How do you rank hyphened gTLD domain names relative to non-hyphened gTLD domain names

[TheBaldOne]

The question of hyphened domains and their value or otherwise, so let's see what domainers think about them relative to non-hyphenated domain names with regards to general league of comparative values of the gTLDs.

I personally think that hyphenated domains do have a value and when considering a two word domain name with the use of a single hyphen (-) separating the individual words the relative valuation of that domain with regards to gTLD's is as follows:

1. Non-hyphenated .com
2. Hyphenated .com
3. Non-hyphenated .net
4. Hyphenated .net
5. Either non-hyphenated or hyphenated .org
6. Either non-hyphenated or hyphenated .info

Now of course the first argument against use of a hyphen in a domain name is invariably the so-called 'Radio Test', i.e. how the name is communicated verbally from one source to an audience (whether that be a single person in a conversation or an audience listening to a radio broadcast or similar).

Obviously the radio test is detrimental to the transmission of the domain name in verbal communication, however, this kind of communication is becoming an increasingly small amount of the way in which domain names or any other advertising is done within society, be it in the UK (where I am), the US, Germany, Canada, France, Japan, South Korea, China, India, or elsewhere, indeed in any country where people have ready access to the internet via either computers or smart phones. As such more and more it is the links shown on the screens that dictate the most effective advertising. Even TV advertisements usually use superimposed web addresses on their adverts rather than verbally telling people verbally the name of the associated website.

So in your opinion, as a domainer and recipient of advertising, do you agree with my ranking above?

Please remember that this is solely considering the separation of two words in a domain name by a single hyphen ('dash') between the words.



(There are of course nuances in all things, this topic is no exception, for example the number of hyphens used readily by German sites is very high in comparison to either the UK or the US.)