This company realized a .io domain wouldn’t cut it.
Here’s another cool story about a company realizing the importance of owning the ideal domain name and paying for it.
Snappa upgraded from Snappa.io to Snappa.com for $40,000. You can read the full story here, but here are the highlights:
Inspired by Sumo.com: the founders were inspired by Noah Kagan’s podcast about why he paid $1.5 million for Sumo.com.
Also inspired by Teamwork.com: they also saw a presentation about the growth of TeamworkPM.net when it bought Teamwork.com.
People were confused by the .io domain: some customers emailed asking why their site was down because they went to snappa.com instead of snappa.io.
Legitimacy: they wanted to own the .com to show they were legit.
They could pay over time: Like Sumo.com, they agreed to pay some upfront ($20k) and the rest over time.
The blog post outlines the negotiations as well. It’s quite interesting.
Michael Castello says
There’s a lot of reality in this article. Sometimes it can be just that simple.
I love to see a follow up on stories like this; check back in a year or so later to see what the results where from the purchase.
Acro says
Dot .io is by far one of the least appealing (cc)TLDs for practical use. Start-ups should know better. I’d go with a .com or, lacking that, a meaningful keyword+gTLD instead of .io, .ai and the like.
I recently blogged about a personal experience: http://acro.net/blog/domains-versus-fancy-pants-and-a-fashionable-com-upgrade-to-a-io/
Alexv says
I think .io began the era of fail start-ups for millenials, is a very old tld, but not appealing for the public in general, is an extension to a .com for those that survive…
Been There, Done That says
Thanks Andrew — great article.
Note, however, this comment from Christopher’s blog post: “Your preferred domain name will always be there waiting for you when the time is right.”
As all those many companies who lose out on a great .com domain each and every year know only too well and too late, believing this is a terrible mistake. Plus, once some other operating (or startup) company snaps up the unique .com you really wanted, it will likely never be for sale again.
Game over.
Mike says
This article is a little misleading, I suspect because the author owns no .io domains and is invested in .com domains
I invest in .io domains so I’ll present another viewpoint
Snappa.io is a shitty .io domain. With a domain like that, you might as well get the .com, although they way overpaid for it
Whereas something like cloud.io is worth more than snappa.com
Joseph Peterson says
So you agree with the author: “This company realized a .io domain [Snappa.io] wouldn’t cut it.”
I don’t think Andrew meant by this that any or every .IO wouldn’t cut it. Just “a” particular domain. And since they paid $40k for an upgrade or brand protection, the owners obviously agree too.
Mike says
Check this out – apx-labs.com (which has raised over $13M) just upgraded their domain/rebranded from a .com to upskill.io:
http://dcinno.streetwise.co/2017/03/20/with-rebrand-upskill-sees-bright-future-in-wearable-devices/
https://techcrunch.com/2015/11/18/apx-labs-grabs-13-million-for-enterprise-smart-glasses-platform/
Joseph Peterson says
@Mike,
Interesting story. I agree, Upskill.io is an improvement over apx-labs.com. Arguably, Upskill.com would also be an upgrade or an important supplement for Upskill.io.
These ideas are not incompatible. Even if .COM > .IO in general and Men are taller than Women in general, there will be particular .IO domains > particular .COM domains and individual women taller than individual men.
Some projects are fine without the .COM, even if they might be better off with it. If the .COM is already in use or the cost is prohibitive, then so be it.
Mark Thorpe says
Almost everyone upgrades to .com eventually, from a ccTLD or new gTLD domain name.
That being said, there is enough brandable .com domain names available to buy right now, that their is no excuse for any new or old company, to not own a .com domain name for their business.
You can always upgrade to a better .com later on, but at least start with a .com, as it makes you look more reputable. IMO
Domo Sapiens says
Everyone? not sure if that applies to popular/premium domains, How can 20 ccTLD’s all get the one Dot Com?
and that ‘s the best part…
Uniqueness.