As of this week, you can finally get a .blog domain name for your WordPress site. Back in May, Automattic announced it had acquired the rights to .blog and anyone could get one for $30 a year with premium names being offered at a higher price. See if the domain you want is available here.
We recently got in touch with Patrick Jones from .blog Communications to learn more about this exciting advancement.
Why .blog?
WordPress started as a blogging platform and was created with that in mind. Though the platform has grown significantly in the last 13 years and supports varied business models, blogging is where it all began. It’s given people with no development experience a way to tell their stories.
“This domain is a natural fit for personal bloggers and we definitely envision them gravitating over to .blog. We also hope that .blog will renew an interest in blogging and inspire people to start publishing their opinions, passions and the things they care about the most,” said Jones.
But the domain will reach more than just bloggers.
“Outside of personal bloggers, this creates an opportunity for brands, artists and celebrities to connect with consumers and fans on deeper level,” said Jones. “As mentioned in the news post, so far we have artists like Ms. Lauryn Hill and Just Blaze who have secured their .blog domains and have been actively using them. We are excited to see who else falls in line.”
Landrush Signups
Leading up to the release on Monday, the company allowed certain users to sign up for their .blog domain as early as August with the Landrush Signups. However, last week there was some confusion when users received a refund for the domain without any explanation. We covered the issue in Doc Pop’s News Drop.
In response to the issue, Paolo Belcastro released a blog post explaining the approval process. One-hundred domain names were reserved for Automattic employees or third parties, while 25 generic ones were saved for free use on WordPress.com. The people who were refunded money had domain names that were in this group and already in use.
Community Feedback
Outside of the Landrush confusion, feedback has been very positive.
“Thus far, the feedback has just been [about] how exciting this is. We believe there’s a lot of value in securing a .blog extension and because it’s new, there is an opportunity for people to get the name they really want instead, without compromising,” said Jones.
Though there isn’t an exact number of sign ups yet, the early numbers appear really strong. According to Jones, it is one of the most successful launches to date.
Conclusion
If you want to have your very own .blog domain, make sure you search to make sure the one you want is available and then pay your yearly $30 fee.
Are you going to get a .blog domain? Tell us why in the comments below.
No Comments