Another reason why a COM domain is the only way to go

by donhx
59 replies
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From CNBC on the "Riskiest Places to Use Your Credit Card."

# 10 "Strange and Foreign Domain Extensions -If you're going to be shopping online, it's best to stay with sites that use a .com extension." (http://www.cnbc.com/id/41005646/Risk...ur_Credit_Card - Link added by request).


People trust, and are taught to trust, their credit card data to sites with COM domain names. Using a different extension may be counter-productive.
#domain #reason
  • Profile picture of the author Gene Pimentel
    Nice find Don. Can you give me a link to the article?


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  • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
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    Funny ... I have a lot of sites that are other extensions that do well. I also never read the story referenced as many people probably did not.

    With the shortage of .com's in many niches, using other extensions give you alternatives. I would not however, use many of the country codes, like .in, .cc ... all of those.

    I do use .com, .net, .org, .info, .co. In addition, there are some very large, trusted sites that use .tv and .me, etc.
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    • Profile picture of the author donhx
      Originally Posted by sbucciarel View Post

      Funny ... I have a lot of sites that are other extensions that do well.

      But would they do better if they were COMs?

      However, as you say, other extensions are gaining in trust. The fact that COMs evoke trust doesn't mean they are trustworthy since anyone located anywhere can buy one. It's all about perception.
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      • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
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        Originally Posted by donhx View Post

        But would they do better if they were COMs?

        However, as you say, other extensions are gaining in trust. The fact that COMs evoke trust doesn't mean they are trustworthy since anyone located anywhere can buy one. It's all about perception.
        There's no denying that .com's are better. I'd rather have a .com, but I wouldn't rather have the crappy leftovers if I can get a much better domain in another extension.
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  • Profile picture of the author DFM
    Originally Posted by donhx View Post

    From CNBC on the "Riskiest Places to Use Your Credit Card."

    # 10 "Strange and Foreign Domain Extensions -If you're going to be shopping online, it's best to stay with sites that use a .com extension." (News Headlines - Link added by request).


    People trust, and are taught to trust, their credit card data to sites with COM domain names. Using a different extension may be counter-productive.
    what if you are using content sites targeted with adsense ?
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    • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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      I do see that .com's are better for resale (not a particular concern of mine) and for some other reasons.

      Personally, I have a lot of .info sites that do very well.

      I also own the .com's (which I register at the time I start my sites, just to make sure that nobody else can), but I simply re-direct the .com to the .info and use the .info for my site.

      The reason I've started doing this is that I decided last year that rather than replying on my own preference (.com) and marketers' general preference (.com), I'd ask all my customers and prospective customers what they prefer to see, and what they think "looks best" on my sort of sites and what gives them most confidence in the site.

      And the answer came back ".info", loud and clear, from a big majority of those who expressed a preference, in each of eight different niches.

      It surprised me, at first, but less so when I thought about it, because my niches don't include "IM-advice" or "Make Money Online" and I'm not targeting marketing people who might share all the same assumptions and attitudes as myself ... and my sites are certainly "informational" (or "informative" as we tend to say over here).

      Of course there are still some people (marketers, again!) who imagine, in spite of all Google's and Matt Cutts' persistent efforts to expose this as an urban myth of internet marketing, that .info domains are somehow disadvantaged, compared with .com's, in SEO terms. It's nonsense and it always has been, but what I'm doing wouldn't suit people who still choose to believe it. I think a lot of marketers feel that ".com's evoke trust", but a lot of my customers and prospective customers feel they evoke "pure commercialism" rather than "information". Just a different perspective.
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      • Profile picture of the author donhx
        Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post


        The reason I've started doing this is that I decided last year that rather than replying on my own preference (.com) and marketers' general preference (.com), I'd ask all my customers and prospective customers what they prefer to see, and what they think "looks best" on my sort of sites and what gives them most confidence in the site.

        And the answer came back ".info", loud and clear, from a big majority of those who expressed a preference, in each of eight different niches.
        Hmmmm. This kind of research is a lot like a woman asking if her butt looks big in a particular outfit. A wise man knows there is only one answer, the one the woman wants to hear. Useful, unbiased information only comes from a random sampling of strangers.
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        • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

          This kind of research is a lot like a woman asking if her butt looks big in a particular outfit. A wise man knows there is only one answer, the one the woman wants to hear.
          You seem perhaps to be assuming that I was using the .info domains at the time I asked, Don? What made you imagine that?

          I gave no indication of "what I wanted to hear", obviously - otherwise I wouldn't necessarily have learned anything, would I? :rolleyes:

          (I wanted to hear ".com", anyway!).

          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

          Useful, unbiased information only comes from a random sampling of strangers.
          I wasn't interested in what strangers think. I was interested in what my customers and potential customers thought, because they're representative of people I'm targeting in my various niches . So I asked them. Could I have made it more relevant than that? :confused:
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          • Profile picture of the author donhx
            Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

            You seem perhaps to be assuming that I was using the .info domains at the time I asked, Don? What made you imagine that?

