What's in a domain name?

If you are securing a domain for a mass market application then you MUST get the .com. Even very clever and well known sites such as del.icio.us also own .com (delicious.com). Many people simply type in the 'name' of a site and let their browsers complete the address, which of course always adds .com.

Why would you take the chance on .net or .org? Because it is easier for you to get a name or because it is easier for a user to remember and browse to it.

Ah, but, sometimes the '.com' pool is just completely void of anything useful. Shelling out half your startup budget just for a domain name seems silly to me.

Disclaimer: My startup went for a non-.com name: tipit.to

I think .com is the way to go especially if you are working on a web application. At grabagooddomain 99% of people request .com domain names.

Would you settle for a longer name that ended in .com or a shorter one that ended in a .net or .org? Or does it really matter?

My experience is that people are much more likely to remember .com . That's the default in people's brains, so if you end in .net or .org or .whatever , it's extra work for people to remember that.

For example, I've mentioned justin DOT tv to several people, and they still try to go to justintv.com .

Also, I recommend doing some basic testing for domain names. Just buy the domain names you're considering, put an email signup or something on them (or have them redirect to a functioning site, whatever), then run identical ads for them and see which gets better click through.

Ask someone who's used a non-.com what they think :-)