English in Indian domain name?

[Aces]

When selecting a domain to extend into India, is it better to find a close translation in the Indian language, or is English prevalent enough to use and market? Wouldn't it be better to just use the Indian language just for the sake of catching as many views as possible, whereas there is the chance of a downside with English?

 

[GraceB]

I'd say it depends a bit on the people you're marketing towards. Local term is always a local term, but an English one might be seen as 'hip' and work because of that just fine. But if you have something a bit more... traditional, then it's probably better to stick with a local term.

 

[Jeff]

Both?! But so far, generally English.

 

[oportosanto]

I'd say English is better too, but both is for the best.

 

[Aces]

Well, both does indeed sound better lol Just run it split and have them basically clones of each other, yeah? That makes sense...can't believe I didn't think of that lol

 

[sharkantropo]

Both is the ideal deal. But it all depends of market. For niche products in India, english would not work much, but for ecommerce and global entertainment business english is prevalent as the vehicle language.

 

[oportosanto]

Yeah, no question that for ecommerce we need English, that is the main language.

 

[Aces]

Both is the ideal deal. But it all depends of market. For niche products in India, english would not work much, but for ecommerce and global entertainment business english is prevalent as the vehicle language.

Hmm, how significant is the english speaking population in India though? I don't mean bilingual, but english-native. I figure if there is enough, there would be more merit in having one with colloquialisms and mannerisms more welcoming to the english-native crowd while sticking to a more doctored, pro approach to the Indian side of things.

 

[Ace]

Hmm, how significant is the english speaking population in India though? I don't mean bilingual, but english-native. I figure if there is enough, there would be more merit in having one with colloquialisms and mannerisms more welcoming to the english-native crowd while sticking to a more doctored, pro approach to the Indian side of things.

English native are very very few. Almost everyone who speaks English will have another language as well.

 

[Aces]

English native are very very few. Almost everyone who speaks English will have another language as well.

Why hello ace, we finally meet. Are you aware that you actually have an avatar more reflective of my name as opposed to your own?

Is there really not a large expat culture anywhere in India? I had no idea it was that pocketed and nationalized, I'd figure the lower prices in some of the beautiful places would've driven tourism and mid-term stays

 

[Ace]

Why hello ace, we finally meet. Are you aware that you actually have an avatar more reflective of my name as opposed to your own?

Is there really not a large expat culture anywhere in India? I had no idea it was that pocketed and nationalized, I'd figure the lower prices in some of the beautiful places would've driven tourism and mid-term stays

LOL, there are expats, but not large enough. I'm answering based on two large cities I have visited recently.

 

[oportosanto]

Expats market can be good indeed, but as you say just not large enough.

 

[GraceB]

There is no reason to target a small market like native speakers in a non-native country, but depending on your niche having a local and english translation of the content could be ideal. Depending on the amount of your content it might not even be all that expensive.

 

[Jas]

I think it depends not only on the target audience, but also on the long-term plans for the project. If we aim to market the website to international visitors, having an easy-to-recognize English name is the better solution. I believe even natives of countries who can use internet are more or less familiar with English, so it's not a big problem.

 

[Aree Wongwanlee]

I think it depends on your intended market. If you are focussed on the Indian market, then a totally Indian-sounding name would work better. However, the Web is global. Whatever you put on the Web will be seen by people from everywhere around the world. A large percentage of people who surf the Web are using English or have a good grounding in English. Looking at it from this perspective, an English-sounding name would have global appeal. It's not a question of trying to sound hip or cool. Just a simple matter of marketing logic.

 

[oportosanto]

Yep, nothing like realizing who the target is and by realizing that we know what language we should use.

 

[bosconian]

I think it depends on your intended market. If you are focussed on the Indian market, then a totally Indian-sounding name would work better. However, the Web is global. Whatever you put on the Web will be seen by people from everywhere around the world. A large percentage of people who surf the Web are using English or have a good grounding in English. Looking at it from this perspective, an English-sounding name would have global appeal. It's not a question of trying to sound hip or cool. Just a simple matter of marketing logic.

Yes, that's why I usually expect reading english content in a dot COM site, but within an indian domain maybe it makes sense not to use English. In the end it all depends on the intended market as some of you already said.

 

[Aree Wongwanlee]

I strongly recommending thinking globally when doing something on the Web. The Web is global. There's no doubt about it. It's impossible to restrict the visitors to your site only to people from a certain country. Actually, when we venture into cyberspace, we must understand that we are entering a realm without borders. There are no countries in cyberspace.

 

[oportosanto]

Pretty much and as soon we realize that the better because we realize what our target is and we can direct our communications to them.

 

[Aree Wongwanlee]

Very true. Always keep in mind who you really want to target. However, at the same time, never forget that whatever is published on the Web goes everywhere. You cannot specify that your site can only be viewed by a certain group of people. Even if your content is in a specific language, it does not mean that only a specific group of people can read it.