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From Compromise to Premium: 100+ Businesses That Upgraded to Their Perfect Domain Name
By SmartBranding Team access_time 1 min read

In today’s digital age, a business’s online identity is paramount to its success. With over 1.13 billion websites on the internet and counting, it is increasingly challenging for startups to secure their perfect spot on the web. Many first-time entrepreneurs lack the knowledge and experience to understand the importance of domain names as brand assets. Combined with a potential lack of budget and uncertainty about the business’s survival, startups often launch with a compromise domain name that does not accurately reflect their brand vision.

As those brands grow and prove their concept, they realise the critical role that the right domain can play in their success. Issues that are often experienced with compromise names include brand fragmentation, confusion, trust and credibility issues with clients and business partners, ineffective marketing and advertising, and cyber security risks.

In this table, we showcase these successful businesses and share their inspiring stories.

company initial domain challenges new domain price story
Tesla teslamotors.com The old domain limited the brand's scope to just "motors" and did not reflect the company's broader focus on energy and sustainability. tesla.com $11M
Chime chimebank.com The old domain restricted the company's branding to just "banking," which could limit its ability to expand its offerings beyond banking services. chime.com NA
Zoom zoom.us Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. zoom.com NA
Jamba jambajuice.com The old domain emphasized only one of the brand's product lines (juice), which could have limited its ability to expand its offerings beyond beverages. jamba.com NA
ALL / Accor Live Limitless all.accor.com The old domain was too complex and not easy to remember, which could have affected the brand's visibility and recognition. all.com NA
Mural mural.ly / mural.co Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. mural.com NA
Rapchat rapchat․me Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. rapchat․com NA
Uber ubercap.com The original domain limited their growth potential in the ride-sharing market as it emphasized their cab service. uber.com 2% stake in the company
Facebook thefacebook.com The original domain was too long and difficult to remember, which made it challenging to build brand recognition. facebook.com / fb.com $200K / $8.5M
Drop massdrop.com The original domain was too specific, as it only focused on their original product offering of group buying. drop.com NA
AHEAD thinkahead.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. ahead.com NA
Front frontapp.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. front.com NA
Linktree linktr․ee Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. linktree.com NA
Fonoa fonoatech.com The original domain was too technical, limiting their brand appeal beyond a niche audience. fonoa.com NA
Plaid plaid.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. plaid.com NA
Spline spline.design The original domain name was not a .com extension, which could have led to confusion and difficulty in accessing it. spline.com NA
Geneva genevachat․com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. geneva.com NA
Detect detectnow.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. detect.com NA
Copecart copecart.com cope.com NA
Clubhouse joinclubhouse.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. clubhouse.com NA
Ribbon ribbonexperiences.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. ribbon.com NA
Structure Studios structurestudios.com The original domain was too specific to the studio aspect of the brand, limiting its appeal to other offerings. structure.com NA
Bubble bubble.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. bubble.com NA
Mote justmote.me Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. mote.com NA
Sushi sushiswap.fi Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. sushi.com NA
Forge forgeglobal.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. forge.com NA
Capsule capsulecares.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. capsule.com NA
Kane kanecommunications.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. kane.com NA
OpenSea opensea.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. opensea.com NA
Scan nationalmrIscan.com Difficulty in remembering and typing the original domain name. scan.com NA
Radar radar.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. radar.com NA
Panther panther.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. panther.com NA
Waiv waivvaluation.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. waiv.com NA
Gpool gpool.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. gpool.com NA
Opportuni opportuni.co.uk Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. opportuni.com NA
Montane montane.co.uk Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. montane.com NA
Atoms wearatoms.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. atoms.com NA
Carrd carrd.co Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. carrd.com NA
Phylum phylum.io Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. phylum.com NA
Stoggles wearstoggles.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. stoggles.com NA
Fiton fitonapp.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. fiton.com NA
Databook trydatabook.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. databook.com NA
Grain grain.co Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. grain.com NA
Republic republic.co Country domain extensions may limit recognition and credibility, making it difficult to attract and retain customers, and limit global appeal and recognition. republic.com NA
Bread Finance breadfinance.com bread.com NA
Dropbox getdropbox.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. dropbox.com $300K
Upside getupside.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. upside.com NA
Deel letsdeel.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. deel.com NA
Resolution resolutiongames.com The old domain includes the descriptive word " games ", which could limit the perception of the company's offerings. resolution.com NA
Bux getbux.com Adding a descriptive word to the domain name to compensate for the mismatch with the brand name can create confusion among customers and hinder business growth. bux.com NA

While we make every effort to ensure the data on our site is accurate, complete, and up-to-date, we cannot guarantee its reliability. Our data is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal, financial, or other advice. We strongly recommend that you independently verify any information before relying on it.


A premium domain name can make all the difference in building a successful brand. If you want to take your business to the next level, consider investing in a premium domain name. Contact us today for more information and assistance in finding the perfect domain for your brand.


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