Top 10 Tips That Will Help You Name Your Site

There are thousands of book written about baby’s names. What they mean what the origin of the name is. This is something people agonize over for months. People talk to consultants about what to name their business. What type of logo they should have what the colors should be. The part that many times is overlooked and taken for granted is the domain name for their website. There are some points to consider before you choose your domain name. This is how your business is going to appear to the Internet world at large.

1. Your Domain Name and Website Name should be one and the same – Now this may seem obvious to you but many times it is not that simple. If your company name is ABC Demolition you may think this is easy.  The problem is that name is taken. So what are you going to do? Contacting the business to buy the name is probably not going to work. They are a business that is currently in operation. The dot com is taken but maybe the dot biz or some other dot may work. You can check names yourself at http://atyourservers.net . This will let you know if the name you are looking for is available. This is important because this is how people are going to think of you. The possibility of driving business to a competitors site could be costly.
2. Your domain name should say what you do – If you can put what you do in the title of the website, it will help you in the search engine results. If demolition is your business then having it in the title of your website and in your domain name is going to be extremely helpful.
3. Avoid generic names – Having what you do in the domain name is important. You also want to avoid something too generic. You want people to identify with you business. Matching your brand or business name is best.
4. Is a longer domain better – All of the 3 letter names are taken. Most of the 4 letter names are taken. Creating an acronym can be helpful if it is relatable to the business. ABC Demolition should not use XYZDMO.com for its domain name. It has no relationship to what the business name is or what it does. Shorter is easier to remember but not always better. Having a longer name with some or all of the keywords for your site will help with the search engines.
5. Should I hyphenate the name in order to get the name I want – There are advantages and disadvantages to using hyphenated names. The benefit of having your keywords in the domain name is unmistakable. This can help you rise higher than the non-hyphenated name with proper SEO work. The disadvantages are it is harder to type and harder to remember the hyphens. Still having the name you really want can be worth it. Get the non-hyphenated if possible.
6. Using other forms of the domain name – Many times it is tempting to use a different form of a name. Changing the name from ABC Demolition to The ABC Demolition Company will make the name available. If you go this route make sure and promote the company that way.
7. Is com, org, biz, net, etc all the same – The answer is a yes and no. It really depends on the market you want to reach. Many people feel that the com is the only way to go. That is the most recognizable. There are advantages to using us if you are targeting the United States or uk if you are targeting Great Britain. The net and biz are good choices also. The org is usually a non-profit.
8. Misspellings – This is a gimmick that I would avoid. It can get you some traffic but in the long run it will not help your site.
9. Don’t forget rules of order – Many times people forget how things are sorted. A name that begins with an “a” will be sorted on a list before something that begins with a ”z”. Keep this in mind when you are naming your website.
10. Test it out – Try the name on people you know. Is it easy to remember? When it is written can it be misunderstood. The number 5 can be mistaken for an S very easily.

This will get you going in the world of domain names. This is an important decision that will shape your business’s success going forward.

Dwayne Coots