.COM vs .NET vs .ORG

[willhjr4]

Any advise on whether .com or .net or .anything else would make a difference in building a website. I wanted to register a domain today and the one I wanted (.com) was 3000 per year, but the .net was only 9.99.

I guess I wonder why there would be such a big price difference here and it makes me wonder how this would effect a monetized online blog/forum/site.

Thanks for all the good posts and hope this hasn't been asked before...I searched for it with no results so I decided to post this.

Thanks.....W

[rocksupreme]

.com is the standard #1 domain. If you're using the domain for an established business, it may be worth the expense.

.net and .org are fine too. Google will give you just as much sauce for any top-level domain. But some people may not remember these domains as easily.

Honestly, if you are starting from scratch, your link building strategy and content creation is going to make a much bigger difference in SEO than your domain name.

Just think of it as if you were building a brand (because actually, you are...). Nobody drinks Coke because they like the logo. They drink it because it's everywhere.

People looking for the content you provide will visit your site regardless of domain. A good one helps a bit, but I don't think Steve Pavlina became successful on the strength of his domain - it's content and optimization that will have the biggest impact on your success.

[macabhay]

Rocksupreme's advice is very good.

Basically, the difference that .com/.org/.net will make in your business is negligible. If you are offering quality content and consisting communicating clearly (ccc) to your market you will have success whether your domain name ends in any of your options.

.com has memorization and familiarity benefits, but there are many huge websites (like archive.org) that have a huge following based only on what they offer.

You could always register .net now and .com in the future, if your domain name is very specific and not competitive. Then you could simply redirect .com to .net or vice-versa.

[pianoperformer]

I think the real question is, where did you see that .com was $3,000 per year? It costs just as much as the other two major tld's.

[funchy]

Whoever said the .com was $3000 a year was scamming you. Typical registration costs for .com are maybe $10/year.

Here is who I use to buy my names:
godaddy

If it's a commercial site, it probably should be a .com. If someone already owns the name you want, just pick a variation of it. Don't pay an outrageous fee to a cybersquatter.

.org names are more appropriate if it's for a nonprofit, club, civic organization, or other not for profit type thing.

If your site is good with good content & publicity, it shouldn't matter if your domain name is catpoop.biz .... people will still find it.


To help you pick available names, sometimes nameboy has some good suggestions. Just think up some words that describe your site and plug them in:
Nameboy Ultimate Domain Name Generator, search, creation, domain name lookup and domain registration

[willhjr4]

Thanks all for your help in understanding this. I originally thought that the domain name would not matter as much as long as the content was good and the service I was providing is there. Glad to know that is the case!!

For the couple who questioned where I got that quote, it was from godaddy.com and another site I cant remember. It looks like the domain name is already purchased by someone else and they are selling it for a premium. The same name .net is 9/year, which I like but I wanted the .com name. Crazy to think people by names and then resell them for so much more. It is definatly a good domain name but who has that much to spend on a domain name??

For now, I am going to start with .net and maybe oneday will move it if needed.

Thanks for all your help with this,

Will

[bunnyman]

Originally Posted by willhjr4

Crazy to think people buy names and then resell them for so much more.

It is called cybersquating and it can be very profitable.

In the early days of the Internet, domain names were given out on a first-come, first-served basis. Most businesses had no web site. So anybody that asked first would get coke.com, tacobell.com, or tomcruise.com, and it only costs $10/year. Then when Coke, Taco Bell, or the real Tom Cruise wanted that domain, it would be taken. The domain owner can then sell it for a big profit. Sometimes as much as millions of dollars!

Clever people have figured out ways to game the system. For example it used to be possible to register a domain for 3 days and then return it for free. So these people would register hundreds of domains and then return them all, hoping that somebody would offer to buy their domain from them.

In recent years, the courts have ruled that a trademark owner can ask for their domain and get it even if it is already taken.

[TheGoddessMaria]

Originally Posted by bunnyman

It is called cybersquating and it can be very profitable.

In recent years, the courts have ruled that a trademark owner can ask for their domain and get it even if it is already taken.

The leader of a workshop I just completed bought her domain from someone who had it parked for that reason. She had him visit her site, and they agreed that she was really deserving of it, and he sold it to her. (I don't think he made TONS from it.)

[hawkal]

I hate cybersquatting. It's should be illegal. Every damn time I come up with a good domain for a site I want to create it always shows these damn stupid ad sites. If you make an inquiry about purchasing the domain they insist on a premium that would make a billy goat puke.

[Curtis2011]

Originally Posted by willhjr4

I wanted to register a domain today and the one I wanted (.com) was 3000 per year, but the .net was only 9.99.

What this means is that someone else has already purchased the .com version because they think it is valuable as a domain name, and now they are trying to sell it for a huge profit.

Just find a better or more creative name for your website and register it for ~$10 with a .com. The .net is usually for a website that has a "community" feel to it - or at least that's the impression I get from them.

[Dimond]

There are tons of domains on for no purpose as well as agent-owned. It's quite annoying as many will hold onto them for years without doing anything with them. This shouldn't be allowed.

I have a domain I'd like to sell, but will price it very reasonable. Or possibly barter.