Are the new domain extensions really that usefull?

[DomainPurpose.com]

I recently posted this question to members in other domain forums and it has since generated a huge discussion/debate.

I'm interested in getting feedback from people about how you think the newest domain extensions such as .info, .biz, etc. are playing a role on the Internet in todays wired world. I'm looking to get people's perspectives on how these new domain extensions are effecting businesses, organizations, and most importantly how normal everyday people are using them (if at all).

I'm just wondering how previlent the usage of the new domain name extensions actually excist in the real world and the amount of usefullness and value it brings to the domain market.

 

[armstrong]

Try this simple google search:

welcome site:.com - 12,800,000 results
welcome site:.net - 5,740,000 results
welcome site:.org - 8,810,000 results
welcome site:.info - 599,000 results
welcome site:.biz - 296,000 results
welcome site:.us - 2,000,000 results

Not bad, IMO.

 

[suthra]

.info is in boom now. The free .info trick has greatly increased the value of 3 letter .infos and all keyword .info domains. A nice trick by registrarz.

.biz is ok, i like .info than .biz.

 

[Dave_Z]

2 other reasons why the new domain name extensions are useful:

1. The owners themselves spend time, money, and effort to tell people about it.
2. The websites attached to those domain names provide useful content.

 

[Ron Jackson]

They have certainly been useful to me over the past two years - paying my mortgage, car payments, utility & grocery bills etc. Can't get any more useful than that!

 

[jaydub]

I luv'em.
With the excepton of .com I look at all of the other tld's the same.
I know that will fly in the face of some but the first thing I look at when I am buying a name is (tada) - The Name. I have to like it first.
I see some .coms that are just gobbledygook to me & people going on about overture, Keywords etc., you've lost me. Don't understand any of it. (maybe I need to take a tutorial)
It's all about the name to me.
And I think the next 2-5 years will show me a nice return on my investments.
I'm probably not going to make fortunes but I will make a few bucks doing something I really enjoy. (Most of the time!)

My 2 dimes & a nickel

Jim

 

[Ron Jackson]

I recently posted this question to members in other domain forums and it has since generated a huge discussion/debate.

In my opinion that debate is a colossal waste of time and energy. They are arguing about when the new extensions are going to reach universal recognition, be used by lots of major corporations, etc. Certainly when that happens it will be great for new TLD investors, but what is more important is that the new extensions can produce a sizeable income for individual investors who pick good names TODAY - not some distant time in the future. The key market for these domains is not corportations, it is small businesses who have been priced out of the .com market. I have sold over 1,300 domains, mostly to this segment that is happy to get a great word or term in an alternate extension because they know they have no chance of ever getting the same word in .com - it is simply beyond their budget. Small business also happens to be a bigger market that corps (70% of the U.S. economy is generated by small business).

 

[111media]

My 2 Cents

I recently posted this question to members in other domain forums and it has since generated a huge discussion/debate.

I'm interested in getting feedback from people about how you think the newest domain extensions such as .info, .biz, etc. are playing a role on the Internet in todays wired world. I'm looking to get people's perspectives on how these new domain extensions are effecting businesses, organizations, and most importantly how normal everyday people are using them (if at all).

I'm just wondering how previlent the usage of the new domain name extensions actually excist in the real world and the amount of usefullness and value it brings to the domain market.

I like the below TLDs in the following order...

.com
.info
.us
.net
.org
.biz
.cc
.ws
.tv

:imho:

 

[Anthony]

The non-.com gTLDs are playing a role by allowing more room for other sites about subjects that are also more accessible. If someone wants to run a site about horses and can't get horsefans.com, they can now resonably obtain horsefans.info or horsefans.name, which has a better chance of coming up in search engine results, thus making their content more accessible.

 

[DomainPurpose.com]

Personally, for my domain name registration company, I take every action i possibly can towards helping build the .info image. Although my companies .info prices are not the lowest and not the highest compared to the industry as a whole, I try to off set that by adding value to the .info domain with free bundled services.

I've even gone as far as dedicating a page on DomainPurpose.com for the .info domain to better help explain to people how they can use the .info domain to their advantage and make it more usefull.

Marketing Page for .info:
http://www.domainpurpose.com/domain_info.htm

There needs to be more marketing efforts as a whole from domain registration companies, speculaters and more that are geared towards new market segments so the appeal of the extension can grow in popularity more then it already has.