Shakespeare says, “What’s in a name?” Domainers, website owners and entrepreneurs say, “Quite a lot!”
While a website’s quality is not related to the domain name attached to it, domain name as a brand – just like a company name – plays a crucial role in everything that involves a website.
In the past, dot-coms are the best option for domain names. Well, not anymore. Today, companies are still willing to pay a hefty amount of money to secure the brandable, catchy dot-com domain name; but with the mega-launch of hundreds of new gTLDs – generic top-level domain names (e.g. .xyz, .rent, .gold, etc.), the trend is shifting. Not only startups or small businesses, but big companies are also adopting the new gTLDs; a prominent example would be Google’s parent company Alphabet, choosing .xyz as the domain name – abc.xyz.
The trend has raised some questions: Is .com still as valuable as in the past? How about the ever popular domain names among businesses, such as .co? How about the trending .xyz?
In this Q&A, we talked with Shayan Rostam, the Global Director of Registry Operations for XYZ about the domain name trends.
Ivan Widjaya (Q): Please kindly introduce yourself to our reader.
Shayan Rostam (A): My name is Shayan Rostam and I’m the Global Director of Registry Operations for XYZ. I oversee the day-to-day operations of the business. XYZ is the registry operator of .xyz, the most popular new domain extension in the world, as well as industry-specific domain extensions like .College, .Rent, .Security, .Protection, .Theatre, .Cars, .Car, and .Auto.
I joined XYZ shortly after the company was founded by our CEO, Daniel Negari, with the mission of pushing the reset button on the Internet to create competition and choice for the next generation of internet users.
Q: .xyz is targeted as the domain name for generation X, Y and Z. Can you please tell us your vision for .xyz?
A: .xyz brings choice, flexibility, and affordability to everyone on the internet. Regardless of age, location, or interests, people all over the world can connect through the community we are cultivating, called Generation XYZ, or #GenXYZ.
The next generation of internet users have really taken on to .xyz. We find so many great .xyz websites on a regular basis that we started sharing them with the world through our weekly #WebsiteWednesday blog posts, on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, and even on a dedicated section of our website. Some of our recent highlights include Gadget Magazine’s new website, GadgetDaily.xyz, a virtual reality digital marketing agency called Lune.xyz, and SideProject.xyz, a site to find collaborators for your projects.
Q: I read that since Alphabet uses the .xyz extension, there is a surge of registered .xyz domain names – topped at 2 million registered .xyz domain names a few weeks ago. Can you elaborate a bit more in term of numbers? Also, please share with us how much big brands impact your sales?
A: .xyz has always been a popular choice amongst internet users because it just makes sense. As the last three letters of the Latin alphabet, .xyz transcends language barriers and instinctively ends your domain name. This is why we’re seeing businesses and individuals all over the world – in countries like China, Japan, and Russia – register short and memorable .xyz domains for their global online presence. Thanks to all of our great end users – not just big brands – there are now over 2.5 million .xyz domains registered worldwide, accordingly to nTLDstats.
Q: I’m sure many of our readers wondered: How to start a domain name business like .xyz? Please kindly share some pointers.
A: .xyz was the first domain extension we launched in June 2014. However, the gears were put in motion much earlier than that – in 2012, we submitted a very detailed application, along with a fee of $185,000 per domain extension, to the governing body of the internet called ICANN (this application process is now closed). After waiting almost a year and a half, we became an accredited registry. Fast forward to 2016, we now operate 9 domain extensions: .xyz, .College, .Rent, .Security, .Protection, .Theatre, .Cars, .Car, and .Auto.
Q: Please share your tips on how to choose the right domain name, including the domain name extension.
A: What’s the purpose? Business, personal, experimental?
We always recommend choosing a short, memorable, and brandable domain name. Forward-thinking businesses and individuals are choosing .xyz because they are able to secure the name they want on an international platform at an affordable price. On the other hand, some businesses want visitors to immediately see that they may be an industry leader, so .College, .Rent, .Security, .Protection, .Theatre, .Cars, .Car, and .Auto are all great choices for them to expand their online presence and rank for their relevant keywords.
Because we made just about every domain available, we think readers would be surprised by all of the great options that they can get right now across our different domain extensions. Just visit your registrar of choice, like GoDaddy.xyz or Namecheap.xyz, and search for your dream domain.
Q: Pitch us: Why should I register an .xyz domain name for my business, and how to register it?
A: It’s instinctive, it’s natural, it makes sense. .xyz is the go-to ending for the next generation of internet users who put flexibility, affordability, and recognition first. When a nonprofit in the UK decided to do a branding overhaul, they upgraded their domain from Homeless-International.org to Reall.xyz (Real Equity for All), which reflected their presence all over the world. When an innovative narration service launched, they chose Elon.xyz because “as any startup knows finding a decent .com is either very time consuming or very costly. We literally just tried punching in various names and found Elon.xyz was available.” Or as Gadget Magazine put it, “if it’s good enough for Alphabet, it’s good enough for us!”
Many thanks, Shayan, for your time!
So, what do you think? Will you buy a .xyz for your business website or upcoming business venture? Why? Please share your thoughts with us.