Let’s assume you have decided to get your own domain name for your blog. We won’t go into all the reasons why you should make that very small investment – there are plenty such blog posts all over the Internet. Let’s just assume you have already made that decision.
What is rarely discussed is what top level domain (TLD) is best. What is a TLD? Let’s dissect a URL to see:
Top level domain: http://www.famousbloggers.NET/
Domain: http://www.FAMOUSBLOGGERS.net/
Sub-domain: http://WWW.famousbloggers.net/
The idea for this post comes from a post I wrote on my own blog, geared more toward the concerns of a global e-commerce website, on whether to set up a website on a .com TLD or on a series of country-specific TLDs (such as .ca, .fr or .com.mx). But let’s first look at the more global options.
.COM
This is the biggie. It’s really the default that everyone goes for. Technically, “com” stands for “commercial”, so your blog really should be .com only if it’s also a store or a business in its own right. Technically. The main value of .com is if you plan to promote your blog offline (print ads and articles, radio interviews, etc.) People often tend to type .com even when they see .CA or .HU or .NET.
.NET
This is the techie TLD. Famous Bloggers is a .net website. This TLD is ideal for any blog that is about the Internet or about information technology. Or it makes a good back-up if the .COM version of your domain is already taken.
.ORG
This really should not be used unless you are blogging on behalf of a non-commercial organization. Unlike .COM and .NET, many people do take the meaning of .ORG seriously.
.INFO
This is my favourite for blogs, but I really would not recommend it. It’s my favourite for blogs because most blogs are exactly that – information. Even my own commercial blogs are focused on informing, not on selling. So why would I not recommend a .info TLD? There are many forms on the Web that won’t accept a four-letter TLD. You will have fewer places to submit your blog…and often waste time trying. It’s not a huge problem, but enough that I would stay away from it…unless part of your branding is to emphasise that you are not commercial. If that is a critical central part of your blog’s identity, .INFO is a great way to communicate it.
COUNTRY-SPECIFIC DOMAIN
What about a country-specific domain? If your audience is global, this most likely won’t make sense. Most likely, but not always.
• If the subject of your blog is specific to a location (trade with China, for example), a country-specific TLD could be useful.
• If your blog is really trying to reach out to just 2 or 3 countries, it might be worth running it across three country-specific domains (.CA, .US, .COM.MX) so that each audience feels like you are speaking directly to them. This is a little more work, but it might be a more effective communication strategy.
• If a country-specific domain could help your branding. For instance, a blog on French cuisine might appear more authentic with a .FR domain.
• Of course, if your blog is totally local – such as a Liverpool night-life blog, there is a value in a country-specific domain.
From a search engine perspective, remember that the TLD is the biggest factor that gives your blog an advantage in the country-specific searches. For example, a .CA blog has a natural advantage with Google.ca. So if you are blogging for both Americans and Canadians, a .CA domain can give you a big search engine advantage in 10% of your market, without costing you in the other 90%.
David Leonhardt is an Ottawa based SEO consultant. When not guest blogging he occasionally finds the time to update his own SEO marketing blog Or you can follow him (@Amabaie) on Twitter and most social bookmarking websites.
Article by amabaie
David Leonhardt is an Ottawa based SEO consultant. When not guest blogging he occasionally finds the time to update his own SEO marketing blog. Or you can follow him (Amabaie) on Twitter and most social bookmarking websites.
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You should use a country specific TLD if you are targeting that market, country specific domain name by its very nature means that it is targeted to a particular country. Infact if most of your countrymen use local search engines, a country specific domain name would be a good alternative to a more general domain name like a .com.
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I’ve bought around 10 .coms already before I decided to buy a .info for a change and see for myself what I can do despite all the negative conotations attached to it.
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What I feel is that if you are trying to sell a product in a country then only one should go for a country specific domain or maybe when your blog is just about that country. Else I would stick with .com as it is the best in any case.
Nice information on domain name extension. If you want to start any online business, the best thing to do is to search for the available domain name with .com extension before any other extension. If you dont have money for the hosting and design, just secure the domain name first. TLD domain name give your site or blog a globe present, if top level domain name is not available then you can consider your country domain name. One thing about .com domain name is that it sell better than other extension.
Sorry to say, .info links are a bad idea for any and all legit site owners, and have been for quite some time.
It didn’t take long for spammers and scammers to see the ultimate value in a TLD that costs under $1…..it took even less time for Google AND Akismet to see this; both entities have .info domains on their naughty lists.
Dennis Edell recently posted..Welcome To The All New DennisEdell.com!
Aside from knowing that .com was generally everyone’s first choice, I knew nothing about this stuff. In truth, I thought .com was actually the US version of our .co.uk so I’ve learned some new stuff today. Thanks for helping me learn more about something that I didn’t even know was important.
Have a great weekend,
El
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Twitter: TJ_McDowell
August 13, 2010 at 10:54 am
I think .com has an advantage because when a url is entered into a browser without any TLD I think the first one that is attempted is .com. I’m pretty sure that’s right, can anyone verify?
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Yes.
Dennis Edell recently posted..Welcome To The All New DennisEdell.com!
Most fav domain blogger choice is .com and . net. I guest that
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Twitter: michaelaulia
August 12, 2010 at 7:11 pm
Most of the time, .com is the only thing that people know or familiar to type with, especially those with non technical backgrounds
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I chose .co.uk for mine, why, well I’m UK based and my blog is really my brand, so I thought that it would suit the blog. Most people now “Karen at Blazing Minds from the UK” so it suits it’s purpose for me
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Twitter: amabaie
August 12, 2010 at 9:10 pm
Exactly. It’s part of your branding being from the UK, so a country domain suits yours well.
