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discuss Domain Myths and Lies

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ThatNameGuy

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I'd like to start this thread with the statement I hear so often from "so called" professionals in the domain industry, "All the Good Domains, especially the .coms are already taken"

This couldn't be further from the truth:xf.confused: Having started, operated and yes NAMED dozens of businesses in my lifetime, I know better. Regardless of the business you're looking to start, chances are I can find or locate a name that's more than satisfactory to run/operate your business within an hour. Seriously, naming a business isn't rocket science, but to listen to those who make a living from the domain industry, they would like for you to think it is:xf.rolleyes:

Having discovered this industry just a little over two years ago, I've hand registered a couple thousand names of which I still own a little over a thousand of which 80% are more than satisfactory for running a business.

Other myths to discuss;

"Shorter is better"

"Older is better"

"New gTLD's are garbage"

Please feel free to chime in. Thanks
 
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The views expressed on this page by users and staff are their own, not those of NamePros.
Well this got sadly controversial... Regardless great tips guys, these are all very interesting to read!

Indeed, But it is important that certain ideas particularly when they incorporate requests for assistance under the guise of partnerships from fellow NP members are challenged. It would be too easy for New members or indeed any unaware to be drawn in.

The difficulty these days is staying within the Mods interpretations of 'fair and appropriate comment' So we end-up with a lot of skirting around the edges to try and bring some awareness to those reading the posts.

Most responsible members (yes I do cross the line myself, once in a while) are really only asking for 'Factual' supporting data, and of course when that's not forthcoming, the controversies and challenges arise
 
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He also wanted to develop a couple of my ideas, especially GourmetOlympics.com that has global appeal.
I was under the impression that "Olympics" is one of those keywords (trademark) that you avoid..
Or is that a myth..?
 
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The term “Olympics” is way out of bounds. I’m not an attorney but I’m internet search-savvy. It’s a no-brainer.
 
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I was under the impression that "Olympics" is one of those keywords (trademark) that you avoid..
Or is that a myth..?
I've given this a lot of thought, and if I'm willing to partner in some capacity with the "Special Olympics" something could most likely be worked out. Through my Kiwanis Club I started a fishing trip for Special Olympians 36 years ago, and it's a pretty big deal. Personally I wouldn't care if ALL the proceeds from this domain and idea go to the Special Olympics. Even the cabal here might get behind something like this if their greed and jealously didn't get in the way.
 
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The term “Olympics” is way out of bounds. I’m not an attorney but I’m internet search-savvy. It’s a no-brainer.
Ever hear of the "Special Olympics"? Read my response to briguy. I've learned in life, where there's a will there's a way as long as greed doesn't take over.
 
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Ever hear of the "Special Olympics"? Read my response to briguy. I've learned in life, where there's a will there's a way as long as greed doesn't take over.

You might get the Special Olympics on board, but that doesn't matter. It's the International Olympic Committee that has to sign off on it. I wish you luck with the venture.
 
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olympic is not out of bounds. olympic brand stains has been around for decades. the brand is owned by ppg industries.
 
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You might get the Special Olympics on board, but that doesn't matter. It's the International Olympic Committee that has to sign off on it. I wish you luck with the venture.
Thanks, but unlike so many who follow me on NP, I view the glass as half full and not half empty... GourmetOlympics has the real potential to generate hundreds of millions of dollars for great causes like ridding the world of hunger and malnutrition. And who best to help promote it than Yum Brands as seen here; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Hunger_Relief

Finally, if it weren't for the "hoarders" of the world, hunger or malnutrition wouldn't be a problem:xf.smile:
 
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olympic is not out of bounds. olympic brand stains has been around for decades. the brand is owned by ppg industries.
Thanks for that cabotower, just for good measure I just bought OlympicGourmet.com to compliment GourmetOlympics.com...the cabal might say I'm out of control, but in a good way:xf.wink:
 
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I'll give you credit for your gumption, but your chances of bringing your idea to life are minuscule ...especially to the degree you have your hopes set on. The 1984 Los Angeles Olympics were a huge event. They brought in $200 million. I'm not just some member who wants you to flop. I want you to do great things. But be realistic.

