How data can drive intelligent corporate domain name management

“Information is the oil of the 21st century, and analytics is the combustion engine.” – Peter Sondergaard, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Research at Gartner, Inc.

In recent years the value of meaningful data to an organisation has risen dramatically – in fact it has been claimed that data has overtaken oil as the world’s most valuable resource. Just like oil, data is useless unless it is mined and handled in the right way.  Sondergaard’s quote references that data and the analysis of data need to be aligned to produce meaningful insights. With that in mind, just how powerful and valuable can data be when it comes to the management of a domain name portfolio?

In less than two years we should know how the next iteration of the domain name landscape will look.  The second ICANN gTLD application window is due to close in the summer of 2026, with the results of the new Top-Level Domains applied for revealed to an expectant crowd of industry stakeholders and corporates a few weeks later.  Whilst we can only guess at the number of new TLDs that will be created, and at some point, in the not-too-distant future, become reality, it will be another compelling moment for brand holders who will need to determine which new domain suffixes they register in, and which to ignore.

Back in 2012 when the last new gTLD application round was completed, there was a general fear among brand holders that their valuable IP would be a target for cybersquatters if they didn’t register the names themselves. Would the cost of registering in up to 600 new suffixes outweigh the cost of using enforcement as a means to protect intellectual property?

Newly created Rights Protection Mechanisms (RPMs) such as the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH) and blocking products such as DPML and now GlobalBlock mitigated some of the risk of IP abuse and certainly a lot of the cost of following a defensive domain registration strategy.  Some of the RPMs will certainly be as important in the next, and any subsequent round of new gTLDs for brand holders, but there is also a growing trend for the use of data insights in defining the future shape of domain portfolios, and what an organisation needs to hold in terms of domain-related intellectual property.

By leveraging multiple data points that are readily available, organisations can develop a more intelligent, strategic approach to the management of their domain name portfolio. A data-driven strategy not only protects key brand and digital assets but also maximises the value of their domain portfolio in gaining a return on investment, while minimising risks of infringement and unnecessary costs of excessive registrations. Intelligent, right?  Or should we say, Intelligence.

Intelligence should be at the heart of how organisations manage their domain names today, and especially in the future when the number of available TLDs expands, creating both opportunities and risks for brand holders.  Gaining greater insights allows for deeper analysis and informed decision-making.

Whilst the collateral damage caused by GDPR to publicly available domain name data has made the brand protection element of domain names tricky, with most registrant details now hidden by WHOIS privacy, there is enough information available if you integrate multiple sources to create insights that can help organisations understand the value their domain names bring to the whole business.

It is important that data is not simply taken at face value or in isolation. Combining different data sources leads to greater visual storytelling and enlightenment.  For a brand holder, domain data is one part of the story and provides some valuable insights in terms of digital security and potential brand infringement, but for a more holistic view data from DNS queries, website traffic, and search rankings is also critical.  This data is normally readily available internally if you know where to look.

By combining these sources of information, along with more static data on the key markets, office locations, and even trademark registration information, an organisation can build a domain name strategy based on intelligence. For instance, if an organisation is able to look at search trends and keyword data, companies can identify the most valuable domain names that align to popular search terms.  This would allow them to proactively register domain names that potential customers are likely to be searching for – matching buyers with intent with sellers with solutions.  Likewise, it allows them to determine those domain names that are not providing any value to the organisation and could be deleted.

Domain Name Management is rarely seen as a science, but that is exactly what it is.  Data needs to be collected, studied and acted upon. The use of meaningful insights and actionable intelligence will lead to a domain name portfolio that is right-sized, balancing the opportunities that the digital landscape brings, but also mitigating the risks that emerge now and in the future.

Unfortunately, for many organisations, domain name management is not seen as a priority by organisations, often driven simply as a budget line item, which means the focus is too often on cost rather than utility.  The use of data is critical in wider decision making in all businesses, implementing an intelligent approach to domain name management will bring competitive advantages to keep those organisations one step ahead of the competitive landscape.