            I gave no indication of "what I wanted to hear", obviously - otherwise I wouldn't have learned anything, would I? :rolleyes:



            I wasn't interested in what strangers think. I was interested in what my customers and potential customers thought, because they're representative of people I'm targeting in my various niches . So I asked them. Could I have made it more relevant than that? :confused:
            I guess the thing that made me think you were using .infos is because you said you were, without clarifying the time frame. It also baffled me that you would buy the .com of the same name and not use it as your primary. To me, that's a less than desirable use of resources.

            It is also interesting to me that you would not use a .com because some people think they are "purely commercial." That sounds more like political correctness than sound business practice. Some might take the opposite view that using .info is just a smokescreen for your otherwise commercial sites.

            And the viewpoint of strangers? Strangers represent a vast pool of potential customers. Pay attention to them above all. That's what the game is all about.
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            • Profile picture of the author Richard Van
              Originally Posted by donhx View Post

              I guess the thing that made me think you were using .infos is because you said you were, without clarifying the time frame. It also baffled me that you would buy the .com of the same name and not use it as your primary. To me, that's a less than desirable use of resources.
              Hang on a second Donhx.

              She has the .com and the .info, she asks her customers, who buy from her, which they prefer and they say .info (loud and clearly if I remember rightly) and you find it baffling she didn't use the .com?
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            • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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              Originally Posted by donhx View Post

              It also baffled me that you would buy the .com of the same name and not use it as your primary. To me, that's a less than desirable use of resources.
              That's because you start off by assuming that it's better to use the .com.

              In contrast, I started off with an open mind and was therefore able to learn something different.

              Originally Posted by donhx View Post

              It is also interesting to me that you would not use a .com because some people think they are "purely commercial." That sounds more like political correctness than sound business practice.
              Whatever you think it sounds like, Don, I'm simply reporting - without judgement or comment - the consensus of opinion I learned from my customers and potential customers by asking them the question rather than making assumptions.

              I'm sorry this seems to be a difficult concept for you.

              I was simply trying to share something pretty surprising (to me) that I learned from the customers and potential customers in each of eight entirely unrelated niches, as I thought others here might be (a) similarly interested, and (b) similarly surprised by it.

              I apologise for posting in your thread. Next time, I'll try to remember that "new information", "factual testing results" and "different perspectives" may be unwelcome. :rolleyes:
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              • Profile picture of the author donhx
                Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

                That's because you start off by assuming that it's better to use the .com.

                In contrast, I started off with an open mind and was therefore able to learn something different.

                Whatever you think it sounds like, Don, I'm simply reporting - without judgement or comment - the consensus of opinion I learned from my customers and potential customers by asking them the question rather than making assumptions.

                I'm sorry this seems to be a difficult concept for you.

                I was simply trying to share something pretty surprising (to me) that I learned from the customers and potential customers in each of eight entirely unrelated niches, as I thought others here might be (a) similarly interested, and (b) similarly surprised by it.

                I apologise for posting in your thread. Next time, I'll try to remember that "new information", "factual testing results" and "different perspectives" may be unwelcome. :rolleyes:

                Sorry you feel that way, Alexa, especially since you are a valued member of this community.

                I understand. In my OP I was just reporting too.
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            • Profile picture of the author Black Hat Cat
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              Originally Posted by donhx View Post


              It is also interesting to me that you would not use a .com because some people think they are "purely commercial." That sounds more like political correctness than sound business practice.
              Sounds more like it's made up to me, lol. And speaking of "made up":

              Most people prefer .info sites when they want to know something.

              They prefer .com sites when they want to buy something.

              Search your feelings, you know this to be true.
              One, it's not about "feelings", it's about reality, and two, I doubt most people even know there is a .info, let alone prefer it over .com for anything...well, unless you're Alexa, lol.
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        • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

          Useful, unbiased information only says stuff I like.
          Fixed that for you.

          Most people prefer .info sites when they want to know something.

          They prefer .com sites when they want to buy something.

          Search your feelings, you know this to be true.

          In most non-IM niches, an infoproduct is sold to people who want to know something. They did not intend to buy anything.

          So a .info site is actually preferable.

          Now, if what you are concerned about is search rankings or resale value... yeah, you'll pretty much always do better with a .com domain.

          But some of us don't give a damn about those, and are primarily concerned with our customers.
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          • Profile picture of the author donhx
            Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

            Fixed that for you.
            Huh? Just a second, let me get my decoder ring out to understand what you mean.



            Most people prefer .info sites when they want to know something.

            They prefer .com sites when they want to buy something.
            I would love to see the research on this. Source?

            Personally, I found the CNBC quote interesting because it deals with perceptions. And perception is extremely important in IM.

