.info Google doesn't like .info

[jamesau]

I'm considering starting a .info network and have been doing some research around available domains, premium domains and other things.

One thing I have noticed is that in general .info domains never seem to appear in Google searches. Is this because so few .info's have quality content or because Google doesn't like the extension?

I'm actually struggling to find any keyterms at all where a .info appears on the first page of results, but perhaps i'm looking for the wrong things.

Your thoughts appreciated.

 

[sibaong]

Maybe because .info (was) a "spammer's TLD"

 

[gingerbreadweb]

Just guessing here, but a lot of .info domains have been bought in the past year (ish) as the prices have been low and there have been loads of special offers on them. The .info extension is also fairly new, so the chances are most .info websites are a lot younger than .com websites, and we all know it takes time to build page rank for domains, so perhaps age is a large factor, and not so much Google 'not liking' the .info extension?

 

[cache]

I doubt the extension really play a big role here. People who bought .info do not spend much effort on it anyway.

 

[Redleg]

Is this because so few .info's have quality content or because Google doesn't like the extension?

I'm pretty sure it's because there are few good developed .info sites (yet)..
The extension shouldn't matter much for Google at all.

 

[Aboutdomains]

Just guessing here, but a lot of .info domains have been bought in the past year (ish) as the prices have been low and there have been loads of special offers on them. The .info extension is also fairly new, so the chances are most .info websites are a lot younger than .com websites, and we all know it takes time to build page rank for domains, so perhaps age is a large factor, and not so much Google 'not liking' the .info extension?

I do agree with you about time is a large factor. I do believe that Google have not and will not based on domain extension to rank their results. For me, after .com, .info is the second choice. It is very nice for meaning and can use for many site style. The value of a domain will not base on how much do we pay for it during registration process.

 

[majorkontrapelo]

I don't think that google don't like it really, as what cache have raised, it's just that people don't really work hard for their .info's! Some dubbed it as some kind of a cheap extension which is really not!

 

[jamesau]

I am a big fan of the extension and would really like to develop a network of sites with the .info extension. It is obviously ideal for information based sites, but I worry that the .info recognition (or non-recognition) may preceed the quality of the content for visitors. Most general web users don't know much beyond .com, but essentially if you rank in Google, you rank to the general web user.

I guess it just lies on the developer to create a high quality site which can rank well. I just feel however that I as one person would not be able to bring a worldwide recognition .info domains and I run the risk of the network being a failure due to this.

 

[gingerbreadweb]

I just feel however that I as one person would not be able to bring a worldwide recognition .info domains and I run the risk of the network being a failure due to this.

If everyone thinks like that, then .info will never go anywhere. But if we all develop our .infos and put them out there, it is only a matter of time before .info becomes as recognised as .net .org etc

 

[Damion]

Similar question was raised in a another thread and here is the same reply which could clear something up for persons doubting if an extension is a factor of importance in SEO.



Extensions bare little to no effect to search engine results.
A .ws could outrank a .tv and vice versa.

www.sitepoint.com/forums/showthread.php?t=182915
Scroll a bit down to find the part that is quoted below.

Sites with .com rank higher then with <TLD here>

This is another common myth that is untrue. The only time a domain extension can affect your ranking is if the search is based by country. The country-specific TLDs (e.g. .co.uk) will have priority over non-country specific TLDs (e.g. .com or .net).

One observation many make is that .coms tend to rank higher then other domain extensions. They assume it is because .coms are given preferential treatment. This is a poor assumption. .coms seem to rank higher then other extensions because they are by for more popular then any other domain extension (there are more .coms than .net, .org, .biz, .edu, .gov, and .info combined) so they naturally have a greater chance of ranking higher vs other domain extensions through sheer quantity alone. .coms also tend to be older sites so they have had a chance to establish themselves whereas newer domain extensions have not. They have also used this time to acquire more backlinks which is an important factor in search engine algorithms.

It is also commonly believed that .gov and .edu sites are given preferential treatment from search engines. This is also untrue. Web pages on .edu and .gov domains tend to rank well because they contain quality content and many webmasters will link to their content as a result. Both of these are key elements in SEO. But the fact that they are .edu or .gov domains does not benefit them directly in the SERPs.

 

[gpmgroup]

Pictures are often easier to visualize the scale of things

http://www.chart.info/stats17.htm

Shows the top 20 name spaces (tlds) by the number of pages Google chooses to index. Google actually crawls a lot more pages but this is after most of the spam has been removed.

 

[Jo]

Pictures are often easier to visualize the scale of things

http://www.chart.info/stats17.htm

Shows the top 20 name spaces (tlds) by the number of pages Google chooses to index. Google actually crawls a lot more pages but this is after most of the spam has been removed.

That's a cool chart! Thanks for sharing. More .org than .net, I figured .net would be second.

 

[Binfus]

Getting on the first page of Google, especially for competitive keywords, is no joke...its a hard hard work...and the (.info) sites that get this kind of work do get the results....here are some examples for highly competetive words and their .info sites on Google's first page:

"Spain" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=spain
"Germany" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=germany
"Austria" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=austria
"Amsterdam" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=amsterdam
"Cancun" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=cancun
"Syberia" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=syberia
"Slovenia" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=slovenia
"South Africa" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=south+africa
"Lower Manhattan" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=lower+manhattan
"Peru" http://www.google.com/search?q=peru&hl=en&lr=&start=10&sa=N

 

[mlee]

Getting on the first page of Google, especially for competitive keywords, is no joke...its a hard hard work...and the (.info) sites that get this kind of work do get the results....here are some examples for highly competetive words and their .info sites on Google's first page:

"Spain" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=spain
"Germany" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=germany
"Austria" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=austria
"Amsterdam" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=amsterdam
"Cancun" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=cancun
"Syberia" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=syberia
"Slovenia" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=slovenia
"South Africa" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=south+africa
"Lower Manhattan" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=lower+manhattan
"Peru" http://www.google.com/search?q=peru&hl=en&lr=&start=10&sa=N

I have noticed that as well. If it is a developed geo .info name. It will rank rather well. That is probably why geo .info names seem sell at higher prices.

 

[gpmgroup]

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=data+compression

http://datacompression.info/ used to be first but it hasn't been updated for a couple of years.

 

[Carlton]

Getting on the first page of Google, especially for competitive keywords, is no joke...its a hard hard work...and the (.info) sites that get this kind of work do get the results....here are some examples for highly competetive words and their .info sites on Google's first page:

"Spain" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=spain
"Germany" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=germany
"Austria" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=austria
"Amsterdam" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=amsterdam
"Cancun" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=cancun
"Syberia" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=syberia
"Slovenia" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=slovenia
"South Africa" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=south+africa
"Lower Manhattan" http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=lower+manhattan
"Peru" http://www.google.com/search?q=peru&hl=en&lr=&start=10&sa=N

Interesting that the Spain-related .gov/.org/.info all outranked .com. LowerManhattan.info is very well done. Binfus, I believe that was your baby at one time? Nice site.

 

[Binfus]

LowerManhattan.info is very well done. Binfus, I believe that was your baby at one time?

Yes Carlton and I missed it so much that I replaced it with LowerManhattan.us a couple of months ago...

 

[dgridley]

I don't think ext figures into the equation all that much.. however, as "info" is also a keyword in it's own right, it CAN help you in that respect.

 

[gpmgroup]

I don't think ext figures into the equation all that much.. however, as "info" is also a keyword in it's own right, it CAN help you in that respect.

info also has meaning in several non-English languages something other gTLDs tend to lack.

 

[Aboutdomains]

I will develop one of my .info domains and ho0pe that one day I can share with you my site.