It is difficult to see the benefit of registering new domain names. When a new domain extension comes out, I get emails from all my friends and associates asking the inevitable question: “do I need this?”
My answer usually is, “it depends.” I typically come back with a number of questions to qualify whether someone actually needs a new domain:
- Do you have a trademark to defend?
- What is your risk for a competitor to get the name?
- For a country specific domain, are you doing business in that country now or in the future?
- Do you care if someone in another geographical location gets the same name?
- What is your budget?
The launch of .TEL is imminent. Consequently, my business owning friends are emailing me again. They want to know, “should I get a .TEL?” This time, my answer is simple. “Yes you should.”
How is .TEL different from other domain extensions? Well, for starters .TEL is technically different and serves a different purpose than all other domains names before it. With a .COM or a .CA, the domain is usually for a website or for forwarding to an existing website. .TEL on the other hand, functions as a business’ easy-to-remember single contact point.
Just like yourbusiness.com helps to direct customers to your website without them having to remember an IP address like 123.234.567.789, yourbusiness.tel enables customers to find you without having to remember your physical address, email address, various phone numbers or even your website.
Everyone has tried to go to a company’s “contact us” page using a mobile device to try to find phone numbers and emails, only to get frustrated because the webpage is not designed for easy mobile browsing. With.TEL, all the contact information is displayed in a simple format and the user scrolls over the phone number or email address and simply clicks for instant connection. It is fast because all the information is stored at the DNS level so no web page has to be served for you to get to the information.
The most powerful part of this is that customers only need to remember yourbusiness.tel and can always find you even if your phone, email and other contact information change ever in the future. And the chances are, if your business grows, you will likely move or change a phone number at some point during the life of your business. All of this information as well as company blog, Skype, MSN, keywords, coordinates that generate a Google map and so much more can be stored to ensure that your customers will be able to find you quickly and easily.
For all the marketing dollars and effort sales businesses spend on visibility, .TEL is a simple and economical way to be found quickly and easily. The key point for all businesses is to gain a competitive advantage. When prospects can find you faster and more easily than your competition because of yourbusiness.tel, you can judge for yourself why my recommendation would be “Get your .TEL!”
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