            I think most people get .net, .info and others simply because they cannot get the key word they want in .com. As long as perceptions prevail, as they do in most human activity, a .com is still probably the best choice in the IM world if the name you want is available.
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            • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
              Originally Posted by donhx View Post

              I would love to see the research on this.
              So would I.

              You can go waste your time looking for it, I have work to do.

              Post the link when you find it.
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              "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
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              • Profile picture of the author donhx
                Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

                So would I.

                You can go waste your time looking for it, I have work to do.

                Post the link when you find it.
                You made strong assertions when you said,

                Most people prefer .info sites when they want to know something.

                They prefer .com sites when they want to
                buy something.

                I would not waste my time seeking a reliable source in support of them because I don't think they are based in fact. But I am always open to valid research (not the anecdotal kind) and am willing to grow and learn if you find useful information on this topic.
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                • Profile picture of the author Richard Van
                  Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                  You made strong assertions when you said,

                  Most people prefer .info sites when they want to know something.

                  They prefer .com sites when they want to
                  buy something.

                  I would not waste my time seeking a reliable source in support of them because I don't think they are based in fact. But I am always open to valid research (not the anecdotal kind) and am willing to grow and learn if you find useful information on this topic.
                  It's funny Donx, Ed Dales "The challenge" is at challenge.co so technically, according to CNBC, no one should ever do the challenge or buy hosting or whatever through the challenge, because Ed's in Australia but the domain reflects Columbia.

                  Like I said earlier, you prefer .com and you refuse to accept that could be wrong. That's why this slide show interested you so much. It fitted in with what you want to believe.

                  You made strong assertions when you said,
                  You made strong assertions by taking a misguided CNBC snippet of bad advice, about "Risky places to use credit cards" and turning it round into a survey of why people trust .com more than anything else, when it simply isn't that at all.

                  So for you Don, only buy .coms and if you ever find a profitable niche you know you could dominate, abandon it like hot cakes if you can't get a .com.

                  Anyway, you carry on ignoring me. :rolleyes:
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                • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
                  Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                  You made strong assertions
                  Yes. Yes, I did.

                  I don't think they are based in fact.
                  I'd love to see the research on that...
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                  • Profile picture of the author donhx
                    Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

                    Yes. Yes, I did.



                    I'd love to see the research on that...

                    lol... you're just toying with me now. Are we having fun yet?

                    Opinions, by definition, cannot be substantiated by research. If one can be, it's not an opinion, but a fact.

                    Dogmatic statements like yours beg to be substantiated. No research is needed on my statements because I have encoded them with "IMO," "In my view, " "I think," "it seems" and other clues that I am merely expressing an opinion. Opinions are good no matter who expresses them. Just don't confuse them with facts.
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                    • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
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                      Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                      lol... you're just toying with me now. Are we having fun yet?

                      Opinions, by definition, cannot be substantiated by research. If one can be, it's not an opinion, but a fact.

                      Dogmatic statements like yours beg to be substantiated. No research is needed on my statements because I have encoded them with "IMO," "In my view, " "I think," "it seems" and other clues that I am merely expressing an opinion. Opinions are good no matter who expresses them. Just don't confuse them with facts.
                      Is not "COM domain is the only way to go" a dogmatic statement that begs to be substantiated? There is no IMO in the OP title. It is stated as a fact. Substantiation seems to be some article someone wrote.

                      Choosing the extension that is best for your purpose really depends on a great deal on how you want to use the domain. .Com's are best for some purposes, but not all.

                      If I were targeting the UK market for example, I would go with a .co.uk, which is a highly trusted extension in the UK. I would choose a .com for an ecommerce site with physical products, but don't feel that is necessary for digital products. I also prefer a .com for a Google News site. A .tv is actually a great extension for multi-media site. .nets, .orgs and .infos have served me very well in the serps for some of my sites and a .co that I bought beat a .com in my niche in Google and sales are great for a digital product. In fact, in this niche, the target market is largely computer illiterate but manage to find my father's site for the information and the ebook. They don't even know what a domain extension is or why it would matter.
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                      • Profile picture of the author donhx
                        Originally Posted by sbucciarel View Post

                        Is not "COM domain is the only way to go" a dogmatic statement that begs to be substantiated? There is no IMO in the OP title. It is stated as a fact. Substantiation seems to be some article someone wrote.

                        Well, I did substantiate it with the link to CNBC. They are creating the perception about Com's in that article, and that's it significance. In my OP I did say, "Using a different extension MAY BE counter-productive."

                        Thanks for your compliment on my headline, however. Looks like you put a lot of weight behind it, so it served its purpose. Even headlines in papers don't tell the full story, as you know, they are just there to attract attention.


                        Choosing the extension that is best for your purpose really depends on a great deal on how you want to use the domain. .Com's are best for some purposes, but not all.

                        If I were targeting the UK market for example, I would go with a .co.uk, which is a highly trusted extension in the UK.
                        Yes, I agree totally. In the past, I targeted certain countries and always used their country extension. I also have had reasons to use org's at various times. Org's have a tremendous trust factor when used properly.

