Fresh Smartphone App Hopes to Replace Phone Numbers with Domain Names

Product takes advantage of how domain names are easier to remember than phone numbers.

I got a pitch for an interesting product today called Siter.com. The idea is that instead of needing to know a phone number to call someone or business you just need to know their domain name.

For example, let’s say you need to call your bank to ask a question. Normally on your smartphone you’d need to go to the banks web page and search for their phone number. With Siter.com you just type in “mybank.com” and it automatically calls your bank.

Between the domain name and the phone call is of course a database of phone numbers corresponding to each web address.

Siter has apps for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry.

I like the idea, although it won’t work in all situations. For example, it will be difficult to contact a particular branch or location of a chain. If I want to reach my local BestBuy.com store to see if they have iPads in stock and type in “BestBuy.com” then it’s going to call a chain-wide number.

Still, the point is clear: remembering a domain name is much easier than remembering a phone number. Siter is capitalizing on that.