What would you choose between .io vs .co domain?

[3 MORE YEARS]

Hi Guys,

If you had a digital content website, NOT SEO or social media marketing website, and you had the choice between a .io domain and .co domain, what would you select as your primary domain?

I can also use .co.uk domain, however, I want people from outside the UK to find it easily.

I realise there is probably no right or wrong answer, but I would love to get people's thoughts on what they would go for.

Thank you.

 

[fisicx]

I've got a .co.uk and it's visited from people all over the world.

.digital might be more suitable

Better I'd have thought than British Indian Ocean Territory or Colombia TLDs.

 

[3 MORE YEARS]

I've got a .co.uk and it's visited from people all over the world.

.digital might be more suitable

Better I'd have thought than British Indian Ocean Territory or Colombia TLDs.

Really I don't think anyone think's of .IO by it's territory. I think nowadays it;s associated with a lot of apps/saas and other digital businesses, i/o input output.

But you might be right. I am asking because I am not sure. I have other sites that are .co.uk but it's a bit like .de, I would always expect it to have Germen target content.

I have been leaning towards .io as I have always kind of liked .io domains. I think you are in the SEO business, right? With don't .co I am unsure, it's okay, but will always get confused with .com. But beacuse of the type of product/service, I am reluctant to restrict myself to UK. So, even though I won't publish a physical address, a .co.uk will tell people, this is a UK based business, which has it's positives, but there are people who may be in the US, who could be uncomfortable with someone from the UK, if that makes sense.

 

[fisicx]

Much of my business is with the US. They don't have any issues with me being in the UK. A lot of them like how we do things - and we are cheaper!

I'm always wary of .io. Many sites using the TLD are pretty rubbish. A bit like the old .biz TLD or even .me.

If you want to use .io then crack on. Depending on your marketing plan it might not make any difference which one you use.

 

[fantheflames]

You can use .co.uk without any issues. It doesn't block your domain from being seen in other countries, so please don't worry about that. There's nothing wrong with .io or .co in my opinion.

What do you mean specifically by a digital content website?

If you're offering an app or software, nowadays .io would work nicely. I find .co is more for small projects or merch websites.

My personal take is .io or .app if you're selling an app or software or .co.uk if you're selling something else. I think .digital or .media would work nicely also.

 

[antropy]

If you had a digital content website

Tell us more about what's on it?

Paul.

 

[Dhanushka]

If it were me, I’ll go with the .co domain. It’s recognizable globally, especially if you’re aiming for an international audience. .io domain is cool, but .co just feels a bit more business-friendly.

 

[fisicx]

If it were me, I’ll go with the .co domain. It’s recognizable globally

Is it really? Ask your granny if they know what it means.

 

[Dhanushka]

Is it really? Ask your granny if they know what it means.

Fair point, fisicx. I guess it really depends on the target audience. Thanks for the perspective, I was just sharing my thoughts.

 

[Kerwin]

.io is popular amongst tech sites as it is used to mean input/outpul.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

What the hell is wrong with .com known worldwide and not just related to US. are you over thinking things or trying to be clever. Your marketing is what counts. Get that right and they will find you easily enough

 

[Kerwin]

What the hell is wrong with .com known worldwide and not just related to US. are you over thinking things or trying to be clever. Your marketing is what counts. Get that right and they will find you easily enough

The problem with .com domains is that it is pretty hard to come up with a decent name that is not registered and if you want to buy one from a second party it can be incredibly expensive.

Generally speaking I'd rather have a decent domain with a less popular TLD than one which was rubbish but a .com TLD.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

The problem with .com domains is that it is pretty hard to come up with a decent name that is not registered and if you want to buy one from a second party it can be incredibly expensive.

Generally speaking I'd rather have a decent domain with a less popular TLD than one which was rubbish but a .com TLD.

Sure its really hard Kerwinsoftware.com is available the first search i tried £15.00 in 2 minutes

 

[fantheflames]

Depends on your product and audience. The .com and .co.uk are the best ones to use, but your product or audience might allow alternatives. It's really frustrating when the domain name you're looking for isn't available but you can generally always find something that works, even if granny is a little confused or cautious of entering the site. Although, I find that grannies won't really pay attention to those factors and are generally more at risk of being scammed online.

 

[Nathanto]

you had the choice between a .io domain and .co domain, what would you select as your primary domain? I can also use .co.uk domain, however, I want people from outside the UK to find it easily.

I'd use the .co.uk domain; anyone, anywhere, will find that just as easily as any other domain.

My mantra to business owners is "don't make me think" and I suspect that more people than you realise would look at .co and be confused thinking either an "m" or ".uk" was missing from the end of it. Similarly a lot of people simply won't recognise that .io is a valid domain extension.

Having said that, it depends on your customer demographics. If you are primarily aiming at techy 20 to 40 year olds then they're much more likely to be completely au-fait with newer domain extensions whereas older and/or less techy customers are more likely to not understand.