How bad do you want it?
You could try to contact the owner either directly or with the help of a domain name broker with the hope that they may be interested in selling. While a good domain name may be expensive to acquire, having a sub-standard domain could also make or break your business.
Try another domain extension
We don’t recommend a .info or .biz but maybe a .net will suffice or a country specific domain like .co.uk can work. While a business that only serves local customers can get away with a country specific domain, this may not be a viable option for anyone with an international audience as .com is still the dominant choice and there can be a trust hurdle to overcome when using an alternative. Extensions like .io have become a popular alternative for tech companies. There are also a wide range (now hundreds) of premium extensions on offer now like .pro, .click, .health, .coffee etc and some are finding great success with them.
Add a prefix or suffix
This could allow you to cheaply get yourself a .com and could have other benefits. Let’s say your industry is graphic design and your business name is Cool Bananas – coolbananas.com (dang – it has of course been registered since 1996) but coolbananasdesign.com may not be and also adds a descriptive element so users can understand what your site is likely for or about before they click.
Brainstorm a creative alternative
This can be very hard and depending on your personality could also be a lot of fun. You could look for abbreviations, misspellings, synonyms, word combos and who knows what else you may think of.
Where can I register my domain name?
You can register your domains with Intaprise!