The Importance of Selecting a Good Domain Name...

The Importance of Selecting Your Domain Name…

Whether starting a business, a blog, or a website based on a common interest you and others share selecting a good domain name is critical.

When selecting a domain name don’t just think about about now, think about down the road. Even if your starting your website as blog just as a hobby, you never know if it may gain lots of followers and become successful. If this were to happen and you didn’t plan property it would be tough to grow your business down the road.

Is it easy to spell and remember? Don’t get too creative with your spelling or too long with the domain name. KoolSports.Com may sound hip but every time you tell someone to check out your website you will also have to explain that it’s KoolSports.Com with a “K”.

Is the name also available as a username on social media sites? Every company, website, blog, etc, in addition to having their site also has a face book page, a twitter account, a myspace page, etc. If your site name is not available on those your going to have a bunch of different usernames to remember and your followers will have a tougher time finding you as opposed to if you had rulesforrebels.com as your web domain like mine, as well as your face book username, twitter username, etc, etc, etc.

How many searches per month does this keyword get? Sure you will be driving your own traffic to your site however anytime web users accidentally stumble across your site you have a potential new returning visitor. If the domain name you select is commonly searched your off to a good start right from the jump when it comes to getting traffic.
Is the domain name brand able? This site rulesforrebels.Com doesn’t exactly describe what the site is about, however it is an easy to remember and easy to brand name. It’s hip, and allows me to brand it uniquely. Ideally however it would be nice if a site like this one for example had something in the title about business or entrepreneurship.

Does the domain avoid filler words? This sites name is Rulesforrebels.com. Yes “for” is a filler word but without it the site would just be rules rebels which doesn’t make much sense so in this case one filler word is okay. Generally however avoid filler words. While on the topic don’t use the number “4” in the place of the word “four”. I know it can be tempting when a domain name you want is taken, however again, every time you refer someone to your site you’ll have to say “No it’s not Rulesforrebels.com, it’s Rules4rebels.com. This is bad enough when explaining to people by word of mouth but if your site ever takes off and you do any type of advertising or pod casting this becomes even more of a pain.

Does your site inadvertanly say anything stupid? An example I’ve seen in several blog and web design books is don’t name a site something like www.expertsexchange.com. If you notice it inadvertently says expert sex change. This is getting a little picky so don’t focus on this too much but one thing I dislike about Rulesforrebels.Com is that there are two of the letter “R” back to back. This can cause people to mis-type your domain name. Like I said though that’s getting a little picky, don’t let that stop you from choosing a domain name.

Is your site a .Com? I really don’t understand why people choose .biz or .net domain names. It’s people’s natural inclination to type .Com. If someone sees my username “Rulesforrebels” on a forum, message board, and want to find me they will most likely type .Com and not .Net or .Biz. Make it easy for people to find you and use a .Com. I would much rather choose a domain name I wasn’t as excited about rather than get my chosen domain name but have it be a .biz or .net.

Does your site have any dashes or symbols? Don’t pick a domain name that has dashes or any other symbols that may be allowed. Most people don’t know what a backslash is as opposed to a forward slash, what a dash is as opposed to a underscore, etc. Leave these things out of your domain name to make your site easier to find.

Is it simple? We’ve all heard the old saying Keep It Simple Stupid. Don’t make your domain name any longer or complicated than it needs to be. I know many names are taken and it can be tough finding a name your happy with but keep it as short and simple as possible. If you need to add dashes, odd spelling or numbers to your domain name to get the one you want find a new one.

Does your domain name allow for personal branding? This doesn’t necessarily apply to every type of website. A website or blog can be a nice thing on your resume. It displays your writing skill, shows creativity, and also shows that you know how to use technology. If your starting a business blog for example and your name is Bill Smith why not name your site BillSmithBusiness.Com. It’s easy for an employer or someone wanting to hire you as a consultant to make the connection. I didn’t exactly follow this tip myself. My site being RulesForrebels.Com I would need to explain that my name is so and so and Rulesforrebels.Com is my website.

Will your domain name look good in ads, commercials, on a billboard or business card? This is up to your judgement but is it short and concise, does it explain what you do. Will it look good in ads in the future if you choose to go that route?


Are you currently searching for a domain name? Do you find lots of possible names you come up with are already taken? Was this article helpful for you? Do you have any of your own tips on selecting domain names? If so please feel free to add them in the comments section.