In these modern times if you’re running a business then you have to own a website. A website works as your business card, your digital store, and most importantly as your online identity in front of the entire globe. Owning a website enables you to establish an online presence using which people across the world find you. Nowadays, the first thing a client does whenever he hears the name of any vendor in any field is to search for them online and then somewhat judge the capability of the vendor on its basis.
When talking about websites one important thing which always comes up is the domain name. A domain name is basically how people are going to recognize your business online. Now, a domain name should always be catchy and as short as possible so that it not only strikes the mind of the visitor but stays in it. Moving on to the topic of discussion, everyone has noticed the little words such as .com, .net, etc. These are called domain name extensions, and these are a vital part of a domain name. There are different types of domain name extensions and we’ll be discussing those in-depth and which one you should use for your business.
Types of domain name extensions
Generic domain
These are the domain names that include both the old-fashioned .com and .net as well as modern domain names such as .shop, .car, etc.
The latter can be any random word as now the users are allowed to use their own specific generic domain name extensions.
Geographical domain
These are the domain names that are based on geographical locations and are generally used in government websites. Another use of this particular type of domain name extension is to indicate which region the particular website belongs to. Some examples are .us for the United States or .nyc for New York City.
Niche-based domain
This type of domain is used to specify the industry to which the website belongs. For example, finance-related websites might use the extension .fin or banks can use .bank.
Brand domain
The websites which use extensions such as .apple or .google are good examples of this type of domain extension. These types of domain extensions are generally used by websites falling under a particular brand as mentioned in the example.
Which domain extension would suit me the best?
There are different types of domain extensions and now which ones would suit you or your business the best depends upon several factors such as your niche, location, etc. However, it mainly comes down to two main things: the first one being which line of work you are in and the second being which extension goes hand-in-hand naturally with the image of your brand.
In order to determine which domain extension suits you the best, the first thing you need to do is to assess your options. For example, .com is the most used domain, as a result, people associate .com with a feeling of trust and thus the domain names with the extension feel somewhat more genuine. But the main problem is that most of the domains associated with .com are already owned as a result it is not easily available.
The next thing you need to do is to analyze which domain extension goes best with your business. For example, if you run a blog page then you can consider using .blog as your domain extension. If you’re in a finance-related field you can consider the domain extension .fin as well.
Lastly, you do not want a domain name that is so hard to remember or even pronounce. Remember, the key is to keep it as short and simple as possible and still strike the mind of the visitors and stay there.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most credible domain extension?
Since the domain extension .com is the most widely used domain extension as a result the audience associates it with a feeling of trust. This whole process makes .com the most credible domain extension of all time.
Does country domain extension affect SEO?
Yes, country domain extensions affect SEO drastically. For example, if you’re using the country domain extension .us then you’ll be given extra priority on global rankings when the user searching for you is searching from a city in the United States. On the other hand, when users search for you from the rest of the world your rankings would drop significantly.
Is .AI a good domain?
Out of many types of URL endings. .AI is the most trending. As artificial intelligence is one of the most searched topics on the internet and search engines like google and yahoo constantly get searches like “What is AI” or “How to build AI” therefore having a .AI does help your rankings.
Does domain extension affect SEO?
Only country domain extensions affect SEO. All the other domain extensions have no impact on SEO. However, domain extensions do affect the psychology of the audience. For example, while .com is the most credible domain extension on the other hand domain extensions like .biz are not so credible as they are often used by scammers.
Conclusion
There are different types of URL endings and among these different types of domain extensions, you have to determine which type of domain name extension suits you the best. While determining which is the ideal domain extension for you, consider various factors like which one would be the best for your line of work, which one is more catchy, and which one is the easiest to remember.