Regarding the trademark @cabotower, the IOC cracked down in a big way back in 2016. They have a valuable brand that they want to protect. Here is an excerpt from an article you might want to read. Link at the bottom.

Certainly there has to be a safe zone for “fair use” of Olympic trademarks, right? Not necessarily. While I am likely safe in using these marks and logos in the context of educational purposes or commentary, the moment these uses are associated with any commercial product, good, services, or an implied sponsorship or affiliation – this is grounds for infringement.

The word “Olympic,” meanwhile, may be used to identify a business or goods or services if:

  1. Such use is not combined with any of the Olympic trademarks;
  2. It is evident from the circumstances that the word Olympic refers to the naturally occurring mountains or geographical region of the same name, and not to the USOC or to any Olympic activity; and
  3. Such business is operated, or such goods or services are sold and marketed, in the state of Washington, west of the Cascade Mountain range, and marketing outside this area is not substantial.[4]
This does not provide a lot of wiggle room for businesses seeking to exploit the spirit of the Olympic Games for commercial purposes.

http://www.genericfairuse.com/2016/08/04/olympic-trademarks-are-sacred-and-easily-infringed/
 
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I'll give you credit for your gumption, but your chances of bringing your idea to life are minuscule ...especially to the degree you have your hopes set on. The 1984 Los Angeles Olympics were a huge event. They brought in $200 million. I'm not just some member who wants you to flop. I want you to do great things. But be realistic.

Regarding the trademark @cabotower, the IOC cracked down in a big way back in 2016. They have a valuable brand that they want to protect. Here is an excerpt from an article you might want to read. Link at the bottom.

Certainly there has to be a safe zone for “fair use” of Olympic trademarks, right? Not necessarily. While I am likely safe in using these marks and logos in the context of educational purposes or commentary, the moment these uses are associated with any commercial product, good, services, or an implied sponsorship or affiliation – this is grounds for infringement.

The word “Olympic,” meanwhile, may be used to identify a business or goods or services if:

  1. Such use is not combined with any of the Olympic trademarks;
  2. It is evident from the circumstances that the word Olympic refers to the naturally occurring mountains or geographical region of the same name, and not to the USOC or to any Olympic activity; and
  3. Such business is operated, or such goods or services are sold and marketed, in the state of Washington, west of the Cascade Mountain range, and marketing outside this area is not substantial.[4]
This does not provide a lot of wiggle room for businesses seeking to exploit the spirit of the Olympic Games for commercial purposes.

http://www.genericfairuse.com/2016/08/04/olympic-trademarks-are-sacred-and-easily-infringed/
I know all that Bernard, but when I'm willing to give up a name and an idea that not only can give back to the Special Olympics, and at the same time absolve the world of hunger and malnutrition, it's not much of a leap of faith to think the name and domain; GourmetOlympics.com can't fly:xf.wink:

Oh Ye of Little Faith(y)
 
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One day I regged a domain, and then I ended world hunger. I hope the naysayers can see me now.

The narcissism is strong in this thread.
 
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Damn, dude! You're cornering the market on Savor names. I love it!
"Manhattan" names too....just for your entertainment; ManhattanPulse.com:xf.wink: Do you think Manhattan might have a pulse?
 
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What you don't know is WHO i know spending thousands of hours volunteering for the Special Olympics, and on the BOD of the of the Special Olympics. Didn't I tell you (with the help of the Virginia Beach Kiwanis) I started an annual fishing trip for Special Olympians 35 years ago, and I'm sitting here wearing this years tee shirt recognizing all the sponsors for the event.

Now you might be right NameDeck, but you might be wrong:xf.wink:
 
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Your threads are giving you a lot of recognition on these boards. I presume that’s what you seek. Or, perhaps you seek to end world hunger. That’s a big undertaking. Best to get cracking. Until you get to it, you’re just proving the naysayers right.
 
