Better Names = Better Business?

[sashas]

I happened to visit DigiMedia's website the other day.

Like any self respecting domainer, I checked out their portfolio.

These guys are sitting on some seriously solid names - joke.com, cards.com, shops.com, chairs.com


I decided to do a little research on the websites featured in their portfolio.

Other than FantasyFootball.com and Ever.com, none of their sites have an Alexa rank below 100k. In fact, most of their sites - built on top names like Cards.com, Decorations.com, Chairs.com - seem to be struggling in the Alexa rank > 500k range, some in the millions.

Even without any website, most of these domains would still be receiving thousands of type-ins daily. Yet their websites are seemingly a failure. I know hundreds of blogs and crappy sites that have Alexa ranks below the 100k mark, and here you have a company with large resources and some seriously heavy names struggling to turn their sites into major internet properties.


I've always disliked the idea of making a site on a keyword.com name (I prefer the brandable name a lot more), and with the fate these keyword heavy sites seem to be suffering, it just makes me question the idea of better names making better businesses more and more.


Maybe this is my domainer's existentialist moment...

What do you guys say?

 

[h2o]

Well, joke.com is not developed and im pretty sure the only traffic if gets is from type ins. FF on the other hand is developed and advertised heavily. Makes a big difference.

 

[DotWeekly]

If you eat something and it leaves a bad taste in your mouth, are you going to eat it again?

You get in a hurry and put up something just to have something on a domain... not a good idea. The likely hood of getting that person with the bad taste in their mouth back will not happen anytime soon.

With domains like they own, they are Strong Assets just because of the domains. Site, no site, Alexa, no Alexa.

Owning Cards.com can make a profitable company a Very profitable company with the correct approach! Good things come with time.

 

[tpruby]

With google, who types names in anymore? Heck, google will even correct your spelling mistakes.

Googles new omni bar will likely revolutionize the entire browsing experience, ie and firefox will follow suit.


I'm just saying...

 

[-REECE-]

This happens way too often and I really can't understand the logic behind it...

I fail to see why anyone would pay the kind of money these names command and then not develop them to their fullest potential. Total BS imho that almost any name will make more parked then they would properly developed.

Lots of amazing webmasters/entrepreneurs start websites from scratch (with horrible domains and even subdomains) and make the Top 100k, how can one not make it starting with a name like these?

Not owned by Digimedia, but look at Gas.com on Alexa for example. How on earth could such a gem not be in the Top 1 Million? I'm 100% sure it would take very little work or skill to make that in the top 100k.

I happened to visit DigiMedia's website the other day.

Like any self respecting domainer, I checked out their portfolio.

These guys are sitting on some seriously solid names - joke.com, cards.com, shops.com, chairs.com


I decided to do a little research on the websites featured in their portfolio.

Other than FantasyFootball.com and Ever.com, none of their sites have an Alexa rank below 100k. In fact, most of their sites - built on top names like Cards.com, Decorations.com, Chairs.com - seem to be struggling in the Alexa rank > 500k range, some in the millions.

Even without any website, most of these domains would still be receiving thousands of type-ins daily. Yet their websites are seemingly a failure. I know hundreds of blogs and crappy sites that have Alexa ranks below the 100k mark, and here you have a company with large resources and some seriously heavy names struggling to turn their sites into major internet properties.


I've always disliked the idea of making a site on a keyword.com name (I prefer the brandable name a lot more), and with the fate these keyword heavy sites seem to be suffering, it just makes me question the idea of better names making better businesses more and more.


Maybe this is my domainer's existentialist moment...

What do you guys say?

 

[dbtbandit67]

could it be as dissapointing as italy.com lol

 

[SonnyCooL]

even the site without good alexa ranking, it still worth some money, without alexa will cost u bomb, with good alexa how much it going to cost the new buyer ???
For domainer, alexa is not the main issue, as long as the domain match the right buyer ...
btw the gas.com owner might find SEO is difficult compare to buying good domain (back in those day) .....

 

[mwzd]

Alexa is far from perfect. its data is compiled based on people who use their toolbar/ranking plugin in their browsers. I doubt it covers 5% of the online surfing population in its ranking algo.

A lot of sites with low alexa rank do a substantial amount of traffic. To top this, different sites/domains get different quality of ads and hence ppc would differ.

And they have developed some of their properties. I get the feeling their undeveloped properties act as a reverse traffic funnel for their developed sites via the digimedia site.

 

[sashas]

I understand that Alexa rankings can be very wayward. But in this industry, they're pretty much the best tool we have to judge how much traffic a site might be getting. I think its fair to assume that a site with a rank above 2 million would not have 500,000 hits a day

The trouble is that these companies have the resources to make killer sites on these domains. DigiMedia is rich. Very rich. They can very easily hire decent webmasters and designers, advertise a little bit, and then if the site is good enough, the traffic will pick up by itself. The weird part is that all these sites are pretty good looking to begin with (not the two page, HTML only site you would think)..


My point remains that you don't need a super, category killer domain to make a popular site. I know as a domainer I shouldn't be saying this, but the value of a good domain is pretty overrated, IMO. A solid brandable can go a long way than a category killer generic.


This of course doesn't mean that you should spend a million bucks developing that triple vowel, all premium letter LLLLLLL.com you have

 

[mwzd]

I think its fair to assume that a site with a rank above 2 million would not have 500,000 hits a day

It is fair to assume this since its spot on.

...and then if the site is good enough, the traffic will pick up by itself.

I read recently an analogy between an undeveloped domain and a bare plot of land. Both leave themselves open to the developers vision.

My point remains that you don't need a super, category killer domain to make a popular site.

No you don't, but considering what seo costs today and the ease of ranking for your search term is a lot easier with the exact same domain... visitor acquisition costs can be dramatically lowered by using the generic, either as a brand or as a lead generation system.