Last Summer, it was announced that Nick Huber and Shaan Puri invested in a company known as Support Shepherd. Last week, the company rebranded as Somewhere after acquiring Somewhere.com for $400,000.
There was a big discussion about the rebrand and domain acquisition on X. Yesterday, Shaan posted a poll on X asking people if they think it was worth $400k to acquire the domain name for the rebrand:
We spent $400,000 on the domain https://t.co/gWHLlUAraL to rebrand Support Shepherd.
What do you think – Worth it or Not?
— Shaan Puri (@ShaanVP) May 21, 2024
With more than 10,000 votes cast, 70%+ answered “no.”
Personally, I am a bit torn on this one. I think $400k for a memorable one word .com domain name is a very reasonable price for a buyer. I also like the fact that there isn’t much brand usage for the Somewhere term. I don’t know of any companies called Somewhere or any that have Somewhere within their branding. However, a business called “Somewhere” is confusing. It’s kind of like the old Abbott and Costello (not Castello) sketch:
What do you think of the $400,000 acquisition of Somewhere.com?
LOL Thank you for the Castello correction. People rarely spell our last name correctly and the problem seems to be regional.
In NY / NJ they spell it Costello and in CA / FL they spell it Castillo.
Castello is Italian for “castle.”
Using this quote from part of a google result
“The 3 main goals of branding for a business are to influence people’s associations and feelings about the brand, to create a distinct identity and to build loyalty over time”
I’d say they are batting .333 (distinct identity- domains are one-of-a-kind)
Good avg for baseball …Not so good for a business
Pretty sure better options and better fit for their business exist and are available for $400k (maybe less)
You would need to think outside the box and imagine beyond just the name to like “Somewhere “.
Imagine being Somewhere in the virtual world in a headset,exploring. .They can create a technology or hardware or even name “Somewhere “after a game .
Also they can create a travel,ticket niche out if it .People like to go somewhere at a time,so they can navigate to somewhere through somewhere .com .
This is a liquid asset they can resell if business doesn’t work out .If they really take their time,they can carefully build something entirely fantastic with this name .
Some people who voted no ,don’t see the big picture, outside the rebranding from support shepherd. If they think of other opportunities that can be created with the name,they would like the chances of owning the name .
I wrote the book on thinking outside the box, and I’m not a fan. Confusing, vague, not inspiring. More of just intoxication with the idea of a common one word .com. It’s a bit like “Lane.com.” Short, easy to remember and spell, .com, but weak as weak can be. This longer word is actually better than Lane.com, though.
Ergo…
It still could have been a lot worse. And despite how the $400k could probably have been far better spent, it still does have potential for commercial use and, God willing, success. It’s just that it could have been so much better, and I would suggest definitely should be. There are probably many two word .coms that are even far better than that and far more well disposed to potential commercial success, however, but I get it as much as anyone how one word or shorter is so desirable and *usually* preferable.
I could say more but you get the idea.
For me personally though, it was worth someone else’s $400k just to remind me of Katherine McPhee’s numerous great renditions of that classic song “Somewhere,” so the deal was well done in that regard. 😉
My Dad had the old LP for the West Side Story soundtrack and I used to play it and sing the songs when I was a kid, including that one. I was actually a decent singer in my younger days.
I just came back to check out the thread and really enjoyed watching that video again.
So yes…
The brand has to be “Somewhere.com” and not just “Somewhere” if this domain is to be used for the stated purpose. God willing, the possibility does still remain that it can be a winner after all.
No and not even worth 40k
It’s a no-brainer. There are few if any companies out there with the name because it means quite literally somewhere other than where you are. So if there is not an amazing product called “the somewhere” or a host of sub-domains that would logically benefit from the at association its an awful lot of money to spend for “something”. That said… what did “20th Centiury Fox” mean… a new breed of animal. Branding is = to what you put behind education, assisted by easily associated, memorable, easy to speak and still type terms, and hopefully with a “big idea” connected. As a domainer I am glad to see people still take high flyers. As a professional I would have gone down fighting if I was advising them and they, I am sure, would have fought right back explaining the wise decision. Nobody will know till….
I did look up the site and its appears to be a play on the concept of “there is always that one right person somewhere to fit a need, sell your house to, buy your car or use your service. “If only I could find that ….?”
From that perspective I “understand their thinking’ and it does, interestingly, align with a domain centric target market aimed at specifc large targets. [cme up with a great ad concept, hand reg a long tail name and target market to agencies. There should be, in my opinion, a pointed effort to connect the concept with the name. Probably in the homepage headline. “Have you ever thought SOMEWHERE” there’s that perfect Freelancer I’m searching for. We have.. on your behalf”… along those lines. In any case, best of luck. J
Somewhere over the Rainbow – Israel “IZ” Kamakawiwoʻole
https://youtu.be/V1bFr2SWP1I?si=ngUjLpYfz6GI5I-n
over a nice coconut…..
The only reason for his post has to be they regret the name choice and are considering rebranding. Rightfully so. “Somewhere” is not a good company name, it’s very confusing. The Abbot and Costello bit came to mind to me as well. “I work at Somewhere”. So where do you work? Now branding as “Somewhere.com” could salvage it but a rebrand would be best. I just hit their website and was surprise to see it’s for offshore recruiting. It does not fit for that in my opinion. This is another case someone thinking that a one word .com will make them stronger and more successful. In the right situation this can work but much like Atom this is a miss. I peg value close to 10k and personally I wouldn’t pay 5k.
I read this posting and and the comments before going to the site, and thought the domain was bad for “Support Shepherd”. But now I went to the site and see what they offer, and it seems fine to me. I think calling the company Somewhere.com would be much better though.
I just added a new comment about that under the video I posted without seeing yours. Yes, it has to be “Somewhere.com.” Otherwise they are begging for disaster and playing Russian Roulette.
I agree about the Somewhere.com branding. Dave Schools just mentioned that last week.
Somewhere.com works
“Somewhere” – too ambiguous
IT is totally BUllShitWebsites.com—–anti American and poses a national security.
“We find you amazing employees that cost 80% less than US equivalents” WTF is that….so you are taking jobs away from Americans….FUCK THAT !!!Totally BS… Fuck it…
America First!!!
Not sure about others, but to me, the word is not stylish nor characteristic-showcasing. I would not use it as a brand name.
IN THE FINAL ANALYSIS, it was always clear Katherine McPhee was totally ripped off and should’ve been declared the winner of her season of “American Idol.” I regularly watched the show then and there’s no question about it, many times over. Tyler Hicks wasn’t even within a million miles of her talent.
It could be a great Travel site or a brand into Remote working.