.us .BIZ or .US

[ripley]

Okay, a hypothetical. If you were searching around for domain names and found that for one, all extensions were registered except .US and .BIZ, which would you take? What would your criteria be? Would you have different situations, based on the name, that you'd choose one over the other -- and what would that be?

ripley.

 

[Gene]

Generally speaking, I much prefer a .US to a .BIZ, but only if the name will be used in the US of course.

 

[deleted984054565403]

Depends on the target audience/market of the site. If it's global/non-US, I'd avoid .US extension.

First of all, I'd always go for a .com. If you have to go for a .biz or .us, you should have a pretty darn good reason to do so.

Overall, not taking the target market into consideration, I like .us. It has more opportunities than .biz, which seems to be more for business.

 

[CrazyTech]

I hate to say it again but it depends on the name. Ask yourself some questions.

Is it best applied to only a .us market? Is it better for .biz which can be used internationally? Is .biz better because this is a business oriented name?

From a business point of view, it depends upon the two and which one fits. However, if you're simply buying to resell, I'd think about picking them both up if the keyword fit.

 

[.X.]

definatly .us ....It is not hard to target US traffic...Trust me

 

[ripley]

Wow, cool. Lots of good replies already. Let's add one more wrinkle: how about if it was an industry or product generic? Like, say, ComputerMonitors.* or InvestmentBanking.* or such as that.

 

[B33R]

US, US, US!!!! :tu:

.biz sucks :imho:

 

[AGS]

Both suck balls :imho:

Deffo last resorts but if any I would go .biz

 

[deleted984054565403]

Wow, cool. Lots of good replies already. Let's add one more wrinkle: how about if it was an industry or product generic? Like, say, ComputerMonitors.* or InvestmentBanking.* or such as that.

In that case, .us sounds more professional and would have a stronger appeal to a buyer or end user.

 

[GreenGambler]

Go with the .us. You get a larger market that way. Plus the .biz costs more to reg right, therfore you pay more to sit and wait for a sale.

 

[deleted984054565403]

Go with the .us. You get a larger market that way. Plus the .biz costs more to reg right, therfore you pay more to sit and wait for a sale.

Usually .biz and .us domains are the standard $6-$15 registration fee.

 

[.X.]

I think the reality is this... Premuim .coms are a EXTREMLY hard reg,Half decent .net isn't worth it... A premuim .us ...well promoted and targeted to US traffic is the best option...and i use YPN...Which only counts US clicks...So i target US traffic ...and have no problems getting traffic.... .biz..well...It never made it...i don't think it ever will...The extension is simply not appealing and seldom typed in.

 

[Convergence]

.us over .biz any day -

I've seen active .us domains marketed, even on television - I can not remember any marketing on an active .biz - Another strike for .biz is .bz. Just another opportunity for confusion.

Convergence Companies
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[fab]

Another vote for .us

 

[Kate]

Go with .us if your company is US-based. I agree .biz sucks but well... I cast another vote for .us

 

[Epic]

I'd register the .us over the .biz unless your targeting international people as well.

 

[FedPrimeRate.com]

.BIZ is the "extension of last resort" for me. Dot-US is far superior.

As always, IMO.

AmCy

 

[ripley]

Thanks all for the replies. It's been very interesting to see the variety of opinions. I'd always assumed that a very generic business-y domain name would be preferred as a .BIZ because you don't limit your business to the U.S. market, but I can see that's in fact probably a minority opinion!

ripley.

 

[texasgamer]

ACTIVE DOMAINS

• .com----53,890,310
• .net-----7,798,465
• .org-----4,819,158
• .info-----3,220,288
• .biz------1,435,947
• .us------1,000,872

*data from domaintools.com

 

[Carlton]

The best advice is to reg both .biz and .us if all other extensions are taken and the name is worth regging in the first place. .US has special appeal as a known country code and imo works very well across many different domain categories and business sectors.

.biz has a very good future and will gain increased attention as people continue to take business online and look for alternatives to awkwardly worded .coms. It's a sleeper with a unique identity. For example, I have domains like AirConditioning.biz, MiamiRealEstate.biz, NewOrleans.biz (high interest, narrow focus) which get clicks, receive offers, and are good fits for the extension. Business, finance, professional services, and retail categories (jewelry, furniture, cars) are a nice match too.

Don't forget .info. .info is a great extension and continues to be a super logical namespace with really good user recognition. I like all three extensions as each suggests its own emphasis.

A principle of internet growth that seems overlooked by many domainers is how quickly a trend can develop and spread on the net. While it's not an everyday occurrence, any extension can gain a quick base and significant momentum when a known athlete, star, or company utilizes it. By the time that trend is clearly visible, it's way too late to enter the game. Case in point are the multitude of three word .com names that were passed over repeatedly ... and that now go for 4 figures routinely. You couldn't convince most people of their value 5-6 years ago. This is the benefit of forward thinking and calculated risk/true speculation.