As a website creator, consultant and the owner of a hosting company for both general and radio/podcast sites, I often discuss domain options with clients at the beginning of a project. If the .com is already taken, some clients who are based in the United States immediately consider the .us TLD (top level domain) suffix since it has several benefits: The .us TLD is short, easy to pronounce and understand when stated aloud in person, on the telephone, on the radio, TV or on a podcast, even when said aloud in several other languages. The .us TLD is also great if the individual or organization wants to flaunt the fact that it is based in the United States. However, there are also two negative issues that creators should know in advance.

Privacy

The .us TLD doesn’t currently allow domain privacy. That means that the address you list for the domain’s contacts will be publicly visible in the WhoIs. This may be a problem for some but not all. You may simply choose an alternate address to use to thwart privacy and identity issues. Many other popular TLDs support domain privacy, including .art, .com, .mx, .net, .soy and .tv but .us currently does not, as of publication time of this article.

IDN (International Domain Name) capability for accented domains

For decades, many of my friends, clients and I have been using accented domains. Whenever I propose their use to newbies, the initial objection I always hear is that many potential visitors won’t be able to type in the accented character or assume that it is publicized only for decorative purposes. That is absolutely true, but is easily solved by purchasing and properly configuring the non-accented version of the domain so that it will instantly redirect to the accented one. Only the cost of the domain is doubled, not the cost of the hosting. Here are some examples:

• Type in AllanTepper.soy (without the accent mark) and you are instantly redirected to AllanTépper.soy with the accent mark visible in the browser.
• Type in CarrenoFiduciario.com (without the ñ) and you are instantly redirected to CarreñoFiduciario.com with the ñ visible in the browser.
• Type in DanielAbruna.com (without the ñ) and you are instantly redirected to DanielAbruña.com with the ñ visible in the browser.
• Type in Elgatoqueselecoloacolon.com (without the two accent marks) and you are instantly redirected to ElgatoqueselecolóaColón.com with the two accent marks visible in the browser.
• Type in FaguaLopez.com (without the accent mark) and you are instantly redirected to FaguaLópez.com with the accent mark visible in the browser.

It is as simple as purchasing both domains and redirecting the non-accented one to the accented one. That’s what we facilitate via AccentedDomains.com and DominiosTildados.com. Sadly, IDN (accented domains) are not yet supported by the .us TLD, even though it is supported by many other popular TLDs including .art, .com, .net, .soy and .tv. The .us TLD is missing that capability even though many words and brands in the US use accent marks —even in English. Think about brands like Bacardí, Nescafé and Nestlé. Think about words like piña colada, piñata or résumé. And of course, the second language in the United States is Castilian, and this country is the number 2 worldwide in terms of Castilian-speaking inhabitants. The United States is second only to México, which is number 1.

Conclusions

If you are based in the United States and your desired domain name doesn’t require any accent mark, ñ or diaeresis/tréma/umlaut, the .us TLD is a good option as long as you are aware of the privacy issue and act accordingly. If you would like to request either or both of two missing features be added to the .us TLD, contact the governing authority via its contact form at About.us. I have already done that, as have a few friends who also want these features added. I use the .us TLD with my company site TecnoTur.us.

Este artículo también está disponible en castellano, aquí…

(Re-)Subscribe for upcoming articles, reviews, radio shows, books and seminars/webinars

Stand by for upcoming articles, reviews, books and courses. Sign up to my free mailing list by clicking here. If you previously subscribed to my bulletins and no longer receive them, you must re-subscribe due to new compliance to GDPR. Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and my personal website is AllanTepper.com. Also visit radio.AllanTepper.com.

Si deseas suscribirte (o volver a suscribirte) a mi lista en castellano, visita aquí. Si prefieres, puedes suscribirte a ambas listas (castellano e inglés).

Subscribe to my BeyondPodcasting show in English or CapicúaFM en castellano.

FTC disclosure

No manufacturer is specifically paying Allan Tépper or TecnoTur LLC to write this article. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

Copyright and use of this article

The articles contained in the TecnoTur channel in ProVideo Coalition magazine are copyright Allan Tépper/TecnoTur LLC, except where otherwise attributed. Unauthorized use is prohibited without prior approval, except for short quotes which link back to this page, which are encouraged!