.co Why .CO will will not do well

[adinfinite]

well maybe the title of the thread is a little harsh. I dunno. But I had an experience recently where I was helping my gf to organize a fundraiser. She wanted a website set up but the name we wanted was taken in all good extensions except .co, &.tel. So i decided to go with .CO. To make an otherwise long story short, we had pamphlets and invitations made for the event. Then a series of things happened that made me really question the usefulness and value of .co domains:

1) The guy at the printing shop who was making the promo material called to ask " are you sure the website is coorect? It seems to be missing the letter m at the end" lol

2) When we finally got them printed and handed out to over 700 people we kept getting calls about whether or not the website address was correct. I had to keep telling people to "jut type it in, it works"

3) At the event we had a guess speaker who kept encouraging people to go to www.nameof charity.com ( instead of .co ) and donate. Lol

Now I must admit that it might not have been a good idea to put up a charity site on a .co. But I thought that since the actual charity has its own .org already and this entity and site was created for the sole purpose of raising money for the charity in a one off event, then it wouldnt be much of a problem.

I know we sent a lot of traffic to the .com because the 700 in attendance were told to "tell their friends and family" LOL.

I am thinking that only domainers and people close to the industry ( registrars etc) see value in .co. My experience is that the man on the street who constitutes the "traffic" we all crave is totally confused by it. It will take a lot to get regular everyday people to accept it. Probably way more than a superbowl commercial as Godaddy is planning.

I am not saying it doesnt have some value. But for those dreaming of a .co/.com parity situation I say dream on!

I know many people are gonna point to the fact that overstock bought and is currently using o.co. thats fine. I wonder how much type ins O.co gets that are not from domainers? lol. Besides they have O.com to back it up. LOL

 

[the_poet]

Those who are pushing the extension have invested too much of their cash into this extension and do not want anybody to say anything against it-whether it be the truth, or just an opinion based on experience.

I can't speak for others, but I own just 15 .co's (mostly July 20th pre-orders) and I'm not planning to get more. $400 isn't all that big sum to me.

 

[NPer]

I can't speak for others, but I own just 15 .co's (mostly July 20th pre-orders) and I'm not planning to get more. $400 isn't all that big sum to me.

I agree with you. I am in the same boat as you. I have 18/19 dot co's which were pre-orders as well.
I think the way you (and I ) have invested in the .co extension, is the correct way to do it. But it is sad to see that many persons here who are fighting for the c.o extension are doing so because they want to protect their "investment" in .co.

Nubiano

 

[the_poet]

I agree with you. I am in the same boat as you. I have 18/19 dot co's which were pre-orders as well.
I think the way you (and I ) have invested in the .co extension, is the correct way to do it. But it is sad to see that many persons here who are fighting for the c.o extension are doing so because they want to protect their "investment" in .co.

Nubiano

Exactly. And it's hilarious how people think you are stating certain things only because of the "hundreds' of .CO's you must necessarily have bought".

 

[bmugford]

The fanboys are so pro-dot-co, that they do not care how poor their keywords are in the .co extension, rather they belive that the extension will turn their poor and mediocre keywords in dot co into jewels.
Nubiano

This is very true. Many .CO investors are new to domains and don't understand the value of keywords in general.

No matter how popular .CO becomes, it would only elevate good terms. Not crap.

Brad

 

[the_poet]

Perfectly agree with bmugford and Nubiano. 'Pigeon shit' remains the same in any TLD.

 

[NPer]

Exactly. And it's hilarious how people think you are stating certain things only because of the "hundreds' of .CO's you must necessarily have bought".

But there are those who do own hundreds, and their judgment is biased! Their reasoning is far off from a sane person. Saying that dot co will be the next best thing after dot com, etc...

Me, owning 18 dot co's-i will wait it out... I am in no hurry. But if I spent $2500 to $10000 in a space of 4 months regging names in one extension, I guess it would become obvious in the way i would behave on Namepros... Some even blamed Latonas for their bad regges. These types of fanboys are the ones who lack proper judgement. I really hope these 100+ .co domain owners have good enough keywords to make some sales and cover the reg fees next year.

I don't hate dot co, I just like to diversify and try something new now and again.

Nubiano

---------- Post added at 12:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:24 PM ----------

This is very true. Many .CO investors are new to domains and don't understand the value of keywords in general.


Brad

I have noticed that as well. A new inexperienced domainer + the hype the registry creates= bad regges. .co will not help those poor keywords.

Nubiano

 

[the_poet]

I just like to diversify and try something new now and again.

Well said, I always diversify. Investing in several TLD's gives you also the ability to see domaining from a much more global point of view (but I guess we are now OT).

 

[Kate]

This is very true. Many .CO investors are new to domains and don't understand the value of keywords in general.

In fact you see this with every new extension. The most vocal fanboys are usually newcomers to the industry. By renewal time, a few learn their lesson and the rest move on to another hobby. After all there are countless ways to waste money.

 

[ctbon]

In fact you see this with every new extension. The most vocal fanboys are usually newcomers to the industry. By renewal time, a few learn their lesson and the rest move on to another hobby. After all there are countless ways to waste money.

I am a 100+ domain newcomer. I got lucky and covered my investment right off the bat. Whether this is repeatable I will have to wait and see but I am reinvesting because I have confidence in the extension. I definitely agree with you guys, however, that the important thing is great keywords. I can't believe the crap I see on Sedo for outrageous prices that I would be way too cautious to buy even in .com. I think some people just don't get which types of domains would be appealing to a buyer and why. I think .co is going to be much more valuable as a 'company' extension in due time. It may not work for everything (like charities) but it has strength.

