OBSERVATIONS ON .IN DOMAIN NAME TRENDS

Recently a brief exercise was done in an attempt to have an understanding of what is the current status of developed .in and .co.in domain names in the Indian market. This research was done using just Google search engine and experimenting with usage of various keywords and location combination. This exercise was not just only to know the number of developed .in websites, it was also to know the usage of the words/keywords – preference or choice of names, the words proprietors/business owners use for their ventures in accordance to their industry/business category, products and services which they offer to the consumers.

Some observations on the findings online were as follows:

1. Preference for keywords which are products/items/services which businesses offer.
2. Usage of location name along with the product/item/service keyword.
3. Name of the proprietor/owner along with a noun word like ‘enterprise’ and/or the product/service.
4. Usage of the determiner ‘the’ and the product/item/service being offered.
5. Combination of various nouns and adjectives/adverbs to create a brand name.

These are some initial findings at this beginning stage and there is a need felt for more research activity on the past trends when .in domain extension was introduced and continuation of research on the present trends.

In this post, some illustrative examples of local businesses is being shared here which will give an idea, as listed above, on the trends in the market. This list is not exhaustive. These are some select examples of developed sites which use the .in domain extension.

To start with, the usage of the determiner ‘the’ in the domain names:

The Little Factory: https://thelittlefactory.in
The Indus Valley: https://theindusvalley.in
The Space Juhu: https://thespacejuhu.in
The Future You: https://thefutureyou.co.in
The Inspiration: https://theinspiration.co.in
The Heart Song: https://theheartsong.in
The French Loaf: http://thefrenchloaf.in
The Irish House: https://theirishhouse.in
The Laundry Club: https://thelaundryclub.in
The Fresh Fish Market: https://thefreshfishmarket.in
The Leather Boutique: https://theleatherboutique.in

Some examples in which the name of the location/region is used:

Packers Movers Chennai: http://packersmoverschennai.in
Delhi Laundry: http://delhilaundry.co.in
Eclectic North East: http://eclecticnortheast.in
Packers and Movers Delhi: https://packers-and-movers-delhi.in/
Delhi Metro Times: http://www.delhimetrotimes.in/
Royal Jaipur: https://royaljaipur.in/
E Sikkim Tourism: https://www.esikkimtourism.in/
North East Explorers: https://www.northeastexplorers.in/

Some examples wherein nouns/names are used:

Hemant Enterprise https://hemantenterprise.in
Geeta Enterprises: https://geetaenterprises.in
Ashok Machines: https://www.ashokamachines.in/
Balaji Tile Machinery: https://www.balajitilemachinery.in/
Nanak Machine Tools: https://www.nanakmachinetools.in/
Ashish Udyog: https://ashishudyog.in/
Kumar Machine Tools: https://www.kumarmachinetools.in/
Sethi Brothers: https://www.sethibrothers.in/
Gupta Machine Tools: https://guptamachinetools.in/
Raveena Bags: https://raveenabags.in

Examples where keywords like a product/item/service is used:

Cake Studio: https://cakestudio.in
Clove Dental: https://clovedental.in
Half Price Books: https://halfpricebooks.in
Trip Buddy: https://tripbuddy.in
Pots and Pans: https://potsandpans.in
Pipes and Tubes: https://pipesandtubes.in
Car Number Plate: https://carnumberplate.in
Dial A Bouquet: https://dialabouquet.in
HiFi Speakers: https://hifispeakers.in
Home Audio Solutions: https://homeaudiosolutions.in
Trendz Garments: https://trendzgarments.in
Abundant Bags: https://abundantbags.in

Following examples are wherein adjectives/adverbs are in usage to create a trendy brandable name:

Favourite Eats: https://favouriteeats.in
Lovely Kulfi: https://lovelykulfi.in
Dynamic Group:  https://dynamicgroup.in
Be Beautiful: https://bebeautiful.in
Happy Home Group: http://happyhomegroup.in
Delightful Holidays: http://www.delightfulholidays.in/
Country Delight: https://countrydelight.in/
Happy Ho: https://happyho.in
Lovely Kulfi: https://lovelykulfi.in
Be Young: https://www.beyoung.in/

From the initial research carried out and the findings it can be said confidently that the future prospects of .in domain extension are bright and there was and has been and will continue to be great interest by local businesses, existing and startups, within India to use their own country level domain extension .in, and consumers appear to be also attracted/influenced towards the business when it is in their knowledge that the business/service provider is local in their respective region/area; accessible, approachable. This gives the consumers the necessary confidence and trust in the product and service as well as in the seller/service provider.
NEERAJ PAUL
Proprietor, Indomaxx Digital, New Delhi, India