HN Explorer

QUESTION: Am I crazy to go with www.get[nameofproduct]app.com?

5 points by Turny ↗ HN
I'm really into the name for my new web app but can only buy the extension of it with 'get' before the name and 'app' after. Is this crazy? Or, should I just come up with a new name? How much will it really effect my traffic and overall marketing?

Examples of products with extensions:

Flow-www.getflowapp.com Highrise-www.highrisehq.com Harvest-www.getharvest.com

10 comments

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amm3g
Crazy? no. the name will be what you make of it.
mikerhoads
If you can come up with something that is catchy, memorable and available that is the ideal. That is easier said than done. With the domain market the way it is, you do the best you can. All of your proposals sound like suitable domains for your purposes.
iworkforthem
Domains ending with 'app' appeals to more people, plus you can use it for your iPhone/Android app.
keiferski
1. Where will most of your customers come from? I get the feeling that (potential) 37signals customers first go to 37signals.com, then to highrisehq.com from there.

2. Who are your customers? If your business is consumer-focused, I'd probably try to find a .com. B2B or to tech-savvy people, on the other hand, probably wouldn't mind GetXApp.com.

Turny
Thanks for your feedback. The app will be targeted at tech savvy people. Just bought it :) www.getgrooveapp.com. Product Name : Groove
wmboy
Once the app is big and famous your lawyers will sort out getting the .com for you. ;-)
chc
AFAIK, this naming trend started with GetFirefox.com, which seems to have been pretty successful.

Anyway, in my experience, most people will either Google for your name or come in through a link. People typing your domain name into their address field are outliers. So I wouldn't sweat it overly much, in comparison to other aspects of your marketing.

staunch
Most people don't think domains are very important. I strongly disagree. You can definitely succeed in spite of a good domain but with a little extra effort you can turn a liability into an asset.

My advice is always to spend the time to find a good .com. Domains like MixPanel.com or HelloFax.com are almost always unregistered (or cheap to buy). They're far more memorable and brandable than the alternative you're considering.

martinshen
I never really understood the concept of starting with "get". If you expect a lot of users to come visit your site and remember your name, it's best for them to remember the first 2-3 letters of your brand.

For example: if I remembered Basecamp from a couple weeks ago... I'd type it into my URL bar. Had it been getBasecamp.com instead of basecamphq.com... it may not have appeared as easily. For my startup, I even go as far as emphasizing the first two letters so that people remember them (this is easy as it's "UP").

When picking a name, I would suggest that the first 2-3 letters are not the same as another popular website. For example: I would not name something factmaster.com because facebook would popup instead.