Politician Uses Generic Domain (and Wins)
Tuesday, May 12th, 2009
Next Austin mayor used AustinLeadership.com as domain name.
This past weekend a typically low turnout of about 12% of registered voters in Austin elected Lee Leffingwell as the new mayor.
Leffingwell caught my attention early in the campaign when I saw one of his road side placards. Instead of using the domain name LeeLeffingwell.com or LeffingwellforMayor.com, the sign simply read:
AustinLeadership.com
This caught my attention because it’s rare to see a politician use a domain name that doesn’t include their name. Think about it. Politicians love themselves. And they need to brand their name in people’s minds so they’ll check the correct box at the polls.
I contacted Leffingwell’s office to find out why he chose the generic domain over his own. Although it hasn’t responded, I suspect it had to do with the complexity of Leffingwell’s name. If you whiz by a sign at 50 miles an hour that reads “LeffingwellforMayor.com” or “LeeLeffingwell.com”, you are unlikely to remember the correct spelling. But “AustinLeadership.com” is easy to remember and spell.
Leffingwell doesn’t own Leffingwell.com, but he does own LeeLeffingwell.com (which is forwarded to AustinLeadership.com).
In general, I think politicians should use their names in a domain name unless it is difficult to spell.
No related posts.
This is what I believe the effect of the U.S government using generic/descriptive domain names.
Discussed this here previously:
http://www.conceptualist.com/2009/01/29/generic-domain-names-get-government-boost-new-us-adminstration-launches-reocoverygov/
Cheers
Sahar
Austinleadership.com sends a clear message of what Lee Leffingwell will provide.
I own texasleadership.com and am waiting for a phone call from Governor Rick Perry or his Republican opponent Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson. I am not donating the name to either gubernatorial campaign
It would seem the name itself was just too odd. If people can’t say it or spell it, that’s two big strikes against you.
On the other hand, everyone understands AustinLeadership.com. A logical choice, and I like the geo play. People relate strongly to their city of residence/business. Can’t go wrong mentioning the city name in the campaign web address.
Ramiro – do you think Leffingwell will be a good leader? Frankly, I was shocked by the outcome of the election. I thought he would come in third. I guess getting the fire, police, and ems unions behind you is a clincher when so few people vote. I haven’t read up much about Leffingwell, so I just don’t know.