This is the sixth in a series of blog posts discussing the strategic and operational challenges faced by .brand TLD owners and the processes involved in getting them ready for use. Previously I discussed how to transition your agreed strategy into an implementation plan, which you can read here.

One of the consistent themes of this blog series is that despite similarities across .brand TLDs, no two brands will settle on the exact same strategy and process for moving their TLD to launch.

As I discussed last week, an implementation plan ensures that each required action is documented, responsibility for it is assigned and a more detailed project plan can be developed to take this process further.

Then comes what is arguably the most exciting part of the process: introducing your .brand TLD to the world—“The Launch”.

So how do you make this easy and exciting for the most important person in this whole exercise—your customer?

There are five key principles that we believe are key to a successful .brand launch:

1. Put the customer first in everything you do
2. Use pre-launch messaging to avoid shocking or confusing the customer
3. Conduct consumer testing
4. Reward the behaviour of your pioneers
5. Prepare customer-facing staff

1. Put the customer first in everything you do

Think about the questions that pop into your customer’s mind when they see your fabulous promotional material for the new .brand TLD for the first time:

• What happened to .com?
• Is this actually doing the advertisement?
• Am I being tricked?
• Is the internet broken?

Thinking about how they will react and anticipating what action they will take are important components in planning the launch. Even members of your own team can quickly forget that they only learned about new TLDs a short time ago.

2. Use pre-launch messaging to avoid shocking or confusing the customer

For most launches, we recommend a gentle introduction of the new domain format, rather than just thrusting it in the customer’s face—for example, a range of teaser campaigns.

Customers are usually smarter than we give them credit for, but they might need to see the URL written as www.promo.[brand] to help them understand they can type it into their browser. Acknowledge that there is a new domain format being used, highlighting it without making it a ‘big deal’.

3. Consumer testing

Testing promotional material with consumers prior to the actual launch brings two major benefits:

• Helps the marketing team identify the best messaging for influencing the customer and driving user behaviour
• Assists the technical team with understanding how end-users navigate and whether the site structure stands up to real-world use.

Since the TLD is new to your marketing team as well as your customers, the .brand TLD launch warrants consumer testing more than an average campaign. This cross-functional activity once again highlights how broadly the project will impact your organisation, requiring strong project leadership and stakeholder support.

4. Reward the behaviour of your pioneers

If a customer sees a new domain in a promotion and types it into their browser, reward them. You want them to do it again, and tell others as well.

Obviously a good experience is one type of reward, but an active acknowledgement of their behaviour and a token of your appreciation are even better. If you have the technology to identify the customer, offer them an incentive of sorts. It’s also worth considering whether your marketing communications should include an incentive to encourage customers to type in the domain. This draws attention to the domain while associating a positive experience with its use.

5. Prepare customer-facing staff

It’s no use having an award-winning campaign if your customer-facing staff—at all levels of the business—can’t handle enquiries concerning the .brand TLD. The simple remedy to this situation is to ensure they are trained and ready.

This exercise also presents opportunity. Your customer-facing staff are a valuable resource who know how customers are likely to react to the campaign involving new domains and can validate their experience. Involve them in the planning and testing phases to save yourself time and money.

In a campaign, finding the right balance between promoting a new product/service and introducing a .brand TLD is tricky. Be sure to factor in more time than usual for the communications team to prepare for the launch, so the added complexity can be managed properly.

Once your .brand TLD has been launched, there comes the important and often complex task of keeping it protected and in line with compliance requirements. I’ll discuss the ongoing maintenance in my last post of this series next week.