Two weeks ago, during its tri-annual meeting in Seoul, South Korea, the International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) disappointed many meeting participants by stating that that the timeline for accepting applications for new generic top level domains (gTLDs) would be further extended, thus delaying any offering of new gTLDs until at least the fourth quarter of 2010. This means that new small businesses will have to wait a little longer to register a useful domain name having an extension such as .web, .flowers, or .Texas.

Earlier this year, Ben Worthen, a writer for the Wall Street Journal, wrote an interesting article describing how new businesses already have to settle for very wordy web addresses with a .com or .net because all of the succinct and descriptive addresses in these TLDs are already taken.  For example, today John Smith may be forced to register a domain like “JohnSmithshoestore.com” for his business in order to get a web presence. With new gTLDs, however, John might be able to register “Johns.shoes.”

ICANN has slowed its forward momentum for new gTLDs because it believes there are technical, economic, legal, and policy issues that still need to be resolved.  Admittedly, some of these issues must be resolved rather quickly such as additional rights protection for trademark and brand owners.  Others, however, can be resolved concurrently as the process moves forward such as the scalability of the root system.  Unfortunately, ICANN has not proposed any timeline for resolving these outstanding issues.  Without any timeline to spur action, these issues could continue to linger for months.    Not only will this delay negatively impact the many start-ups hoping to offer new TLDs to the market, but it also will undermine efforts by small business owners to secure short, meaningful and memorable domain names for their businesses.

Small business owners may have to wait for new gTLDs but they don’t have to endure the delay in silence.  ICANN is currently accepting public comments on the latest version of its Draft Applicant Guidebook.  The deadline for comments is November 22, 2009.  Go online and urge ICANN to set deadlines for resolving the outstanding issues so that new gTLDs can be made available.

Statton Hammock is Sr. Director or Legal & Business Affairs at Network Solutions. He monitors ICANN policy matters and issues affecting Internet governance.

As a small business owner you are probably so busy growing and managing your business, satisfying your customers, or other attending to other important considerations that the mere idea of taking time to participate regularly in a volunteer project in your community sounds ridiculous. However, performing community service can be a great way to enhance your business profile, establish important professional relationships, and gain new customers while at the same time strengthening your community.

When evaluating volunteer opportunities for your small business you should consider three important questions. The first is whether the volunteer effort you spend will deliver high impact results. There are thousands of national charities and non-profits and probably hundreds in your state or local community. Although probably all have honorable intentions and missions, the sad truth is, only some charities are really effective at what they do.  Robert Egger, community activist and founder and President of DC Central Kitchen, observed in his book Begging for Change, that too many non-profits lack good leadership and sound strategies and consequently drain funding resources from other better organized non-profits making it harder for those to succeed. Make sure the non-profit organization you choose to work with is well-organized, well-led, and uses its resources wisely to make a measurable impact in the community it serves.

Second, consider whether the charity or non-profit organization is aligned with, or related to, your company’s industry, product segment, or goals because if it is, you are more likely to be volunteering alongside others who may have an interest in your business. For example, if you are a small business that sells eco-friendly products, you may want to support a non-profit organization that helps or protects the environment. Volunteering has always been a good way to meet people with like minded interests, and therefore it should be no surprise that it’s also a good way to connect with potential customers and promote your business. Always remember to take a few business cards with you on your volunteer event.

Finally, your should consider whether the charity has a flexible volunteering schedule that is convenient for you and will allow you to participate regularly enough so that you and your small business are visible on a frequent basis and are in a good position to get recognition from community leaders.

Realize that large businesses are not the only ones that get recognized for making charitable donations or supporting causes. Small businesses can get recognized too. For example, in the Washington DC metropolitan area, the Washington Post and Greater DC Cares co-host a Business Philanthropy Summit that aims to recognize outstanding community contributions made by businesses, both large and small. In Chicago, the Association of Fundraising Professionals hosts a philanthropy awards luncheon that also champions the work of small businesses.

Being recognized by community leaders and your local media as a committed volunteer and service leader helps build your brand and is a great way to raise your business’ visibility to potential customers.

For more information about the benefits of small business philanthropy, please check out resources and ideas at: How Small Business Philanthropists Make Big Connections and
Business that Cares. And don’t forget to Twitter all the great things you have done in your community!

Statton Hammock is Sr. Director, Legal & Business Affairs at Network Solutions and member of the Company’s Corporate Philanthropy Committee.