Online Marketing
How To Select An Appropriate Domain Name?
One of your main concerns when creating a website is choosing an appropriate domain name that would represent your company as a whole. Take note that most online users, the first thing that they seem to notice for a particular website is its domain name, so it is a must to select a good domain name if you want your users to remember you instantly.
But, how can you effectively select the right domain name for your website? Well, here are some pointers to consider:
1. Use your company name
Some website owners who want to be on the safe side try using their company’s name as their domain name to acquire a true and unique identity among other websites. In fact, if your company is more concerned in gaining recognition and increasing your brand awareness campaign, then, using your company’s name is the wisest choice ever for a domain name.
2. Include your location name
To website owners who desire to perform better in their marketing strategies, try to include their location name in the domain, especially if their name is also similar to other websites. Adding your location name simply sets a distinction from the other competitors. Putting your location name also gives your online users quick access to your website without any difficulty, since they can easily locate your website through SEO results.
3. Select a domain name with generic words
If your company’s goal is to attract more online visitors back to your site, then, it is essential to select a domain name with generic words associated to the product or service you are situated in the market you want to become popular. If possible, combine two to three generic words combination that can be easily remembered. Doing this would give your more opportunities of getting recognized, thus, eventually leading to traffic generation and higher sales in the end.
Top Advice:
Choosing a domain name requires careful analysis, thorough research and surveys before finalizing your chosen domain name for your website. If you decide to make use of generic names, be sure to check if it is a good one and still available. Try combining other combinations to prevent getting similar domain names as with other website owners. Remember, once you have purchased your domain name you don’t have any access to exchange it, so give a fair thinking what domain name you want to buy or else you just have to do with it or purchase another new domain name. Having an appropriate domain name could bring more business growth to your site. Take your time and invest in a good domain name that would set you above from your rivals.
Tagged domain name, Internet, traffic, website, website design
WhoisUKJuly 2, 2012 at 10:52 pm
How To Select An Appropriate Domain Name? | The Web Executive: One of your main concerns when creating a website… http://t.co/KvJHf9vQ
LeetPro77July 5, 2012 at 9:59 pm
I am getting into internet marketing and this will definately help me out in my journey.
I can’t thank you enough for this very informative post!
WaynefireJuly 5, 2012 at 10:27 pm
I have to say the way I choose a domain name is by using the keyword I am targeting if possible. Then I can find the best level of traffic for that specific word. However, if I am using the general keywords I make sure each one of my pages is specific for the keywords to guarantee they will at least rank. Great article and thanks for the advice!
LauraJuly 21, 2012 at 11:53 pm
That’s a smart way. If the name contains keywords, I will be more tempted to click the link.
Dr23July 6, 2012 at 3:34 am
It’s amazing how many companies/sites/blogs clearly didn’t take the time to think about their domain name. Whether they are too long, too complicated or just plain impractical, the advice you listed above is pretty solid.
The location tip is an interesting tip. A simple abbreviation for a city, such as CHI for Chicago in a domain could go a long ways in helping the consumer or customer find you. Really wish more companies/sites would adopt that strategy.
Sound advice.
youtubedominationJuly 6, 2012 at 8:18 am
These are some great tips, I especially enjoy your guys’ domain name ‘thewebexecutive’. Some companies have completely irrelevant domain names or one’s that don’t have their company name.
Aidan BradleyJuly 6, 2012 at 9:38 am
haha, whenever I think about our domain name, I always flash back to that scene in the movie ‘The Social Network’
“‘Drop the ‘the’. Just Facebook. It’s cleaner.’”
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izzypopaJuly 6, 2012 at 5:33 pm
I would have to say, Domain name choosing is a very hard one at times, you must stick to your niche but also be weary of time because just as soon as you have decided on a web domain name, someone may have just taken it.
Great article!
n42kJuly 6, 2012 at 6:58 pm
Thanks. This should help me in getting more returning users in my websites. I never thought about choosing a domain name with generic words, but that sounds like a very good idea! Most people probably will remember that very well! I’m now going to apply this knowledge when my domains expire. Thank you once again!
BreakfreeJuly 7, 2012 at 1:08 am
Obviously , choosing the domain name is a very important step , which should be well thought, because that is what people will first see about your company/site . At least that what I did , and now I realised my mistakes. So before taking a step it is better thinking twice and better search some good tips about it.
akanbiJuly 8, 2012 at 12:18 am
Yes you want to definitely have everything well researched when it comes to choosing your final domain name. This is the name that brands your company for the first time. It would be great if you had a marketing plan in place to help you with this.
psmith140July 8, 2012 at 2:47 am
I found this very interesting. It’s strange how important domain names really are, yet how little time we invest in making them. Often they can be more important then the actual content itself!