                        Nevertheless, CNBC is reinforcing the perception that .coms are more trustworthy. If you are interested in making money online, I would say that people ought to pay attention to that perception.
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                        • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
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                          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                          Nevertheless, CNBC is reinforcing the perception that .coms are more trustworthy. If you are interested in making money online, I would say that people ought to pay attention to that perception.
                          Well crap. Wish I'd have known about CNBC's opinion 12 years ago when I became a full time Internet Marketer and have supported myself with my income ever since. Dag. I'd probably be a billionaire by now.
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                        • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
                          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                          Well, I did substantiate it with the link to CNBC.
                          But CNBC are not internet experts. Many of us here, on the other hand, are. When a bunch of us don't agree with CNBC, chances are you shouldn't either.

                          You don't have to accept that I'm an expert, or that Suzanne's an expert, or that Alexa's an expert, or that Dan's an expert.

                          But surely you accept that at least one of us is an expert, don't you?

                          How many people need to say "dude, this is completely wrong" before you start thinking maybe... just maybe... it's completely wrong?
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                        • Profile picture of the author Richard Van
                          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                          Well, I did substantiate it with the link to CNBC. They are creating the perception about Com's in that article, and that's it significance.
                          There is only one clear pattern... that CNBC says people can have greater trust with their credit cards at .com sites. Thousands of people read and believe that.
                          This is, for the fourth time what it says, it's also a paragraph, not an article. It doesn't say .coms are more trustworthy at all, it simply says, their made up opinion, to be careful when not using one.

                          Please read it for what it says and not what you want it to say. Here we go again...

                          If you're going to be shopping online, it's best to stay with sites that use a .com extension. And be sure they have a secure checkout. With extensions for countries outside the U.S.— like .ru for Russia — use caution and make sure the company you're purchasing from is actually located in the country depicted in the domain extension.
                          As I've said before, if you take it literally to be true, you will never buy anything again unless it's a .com and therefore, as .com is American, you will only ever be able to buy from .coms situated in America. Nothing wrong with that, just seems a bit silly.

                          You are also one of the few people I know that believes everything they read in the news. Everything they want to believe anyway.

                          You'll like this though Donhx, the Ritz hotel in London has the URL theritzcarlton.com, so maybe they know something CNBC know? Sadly though CNBC goes onto say...

                          make sure the company you're purchasing from is actually located in the country depicted in the domain extension.
                          Whoops, make sure not to stay in the most luxurious hotel in London if you ever come here, it's got an iffy domain ending.
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                    • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
                      Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                      lol... you're just toying with me now. Are we having fun yet?
                      Actually, yes. My work day has started and I'm still here. The evidence suggests I must like this.

                      There's a pattern to your posts on this issue.

                      You come in here and say "I have found this article that says something about .COM domains being better for some specific reason, therefore you should only ever buy .COM domains."

                      A bunch of other people - many of us the same ones over and over - come in here and say "first, that is not what the article says; second, that is simply not true."

                      And you argue that we are not showing you the research to prove what we are saying.

                      But you are not showing us the research to prove what YOU are saying, either. All you're doing is cherry-picking all the articles that say what you like, and posting them in here as "evidence" to prove your point.

                      I am not here to change your mind. You are beyond help. You have made up your mind, and nothing will change it.

                      I am here to tell everybody else that I don't agree with you.

                      That way, everybody else gets to decide whether they believe you... or me.

                      I don't have any research studies to prove what I said, no.

                      I also don't have any research studies to prove that bananas are yellow.

                      In fact, bananas are not always yellow; they start green, then turn yellow, then brown, then black. In fact, during most of their existence on the planet, bananas are NOT yellow - and they will spend less time yellow than they spend any other colour.

                      But go ask people on the street what colour a banana is.
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                      "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
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                      • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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                        Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

                        I also don't have any research studies to prove that bananas are yellow. In fact, bananas are not always yellow; they start green, then turn yellow, then brown, then black. In fact, during most of their existence on the planet, bananas are NOT yellow - and they will spend less time yellow than they spend any other colour. But go ask people on the street what colour a banana is.
                        That part was really very good. (You even spelled "colour" correctly.) I might steal that.
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                        • Profile picture of the author myob
                          Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

                          You even spelled "colour" correctly
                          Wrong. The only correct way to spell it is "color". Caliban, you should know better than that. :p
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                        • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
                          I think the bigger story is how the news media, even the online news media, dumbs things down.

                          It would probably take longer to explain that the TLD is not an accurate assessment of how trustworthy a site is. Someone may have gone with .net or .biz or whatever not because he is a shady character but because the .com wasn't available. Doesn't make that person any less trustworthy than the guy that lucked out and got the .com he wanted.

                          It's not like there is any organization that verifies a .com buyer, as opposed to a .info buyer. If you have ten bucks, you can get whatever one you want.

