flooha

For those that don't know, "domain hacking" is using a TLD to spell out your domain like del.icio.us or blo.gs.

I'm considering using one for my next startup and would like to get some feedback on your experiences. My biggest concern is that a lot of traffic will be lost due to typing in the equivalent .com domain.

I've considered the pros and cons, which I'll list below, but I'd like to hear your real experiences in order learn about benefits or repercussions that might not be obvious.

Pros:

  Very short domains
  Availability/Price
  Trendy

Cons:

  Lost traffic/emails to the .com
  Brand dilution
  Not easy to verbally tell someone the domain
  Trendy
  Slightly risky using "foreign" TLDs.