As you have mentioned location names are important, but I also find keyword research is equally as important!
vidya_gaemsJuly 9, 2012 at 2:55 am
Yes, indeed, you really need a lot of research for creating your domain name. Your domain name will represent your site and how visitors will look at you. Thank you for tips on creating a domain name! This will be useful for businesses new to the online world.
streakanimeJuly 9, 2012 at 10:55 am
You have to be pretty careful when picking a domain name. Sometimes the biggest issue is not picking something that is already taken and copyrighted by someone. It would really stink to get your site/company/whatever developed and come to find out you really cannot use that name because it belongs to someone.
wameyoJuly 13, 2012 at 3:33 pm
A good domain name usually creates a good first impression and if the rest of the details(content, products & services) are also good, then you will have many potential clients.
psmith140July 16, 2012 at 8:03 pm
I think one of the main things is relevancy. The domain name should always contain a word that is the main product or service you are selling. Anything else tends to mislead your customers and doesn’t achieve SEO very well. Having said that – what has flickr got to do with pictures, or google with search results? I suppose branding is involved too.
JoshTheBossJuly 16, 2012 at 9:25 pm
Keys for a great domain name.
1. Short
If it’s too long, it will be hard to remember.
2. Make it either abstract, or have a rhyme to it.
These things will both keep the name stuck into the head of first time users. Three examples: “google” “bing” “ebay” etc.
3. It must identify your good or service to the user.
JoshTheBossJuly 16, 2012 at 9:27 pm
Keys for a great domain name.
1. Short
If it’s too long, it will be hard to remember.
2. Make it either abstract, or have a rhyme to it.
These things will both keep the name stuck into the head of first time users. Three examples: “google” “bing” “ebay” etc.
3. It must identify your good or service to the user.
LauraJuly 17, 2012 at 1:49 am
I agree with JoshtheBoss. Nothing worst than a domain name like http://www.youthinkyouknowgoodqualitybutyoudontbecquseyouneverboughtourtrousers.com
I get upset trying to read the name sometimes.
And you should also always pay a lot of attention to not end up with something that could sound like an insult or a sexual thing.
DesireeJuly 17, 2012 at 3:21 am
Good tips. But its getting harder and harder today to get a good domain name.
Last time I tried to register one, it took me 2 days (I’m not kidding!) to come up with a good domain that wasn’t registered.
Most of the good names are already taken and it’s really frustrating to find them available through auctions for thousands of dollars.
CarolinaJuly 18, 2012 at 7:02 am
I find that good domain names are hard to find. Yeah, anyone can create a catchy line, but that doens’t mean that anyone can create a good domain name. Just think of facebook, isn’t that the simplest domain name you’ve ever seen? And I find that those are usually the best.
ashmonnJuly 22, 2012 at 9:51 am
I have created some domain names for my companies in the past and I must say that it is more intuitive than mysterious. The key is to chose a name that relates to the main theme of the website for instance if I am selling shoes I want to include some language that makes this clear. I find that synonyms of the main keywords which relate to your site are usually the most searched non-competitive key words. Just keep it simple and make sure your domain name references the main idea of your website in some shape form or fashion and you should be alright.
FlipKupJuly 23, 2012 at 7:25 am
These are good tips… but they’re also common sense. Sometimes choosing a domain name boils down more towards what rolls off the tongue – and what will not sound like something stupid a kindergartener came up with. These are okay outlines though, but need to be expanded upon.
layzorJuly 25, 2012 at 8:30 pm
These here are some good tips but what gets me the most are domain squatters. These guys are just squatting on almost every combination. Which, I think, is a ‘plus’ for legitimate companies. Because of this, it forces companies to create a much more unique domain name and therefore makes their domain stand out and be that much more memorable.
youtubedominationJuly 28, 2012 at 7:49 am
I think a great tip is to keep your domain name short, but sweet. A long domain name makes it extremely hard to read, JoshTheBoss makes a good point with his examples; Google, eBay, Bing, Yahoo, etc.
akanbiAugust 27, 2012 at 6:39 am
Your comment Youtubedomination, reminds me of a campaign that I am doing right now where I have to ponder up 10 catchy domain names that are easy to remember, yet give the viewers an idea of what the business is all about. Still working on it…
BloomaticJuly 30, 2012 at 6:32 am
The article is very interesting to me. However, I have an objection on this issue. It is increasingly difficult to find an original domain name, because many of them have already been purchased or are currently used by another company or person. I think the challenge is that we can break the rules and change the paradigm. The name of our website is perhaps one of the keys to success online, but I think isn´t the only one.
Magic PixelJuly 30, 2012 at 9:46 pm
It makes sense. I’m listening. Very very carefully. But it isn’t uncommon to encounter a lot of the problems that some of the comments before this one seem to lament on. Then, we have to find a way to do it in the end. Thanks for a useful article.