                          And, what about hyphenated domains? They don't warn against that. I mean, paypal.com is obviously taken. But, if I'm a shady character, maybe I'll look for pay-pal.com or pp-paypal.com or paypal-payment-processing.com or something so I'll have a .com and look, apparently, legit.

                          One could go on and on. But, rather than try to explain things and provide people with information that might actually be useful, they dumb it down and suggest people avoid anything but a .com.

                          And, by doing so, they are hurting their readers by providing them insufficient and not entirely accurate information as well as hurting tons of non-.com websites out there that are perfectly legit.

                          And newspapers wonder why they do poorly in print as well as online.
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                      • Profile picture of the author donhx
                        Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

                        Actually, yes. My work day has started and I'm still here. The evidence suggests I must like this.
                        Ahh ha!



                        There's a pattern to your posts on this issue.

                        You come in here and say "I have found this article that says something about .COM domains being better for some specific reason, therefore you should only ever buy .COM domains." ....... etc
                        There is only one clear pattern... that CNBC says people can have greater trust with their credit cards at .com sites. Thousands of people read and believe that. I simply reported it.

                        I want people to use their credit cards on my sites, so I want to build maximum trust, even down to the domain name.

                        Others are reporting that they are having good success with other domains. Me too in certain cases, as I have said in earlier posts.

                        Your banana illustration reinforces my point. I want to sell yellow bananas because that is the perception people have of bananas. If the perception is that .coms are more trustworthy for transactions, then I would use a .com.



                        I am here to tell everybody else that I don't agree with you.

                        That way, everybody else gets to decide whether they believe you... or me.
                        Our purposes are different. I am not here to divide, but to inform. It's not personal with me and I don't care what or who people believe. I was just sharing an interesting item from CNBC.
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                        • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
                          EDIT: I was completely wrong in this post. Don has never started a thread about this before.

                          Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                          There is only one clear pattern... that CNBC says
                          Don, you post about this a lot, and it's not always about CNBC.

                          It is, however, almost always about "SEE I TOLD YOU TO ONLY BUY .COM DOMAINS!"

                          Those who haven't watched you do this for the last several months might think you're just being helpful, but the fact is, you're pushing an agenda.

                          EDIT: Again, I was wrong. Don has never posted a thread about this before.
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                          • Profile picture of the author donhx
                            Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

                            Don, you post about this a lot, and it's not always about CNBC.

                            It is, however, almost always about "SEE I TOLD YOU TO ONLY BUY .COM DOMAINS!"

                            Those who haven't watched you do this for the last several months might think you're just being helpful, but the fact is, you're pushing an agenda.
                            Huh? Where did that come from?

                            I would invite anyone to search all of my posts to see if the above statement is a true or totally and completely bogus.

                            I have no agenda about .coms and have never posted on this topic before to the best of my knowledge. Any suggestion otherwise is pure mischief-making.

                            In fact, there are earlier posts in this thread where I have said I have used domains other than .com, so how could these comments be true? They are total fiction, and it boggles the mind why someone would need to make up things about matters that can be so easily checked.
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                            • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
                              Originally Posted by donhx View Post

                              I would invite anyone to search all of my posts to see if the above statement is a true or totally and completely bogus.
                              I did precisely that, to prove that I was completely and totally infallible and had in fact laid the smackdown on this recurring troll about the whole dot-com issue.

                              Trouble is, the statement is totally and completely bogus.

                              If I wanted to play the "woulda-coulda-shoulda" game, I'd say "I should have done that to start with" or even tried to pretend I usually do.

                              The fact is, I got a little swelled-head about the whole thing, thought for sure I'd seen that avatar post this exact same thing several times before... and didn't check.

                              Don has never posted a thread about this before. I was totally and completely wrong. I have no explanation or excuse for why I was wrong, but I was - and I'm sorry.

                              Don, you're also getting a groveling PM about this in a couple minutes.
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                              "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
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                              • Profile picture of the author Gene Pimentel
                                Awesome dude. Respect.


                                Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

                                The fact is, I got a little swelled-head about the whole thing, thought for sure I'd seen that avatar post this exact same thing several times before... and didn't check.

                                Don has never posted a thread about this before. I was totally and completely wrong. I have no explanation or excuse for why I was wrong, but I was - and I'm sorry.

                                Don, you're also getting a groveling PM about this in a couple minutes.
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            • Profile picture of the author Richard Van
              Originally Posted by donhx View Post

              Personally, I found the CNBC quote interesting because it deals with perceptions. And perception is extremely important in IM.
              Sorry? It deals with CNBC's perception. Read it again...

              If you're going to be shopping online, it's best to stay with sites that use a .com extension. And be sure they have a secure checkout. With extensions for countries outside the U.S. — like .ru for Russia — use caution and make sure the company you're purchasing from is actually located in the country depicted in the domain extension.
              It's advice, where is the survey and who are the people that have been researched?

