Startups that use a strong brand name that is also a commonly used term may face a difficult conundrum before they launch. They can either spend what seems like a huge amount of money to get their exact match brand .com domain name, or they can settle for something else that is more affordable.
Some choose the later, and they pick .com domain names with words in front or behind their brand, and others choose non-.com domain names. Although these domain names may be sufficient, they may also be short-term fill-ins, especially if the company grows or pivots and the domain name no longer completely represents what the company does.
Although buying the exact match .com domain names might not make sense at the beginning, startups should do what they can to try and get these domain names. Some options to secure their exact match brand .com domain names include the following:
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Some choose the later, and they pick .com domain names with words in front or behind their brand, and others choose non-.com domain names. Although these domain names may be sufficient, they may also be short-term fill-ins, especially if the company grows or pivots and the domain name no longer completely represents what the company does.
Although buying the exact match .com domain names might not make sense at the beginning, startups should do what they can to try and get these domain names. Some options to secure their exact match brand .com domain names include the following:
- Acquisition for cash
- Acquisition for cash + equity
- Acquisition for cash + services
- Purchase an option to buy a domain name at a set price in the future
- Financing using their bank or a company like Domain Capital
- Payment plan using an escrow service or their law firm’s escrow service
- Lease to own using an escrow service or their law firm’s escrow service
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