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Wow namedeck...thanks so much for that link you posted from almost 19 years ago. I won't tell you all that's transpired in the last couple of hours, but check out the name Jim Bikoff and who the law firm he's a partner in now. Then just as an fyi, I just so happen to own a small home based business that's done specialized tax reporting for the law firm of Smith, Gambrell and Russell (Atlanta Office for over 20 years). Now Jim hasn't agreed to meet with me yet, but since his office is in DC just a 3 hour drive for me, I'm hoping he'll meet with me, both about the Olympic(s) trademark, and 9Time, the new game I created that will revolutionize golf.

That's about all I can tell you now, but I may PM you from time to time since your link inspired me so. Thanks again(y)
 
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Wow namedeck...thanks so much for that link you posted from almost 19 years ago. I won't tell you all that's transpired in the last couple of hours, but check out the name Jim Bikoff and who the law firm he's a partner in now. Then just as an fyi, I just so happen to own a small home based business that's done specialized tax reporting for the law firm of Smith, Gambrell and Russell (Atlanta Office for over 20 years). Now Jim hasn't agreed to meet with me yet, but since his office is in DC just a 3 hour drive for me, I'm hoping he'll meet with me, both about the Olympic(s) trademark, and 9Time, the new game I created that will revolutionize golf.

That's about all I can tell you now, but I may PM you from time to time since your link inspired me so. Thanks again(y)

I know its a very old case. There are more. Recent ones. What I was trying to illustrate is that they are quite serious about protecting their TM. As they should be.

Just tread carefully if you want to test those waters. Glad I inspired you though.
 
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olympic is not out of bounds. olympic brand stains has been around for decades. the brand is owned by ppg industries.

I know its a very old case. There are more. Recent ones. What I was trying to illustrate is that they are quite serious about protecting their TM. As they should be.

Just tread carefully if you want to test those waters. Glad I inspired you though.
Interesting read..

Just before the last Summer Games in London, a Greek restaurant in Philadelphia was forced to change its name and logo after 30 years in business, according to Philly.com. Olympic Gyro rebranded as Olympia Gyro after receiving cease and desist letters from the USOC.

Also in 2012, the committee sent a cease and desist letter to a group of knitters from the website Ravelry who were organizing a "Ravelympics." The committee ended up apologizing, but not until after drawing widespread condemnation on the internet.

From a 2016 article..

https://www.cnbc.com/2016/08/18/olympic-lawyers-go-for-gold-in-trademark-protection.html
 
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"Shorter is better"
Grammar and usability are better. 4-letters especially, are hyped up with no real-world use. Normal people don't care if they have to type 15 characters — or 3+ words — as long as it's memorable and easy to spell. They definitely don't get stars in their eyes when they see a business with a short/4-letter domain.

"Older is better"
Lazy domainers love this one. Older domains that haven't been used and been flip-flopping web pages for years are heavily penalized by search engines. A new domain that starts popping up everywhere (links, etc) will rank better, faster.

"New gTLD's are garbage"
If it works, it works. But as you move down the tiers of TLD popularity, there is an exponential drop in value, trust, and usability.
Just another thought on "Shorter is Better". I just happened on a new first word identifier/discriptor for domains, "Matchstick", so what do i hand reg. MatchstickTechnology.com instead of MatchstickTech.com. Wow, MatchstickTech had just 14 characters vs. MatchstickTechnology has 20. Which would you have registered and why?....maybe both?
btw, i also picked up MatchstickBrands and MatchstickDomains. When I saw how you could dot the eye with a matchstick as seen here, https://www.matchstickmedia.org/ i thought i just had to own these domains. The only thing that concerns me, at 72 years old young, do they still make match sticks? Do they still call them match sticks?
 
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Just another thought on "Shorter is Better". I just happened on a new first word identifier/discriptor for domains, "Matchstick", so what do i hand reg. MatchstickTechnology.com instead of MatchstickTech.com. Wow, MatchstickTech had just 14 characters vs. MatchstickTechnology has 20. Which would you have registered and why?....maybe both?
btw, i also picked up MatchstickBrands and MatchstickDomains. When I saw how you could dot the eye with a matchstick as seen here, https://www.matchstickmedia.org/ i thought i just had to own these domains. The only thing that concerns me, at 72 years old young, do they still make match sticks? Do they still call them match sticks?
Thats a nice discovery - Matchstick
Never thought about it.
 