              It's simply advice and jolly convenient advice too, as I said earlier it recommends only buying from .coms in America.

              I think most people get .net, .info and others simply because they cannot get the key word they want in .com.
              Perhaps in your opinion Donhx but the awful snippet of info that seems to be CNBC's misguided opinion doesn't mention any of the those domains. It purely talks about country domains.

              It appears your perception is that that this "slide", matches your perceptions of what's best.
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        • Profile picture of the author Richard Van
          If you're going to be shopping online, it's best to stay with sites that use a .com extension. And be sure they have a secure checkout. With extensions for countries outside the U.S. — like .ru for Russia — use caution and make sure the company you're purchasing from is actually located in the country depicted in the domain extension.
          Sounds like out and out scaremongering.

          It's also talking about country extensions, so they haven't even covered .info,.net,.gov or .edu.

          "Don't buy any Russian Vodka from that site, it's a .ru and not a .com" but then it say's...

          use caution and make sure the company you're purchasing from is actually located in the country depicted in the domain extension.
          So if you wanted to buy Russian Vodka it would need to be a .com but then, if the company was in Russia, it wouldn't be located in the country depicted in the domain extension.

          Sounds to me like - only spend money on .coms in America. Hmmm. It also means anyone outside of America, selling anything on a .com, shouldn't be trusted and you should use caution.

          Useful, unbiased information only comes from a random sampling of strangers.
          Yes but in this case who exactly was sampled? It looks to me more like advice, than any study of what people preferred. I can't find anywhere on there saying people trust credit card data with .coms. Rather they're telling people to use .coms. It's just a slideshow called "Riskiest places to use your credit card".

          Where's the survey of anyone's opinion?

          Or have I missed something?
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      • Profile picture of the author Jeff Hampton
        Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

        Of course there are still some people (marketers, again!) who imagine, in spite of all Google's and Matt Cutts' persistent efforts to expose this as an urban myth of internet marketing, that .info domains are somehow disadvantaged, compared with .com's, in SEO terms. It's nonsense and it always has been..
        Consider this: It is possible that Cutts is telling the truth -- that in Google's algorithm .info is treated just like .com -- AND that there is an SEO disadvantage to .info. How could that be true? Linkbuilding.

        It comes down to the same perception problem, but this time it is the perception held by blog owners, forum moderators, Web 2.0 reviewers, etc. -- anyone may generate organic links for you or who has control over your link you have placed. I suspect that links to .info (or domains with multiple hyphens for that matter) are less likely to be place or to get approved/more likely to get removed. This is based on the human reviewers perception that these domains are more likely to be spammy.
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        • Profile picture of the author howinfo
          Originally Posted by Jeff Hampton View Post

          It comes down to the same perception problem, but this time it is the perception held by blog owners, forum moderators, Web 2.0 reviewers, etc. -- anyone may generate organic links for you or who has control over your link you have placed. I suspect that links to .info (or domains with multiple hyphens for that matter) are less likely to be place or to get approved/more likely to get removed. This is based on the human reviewers perception that these domains are more likely to be spammy.
          I just went through my banned email list on our forum and out of about 5 thousand emails that we have banned .com is on a second place right after .ru then there are quite a lot .net’s and only very few .org’s and .info.s and so far no .biz or .us .eu


          Banning a domain, I never ban it because of its extension ( is suppose I can do it with .ru ) there must be some other reason for that, ether the person has been spamming or the domain comes up in Stop Forum Spam database.

          As using my credit card online then I always go by the site itself not by the domain extension, I would happily buy form aeroflot.ru if they would sell something I need. And buying form some unknown, small site I always use PayPal so no problem there either. If they have the product and they got PayPal option then it can be .biz ( noting wrong with .biz ) I will buy form them.
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          • Profile picture of the author Jeff Hampton
            Originally Posted by howinfo View Post

            I just went through my banned email list on our forum and out of about 5 thousand emails that we have banned .com is on a second place right after .ru then there are quite a lot .net's and only very few .org's and .info.s and so far no .biz or .us .eu
            Is that based on raw numbers or percentages? If it's raw numbers, it doesn't necessarily tell us much about .com vs .info as the sheer number of .coms is also likely far higher.

            I would be interested to hear the ratio of banned vs. approved .com and the same for .info.
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            • Profile picture of the author howinfo
              Originally Posted by Jeff Hampton View Post

              Is that based on raw numbers or percentages? If it's raw numbers, it doesn't necessarily tell us much about .com vs .info as the sheer number of .coms is also likely far higher.

