Hello Solo Creator
Today’s issue is about choosing a domain for your project.
Choosing a domain for the Life & Work
My favorite step in creating an online project is buying a new domain. I have owned domains since the late nineties, but unfortunately, I have never sold any. I may have dropped some along the way, even after keeping it for years.
This time I wanted to buy a domain for my newsletter and podcast, the life and work.
The .com is the gold standard of the internet. They are the diamonds since the internet bubble where entrepreneurs used to get with any business plan and a .com domain.
I tried to get lifeandwork.com, but obviously, it was taken; I placed a bid of $900; however, the seller asked for $9900. I raised my offer to $1000 and said that this my final price. He then asked for $8900. The auction was canceled later.
I never thought I would bid for any domain for such a high price,
especially that this is beyond my budget and way beyond my online revenue earnings.
For a second, I dreamt big, what if the domain is an essential step in branding your newsletter and podcast. Especially that I am thinking of building an online community alongside.
I had to look for other options available. I found lifeandwork.net .io and .cc .site .news .pub. There was plenty of other domain extensions with reasonable pricing.
Another option is adding any prefix to the domain, such as “the,” or adding a suffix such as “newsletter.” By adding word extensions, you can find a .com domain. However, you risk having a long domain name and confusing with other brands or domains. Besides, you have to have similar social media profiles.
I posted a poll on indiehackers.com about choosing the domain. They all agreed that it’s not about the domain, and it’s about what you write. They also decided that .io is suited better for a SAAS. Their first choice was the “newsletter” suffix. The second choice was the “the” prefix.
I bought thelifeandwork.com, as I do have a newsletter and a podcast with the same name, and if I want to build a community in the future, it will also be suitable.
However, I didn’t like the long domain. I found .co for 400$, but the GoDaddy domain appraisals service showed that it’s only valued at around 100$ and that thelifeandwork.com is valued at a much higher price.
I kept searching on Godaddy.com until finally, I have found my gem, lifeand.work. A short and unique domain with an acceptable renewable price rate.
I still didn’t decide which domain will point to the other thelifeandwork.com vs lifeand.work.
What are you working on, and how do you choose your domains for your side projects?
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