Getting It
October 11, 2011
By jbourne
On Monday, The Business Insider featured an article about new gTLDs written by Steven Cook, former CMO, North America for Samsung Electronics SVP and former P&G and Coca-Cola global brand marketer; and Jim Rogers, VP of Marketing at Enterprise Services. The article took a different approach from the ones we normally see, and considered new gTLDs from the perspective of brand affinity.
There is no one-size-fits-all formula to achieve brand affinity, the authors argue. However, in order to start building it, all brands must work on two things: connectivity and engagement. New gTLDs offer brands the ability to control both sides of the “dot” in their domain names, something they never had access to before. If they choose to put their brand name on the right side of the dot, then the left side (the second level of the domain) remains open for brands to use to create a real connection with their audience. Some may choose to use this opportunity to offer customers a personalized domain, as we discussed in our YourName.Here post, enforcing the connection that the customer feels with that brand.
What’s refreshing about this article is that while the authors stand behind their argument, they also admit that new gTLDs will not be an infallible panacea to automatically skyrocket all brands to the status of Apple, Harley-Davidson or other high-affinity “love brands”. They simply recognize that new gTLDs have the potential to become new marketing tools, without swearing their undying allegiance to the “Dot-Brand Revolution,” as others have.
This article is a great read for both brand owners, and anyone who is curious about new gTLDs.