              I would be interested to hear the ratio of banned vs. approved .com and the same for .info.
              I am not entirely sure how the list of top extensions would go but I think it is something like that:
              1. .com
              2. .de
              3. .net
              4. .co.uk
              5. .org
              6. .info
              7. .biz
              .info most likely will overtake some of them in the near future. I do agree that there are lot more .com that any other extensions therefore it is logical that they dominate in the search engines and dominate also in our forum's most banned list but the other extension are still not represented as much as their registration numbers would suggest. Unless I do really underestimate the number of .com that are out there to scammers and spammers are actually preferring .com to hide behind it's so called trusted reputation.
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  • Profile picture of the author Gene Pimentel
    I agree Suzanne. The problem I see here is that because reputable news stations publish this type of drivel, it causes more consumers to distrust anything other than .COM. It's taking the fears of a tiny percentage of the consumer population and causing the fear to spread - much like a self-fulfilling prophecy.

    This kind of thinking is exactly why the economy is the way it is. Fear = consumer hesitancy, which in turn causes the economy to stay where it is.

    That is not going to change, so it's important for a domainer to pay attention to the consumer "pulse".
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  • Profile picture of the author allenjohn
    Hi - I think .co.uk is just as good, even maybe better, if selling to a UK audience. May be the same for other country codes sich as com.au etc.

    Regards Allen
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  • Profile picture of the author Coby
    Very interesting. People are taught to trust and distrust things when they should sometimes just use their best judgement. This is why .info domains get a bad rep. Thanks for the share
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    • Profile picture of the author celente
      Originally Posted by Coby View Post

      Very interesting. People are taught to trust and distrust things when they should sometimes just use their best judgement. This is why .info domains get a bad rep. Thanks for the share
      that is right, i do not think it looks professional either. They are classed as spammy junk sometimes too.

      Last info site I looked at I got a nasty virus, no it was not a naughty site.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rob Howard
    Wow. What nonsense CNBC is posting. Anyone can buy a .com for 8 bucks at godaddy with a coupon code.

    The sad part is someone will probably get duped after reading this article and trusting the duper because it's "a .com".

    Ridiculous.

    Anyway, carry on.

    Rob
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  • Profile picture of the author Gene Pimentel
    Just wanted to add, the link to the article is a set of slides... and the one reflecting this topic is slide #10 (News Headlines)
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  • Profile picture of the author Ian Varnava
    That article is just spreading fear. It seems to be more of an advertisement for "creditcards.com" since each slide excerpt has "source: creditcards.com" under it. They probably paid for CNBC to put that article up.

    If I was to implement every single 'suggestion' they're making in that article into my life, I might as well lock my door, board it up, and never set foot outside home again. I'll have to cut off my internet connection as well.
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    • Profile picture of the author DireStraits
      Originally Posted by Ian Varnava View Post

      That article is just spreading fear.

      If I was to implement every single 'suggestion' they're making in that article into my life, I might as well lock my door, board it up, and never set foot outside home again. I'll have to cut off my internet connection as well.
      As someone who more or less tried that for a couple of years (minus the cutting off the 'net), I would strongly advise against it. I started out a respectable young man, and came out a pessimistic, bearded, grunting, foul-smelling caveman. It's just a good job I'm only promoting stuff through the 'net, otherwise no-one would ever buy anything through me.

      Originally Posted by donhx View Post

      That sounds more like political correctness than sound business practice.
      Uh oh, did someone just accuse Alexa of being politically correct? Gosh, I revoke all I said above. Lock yourselves in your homes - the apocalypse is coming!!
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      • Profile picture of the author Richard Van
        Originally Posted by DireStraits View Post

        As someone who more or less tried that for a couple of years (minus the cutting off the 'net), I would strongly advise against it. I started out a respectable young man, and came out a pessimistic, bearded, grunting, foul-smelling caveman. It's just a good job I'm only promoting stuff through the 'net, otherwise no-one would ever buy anything through me.
        Was this photo taken at the end of your self imposed enclosure then?

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        • Profile picture of the author DireStraits
          Originally Posted by Richard Van View Post

          Was this photo taken at the end of your self imposed enclosure then?

          LOL. Not me, but close a enough representation all the same for me not to argue with it.
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  • Profile picture of the author JamieSEO
    Customer perception = Marketing reality

    .com's have in my experience instilled more confidence in buyers than other domain extensions I have used.

    For anyone that has been at all involved in corporate level marketing you know that perception is everything!

    Eg.

    If people feel safer with an extra light on their train platform then you add it. It increases customer confidence in using the service... it does not actually do a thing to make them any safer, but because they perceive it as safer you get more customers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Lee Belch
    .com and .org are the top level domains, google even states this if you read through there stuff on webmaster tools.
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  • Profile picture of the author Teravel
    It's CNBC, the article was probly paid to be listed on their website. I wonder who the owner of that ad could be. Oh wait, its creditcards.com which is an affiliate blog that leads you to places like Citibank and Capitalone websites.

    Also, I wouldn't trust anyone that says that Bank of America is "Secure" (Slide 3 or 4 I believe). Not only does Bank of America have strange ways of doing business (Such as giving loans and credit cards to anyone that asks politely), but they also have extremely poor customer service.

