Direct Navigation
Domain Names and Direct Navigation
With millions of domain names occupying and continuously changing the Internet, navigating the Web can be a challenging task. Given the omnipresence of sites such as Google and Yahoo!, one might assume that users primarily go to search engines to reach their intended destinations online. However, as mentioned previously, Direct Navigation is far more prevalent than many might think. According to a Forrester report, Direct Navigation accounts for 38 percent of Web site traffic.5 WebSideStory’s StatMarket division (now a part of Omniture) estimates that more than 67 percent of global Internet users arrive at Web sites through Direct Navigation.6 Because such a large percentage of users navigate without the aid of search engines, understanding the dynamics and impact of Direct Navigation is critical.
In order to comprehend how Direct Navigation works and how it can be leveraged, it is helpful to explore the mindset of an Internet user looking for content. Part of the reason why so many people choose to use Direct Navigation is the success they have with it. A large portion of Direct Navigation results in Web users finding the Web site or specific content that they were interested in. For instance, a user who types “walmartcreditcard.com” directly into the address bar will be brought to the Wal-Mart Financial Services page, where they can sign up or manage a Wal-Mart credit card. This is in contrast to an Internet user who uses a search engine to find the same content, since they would be forced to “click” multiple times to reach their intended destination.
In other cases, users who search with generic keywords are directed to sites that have been strategically purchased by corporations. For example, the domain vacation.com leads to the Travelocity.com site for researching and booking travel. Generic domains can be valuable assets for a company because they help yield more traffic and create the impression of market dominance. In both cases, the users found the content that they were looking for—a specific type of credit card and a general category of services. These successes reinforce the idea that users can type what they are looking for directly into their browsers and be rewarded with relevant content.
“How Consumers Find Web Sites in 2006: Generations’ Media Habits Shape Their Site-Finding Behavior.” Forrester Research, Inc. October 3, 2006.
Cook, John. “Marchex Solidifies Its Web Presence: Deal Lets Company Move Into Direct Navigation.” 24 November 2004. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Online. 4 June 2007.
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