When it comes to choosing a domain name for your business, you will find that the ones you want are already registered. Especially .COM domain names. Unless you have deep pockets to buy premium domain names from domain aftermarket (like from Sedo, Afternic, Dan, etc.) or directly from current domain owners.
Have you ever wondered how Domain Names of Top Indian Brands has been chosen by their business owners?
We made a list of top 50 brand names in India from TRA’s Brand Trust Report (2022) and analyzed their domain names. We found:
- Most of them are using .Com domain names
- Many of the domain names do not have any keyword related to their business
- They are easy to pronounce, easy to remember and easy to type
- Most of them are short (maximum 9 – 10 characters) and do not have any numbers (none) or hyphens (few)
- Most of these domain names are artificially created, i.e. they do not have any meaning (many of them)
- Some of these companies have got their own private domain extensions (like .sbi, .honda, etc.)
Here is a small selection of domain names belonging to top Indian brands that fit this pattern:
| S.NO. | BRAND NAME | CATEGORY | DOMAIN NAME (INDIA) | DOMAIN NAME (PARENT) |
| 1 | DELL | LAPTOPS | dell.com | dell.com |
| 2 | MI | MOBILE PHONES | mi.com | mi.com |
| 3 | SAMSUNG MOBILE | MOBILE PHONES | samsung.com | samsung.com |
| 4 | LG | TELEVISION | lg.com | lg.com |
| 5 | AMAZON | ONLINE RETAILER – DIVERSIFIED | amazon.in | amazon.com |
| 6 | LIC | LIFE INSURANCE – PSU | licindia.in | licinida.in |
| 7 | BMW | FOUR WHEELER – PREMIUM | bmw.in | bmw.com |
| 8 | TITAN | WATCHES | titan.co.in | titan.co.in |
| 9 | LENOVO | LAPTOPS | lenovo.com | lenovo.com |
| 10 | SAMSUNG | DIVERSIFIED | samsung.com | samsung.com |
| 11 | SONY SET | HINDI – GEC | setindia.com | sony.com |
| 12 | HONDA | TWO WHEELER – MANUFACTURER | honda2wheelersindia.com | global.honda |
| 13 | TATA SALT | SALT | tatachemicals.com | tatachemicals.com |
| 14 | TANISHQ | JEWELLERY | tanishq.co.in | tanishq.co.in |
| 15 | ICICI BANK | BANK – PRIVATE | icicibank.com | icicibank.com |
| 16 | SAMSUNG | TELEVISION | samsung.in | samsung.com |
| 17 | APPLE iPHONE | MOBILE PHONES | apple.in | apple.com |
| 18 | VIVO | MOBILE PHONES | vivo.co.in | vivo.com |
| 19 | LG | REFRIGERATORS | lg.com | lg.com |
| 20 | MARUTI SUZUKI | FOUR WHEELER – MANUFACTURER | marutisuzuki.com | marutisuzuki.com |
| 21 | HEWLET PACKARD | LAPTOPS | hp.com | hp.com |
| 22 | JEEP | SUV – MANUFACTURER | jeep-india.com | jeep.com |
| 23 | RELIANCE JIO | MOBILE SERVICE PROVIDER | jio.com | jio.com |
| 24 | RELIANCE TRENDS | VALUE FASHION | reliancetrends.com | reliancetrends.com |
| 25 | LG | WASHING MACHINES | lg.com | lg.com |
| 26 | ADIDAS | FOOTWARE – SPORTS | adidas.co.in | adidas.com |
| 27 | LAKME | COSMETICS | lakmeindia.com | lakmeindia.com |
| 28 | TATA MOTORS | FOUR WHEELER – MANUFACTURER | tatamotors.com | tatamotors.com |
| 29 | BOAT | AUDIO EQUIPMENTS | boat-lifestyle.com | boat-lifestyle.com |
| 30 | OPPO | MOBILE PHONES | oppo.com | oppo.com |
| 31 | LENSKART | OPTICALS | lenskart.com | lenskart.com |
| 32 | HONDA | FOUR WHEELER – MANUFACTURER | hondacarindia.com | hondacarindia.com |
| 33 | AMUL | MILK | amul.com | amul.com |
| 34 | AXIS BANK | BANK – PRIVATE | axisbank.com | axisbank.com |
| 35 | HERO MOTOCORP | TWO WHEELER – MANUFACTURER | heromotocorp.com | heromotocorp.com |
| 36 | STATE BANK OF INDIA | BANK – PSU | sbi.co.in | sbi.co.in |
| 37 | BATA | FOOTWARE – BRAND / RETAIL | bata.in | bata.com |
| 38 | PHONE PE | DIGITAL PAYMENT | phonepe.com | phonepe.com |
| 39 | VIDEOCON | TELEVISIONS | videoconworld.com | videoconworld.com |
| 40 | NIKE | FOOTWARE – SPORTS | nike.in | nike.com |
| 41 | DMART | HYPERMARKET – INDIA | dmart.in | dmart.in |
| 42 | COLGATE | TOOTHPASTE | colgate.co.in | colgate.com |
| 43 | HDFC BANK | BANK – PRIVATE | hdfcbank.com | hdfcbank.com |
| 44 | ZARA | FAST FASHION | zara.in | zara.com |
| 45 | DABUR HONEY | HONEY | daburhoney.com | daburhoney.com |
| 46 | ZEE 24 GHANTA | NEWS – BENGALI | zeenews.india.com | zeenews.india.com |