    In truth, people need to not worry about the domain extension so much, and start looking at who the reputable sites are for collecting your money and making sure it is safe.
    I have been to a lot of .com websites where I wouldn't put my credit/debit info on there if I was paid to do it. I have also had a lot of successful transactions with no ill effects, through websites with .info, .ws, and even .biz sites.

    Besides, why would you trust a News Site over professionals that do this on a daily basis?

    Hmmmm. This kind of research is a lot like a woman asking if her butt looks big in a particular outfit. A wise man knows there is only one answer, the one the woman wants to hear. Useful, unbiased information only comes from a random sampling of strangers.
    A strong relationship deserves honesty over "What a woman wants to hear". I am sure if a dress made your girls behind look big, and you told her the honest truth when she asks... That she would thank you and change to something that looks a little more appealing. This is generally because woman want to look good so their men can feel more confident by being with a beautiful woman. If only men could stop dropping the ball and dress well for their women.

    Personally, I found the CNBC quote interesting because it deals with perceptions. And perception is extremely important in IM.
    This article was written by someone that owns CreditCards . com, and it is written in a way that will bring traffic to their website. The content could be 100% real, or 100% Bull****. As marketers, we need to test these things ourselves, and not just agree with whatever we read on a news site. I have had much more success with .info than I have with .com sites.

    Edit so not to double post:

    Wrong. The only correct way to spell it is "color". Caliban, you should know better than that.
    The Americanised english that you have learned to read and write over the years has been pushed through multiple grinders, and spat out as the crap that it is today. While we as Americans believe the world owes us something, we take what is rightfully not ours, and mangle it till it shows no resemblance of what it once was. We did it to our culture. We did it to our society. But it all started with this mangled language we know today. The honesty is, the proper spelling is Colour.

    I couldn't help myself... Was an english major for 2 years, and I hate when ignorant people try to push their spat out crap in other peoples faces. (Not that I am calling you ignorant... More like the American School systems.)
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  • Profile picture of the author DrewClement
    What a train wreck of a thread.

    The plain and simple fact is that if you are building a business you should do everything within your means to get the COM.

    Even in Alexa's argument she clearly states over and over again that she does in fact own both the .info and the .com.....yet simply redirects the .com to her .info.

    Do you guys not see how that argument alone substantiates what CNBC are saying?

    Direct type ins are crucial. Users will very VERY often type in .com naturally if they remember the "name of your website".

    If you ever are starting a site and business, and you pass on purchasing the .com even though it is available....you are practically begging for a traffic leak.

    is .com always better than .info? Of course not.

    Is owning both always better than owning just one? Yes.
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    • Profile picture of the author myob
      Originally Posted by myob View Post

      Wrong. The only correct way to spell it is "color". Caliban, you should know better than that. :p


      Originally Posted by Teravel View Post

      ...The Americanised english that you have learned to read and write over the years has been pushed through multiple grinders, and spat out as the crap that it is today. While we as Americans believe the world owes us something, we take what is rightfully not ours, and mangle it till it shows no resemblance of what it once was. We did it to our culture. We did it to our society. But it all started with this mangled language we know today. The honesty is, the proper spelling is Colour.

      I couldn't help myself... Was an english major for 2 years, and I hate when ignorant people try to push their spat out crap in other peoples faces. (Not that I am calling you ignorant... More like the American School systems.)
      Lighten up me laddie. 'Twas just a bit o' bloody humour. :rolleyes:
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  • Profile picture of the author Johnny12345
    Of all the domains I own, only one is an INFO.

    Why?

    Because COM is almost always the assumed domain extension.

    Nobody says to go to "eBay.COM" -- they just say go to "eBay." The COM is -- once again -- assumed.

    I see no need to fight the collective consciousness of the Internet (regardless what color bananas may or may not be).

    If you've watched so much as Season 1 of "House, M.D." you know that Dr. House's first rule is that people lie. So I see no point in asking them.

    I just use COM. It's the safe bet.

    John
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  • Profile picture of the author iMarketiWin
    the number one misspelled entry when trying to reach a .com is accidentally typing .co and then hitting enter. oops!

    guess it was a smart idea for me to buy all of my competitors .co sites

    traffic increased dramatically after doing so!

    no lie
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  • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
    Banned
    Here's another reason why .com isn't the only game in town
    AfternicDLS Solves Aftermarket Puzzle to Claim Top Two Spots on This Week's Domain Sales Chart

    Just look at all the high dollar sales for this period for non-.com domains
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  • Profile picture of the author JSProjects
    I really hate mainstream media sometimes. Your credit card information is just as "unsafe" on .com domains as it is anywhere else. Seems like a really stupid statement.

    I mainly focus on .info domains. Why? Because most of my sites are informational, reviews, etc. Also, people are terrified of trying to rank .info domains, which usually leaves plenty of good ones.
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