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Recently, Tesla Motors acquired the domain name Tesla.com after years of attempting to wring it from the previous registrant, who owned the domain for 24 years. The capture of tesla.com was a small but significant branding victory for Elon Musk, founder of Tesla, who previously mentioned that there were domain roadblocks in the way from changing the name of the company from Tesla Motors to the desired Tesla. Tesla continues to diversify its products and services, so it's a fortuitous time for Musk to obtain the domain name he's been chasing for almost a decade. It's unknown what arrangement was in place for the handover of the domain name, but if I was a betting man I'd wager that some sort of financial agreement was reached.
While this is one high profile case to make the news, there are countless stories online of businesses big and small running into similar domain name roadblocks. Most businesses do not have the clout or financial acumen of an Elon Musk, so the wait for the ideal domain name could be a long one (even the modern day Iron Man, Musk had to wait over a decade for tesla.com). That's why we wrote three domain name branding questions to remember for businesses when that perfect domain name finally becomes available.
Whether you are an entreprenuer just starting out or a seasoned company looking for an online refresh, the best thing you can do before registering your business name or starting a rebrand is to go online and check if your deisred domain name is available. Seems simple right? Well you'd be surprised how many organizations register the business name, order the business cards or go public with the brand refresh only to realize that the domain name they thought was available was already registered. Your domain name is the online store front of your business, make sure you have got the domain name locked down before moving forward with building your business.
What should you do when you are able to finally register the domain name for your business that you've wanted for years? This can be a tricky question, as all business are different and at at their own stage of brand awareness and reach. For every Tesla.com, there is an O.co, in which Overstock.com decided to rebrand their domain name only to go back to Overstock.com after the new spiffy domain name failed to resonate with customers. In order to make the decision, it may be best to have a brainstorming session and ask yourself some questions:
Once you start asking yourself these types of questions, the right answer will likely jump out right in front of you.
The domain name you want is registered but is available to purchase from a third-party. So how much should you pay? Like any industry that relies on valuation, the domain industry has its own metrics for determining a domain name's worth. The domain's online history (especially in regards to Google), the recognizability of the name, the length of the name or the trendiness of the TLD are all factors that go into determining a domain name's worth. Luckily there are some valuation tools available through a quick Google search that will help you ballpark the worth of a specific domain. But remember, you should first decide how important a new domain name is to your business as that will help determine what the worth is to you, not only the seller.
Good luck with capturing the perfect domain for your business or idea. Luckily we offer over 500 domain name extensions, so you're sure to find the right domain name that will help launch your online presence!
Post by Barry Coughlan