| 47 | HYUNDAI | FOUR WHEELER – MANUFACTURER | hyundai.co.in | hyundai.com |
| 48 | LG | DIVERSIFIED | lg.com | lg.com |
| 49 | MUTHOOT FINANCE | FINANCIAL SERVICES | muthootfinance.com | muthootfinance.com |
| 50 | BRITANNIA | DIVERSIFIED | britannia.co.in | britannia.co.in |
| S.NO. | BRAND NAME | CATEGORY | DOMAIN NAME (INDIA) | DOMAIN NAME (PARENT) |
Some observations on the domain name strategy adopted by above top brand names
- LIC : The biggest life insurer in India. It does not own LIC.COM. This domain name is available in secondary market and is listed for sale online. I am sure the domain owner would be demanding millions of Dollars for it. Even otherwise, being a 3 Letter .COM domain name, it would be priced very high. Recently POE.COM was sold for $260,000.
- TITAN : It is a premium luxury goods and a jewelry brand from India’s most trusted & respected business house : The Tata. However, you will be surprised to know that the brand works on TITAN.CO.IN and it does not have any other domain extension for this brand name.
- HONDA : It has acquired its on domain extension : .HONDA (dotHONDA). Not surprised.
- TATA SALT : The brand is hosted under TATACHEMICALS.COM. TATASALT.COM forwards to its Official Instagram Page.
- HP : The company does not own HP.IN and HP.CO.IN
- JIO : It owns JIO.COM but not JIO.NET and JIO.ORG
- LAKME : The beauty and cosmetics brand from TATA. It does not own LAKME.COM
- BOAT : It does not own BOAT.COM and works with a real confusing domain name : BOAT-LIFESTYLE.COM
- OPPO : The company does not own any domain extension for “OPPO”. In fact OPPO.CO.IN is available for sales at $18,500 on Sedo domain aftermarket
- LENSKART : The company does not own any domain extension for “LENSKART”. In fact LENSKART.CO.IN is available for new domain registration
- HERO MOTOCOP : The brand does not own HERO.COM
- SBI – STATE BANK OF INDIA : The bank does not own any other domain extension for keyword “SBI”. In fact it has its own private domain extension – .SBI (dotSBI)
- ZARA : The company does not have any other domain extension registered for keyword “ZARA”.
We normally recommend that any brand name should have registrations of matching domain name with .COM, .NET and .ORG Domain Extensions. If it is an Indian company or foreign company with operations in India, then brand matching domain name should be registered in .IN and in .CO.IN domain extensions. It makes sense to have the domain name matching with the brand name (exact match). It helps in branding and in brand recall on the street or on the internet browser.
It is true that many businesses do not have domain names that they badly need (and are available in domain aftermarket at exorbitant prices from current owners). This normally happens when business promoters do not incorporate a domain name strategy into the business strategy of the startup / business at the time they were being setup or founded. Later on, once the business is well set; the same domain names start commanding premium prices commensurate with the success of the corresponding business.
However, with a little bit of creativity, you can find names that will complement your business and represent your brand name. A good domain name consultant / broker can provide valuable guidance and broker services in order to ensure that your business gets the most suitable domain name.
Our Recommendation
- You can use GoDaddy or Sanver or Google to hand register your domain name.
- You may like to use our Domain Consulting Services to find the right .com domain name for your business at just $499 or 20% of the Domain Acquisition cost (whichever is higher) Plus domain name acquisition cost. We are very transparent in our operations and work in a fair way.
- We use Escrow.com for payment transactions. We recommend GoDaddy.com for domain registration services.
- Domain Name pays you across the life of your business – from the day one. A bad name just does the reverse thing.
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