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Domain Name - How To Pick One


Picking a domain name should be easy, right? Why, I'll just use my business name. Not so fast, Sparky. A good bit of thought should be given to selecting a domain name.

A Cautionary Note

Picking a domain name is like getting married. You are going to have to stick with it till the bitter end. People that use your site will come to know it by the domain name. Repeat visitors will often simply type in the domain name to get to the site, better known as "type in traffic". As an example, do you search for "Amazon" when you want to buy a book or do simply type in amazon.com? If Amazon were to change its domain name to Desert, there would be a lot of confusion. The same goes with your domain. Once you pick something, stick with it.

Your Choices

Well, the obvious choice is your business name, but it may not be the best. There are four significant issues to consider.

First, is there something about your business name that makes using it as a domain an unwise choice? This situation typically arises if you have a long business name or have plural words. "Halstatt's Rip'n Marketing Campaigns, Inc." is going to be a horrible domain name. Clients are going to find it difficult to type in such a domain name.

Double letter problems are a second issue that is entirely unique to the Internet. What if Sams Salon wants to use its business name as a domain? The "s" at the end of first word and beginning of the second can cause confusion. Is the domain name Samssalon.com or Samsalon.com? Confusing your users is a bad way to run a site.

The third issue concerns the nature of your site and search engine optimization. If you are shooting for a particular keyword phrase, you may be better off using that keyword phrase in your domain name. Google, for instance, looks at the domain name when evaluating a site. If the words in your domain name are spaced with dashes, many believe it will help in the ranking process. This is why you see so many xxx-xxxx-xxx.com domain names on the net. If your business focuses on a very specific area, strong consideration should be given to using relevant keywords in your domain name.

Finally, your domain name should end in ".com" and I don't want to hear any argument or see any rolling of the eyes. The simple fact is that when people think of sites, they always type in .com. Yes, there are other extensions and .us, .net, .biz, etc., may seem unique, but it kills your traffic. Pavlov and his dog experiments had it right. People have been mentally conditioned to type in .com, so don't select any other ending. If you do, a smart competitor will register the .com version of your name to get some free traffic. If you are really lucky, a porn site will do it!

Take a breath before you select a domain name. Like a spouse, it can be either a good or bad choice.

Halstatt Pires is with http://www.marketingtitan.com - an Internet marketing and advertising company comprised of a search engine optimization specialist providing meta tag optimization services and Internet marketing consultant providing internet marketing solutions through integrated design and programming services.


MORE RESOURCES:

TechCentral

From .God to .xxx - sex and religion domain names to be discussed
Telegraph.co.uk
ICM Registry, a company which sells domain names and is campaigning for .xxx to be made available, has said that it hopes to be offering the suffix for sale ...
Plans for porn Internet domain name 'dot.xxx' revisitedThaindian.com
Porn internet domain name 'dot.xxx' plan revivedBBC News
Adult Internet XXX Porn Domain ResurrectedNovinite.com
Tom's Guide -IDG
all 43 news articles »


National Post

Sex.com domain goes up for grabs
CNNMoney.com
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Sex.com, one of the most valuable Internet domain names, will go up for ...
Lender putting www.sex.com domain on auction blockReuters
Sex.com goes on auction blockCBC.ca
Sex sites go on saleTG Daily
First Post -Metro -Wired News
all 80 news articles »


THA board obtains domain names for new website to foster good communication
Hot Springs Village Voice
Among the items concerns the creation of a website with two domain name connections, www.hvstha.com and www.hotspringsvillagetownhouse. com. ...



.Org Eyes Leadership Role in IDN Top Level Domain Names
Domain Name Wire (blog)
One of the big questions facing registries of existing top level domain names is how they should pursue Internationalized Domain Name “equivalents” of their ...



How Important is Your Domain Name to Your Brand?
WebProNews (blog)
How important is your domain name to you brand? Most online businesses would probably consider it to be quite important, and with good reason. ...



Go Daddy Set to Hit 40 Million Domains Milestone on Wednesday
Domain Name Wire (blog)
About six months after crossing the 30 million domain name mark, The Go Daddy Group is set to surpass 40 million domains under management, most likely on ...
Internet Milestone Illustrates Power of Web in 'New Economy'Earthtimes (press release)

all 11 news articles »


Domain name decision could open up new online marketing opportunities
PFJ Media Recruitment Agency (blog)
Several new online marketing opportunities could be opened up to businesses across the UK should the national registry for domain names opt to give the ...



Brands could claim short domain names
Marketing
LONDON - Nominet, the national registry for .uk internet domain names, is reviewing its rules ...
Nominet consults on short .uk domain namesV3.co.uk
Nominet Considers Release of One and Two Letter DomainsDomain Name News

all 3 news articles »


Offering Cheapest Domain Names at OM Hosting
BigNews.biz (press release)
OMS Hosting helps such business owners by offering affordable hosting and comparatively cheaper domain names. Nowadays, OMS Hosting is offering domain names ...



Leveraging Keyword Domain Names One Route To Internet Business Success
AddPR.com (press release)
The continued growth in the number of high dollar domain name sales as well as the top dollars being paid for generic domain names are testament to the ...


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