First Come – First Serve
The Significance of Internet Domains for an Enterprise
The foundation for a successful presentation of an enterprise or product on the Internet is frequently a matter of the reachability and acceptance by potential end customers. The possible loss of visitors owing to complicated URLs or domain names similar to those of the competition, leads to a dwindling of the visitor flow. Skillful handling of a domain portfolio can prevent this. Optimization must be planned at an early stage because a domain name can for technical reasons be issued only once and may even be registered by the competition. The domain name is then no longer available.
According to press information of the German Association for Information Technology, Telecommunications, and New Media (BITKOM, 2007), 73% of all German companies have their own Web site so that in these days of globalization they can present their services and products on the worldwide network or establish business relationships via e-mail. All domain names are based on the Domain Name System (DNS) which plays a decisive role thanks to the simply defined form of nomenclature for Internet services and is therefore responsible for the success of the Internet.
Domains must be used strategically
As of December 2008 (Verisign, The Domain Name Industry Brief), more than 174 million domain names have already been registered, making the selection of an available domain name complicated. As the registration figures continue to grow and the list of available names becomes shorter, the search for a succinct and clearly identifiable domain name for companies becomes more difficult. The domain has gained a status as a limited commercial resource because from a marketing viewpoint a company must register a domain name which is as simple and self-explanatory as possible so that end users can find the site without expending a lot of time and energy for the search.
From the viewpoint of the enterprise, the domain is an important advertising instrument for communication of advertising messages and for the presentation of a company or a brand which is repeatedly retrieved by end users. Companies such as eBay, Amazon, or Google first became possible through the Internet and can be reached under the same (brand) name on the Internet, e.g., www.ebay.de or www.google.de. The unique distinguishing features related to the selection and significance of domain names are becoming more and more important due to the steady increase in competition on the Internet. From a company viewpoint, it is relevant to possess a well-structured and consolidated domain portfolio and to close possible name omissions in the portfolio at an early stage.
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