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Joe WellsAugust 8, 2012 at 1:17 am
Good post. Choosing a good domain name can be the hardest part of getting a website online. I always try to put a lot of thought into it when planning a new site. What is location name? i never heard of that. Is it as it sounds, based on your location? Just curious.
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TashWordAugust 9, 2012 at 11:01 pm
I think it’s also important to choose a name that will work later (assuming you expect to be in business for years not motnhs!) so avoid being trendy and don’t be too narrow (eg boots.com is probbaly better than greenboots.com as you may later want to seel red boots as well as green ones)
And be very careful about multiple words in a domain name – they may just be read in a different way. Example ‘happy therapist’ becomes happytherapist.com
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gerkmeisterAugust 21, 2012 at 8:02 am
Here’s my two cents worth. Careful thought and a little research is very important here. If you are branding yourself or business, you’re going to want to get a domain with your or the business’ name. But, if you are targeting a particular niche or market as well, then you should get additional domains. For example, if you are Joe’s Pizza, then get joespizza.com and also bestpizzainchicago.com. If you do it right, the second can get ranked in local search and funnel traffic to the first one, helping your brand grow. As for niche marketing, I do my research regarding the number of monthly searches and competing search results, and target a long tail keyword for my domain, with the intent of getting on page 1 of google. Hope this helps.
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dhintakaAugust 24, 2012 at 4:11 pm
Domain name is the key to bring in hits to your site. Everything is dependent on that. So it definitely requires research & more research. We must know that we are not the only one in the market providing a business solution/product or whatever. There are many & sometimes they can be better than us. So what is it that we must do to catch attention. We must know the pulse of our target audience. Once we know that create a domain name that fills in that gap. Domain name is a crucial think so we must put on a lot of effort unless & until we don’t care.
DazAugust 29, 2012 at 9:54 pm
Totally agree that a domain name is one of the most important parts of your online presence these days, but if you are steering away from the company name I think a lot of thought needs to be given to the keywords that you want to be found for.
A lot of this ties into what you mentioned earlier, if you want to be found for a location etc its a great place to put it i.e. London-TaxiHire.com just another way of talking about it I guess!
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antistarSeptember 3, 2012 at 7:51 am
Don’t forget, too, that domain names can be sold on. So if, god forbid, your business falls through and you need to move onto something else; if your domain name is desirable enough, someone might be interested in buying it from you once you no longer need it.
I’d also add to this guide, “Make sure it doesn’t say something funny if you read two of the words put together”. Though that doesn’t seem to have been a problem for “davidicke.com”.
ohiotom76September 3, 2012 at 12:37 pm
I think it’s also important to not get too excited about your initial ideas for a domain name. Sit on it for a few days, ask your peers what they think of it or if they have any ideas of their own. Sometimes that great idea you had for a domain name can suddenly seem not so good to you a few days later.
anonamossSeptember 5, 2012 at 12:34 pm
This is a great article! People don’t realize how difficult coming up with a name is. It’s like you have to have the perfect balance. I came up with a catchy and brilliant name for a blog. It did wonderfully when people found it, but it wasn’t easy to find it. The catchy title made CEO really difficult to rank on Google. So it really is about achieving that balance of “catchy” and SEO friendly.
KennyKSeptember 6, 2012 at 12:01 am
You have to take enough time to decide. It’s good to make some lists for yourself and share it with people you trust and who know your business or market. Make a list of keywords, decide what your company or site will be about and how people search on search engines to find what you’re offering.
It’s a good idea to make a list, and then take some time, share it with people, do some research. If you really think someone will grab the domain if you wait too long, why don’t you register it. To be honest, domain names are cheap nowadays. You can find enough promos, registering some more won’t hurt. If you decide not to use them in the end, you can sell them or you can develop another site on it that is related to your main website.
PaladinOctober 2, 2012 at 9:14 am
I have to say the way I choose a domain name is by using the keyword I am targeting if possible. Then I can find the best level of traffic for that specific word. However, if I am using the general keywords I make sure each one of my pages is specific for the keywords to guarantee they will at least rank. Great article and thanks for the advice!
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johnthomas1433November 22, 2012 at 2:59 pm
There is one main thing when you need to select a domain name. Apart from it being the company name or brand name, and that which includes generic keywords, a domain name should be crisp and simple, and should be easier to remember. That is what most people forget. They choose domain names which have 3-4 words in it, and people shall never remember them.
Also, always go for the .com extension.
MoniqueSeibelDecember 5, 2012 at 12:45 pm
I wish I would have seen this before I created mine a while ago. I do worry my title is a bit lengthy, but the words are somewhat generic and I think easy to remember. I at least hope so.
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domain salesApril 18, 2013 at 7:15 pm
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