DOMAIN NAME F.A.Q.
- Why are some domain names valuable?
- It's easy to think that all domain names are equal, but that really isn't the case. Unlike any other variation, a domain name comprising only the exact term in the strongest extension projects position, intent and authority in connection with the subject term - especially where there are many companies for whom that term would also be the best possible choice.
High quality domain names are easy to communicate, logical, easy to remember, and most importantly of all - they impress.
Internet users are used to equating certain types of domain names with certain types of companies. If a domain name looks like it was chosen for no other reason than it was available cheaply, it doesn't project a good impression of its owner. Conversely, the most visited and trusted sites on the internet are far more likely to use the most logical exact term domain name in either .com, or .co.uk for UK businesses - even though these are often terms used by many other companies. Using this type of domain name creates trust and credibility by association, which can help to get the click in search listings, and convert eyeballs to site visitors when seen offline in advertising, promotion, editorial, vehicle livery, signage etc. Not only can this be beneficial with potential customers, but it can open doors with vendors and make editorial pieces more appealing to carry too.
This is a direct commercial benefit, and despite the one-time cost to purchase a domain name, these benefits last for the lifetime of the domain name. Averaged over that lifetime, a high quality domain name is likely to be the single best investment for any company seeking to elevate its online presence.
Here is a link giving examples of publicly reported high quality .com domain names sales: www.DNJournal.com
Here is a link to a third party site that has collated experiences from companies that have chosen to use this type of domain name: www.webmastering.co.uk - How we chose our domain names
- As many of the more usable descriptive/generic names were initially registered many years ago, the majority of our properties are operated on domain names made available following the abandonment of domains of the same character string by third parties unknown. By examining lists of these names, we were able to extract descriptive/common terms that we felt would benefit our service, and we competed to secure those terms at the moment they became available to register again as domain names. We supplemented and filtered this using various descriptive term lists.
- I have a company/brand/website/etc called xyz and you have xyz.tld - why?
- The very nature of descriptive/generic/common terms mean that more than one party uses them - and there are geographical and usage class factors to consider too. Taking a common term from the public domain and using it in a commercial context to leverage that existing mindshare is very common practice, but it is very rare that any kind of exclusive right is acquired as a result. This is why you will see multiple owners of trademarks for the exact same term in different usage classes (eg "lotus" for cars, software, janitorial supplies etc). None of these would prevent a descriptive term from being used descriptively, and they are highly unlikely to prevent a new entity from coming along and securing a trademark for the same term in a different usage class/geographic region. Indeed, most trademark registries will not allow a descriptive term to be registered as a trademark covering its obvious descriptive association.
- Disputes
- If you believe you have proprietary rights in a term that one of our names comprise, you are welcome to submit full details to ourselves for review via our contact details below.. We are happy to deal with such matters in a timely and professional manner.
We will, however, fully defend our descriptive/common term assets against covetous parties.