A LOOK ATTHE DOMAINS SOME COMPANIES USE
DOMAIN NAME: republic. OWNER: Republic Bike, a bicycle manufacturer based in Dania Beach, Florida WHY “.BIKE”? Using republic.bike is a good marketing strategy, appealing to tech-savvy customers who want the latest trends, says Avery Pack, president of the company that sells custom-made bicycles, electronic locking devices and other gear to consumers and companies. “It’s kind of a nod to our customers that what we’re doing is not traditional,” Pack says. STILL HAS THE “.COM”: The company uses republic.bike in ads. It still uses its original domain, republicbike.com; when people type in republic.bike, they’re taken to the “.com” site. DOMAIN NAME: quinn. pr OWNER: Quinn, public relations business based in New York WHY “.PR”? Quinn made the change as part of a company overhaul. It had shortened its name from Quinn & Co. and broadened its customer base beyond travel and real estate clients to include spas, architects and retailers. It chose “.pr” because it described what the company does — public relations. “It’s clearer, it’s fresher and it’s very much my style,” says Florence Quinn, owner of the business. NEW TWIST ON OLD DOMAIN: The company selected “.pr” although it has been the domain used by Puerto Rican companies. If visitors type in the old address, quinnandco. com, they’re taken to quinn.pr. DOMAIN NAME: mytab. travel OWNER: myTab, travel gift card company based in San Francisco WHY “.TRAVEL”? Two reasons, one practical, one strategic. The company had been using the address mytab.co because it couldn’t get a “.com” with its name when it launched in 2013. It would have cost $100,000 to buy the “.com” domain from its current owner, an amount the company couldn’t afford, president Heddi Cundle says. Some people were confused by “.co” and typed the “.com” address, so “.travel” eliminates that problem. The address mytab.travel also lets people know instantly what the company does, Cundle says. NOT-COM A NON-ISSUE: “Nobody has batted an eye. No one even questions it,” Cundle says.
DOMAIN NAMES: pbtk.vegas, certifiedpublicaccountant.vegas ,taxaccountant.vegas, 401kaudit.vegas
OWNER: Piercy Bowler Taylor & Kern, accounting firm with offices in Las Vegas and Salt Lake City
WHY “.VEGAS”?: Using “.vegas” will help the firm be more visible when someone searches for Las Vegas-area accountants with specialties like helping businesses with 401(k) retirement plans, says Shannon Hiller, the firm’s marketing director. Also, the firm was unable to get names like tax accountant. com. The “.vegas” addresses take visitors to the “.com” site, which also serves the Salt Lake City office. SYNONYMOUS WITH AN INDUSTRY: “We thought ‘.vegas’ ties in to our brand because our firm works with gambling and hospitality companies. It’s a good fit,” Hiller says.