We have a non-traditional domain (.at). When I'm talking to possible customers I often have to repeat "dot at" and then spell it out. I'm native so it's not an issue of them understanding me.

I'm hoping that this is just an issue because at this stage all of the communications are happening over the phone or in person. I'm just concerned that it will persist when people are telling their friends about it or worse, they just completely forget it (because it's not common).

What are your thoughts or experiences with non-traditional domain extensions on non-geek consumer services? Have you tried it? Did it work out? Did you change domain names or ride the wave of confusion?

For us, there is hope in that the .com is being squatted and maybe we'll be able to buy it eventually. On the flipside, the longer we wait and the more unintentional traffic we send them, the more the domain will be worth. Worse if they were to sell off to someone wanting to build a competitor.