So we are currently working on setting up a website for our business which for regulatory reasons is based exclusively inside of Canada.

The issue I am running into is that the .com domain is owned by a domain reseller and they are asking for >20k for it. At this point in time that is a fairly large expense and I am trying to find a way to assign value to the .com vs .ca debate.

How big of a hit is it really to have a .ca versus a .com suffix as a Canadian company? I am having a hard time trying to find good sources of information on this type of topic before hiring a consultant. Most of my competitors are using a .ca so I don’t believe it will be detrimental, but if the .com is a tangible benefit would it be worth changing the name?

I have a couple options, I have the .ca domain of the same name already and I have the .com domain with an “s” at the end of the name which doesn’t change a whole lot about the business name. For context it basically changes the name from apple to apples. It still makes sense and sounds alright.
Is it worth it to rebrand slightly to the plural version of the business name to take a .com suffix?

Any help/resources would be appreciated.

  • Eleos116@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    Wow. I guess this is different from country to country because in the UK we have .co.uk as our country suffix and personally I much prefer any website with that suffix.

    I know it’s going to be aimed at Brits, the prices will be in pounds etc.

    It feels like most .com websites are squarely aimed at Americans so I always try and get to a .co.uk if possible.

    • mynewreaditaccount@alien.topOPBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      I was hoping it is something similar in a sense that having a “Canadian company” and having the “.ca” contributes to that identity and provides some solidarity in the consumer base.

      I know personally, that idea resonates with me but given the general publics computer skills I was worried about losing traffic to people recognizing the name but then just throwing the .com in there without thinking twice.

      Some of the comments on managing SEO and brand imaging have quelled my concerns though!

      • peach-water@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        If you’re mainly targeting other Canadians, you might be better off with .ca anyways. If I see something is a .ca, I’ll stay longer and poke around because I know I won’t run into “we don’t ship to/service Canada”. I LOVE seeing .ca because I know I’m in the right place, this website and product is meant for ME.

        You’ve already hoarded a good domain for service to America, tell the guy to kick rocks.