Participants at the Freelance Camp 2010 received a voucher for a .tel domain through webnames.ca – naturally, I wanted to set it up asap because I apparently don’t have enough websites.

Dot tel is an interesting idea: rather than a domain for any hosted website, it uses DNS records to display the information you input. The concept: you’ll use it to keep up-to-date contact info, rather like a digital business card. Rather than reprint contact information on your stationery or email your entire address book when you change your phone number, you’ll point everyone to your .tel address for the latest methods to reach you.

I chose meganseely.tel for my domain, and treated the account like a directory of what I do and ways you can pester me on the internet. I’m not sure how useful I’ll find this (or annoying,) but at the very least it gives me one place to look to see which social media I haven’t logged into or updated in months.

In a sudden fit of fancy, I added all my Second Life details. (How I’ve managed to run a virtual business in Second Life is probably a useful topic for another blog post, or twenty.) Both of my design companies are listed with all their contact details. My personal link includes my birthday, in case strangers feel compelled to buy me a drink or present on August 25th.

I found the interface for the .tel setup more than a little confusing. For example, there’s a section for keywords. This is for search engines, it claims. But the keywords section includes space to write your address, hobbies, nicknames, etc… and shows up on the page itself. (Note there’s no way to add an address under your general contact info.) I always thought keywords were… well… keywords.

I’d also have liked to see a bit more thought put into the themes for .tel. Now, I realize with an annual price tag of $20 and no hosting fees, it’s not going to be a full-fledged website, nor should I expect it to be. I’d like to have been able to change my font colours as well as my background colours, though, since the text defaults to white on several of the page design options and I use a pale silvery grey for everything Em Dashy.

I was a lot happier once I figured out I could have subdomains on .tel for all my information types. I’ve split it up by company, but you could easily do: Work, Personal, Social Media or Day Job, Freelance Company, Personal, etc. The subdomains worked quite well for me, since I’ve got more than one thing on the go.

Overall, for the price tag, I’d recommend getting a .tel for anyone who uses online networking for their business. More than just an online business card, it can serve as a one-stop spot for potential clients/customers to learn everything about you. Think LinkedIn without the boring resume reading.

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Postscript: The generational gap is showing here: I’m young enough to see the “V-Card” link on the dot tel page, and think that if I click it, it means I’m no longer a virgin.