Domain Name, Your Prime Strategy
Choosing a good domain name matters, and probably more than most folks know. The first thing a search engine considers in displaying search results is the domain name itself. The initial evaluation for placing your web site in the search results is based on keywords or terms found in the domain name. Therefore, a good place to begin your marketing strategy is obtaining the right domain name.
Below is a list of Eight Prime Factors to be considered when choosing a new domain name. I will do my best to sort this list by priority, from the most important on down.
1) Does your domain name say the most about your business with the fewest number of characters?
2) Will your domain name conflict with another business, or cause any confusion in the market place?
3) Does your domain name contain at least one word which will be searched for often when your prospective customers look for your product or service offering?
4) Does your domain name evoke an emotional response that is conducive to the growth of your business?
5) Is your domain name easy to remember?
6) Is your domain name easy to recite to someone in person or over the telephone?
7) Does your domain name contain the appropriate extension that signifies the nature of your web site?
And last but not least…
8) Is your domain name clever?
There are certainly overlapping areas for each of these questions. But IMHO if you can answer “yes” to most of these questions, then you will have chosen a domain name which will provide a great opportunity for success. It is possible to associate your brand and message to a generic sounding, nondescript domain name, but this takes considerably more time and effort, and usually a hefty advertising budget to boot. A domain name is one of the foundations for your brand, and therefore your brand awareness. No matter how good your product or service, without brand awareness your efforts may go unnoticed.
Let's look at the domain name Bing.com. It says nothing about conducting an online search, but Bing.com does meet most of the criteria on our Prime Factors list:
-- It says the most with the fewest characters.
-- It evokes a positive emotional response. (Bing! The sound of a great idea coming to mind, or the sound of wining a prize.)
-- It is easy to remember.
-- It is easy to recite.
-- It contains the proper domain extension. "Back at the beginning of the internet," it used to be that .com indicated a commercial enterprise, .net was used for internet services, .org was for nonprofits, .gov was government, .edu was academic, etc.
-- And yes, I believe most would say Bing.com is a clever domain name.
It would be easy to arrive at the same conclusion for many well-known domain names: Yahoo.com, Apple.com, Mashable.com, Yelp.com, Twitter, etc. What others can you think of?
When choosing the best domain name for you, try to visualize outcomes. Ask yourself, can I promote with this domain name? What would that look like? If I were a one of my own customers, would I visit a web site with this domain name? I know this is a rather subjective exercise but the better you are at walking in the moccasins of your prospective customer, the more successful your web site will be from day one. You may not have the luxury of assembling focus groups and conducting statistically-based market research, but you can run your ideas by people who are in a similar business, or who may have greater marketing experience than yourself. Even some of your current customers may give you valuable feedback. Keep in mind that YOU are your own best focus group because you are the one who best knows the strengths and unique aspects of what you have to offer.
The DOT COM extension is, by far, the most popular one and there are millions of them already registered. Most of the domain names composed of simple dictionary words are taken by now. This can be as much as an asset as a hindrance because namely (pun intended) this forces you to be a little more creative.
At any time you can see what options are available for a new domain name by visiting your favorite domain registration service, such as LinkskyDomains.com. Type in the name that you want to register and you'll get immediate feedback if it is available or taken. You may also get some excellent suggestions for alternatives.
As a quick example, let’s say you would like to start a home repair service and your name is Andy. If you want to go for the lighter side (comedy-flavored identities can be very successful), then do a search to see if any of the following are available:
AndyFixIt.com
AndyCanDo.com
ToolsInHand.com
HandyAndy.com
ReadyToRepair.com
WoofToRoof.com
RepairsRUs.com
WearBGone.com
WearGoneRepair.com
RuleAndRepair.com
Put your thinking cap on and come up with a list of possibilities. Run each one though the list of Prime Factors above. Then see if they are available. Discuss your potential selections with some people you trust (business associates, a mentor, a few customers). Ask the simple question, “How does the sound of the domain name make you feel?” And, "What comes to mind when you hear or see this domain name?" Don't lose sight of the fact that you are creating your brand.
Once you've made your selection, congratulations are in order! Now, the creative process can continue to unfold as you develop your web site. When you're ready to build your web site, come visit Linksky.net. Two fantastic site builders and many other site building options await!
Good news! LinkSky Value Host is one of the few commercial web hosting companies that does NOT require that their customers transfer domains, or register their domains at the hosting company's domain service. Our members have the freedom to register their domains with the registrar of their chose and still host with Linksky.
When you open your hosting account at Linksky, a simple change of name server addresses is all that is needed to point your web traffic to your Linksy server.
Linksky offers domain registration services for your convenience and for us to be able to provide additional support for your domain registration accounts. You'll find an excellent, full-featured domain center with great prices and friendly, knowledgeable support. Please visit LinkskyDomains.com.
Contact us today to ask about our easy-to-use site builders, pro-email services and 24/7 responsive support.