Tips on Choosing Your Domain Name

Posted by Arnold Aranez

One of the first steps to getting a website up and running is choosing your domain name.

Good domain names are those that, once rolled off the tongue, immediately conjure up images or associations to your products / services or blog. For example, when someone says the word “Google” we think of Internet search engine. Granted, they’ve spent millions and millions to build this brand however the word “Google” as a domain name was a good foundation.

Imagine if they started with “GooglePen.com” - I know it sounds ridiculous but I know there are people out there creating domains that confuse rather than assist their potential customers’ imagery.

Here are some tips that I’ve learned over the years regarding choosing a domain name:

1. Determine what your brand is: What exactly are you representing or trying to sell? Make sure that your domain reflects this. This is what you will be known by and known for.

I chose my name for my domain because I didn’t want to confuse any of my current readers with another brand/name. Many people on the internet know me as Mr.Gadget so if I used a domain such as www.arnmeister.com it would give me another identity.

2. Keep your domain name short and simple. Look at the top websites in the world. Most of them are short; with less than 4 syllables and easy to remember:

Top 10 Websites according to Alexa (July 3rd, 2008):

1. Yahoo.com
2. Google.com
3. YouTube.com
4. Live.com
5. Msn.com
6. MySpace.com
7. Wikipedia.org
8. Facebook.com
9. Blogger.com
10. Yahoo.co.jp

3. Go for a Top Level Domain Name (.COM, .NET, .ORG). This is more to do with long term focus of your site especially if it gets popular. There were guidelines for the use of each particular type, for example, dot coms were meant for businesses, however you can also register .NET and .ORG for businesses too. If your country specific domain names are available and if you have the budget, grab these as well.

4. Create a shortlist of 20-30 domain names before searching. This will save you time and having to wait for a squillion internet pages to load. Writing your names down will also help you determine your top set of domains.

5. Be decisive and get in fast. Your shortlist of domains should be your top candidates allowing you to pounce on that “buy” button as soon as your domain name of choice appears as available. Cyber/domain squatters are quickly depleting domain stocks of the good stuff, so the sooner you can lock in an acceptable domain name the better.

I’ve also heard stories of people finding available domains on domain resellers websites, then the following day find that they’re taken. Even if you’re not 100% if you find a decent domain, buy it and park it for under $20.

6. Buy from a reputable Domain registrar. Pretty self explanatory. You can normally tell if a site gets decent traffic and therefore orders by their Google or Alexa rank and position in Google search results. I normally buy mine from GoDaddy or Siteground.

7. Ensure that your domain name doesn’t enfringe on any trademarks. We’ve all seen websites that try to leverage from the popularity of the “real deal”. One example was www.facebook.com.au, who were recently forced to give the domain to Facebook. Although you may experience some short term benefit, why waste your time and effort with the possibility of starting from scratch?

8. Get feedback from web savvy friends. There’s nothing like having people-in-the-know as sounding boards to give you honest feedback of your site. Go to them with an open-mind and humble heart. I would be more than happy to listen to your web name queries. Oh, make sure they’re trustworthy as well…or that domain name may be someone else’s very fast!

Other good references on Choosing a Domain Name:

• Tips on Choosing a Good Domain Name
• 8 Quick Tips to Choosing a Domain Name
• Choosing a Domain Name

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6 Responses to “Tips on Choosing Your Domain Name”

1. linkingclever.info » Blog Archive » Tips on Choosing Your Domain Name Says:
   July 3rd, 2008 at 5:59 am

   [...] Excerpt from:Tips on Choosing Your Domain Name [...]

2. Tips to Choosing Your Domain Name | WhiteSandsDigital.com Says:
   July 7th, 2008 at 3:47 am

   [...] advice on choosing the best Domain Name for your website.read more | digg [...]

3. website design Says:
   July 9th, 2008 at 9:28 am

   Some great tips on choosing your domain name.

4. Arnold Says:
   July 9th, 2008 at 12:07 pm

   Thanks! Glad you found it useful

5. winandmac.com Says:
   July 14th, 2008 at 7:14 pm

   [...] [via Arnold Aranez] [...]

6. Keyclicks Says:
   August 10th, 2008 at 8:36 pm

   To the lay person, choosing a domain name can be confusing, this article contains some useful tips which some people will no doubt find useful. Another useful blog post I found on the matter can be found under the title What’s in a Name. Check it out.

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