Choosing a Domain Name for your new website should be done carefully as it is the foundation to your success online. What may seem like an obvious Domain Name choice may not be the best decision so it is important that you take the time to plan the name.
One of the most important steps in choosing your Domain Name is research. There are two types of domain name that you can choose, either by using your company name (brand name) or by targeting words which are closely related to your business.
For example, I am building my brand CWDH, which are the initials for Creative Web Design and Hosting. At this stage though, CWDH has no reputation in the marketplace and so doesn’t mean anything, however Creative Web Design and Hosting is a keyword rich phrase chosen for SERPS, but is long to type and a little difficult to remember. So I am covering two bases with how I have chosen my domain names – branding and keywords.
This website will always stay at www.creativewebdesignandhosting.com but I will be using cwdh.com.au for my communication as that is shorter and it is my challenge to teach the search engines that they are related.
Another example is Coca Cola. Nowhere does their branding suggest soft drinks and everything else which they produce, they have worked on their branding so now it is known worldwide.
Another consideration you might want to think about is securing the .com, .net, .org, .biz, .info and any local TLD’s like .com.au so that your domain name cannot be overtaken in SERP rankings by other businesses trying to rank for the same word. If you own a domain like a .com.au it is also highly advised that you buy the .com as a lot of people will forget about typing in the .au.
Lastly, it is important to ensure that your backlinking stays true to one domain and that it isn’t spread across all the different ones you own as that will weaken your SEO.
Domain Name Tips
When choosing you Domain Name take into consideration the following points:
- Keep it short
- Make it recognisable
- Have it easy to say
- Ensure it is easy to spell
- Make it memorable
- Avoid hyphens
- Avoid numbers
- Avoid Roman Numerals
- Think about copyright
Domain Name Foopahs
Here are some companies who might have avoided choosing their domain name if they had looked carefully:
- Who Represents: www.whorepresents.com
- Experts Exchange: www.expertsexchange.com
- Pen Island: www.penisland.com
- Therapist Finder: www.therapistfinder.com
- Italian Power Generator: www.powergenitalia.com
- Speed of Art: www.speedofart.com
- Winters Express: www.wintersexpress.com
- Children’s Wear: www.childrenswear.com
Woopsies!
At Creative Web Design and Hosting we have some great research tools which will help you choose the best domain name possible. I ask you to think about how people are going to find your website, are you relying on SERP rankings or potential customers typing it directly into the browser bar? If you have your website designed by me I will take care of the technical parts of registering your name and setting up your website. Remember, research is essential in choosing your Domain Name.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me, and don’t forget to leave a comment below.
I wish you success with your business online.
Jayne, Creative Web Design and Hosting
Cheshire’s Creations trading as Creative Web Design and Hosting.
Creative Web Design and Hosting is committed to helping you expand your business online. Pages are well designed and easy to navigate. Professional strategies are used to help your website achieve high rankings in search engine results. The most important of these is fresh and unique content on your website and building your brand throughout the website community with a variety of tactics. For this reason I recommend the Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond or Ultimate Packages to give your website every possible chance for success.
Have a look through all the packages to see if there is something which suits you and contact me today to discuss your website needs – if there is something that you want that doesn’t quite fit, a custom quote can be easily organised.
