Starting Fresh with a Strong Domain Name Portfolio
December 17, 2015
By jbourne
The New Year is another opportunity to reflect on what we want to achieve and what we wish to change. Perhaps make resolutions to pursue a new skill or eat more healthily. For brands this year, it might mean making the resolution the develop a leaner and cleaner domain name portfolio.
A domain name portfolio, like any other part of your company’s digital strategy, needs to do some heavy lifting to help achieve your company’s business goals. In this New Year, here are some questions that brands should be asking themselves to make sure their portfolio is up to the task:
- Have you reviewed the domains in your existing domain name portfolio for their continued relevance and optimal quality?
Each domain name should add strategic value to the portfolio, either to drive traffic to the company’s sites and engagement with its online content or to protect the company’s brands from infringement.
- Are customers able to easily locate and identify your products and services online?
A quality domain name that resolves to relevant, expected content contributes value to a brand, since it ensures that Internet users ultimately arrive at the content they were seeking in the first place, thereby delivering a reliable and positive experience.
- Could you use your existing domains to spotlight upcoming product or service launches?
You may be able to register or purchase some valuable domain names for new ventures.
Overall, if the purpose of a domain name in your existing portfolio is unclear and it is not being used as a current or potential marketing opportunity, you should consider scrapping it and repurposing the costs associated with that domain for better use.
Some other related questions to ask to make sure that you keep that good momentum going:
- Do you have a streamlined approach to which domains company stakeholders are allowed to register?
Consider how domains get into your portfolio. Do you have a clear-cut internal domain registration policy? Having a centralized policy and the right people at the table (across departments like legal and marketing) is important in ensuring that your domain name strategy stays strong over the course of time.
- Could a new gTLD help you achieve your business goals?
Consider what registrations in generic new gTLDs would make strategic sense, but also brainstorm whether your own .BRAND might be a good idea. It’s a long evaluation process that, to paraphrase Nao Matsukata, starts with one question: Would it solve a problem for you?
Get a head-start now. Conduct an in-depth review of your domain name portfolio (we can help) to ensure that you are capturing all potential growth areas and current marketing opportunities. A streamlined portfolio allows you to make the most effective use of your budget and targets the spaces most critical to protecting your brand reputation.
