Since the launch of Vox Populi Registry in 2015, companies have only scratched the surface of the .SUCKS platform’s value.
Whether due to an overabundance of caution or a lack of imagination, reluctance stands in the way of increased revenue, deeper customer loyalty and a stronger market position. Our own analysis reveals a clear set of business use cases, each serving to support these objectives.
Unlocking that value begins with registering the right .SUCKS domain name.
This is particularly true for consumer products companies who seek to reach a younger, more mobile, technologically adept, educated and socially inclusive target market. For them, the word sucks isn’t a pejorative—it’s a point-of-view that can lead to engagement.
Here are three examples.
1. Redirect and protect
Companies like Apple, SierraNevada and Microsoft have used the .SUCKS platform to widen their product promotion net. By deploying their .SUCKS domain they were able to redirect potential disgruntled customers to their product website, and ultimately protect their brand.
The value proposition is straightforward. If someone is moved to search for your brand coupled with the word “sucks”, why not a) bring them into your product tent and b) ensure your brand is protected from others who might register the domain.
2. Category capture
Products are designed to solve problems. Most marketing leads with the product—but why not the problem? Toronto-based law firm Solomon Jones took its track record of success in representing drivers dealing with moving violations and registered charged.sucks to capture the category.
In the same way, a Boulder, Colorado non-profit, Protect Our Winters, seeks to draw supporters to its mission of a carbon neutral future under the banner ClimateChange.sucks.
And New York City-based consulting company, Clearfind, has built its business on matching clients with the right software, saving time, money and headaches. They use choosingsoftware.sucks to widen the top of their marketing funnel.
3. Turning criticism into conversation
Taking the name of a German phone company, Telefonieren.sucks (literally, phone calls suck) is designed to give people who have a problem with phone service a place to vent.
And whether the company controls the site or not, it can find in that criticism raw material for improved customer service, deeper customer loyalty and product innovation.
The idea has a long history, too. Anyone familiar with the Lagunitas family of beers likely knows the company provided consumers with complaints with this email address: dowesuck@lagunitas.com
So whether you’re looking to start a conversation or own the narrative, a .SUCKS domain can be a vital resource for any brand, individual or organization looking for a non-traditional method to drive interest into whatever service or product you’re offering.
Let’s talk.