Here’s a question that I’ve asked a number of times this year to a number of different startups. How much should a startup spend on their domain name? If you’re a startup lucky enough to get funding there’s a good chance your investors will panic if you spend six-figures on a domain. Five-figures feels like the right range to me, but where in the five-figure space?
In most cases I think there’s a theoretical barrier with startups. Personally I think that most startups won’t go much above $25,000. I also think that there are many many many more startups hand-registering or picking-up a name for a few hundred bucks. However, what does a startup sacrifice when it begins to brand-itself around a weak domain?
This has been the year of the “Get” domains. Brands that didn’t get their brand-name .COM so stuck the word “get” in the front. In fact this is done so commonly that many entrepreneurs look for this as their first or second try when searching for a brand online. That being said, who really wants to brand around their brand’s name with the word “Get” in front of it?
The thinking here is that once they get big and successful they can buy the brand .COM. The same happens with brandables like Fiverr.com who waited until after they made a few bucks to buy Fiver.com.
So here’s my question for you, how much should a startup spend on a domain?
The number that seems to be doable for most startups I’ve been working with is sub $25k but that’s not going to buy you a lot these days. The magic numbers I’ve been seeing on prices are more in the $25k-50k range and the stellar brand names are demanding much more in this market than ever before.
If you are bootstrapping, by all means look for alternatives. I just helped a client who had a $25k-50k budget get a name for $200 + my fees.
Be advised that save now may = pay later. If you’re looking to save, offer equity, lease to own or go after that “get” domain but be prepared that those routes mean giving up something later.