3 Types of TLDs and Their SEO Benefits

By jack123 | SEO | 0 Comments

SEO is a process that often starts far before ever building a website. Picking the right domain name is as much a part of SEO as link building is. There are many things that you have to take into consideration when choosing a domain name. We will focus on 3 particular types of TLDs in this article.

Sites with certain TLDs might receive preferential treatment in some scenarios. But, generally, one extension is not better than another. However, TLDs influence the user’s perception of your site, which will often impact your rankings. For that reason, it is important to pick the right extension for your goals.

Generic TLDs

Generic extensions such as .com, .net, and .org will be the go-to choice for most people. They have the longest history and the highest authority in the rankings. Most reputable businesses and websites use such extensions. More than 40% of all websites end in a .com extension.

Going for something general is your safest bet. There’s no way you can go wrong with a dot-com extension. However, they can be quite rare and rather expensive in some cases. If you can’t find one of them, .net and .org still represent viable options. Anything besides them comes with certain risks.

These generic TLDs will not directly influence your rankings in all cases. But, they will inspire more trust into the users, making them more likely to engage with your site. This will improve your engagement metrics, signaling value to the search engines. If your metrics are good-enough, Google will rank your site higher.

However, generic extensions might even be able to directly influence your rankings in certain situations. In the scenario of a general search, dot-com will always outrank competitors using other TLDs, especially local ones.

Country Code TLDs

The ccTLDs are extensions that can be used only in specific scenarios. Unlike the other two out of these 3 types of TLDs, they are not advised for general rankings. If your business operates in a single country, or city ccTLDs are your best option. Search engines prefer to showcase geo-local sites, rather than general ones, in local searches.

Users are more likely to click on a website using a ccTLD if it’s looking for a local answer. They are the most effective for non-English speaking countries since they are easier to recognize. They have moderate prices but can only be obtained if your site operates in that country.

Industry TLDs

These extensions are representative of specific industries and communities. They are usually used by websites operating in a specific industry. Users are more likely to click on a website using a TLD representative of their search query.

However, you must choose your industry extensions carefully. You can’t change it down the line in case you change your website’s theme. TLDs such as .ai, .io and .tech are quite popular in the tech industry. They are ideal only for tech-related websites such as a technology product or blog. They are also quite expensive so keep that in mind as well.

Conclusion

The domain name and extension of your website play an intrinsic role in your SERP rankings. Although they might not directly influence your rankings, they still influence people’s perception. Depending on your needs, one out of the 3 types of TLDs mentioned above should be ideal for you.