Get Ready for Custom Domains in 2010

December 3, 2009 by Brie

If you arelooking for a more direct and personal way to interact with consumers, instead of sending them to your company’s Facebook page or Twitter profile, what could be better than an entire section of the Internet devoted solely to your brand?

Starting in 2010, that’s what you will be able to do Imagine your company’s emails coming .your brand here. Or your emails coming from you.yourlastname! Will Nike launch branded communities on a .nike domain? Can your company create an exciting microsite on .your product name? Whether you are a consumer products reseller, technology company or healthcare organization you need to understand how this upcoming domain registration change will impact your company’s online technology marketing efforts.

Starting sometime in 2010, ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) will allow customized top-level domain names. ICANN is instituting the change to allow more visibility and intuitiveness in domain name choices. After all, what does a “.com” mean to most people? A .nike would be much more intuitive. ICANN is reviewing its application process and will soon announce when in 2010 the customized top-level domains will be available. However, it’s not going to be as easy as buying a .com or .org domain name. The ICANN application process will require the following:

A business plan including a marketing plan listing how you will maintain and promote the domain over a 5-year period
Policy overview
Comprehensive documentation of community support (if the domain is for a community site)
A competent and stable technology provider for registry services and hosting

Custom domains are not going to be a minor or cheap undertaking for most companies. It will require a large budget and commitment to the project. In order to apply to ICANN, you company is going to have first decide if a top-level custom domain is worth the effort. Then you will have to get started immediately on the requirements listed above.