David Leonhardt recently posted..REVIEW: Free Traffic System
Thanks David, I was never sure whether to have another domain for Blazing Minds, but as it’s working why change it
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Very good point Karen, many don’t realize just how far the branding ting goes.
Dennis Edell recently posted..Welcome To The All New DennisEdell.com!
I didn’t realise it until I started looking in to it
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Great article and description on TLDs. I’ve found using them very handy myself.
However I was under the impression that you couldn’t use .org unless you’re like a organisation like charity or non-profit groups..?
For some strange reason, I’m quite wary of .info myself. I think it has been associated with a number of spammy website in the past so I personally tend to avoid it myself…
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When .org was first created, this was true. I found out myself a couple years ago that they have since opened it to the public. Not entirely smart idea if you ask me, but there it is.
Yes, .info is not a good idea, I’m about to comment below on it.
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Hi,
Great information.
.Com domains are universal, they will always have the most value.
I’m surprised you didn’t mention the new .co domains. What are your thoughts on .co domains?
Kindest,
Nabeel
Twitter: mani0993
August 12, 2010 at 12:44 am
I’m using .ORG & selected it with some huge thinking behind it
Nice explanations, newbie bloggers can go for .NET or .INFO but the former looks better
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i’m use domain .net and happy with this
Hieu Martin recently posted..5 Tips to Use Digg to Drive Blog Traffic
Nice explanation about TLDs. Although .com’s purpose is being misused a lot lately. Some blog review sites even require your blog to have it’s your own domain. Nonetheless, thanks for differentiating on the various TLDs.
Gino Dizon recently posted..A change of pace
Great post David. I have always assumed the TLDs available were for those who missed out on their preferred .com domain. Great explanation of the differences.
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Thanks for sharing this article David. I always had a notion that the .com is the best domain extension you could give your site, relegating the .net and other extensions to second choices.
I just never had a clear understanding of its differences, until this article. Thanks.
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Hi Julius.
I thinks domain .com is the best choice but if domain .com not avaible you can use .net domain.
Hieu Martin recently posted..5 Tips to Use Digg to Drive Blog Traffic
That’s exactly what happened to my personal blog. I was aiming for a .com domain but found out that it’s already taken though there’s still no active website. But I don’t regret that I ended up taking the .net domain.
Julius recently posted..Ode To Passion
@Julius My blog have problem same you
)
Hieu Martin recently posted..5 Tips to Use Digg to Drive Blog Traffic
Twitter: azblogtips
August 11, 2010 at 9:07 pm
.Com is the best and I think it is the one that can help your blog SEO the best
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How you think that true?
I think domain .com and .net same .
domain .org will help you blog SEO than .com or .net
Hieu Martin recently posted..5 Tips to Use Digg to Drive Blog Traffic
Twitter: stevescott1
August 11, 2010 at 8:37 pm
Great post.
I like the detail you went into. I didnt realized that .ca and country country specific domains actually gave a boost for the vicinity. Once you said ti it made complete sense, though,
Thanks,
Steve
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Thanks for the TLD TLC David
I think that .net domains are often underrated. A lot of people seem to have the attitude that they are weaker than .com’s but I have seen plenty of cases where .net’s outperform .com’s for head search terms.
emory recently posted..Digg Patriots: A Response
Hmm, I still think .net domain are what ya go for when your .com (or otherwise) is taken already!
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Very interesting. I never really thought about this before. I knew that .gov and .edu were good to linkbuild to because they are education and government sites, but I never knew that .com stood for commercial.
I don’t know that I’ve seen very many .info site, maybe for the reasons you mention. I think sites ending in things other than .com because when people type in an address they automatically assume .com.
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August 11, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Very helpful information. I am in the process of purchasing a domain name for my blog and you have helped me immensely!
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I have heard a lot of dissenting opinions on one aspect regarding top level domains and backlinks. Some people swear by the fact that .org and .edu TLDs pass along more value/trust then regular links with .com or .net. I have yet to see a thorough study with enough authority to sway me one way or another. Have you noticed any increased benefits from links from these TLDs?
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Twitter: amabaie
August 11, 2010 at 2:05 pm
I think you might mean .edu and .gov . I don’t think anyone has suggested that .org is of particular link value, but there are raging debates over whether ,gov or ,edu brings added value of their own accord, or simply that many .gov and .edu domains are valuable due to their link profiles.
Yes, sorry I definitely meant .edu and .gov but I had somewhat of a mental/typing lapse.
Hi David, I was going to mention .edu
I work with a program for University professors and in order to access it they need to have a .edu email extension. That becomes a problem if you’re University is from outside the U.S. and there seems to be no set rule. Some countries use .ac and others use the country plus the .edu – it’s really a challenge to try to list all of the possible combinations.
Thanks for this post.
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I’ve seen Matt Cutts state clearly at least once that the debate is useless; edu and gov links hold little to no extra weight…..now whether he was bs’ing for one reason or another is another raging debate. lol
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Twitter: aisajib
August 11, 2010 at 12:03 pm
Good post. But i always go for .com. Even if my favorite domain is taken with .com, i won’t go for .net because people feel better to type .com
hi Sajib.
.com is fav domain . But what about .net domain
Hieu Martin recently posted..How to Make Money Online With Your Blog Easily
Yes my first preference also .com , because most people type on the browser using keyword of the domain and then “ctrl + enter” and this command use only for .com domain.
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