailable through Bluehost. On Name.com it is listed for $2300. On GoDaddy, it is listed as $2000. It appears to be part of some kind of auction with a minimum bid of $1300, or you can purchase for $2000.
-The premium .com domain price was like this for several days before I registered the LLC.
-GoDaddy indicates you can make an offer that is binding for 7 days. There are no current offers and only a couple views (presumably just mine).
-The auction page however lists 38 days left. It's unclear to me what would happen to the domain if no one bid on it after 38 days.
The whole thing feels vaguely scammy. I'd love to have the .com version of my business name, but I don't think it's a dealbreaker if I don't have it right now. I am mainly going to be doing consulting in my extremely niche industry, and I expect my clients will come through my pre-existing professional reputation and network (i.e., word of mouth). I could theoretically afford to buy the .com, but frankly I'd rather use my very limited start-up money on other expenses.
Additional details:
-I recently registered an LLC with my business name
-The .net and .org versions of my business name were less than $25 and listed as available through my current webhost that I already use for my personal website (Bluehost). I have already purchased the .net and.org domains through Bluehost, with domain privacy protection and automatic renewal.
-WHOIS information indicates that the .com registrant is DomainsByProxy.com (so I assume maybe someone else has it and is using DomainsByProxy to conceal their contact information?) and the registrar is GoDaddy
-The .com version is currently listed as unavailable through Bluehost. On Name.com it is listed for $2300. On GoDaddy, it is listed as $2000. It appears to be part of some kind of auction with a minimum bid of $1300, or you can purchase for $2000.
-The premium .com domain price was like this for several days before I registered the LLC.
-GoDaddy indicates you can make an offer that is binding for 7 days. There are no current offers and only a couple views (presumably just mine).
-The auction page however lists 38 days left. It's unclear to me what would happen to the domain if no one bid on it after 38 days.
The whole thing feels vaguely scammy. I'd love to have the .com version of my business name, but I don't think it's a dealbreaker if I don't have it right now. I am mainly going to be doing consulting in my extremely niche industry, and I expect my clients will come through my pre-existing professional reputation and network (i.e., word of mouth). I could theoretically afford to buy the .com, but frankly I'd rather use my very limited start-up money on other expenses.
Another vote for skipping it. Hardly anyone these days enters full urls in their browser, where the default .com is useful. Today people will just enter CompanyName in google, and google is pretty dang good at figuring it out, especially if the .com is currently unused (or is just your typical parked url with ads).
posted by cgg at 8:34 AM on December 29, 2022
posted by cgg at 8:34 AM on December 29, 2022
If it's not a dealbreaker, then don't worry about it for now. I would consider getting the .consulting domain for the company and/or your last name; or one more specific to your business. Industry specific TLDs are catching on. There's also a .expert TLD (which could also be good for a secondary marketing site, like nicheindustry.expert )
There's .co as an alternative .com option, but that tends to confuse people.
posted by snuffleupagus at 8:34 AM on December 29, 2022
There's .co as an alternative .com option, but that tends to confuse people.
posted by snuffleupagus at 8:34 AM on December 29, 2022
I don’t know if you should buy this domain (beyond the usual advice: don’t buy it from GoDaddy if you can help it). But if If you want to understand what “premium” means and in particular how renewal works then this article has a lot of useful context.
posted by caek at 8:36 AM on December 29, 2022
posted by caek at 8:36 AM on December 29, 2022
For $2,000 or less? Buy it. Someone else can and will squat it to steal your customers or otherwise adversely effect your business. Assuming you've gotten trademarks you can ICANN them but that will cost you a multiple of what the .com costs now.
posted by MattD at 9:11 AM on December 29, 2022
posted by MattD at 9:11 AM on December 29, 2022
The way people connect with people and businesses has changed so much since the early days of the web. Having some basic SEO in place is far more useful for driving good traffic to your site than a .com TLD.
But, as others have suggested, were it me, I'd pick up the .com if only to keep someone else from squatting, and either distracting my customers or otherwise being up to no good. That's a super cheap price. You can always set up redirects so everything funnels to one site.
From years managing a print shop and making business cards, the piece of advice I shared most was making sure your website and/or email address were easily communicated verbally, especially over the phone. Something short, simple, and recognizable in your local native language. If you have to spell it out every time, people are going to stop caring 3 letters in. Again, you can have these things point to your preferred site if you wish, but telling someone "joe@smith.cpa" is so much easier and will be so much more memorable for them, than "joe@smithhyphencertifiedhyphenpublichyphenaccountants.com". This is where the newer TLDs can come in super handy, and again, can always redirect to something else.
posted by xedrik at 9:22 AM on December 29, 2022
But, as others have suggested, were it me, I'd pick up the .com if only to keep someone else from squatting, and either distracting my customers or otherwise being up to no good. That's a super cheap price. You can always set up redirects so everything funnels to one site.
