Want a Short Domain? Misspell it
Monday, April 21st, 2008 by MattDigg, Flickr, Google. What so they have in common? They’re all misspelled. Digg obviously comes from “dig” and Flickr is obviously just “flicker” without the e. Then we have the story of Google. As the legend goes, Larry Page and Sergey Brin were going to call the site Googol, but a fateful typo gave the site its unique and memorable name.
The three sites mentioned above have had great success, despite having domains that aren’t spelled correctly. The key is to be obvious. Make the misspelling noticeable, so people can tell you did it on purpose. By having a domain like this, you can have a short name that people will remember.
Digg is a great example. It’s only four letters, and that extra g really adds something. It’s effortless to remember the extra g, and you find yourself adding the extra letter in when you don’t need it. (I keep typing “digg” instead of “dig” now. Thanks a lot, Kevin Rose! You’ve etched your brand name into my subconscious.)
8:51 am on April 21st, 2008
Yeah that right, brand name sure helps to build a unique identity in the big http://WWW. Flickr is sure the newest example. Domain name hacks like del.icio.us and blo.gs have also done more then good.
7:37 am on April 29th, 2008
[...] book doesn’t mention a possible way to get a short and brandable domain. Misspelling it. Do Digg, Google, and Flickr ring a [...]
6:18 am on May 16th, 2008
[...] yourself a point if your domain is easy to spell. NOTE: If your domain is intentionally misspelled, ala Flickr or Digg, I would still classify it as “easy to spell,” as well as [...]