Hawkeye, give it up. You are the most vehement detractor. You are like a Republican who just likes to say no to everything despite all the evidence in the contarary. Don't bother responding to me because this argument is stale:zzz: and I'm not interested. Instead of bashing you should go out and sell some domains. It might make you feel better.
:santa:

 

[hawkeye]

..

Hawkeye, give it up. You are the most vehement detractor. You are like a Republican who just likes to say no to everything despite all the evidence in the contarary. Don't bother responding to me because this argument is stale:zzz: and I'm not interested. Instead of bashing you should go out and sell some domains. It might make you feel better.
:santa:

Yes all knowledgeable one. I yield the floor to your experience and instinctive insights...


_\|/_

 

[TOXX]

All's cool guys...opinions are just that, but WHY THE HATE towards .CO???
...
C'mon, AT LEAST treat it like a legitimate ccTLD! ...it is NOT a ".WS" no matter what opinion you may have...

 

[Kate]

I can tell you that I don't hate .co, in fact I even own a couple :talk: Not even saying they are worth anything btw.
As the ccTLD of Colombia I think it's as legitimate as .cc .ws or de.
But outside Colombia it is just another vanity extension. In fact .com.co looks set to remain the default extension in Colombia for some time.

Now if you asked me about .mobi .asia .tel etc I would not tell you these extensions are as legitimate, in fact they are harmful and should not have been released.

I just do not believe .co will become a major extension like .net/.org etc.

 

[TOXX]

I can tell you that I don't hate .co, in fact I even own a couple :talk: Not even saying they are worth anything btw.
As the ccTLD of Colombia I think it's as legitimate as .cc .ws or de.
But outside Colombia it is just another vanity extension. In fact .com.co looks set to remain the default extension in Colombia for some time.

Now if you asked me about .mobi .asia .tel etc I would not tell you these extensions are as legitimate, in fact they are harmful and should not have been released.

I just do not believe .co will become a major extension like .net/.org etc.

Ok, it's not a ".Mobi/.Tel"! :lol:
...
ONLY Time will tell...

 

[the_poet]

It looks like many of us made the wise choice to buy a reasonable amount of .co domains (I own 15). Anyway I believe this ext will gain value and popularity among the general public over time (though I can't predict how big it can get). I also think .com.co will remain Colombia's main ccTLD.

 

[DN BROKER]

.co is nothing but a cash grab - ive seen this type of cash grab come and go over the years...

 

[TOXX]

.co is nothing but a cash grab - ive seen this type of cash grab come and go over the years...

You're absolutely right...but .CO will not just disappear...that's IMPOSSIBLE!
...
And even as a pure ccTLD it kicks .CC's and .WS's ass!

 

[Ms Domainer]

*

I just want to say that I'm not a .co hater; in fact, I have a few.

But I must tell you about a conversation I had with my son. At the end of the month, his job ends, so he's looking to find a name for his freelance business (he's going to build a website).

While he's savvy about computers and has dabbled in coding, etc., he knows very little (if anything) about domaining.

He went to check at GoDaddy for some names (which I would have recommended against, unless you plan to reg on the spot, so he is a newb). The one he really wanted was already regged in .com, but .co was available.

He said, "Hmmm...if I register that, everyone will go to the .com. By the way, what IS .co, anyway?"

I helped find him a good solid end user .com name, one that includes his name and what he does (He has a common first and last name--we don't share the same last name). It will rank well in our area because he's known for what he does.

In all good conscience, I could not recommend .co.

My son's reaction suggests to me that .co will continue to be a ccTLD and a domainer's TLD.

*

 

[snoop]

*

I just want to say that I'm not a .co hater; in fact, I have a few.

But I must tell you about a conversation I had with my son. At the end of the month, his job ends, so he's looking to find a name for his freelance business (he's going to build a website).

While he's savvy about computers and has dabbled in coding, etc., he knows very little (if anything) about domaining.

He went to check at GoDaddy for some names (which I would have recommended against, unless you plan to reg on the spot, so he is a newb). The one he really wanted was already regged in .com, but .co was available.

He said, "Hmmm...if I register that, everyone will go to the .com. By the way, what IS .co, anyway?"

I helped find him a good solid end user .com name, one that includes his name and what he does (He has a common first and last name--we don't share the same last name). It will rank well in our area because he's known for what he does.

In all good conscience, I could not recommend .co.

My son's reaction suggests to me that .co will continue to be a ccTLD and a domainer's TLD.

*

I think this is good example. The average person on the street or the average business man does know what everyone uses. It doesn't matter how cool it might sound to some, or the fact that it could mean "company", people will almost always go with what is familiar, what is the standard. That can be seen in all the other alt extensions that came before .co.

 

[TOXX]

Does EVERYONE know .TV or .ME yet?
...
MY point is, why can't you give it fair time...I just don't understand...
If it doesn't "click" with people, then it won't...but stop magically predicting the future of this legitimate extension by the fact that it IS a NEW thing and not EVERYONE knows about it YET.
Just because you're "computer savvy", it doesn't mean that you know how the internet really functions.
...
Peace out!

 

[snicksnack]

.CO is a great extension, but the proximity to .COM also makes it a bit problematic. If you build a business on a .CO domain but do not own the .COM domain you will certainly loose traffic to the .COM (more than the other way round). .TV is different, it is a ccTLD as well, but branded as "Television" and I believe that outside the domainer's world, most people believe it stands for television and not for Tuvalu.