From years managing a print shop and making business cards, the piece of advice I shared most was making sure your website and/or email address were easily communicated verbally, especially over the phone. Something short, simple, and recognizable in your local native language. If you have to spell it out every time, people are going to stop caring 3 letters in. Again, you can have these things point to your preferred site if you wish, but telling someone "joe@smith.cpa" is so much easier and will be so much more memorable for them, than "joe@smithhyphencertifiedhyphenpublichyphenaccountants.com". This is where the newer TLDs can come in super handy, and again, can always redirect to something else.
posted by xedrik at 9:22 AM on December 29, 2022
Another vote for pass.
I think there's value in having a top-tier TLD (.com/.net/.org) for organizations, but since you already have .net and .org there's diminishing returns.
If you were an established company with a few thousand in monthly marketing spend, then maybe it becomes worth it, but at your size you'll get a higher ROI spending that money on other things.
As an aside, my anecdotal experience is that .org is very popular still, especially for non-profits, but .net domains feel passé. Places that would've used .net have seemingly moved to .co or some other new TLD
posted by matrixclown at 10:16 AM on December 29, 2022
I think there's value in having a top-tier TLD (.com/.net/.org) for organizations, but since you already have .net and .org there's diminishing returns.
If you were an established company with a few thousand in monthly marketing spend, then maybe it becomes worth it, but at your size you'll get a higher ROI spending that money on other things.
As an aside, my anecdotal experience is that .org is very popular still, especially for non-profits, but .net domains feel passé. Places that would've used .net have seemingly moved to .co or some other new TLD
posted by matrixclown at 10:16 AM on December 29, 2022
Someone else can and will squat it to steal your customers or otherwise adversely effect your business.
Seconding MattD, get it and park it. And use a different registrar, GoDaddy already knows you're interested in it and has probably jacked up your price. Yes, they do that. I recommend DirectNIC or Pair.
posted by JoeZydeco at 10:25 AM on December 29, 2022
Seconding MattD, get it and park it. And use a different registrar, GoDaddy already knows you're interested in it and has probably jacked up your price. Yes, they do that. I recommend DirectNIC or Pair.
posted by JoeZydeco at 10:25 AM on December 29, 2022
I think whether you should get it or not depends on how big your fledgling small business is. If it were my fledgling small business it wouldn't make sense.
posted by aniola at 11:16 AM on December 29, 2022
posted by aniola at 11:16 AM on December 29, 2022
I sold a domain name 15 years ago. Buyer used godaddy and godaddy was unable to figure out how to transfer the domain name. Buyer signed up with my registrar, transfer was then easy. Just don't do business with godaddy if you can avoid it.
That said, make a lowball offer through your domain registrar. It might get accepted, now or in the future.
posted by theora55 at 11:19 AM on December 29, 2022
That said, make a lowball offer through your domain registrar. It might get accepted, now or in the future.
posted by theora55 at 11:19 AM on December 29, 2022
Hope this doesn't count as threadsitting. It's interesting reading the divided takes on this one! I'm leaning towards not buying for now, but I have a question for the pro-buy crowd...
The .com domain is listed as unavailable from several sources I've checked (including JoeZydeco's suggestions), with the only exceptions being Name.com and GoDaddy. If I tried to get it via GoDaddy (where I could theoretically make an offer beginning around $1300), it's not clear to me that I won't accidentally trigger a bidding war against someone who is already simply squatting on the domain and simply wants to get the asking price (or more). Therefore, if I did decide to buy, is it worth waiting until this weird auction timeline is closer to the end? Or just pony up the asking price through Name.com since so many people have horror stories with GoDaddy?
posted by mostly vowels at 8:08 PM on December 29, 2022
The .com domain is listed as unavailable from several sources I've checked (including JoeZydeco's suggestions), with the only exceptions being Name.com and GoDaddy. If I tried to get it via GoDaddy (where I could theoretically make an offer beginning around $1300), it's not clear to me that I won't accidentally trigger a bidding war against someone who is already simply squatting on the domain and simply wants to get the asking price (or more). Therefore, if I did decide to buy, is it worth waiting until this weird auction timeline is closer to the end? Or just pony up the asking price through Name.com since so many people have horror stories with GoDaddy?
posted by mostly vowels at 8:08 PM on December 29, 2022
I don't know as much about this as other people when it comes to domains and prices and which places are worth trying to work with, but I think the relevant comment was made by aniola already. How much money is your business going to make? If the revenues are possibly very large then a small amount now can save you a lot later on. If it's just a shell company for freelancing or doesn't have much scaling in the future then I would skip buying the .com domain.