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Thats a nice discovery - Matchstick
Never thought about it.
It's funny manpreet...just in the last few weeks I've discovered several new discriptors that work well with two word domains. The way I learned about Matchstick was from a young lady who invited me to connect with her on Linkedin...she's a new social digital employee with a company called MatchstickMedia and works in my town. Ironically, she and I had another connection in common that I since met online, and he and I are meeting for a Happy Hour on Monday afternoon.

I thought it was pretty cool too so I have a small portfolio of what I believe are pretty good names using MatchstickXXXXX. The other discriptor I discovered recently is BoGo, meaning BuyOne-GetOne that's used for retailing mostly here in the US. Regardless, I think it's pretty catchy, and I've reg'd a few, and am following a few like BoGoPub.com and BoGoAuto.com where the possibilities are endless.

Thanks again Manpreet(y)
 
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Just another thought on "Shorter is Better". I just happened on a new first word identifier/discriptor for domains, "Matchstick", so what do i hand reg. MatchstickTechnology.com instead of MatchstickTech.com. Wow, MatchstickTech had just 14 characters vs. MatchstickTechnology has 20. Which would you have registered and why?....maybe both?
btw, i also picked up MatchstickBrands and MatchstickDomains. When I saw how you could dot the eye with a matchstick as seen here, https://www.matchstickmedia.org/ i thought i just had to own these domains. The only thing that concerns me, at 72 years old young, do they still make match sticks? Do they still call them match sticks?

The way the sounds terminate in 'stick' and 'tech', completing with -nology softens the name and makes it easier to say.

Some words are interchangeable, while others are not, that's why seemingly good names get no interest and have no use. The way tech vs technology works is:

Tech = Technique or a service. (Wouldn't work with matchstick)
Technology = Machines and processes. (It makes sense. "Matchstick Technology — We put fire to your processes")

If the domain were MSTN dot com, the cognitive load to remember and type the shorter domain is more than MatchstickTechnology would require. The latter looks better, makes more sense, and holds weight/emotion. No one will remember MSTN in passing, but MatchstickTechnology (or equivalent) leaves an impression.

I see bigger problems if you're scared of, or think the world is scared of words longer than 8 letters — and they have nothing to do with the size of your domain.

@ThatNameGuy , This isn't a bad name overall and you're onto something with BOGO and your thought processes. I can see BOGO names with common and realistic items or places going for $249 consistently.
 
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Just another thought on "Shorter is Better". I just happened on a new first word identifier/discriptor for domains, "Matchstick", so what do i hand reg. MatchstickTechnology.com instead of MatchstickTech.com. Wow, MatchstickTech had just 14 characters vs. MatchstickTechnology has 20. Which would you have registered and why?....maybe both?
btw, i also picked up MatchstickBrands and MatchstickDomains. When I saw how you could dot the eye with a matchstick as seen here, https://www.matchstickmedia.org/ i thought i just had to own these domains. The only thing that concerns me, at 72 years old young, do they still make match sticks? Do they still call them match sticks?

I would also add,

MatchstickTechnology would certainly work for matchstick brand and matchsticks are very much in use and in style.

Wooden matches with interesting box designs, metal matches, and "meditation matches" (dipped in essential oil) are all popular.

A company that lets people add their own design to a box, pick a phosphorous color, and order even a handful would be a hit and easier to build than you think.
 
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I would also add,

MatchstickTechnology would certainly work for matchstick brand and matchsticks are very much in use and in style.

Wooden matches with interesting box designs, metal matches, and "meditation matches" (dipped in essential oil) are all popular.

A company that lets people add their own design to a box, pick a phosphorous color, and order even a handful would be a hit and easier to build than you think.

True... just like to add that since we're discussing shorter is better...

How about match/com matches/com? shorter is definitely better when it comes to given example. Not that I would use those names for a matchstick brand but you get the point.
 
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