Brand names have the potential to become Internet dominating categories. Brand names in place of .com in URLs  can differentiate domains from the more than 80 million URLs ending with .com. Proprietary research indicates .brand URLs have a significant potential to convey authenticity, trust and prestige in the minds of Internet users. 

A survey of U.S. Internet users conducted by Melbourne IT Digital Brand Services found that 42 per cent of respondents believed the new generic top level domain names (gTLDs) ending with a company brand (such as .canon) would simplify their ability to navigate websites.  It also found 60 per cent of respondents prefer to enter a web address they have seen in a TV or print advertisement directly into their browser’s address bar, reinforcing the value of short, memorable domains, and 44 per cent of respondents indicated having websites grouped by category (e.g. .sport or .cars) would make searching and navigating to a site much easier.  

Organizations need to consider what is important for their brands not only today, but five years from now and understand the risks associated with not registering. In the longer term, top level corporate brand names may become more commonly used domains which customers look for first. 

Find out more about .brand gTLDs by visiting http://www.brandgtld.com