posted by Nec_variat_lux_fracta_colorem at 9:30 PM on December 29, 2022
posted by Nec_variat_lux_fracta_colorem at 9:30 PM on December 29, 2022
Just chiming in with a little personal anecdote that basically echoes the advice given above that — unless you’re projecting a lot of spare revenue straight away — it’s safe to wait. My husband and I work in the non profit field, and I’ve made several project websites for our work plus personal websites for us both. In our case, .org made perfect sense as our go-to TLD, but I always also buy the .com for two obvious reasons. 1) Just because people tend to mentally default to .com, but 2) primarily to head off malicious domain squatting. Having said that, my husband’s first and last name are both SUPER common, and surprise, surprise, “johnsmith.com” was only available at a premium cost. I waited it out (it took several years, not gonna lie) then one year when I went to renew, suddenly it was available for $200. Still many times more than I paid for my other domains, but a much more justifiable expense at that point, for our needs. If the site were bringing in significant revenue, our initial calculation might have been different, but it would have to have been significant. And I still ended up with the domain in the end.
Also, nthing avoiding GoDaddy.
posted by leticia at 3:03 AM on December 30, 2022
Also, nthing avoiding GoDaddy.
posted by leticia at 3:03 AM on December 30, 2022
Since search is now what rules the roost as far as traffic goes, what I've seen over the last 5-7 years is that .com has become reassurance of professionalism if you've done a strong job of SEO.
I'm no longer a professional namer, but here's my general rule of thumb for a .com from consumer behavior studies:
- Is there a financial aspect conducted ON the website? .coms (good or ill) reassure people that it's safe to enter payment information.
- If you don't transact online but it's feasible that you could, the risk of a squatter using a .com for this is something to consider. Unless you become wildly successful, well known or gets a bunch of press attention, not really a major risk.
- Are you advertising places people can't click? Radio, outdoor, newspaper -- all require people to take some action. Most of the time, people will type it in search (which is why SEO is important -- and maybe SEM if you're worried)
- Is your business name highly unique/something you want to trademark vs. a descriptive term or your name/variation of your name, it's less of a pain in the ass to grab earlier rather than later
As far as a bidding war, if it's been sitting there for a while, and the .net and .org were available, it's likely not a hot property. Set yourself a cap of what you think it's worth to not worry about it, and if they want more than that, walk. That's the key to any negotiation is to know what your walk point is and stick to it -- but with domains, the nice thing is if they don't take your offer and no one else wants to buy it, what's their path to profit?
If the .com doesn't get any traffic, it'll sit at whatever price and possibly go down unless your business is wildly successful/gets enough attention/people end up going there instead of your website enough for the traffic to be noticable (this very much depends on the nature of your business name). And yeah, GoDaddy is trash.
posted by Gucky at 2:23 PM on December 30, 2022
I'm no longer a professional namer, but here's my general rule of thumb for a .com from consumer behavior studies:
- Is there a financial aspect conducted ON the website? .coms (good or ill) reassure people that it's safe to enter payment information.
- If you don't transact online but it's feasible that you could, the risk of a squatter using a .com for this is something to consider. Unless you become wildly successful, well known or gets a bunch of press attention, not really a major risk.
- Are you advertising places people can't click? Radio, outdoor, newspaper -- all require people to take some action. Most of the time, people will type it in search (which is why SEO is important -- and maybe SEM if you're worried)
- Is your business name highly unique/something you want to trademark vs. a descriptive term or your name/variation of your name, it's less of a pain in the ass to grab earlier rather than later
As far as a bidding war, if it's been sitting there for a while, and the .net and .org were available, it's likely not a hot property. Set yourself a cap of what you think it's worth to not worry about it, and if they want more than that, walk. That's the key to any negotiation is to know what your walk point is and stick to it -- but with domains, the nice thing is if they don't take your offer and no one else wants to buy it, what's their path to profit?
If the .com doesn't get any traffic, it'll sit at whatever price and possibly go down unless your business is wildly successful/gets enough attention/people end up going there instead of your website enough for the traffic to be noticable (this very much depends on the nature of your business name). And yeah, GoDaddy is trash.
posted by Gucky at 2:23 PM on December 30, 2022
Look on nearlyfreespeech to see if you can buy thru them?
posted by lalochezia at 3:25 PM on December 30, 2022
posted by lalochezia at 3:25 PM on December 30, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
I think the perception that .com is better was always overhyped and whatever truth there was to it is fading fast.
posted by SaltySalticid at 8:10 AM on December 29, 2022