One of the most common questions I'm asked by my clients is
"What domain name should I use for my website?". In response, I
would recommend considering several factors. In the following
article, I will go through these factors in a question and
answer format:
1. Should I choose a country code domain name (like .CO.UK or
.CA), or a global top-level domain like .COM?
If your target market is specific to one country, I would
recommend using a country code domain name, especially if you
sell physical products that can only be delivered within that
country. Many people I have spoken to tell me that they are
often uncertain of where online stores are located, and it is
not until they reach checkout and are asked to pay in a foreign
currency that they are not able to order the products in their
shopping basket due to the website not selling internationally.
Having a country code domain name instantly lets your potential
customers know that you are located in the same country as them,
and that your service is designed specifically for that nation.
Alternatively, if you have a website developed for the purpose
of sharing information, with little or no content which is only
relevant in one part of the world, my advice would be to choose
a global top-level domain such as .com.
2. Should I break up words within my domain name with
hyphens? Is 'widget-shop.com' better than 'widgetshop.com'?
There seems to be a general consensus within the search engine
optimisation industry that using hyphens helps search engines
deduce what the actual words within an URL are, therefore
leading to those pages being ranked higher in the search engine
results. However, there is also speculation that using 2 or more
hyphens within the domain name incurs a penalty. With this in
mind, I would advise anyone who plans to receive most of their
custom from organic search engine results to use one hyphen in
their domain name to separate their targeted search keywords.
However, if your business model is not heavy on search engine
optimisation, my recommendation would be to not have any hyphens
in your domain name, as the vast majority of internet users
intuitively enter domain names in their browser address bar
without any hyphens. In domain name value appraisal circles, the
non-hyphenated version of a domain name is usually considered to
be of greater worth.
For search engine optimisation, studies show that one hyphen may
give you an advantage, but on the whole I would recommend not
using any hyphens in your domain name.
3. Is it better to have digits (2, 3 etc.) or words for
numbers (two, three etc.) in my domain name?
Generally speaking, I would dissuade anyone using word of mouth
advertising from having any numbers, either as digits or as
words, in their domain name. The reason for this is that a
domain name should be easy to remember and easy to spell
correctly. Lets say for example you had the domain name
'widgets4u.com'. If you meet someone that is interested in your
product, and tell them to visit your website, you are going to
have tell them specifically that the 4 is numeric and the U is
just one letter. Otherwise, they may input 'widgetsforyou.com',
'widgets4you.com', 'widgetsforu.com' and end up at the website
of one of your competitors.
If however you are prepared to accept this risk, in my
experience the layperson tends to instinctively put the numeric
version of a number in a domain name. Therefore, use
'widgets2.com', not 'widgetstwo.com'.
4. How long should my domain name be?
As short as possible. Long domain names are harder for your
customers to remember, take longer to type, longer to spell out
(you may find yourself having to spell your domain name
letter-by-letter to some clients) and also may be harder to
actually fit onto your business cards, print advertisements and
similar. I have one client whose business name consists of four
words, two of which are tricky to spell. My advice to him was to
use a domain name with the first letter of each word only, which
has proved very easy to remember.
If you are targeting specific search keywords, I would recommend
that your domain name consists of those keywords and as little
else as possible. If you were targeting 'purple widgets', my
advice would be to use the domain name 'purplewidgets.com'. If
that domain name is not available, I would recommend adding one
extra word to the end. For example, I personally have a web site
which targets the search keyword 'weight loss'. As one would
expect, 'weightloss.com' and 'weightloss.co.uk' were already
registered - so I opted for the domain name
'weightlossweb.co.uk'. Choosing an added word that begins with
the same letter as your first keyword helps your visitors
remember your domain name. So, going back to the purple widgets
example: Alternative domain names could include
'purplewidgetpro.com', 'purplewidgetpower.com' and
'purplewidgetparadise.com'.
5. Are some domain name extensions better than others?
Yes. Generally speaking, the most desirable top-level domain is
the .COM. Charitable websites may choose .ORG in order to
declare that they are a charitable organisation, but there are
currently no restrictions on who can register .ORG domain names
or what they need be used for - and many commercial websites
still use them.
My personal "league table" of favoured domain name extensions is
as follows:
1 .COM
2 Country-code (.CO.UK, .CA, .IE etc.)
3 .NET
4 .ORG
5 .BIZ
6 .INFO
7 .NAME
I currently have in excess of 300 domain names registered, none
of which are .INFO or .NAME. I would only recommend that one
registers .BIZ, .INFO or .NAME domains if they have a large
website with a brand name to protect. For example, my business
trading name is 'Starsol.co.uk'. At the time of writing this
article, 'Starsol.com' is currently registered by a domain name
squatter, who is asking for an extortionate price. I have chosen
to register 'Starsol.biz' to prevent a similar situation
occurring in future. I feel it is very unlikely that anyone
actually types the domain with the .BIZ extension into the
address bar looking for my website - but if I didn't register
the name myself - someone else might and go on to use it for
purposes that may harm my brand.
6. What about .TV and .WS?
Although they may be marketed as such, .TV does not mean
tele-vision and .WS does not mean web-site or world-site. .TV is
the country code extension for Tuvalu and .WS is for Samoa.
Tuvalu is small island country located in the Western Pacific
Ocean with a population of approximately 11,000 in the Western
Pacific Ocean that gained independence from the UK in 1978.
Samoa, also in the Pacific, gained independence from New Zealand
in 1962 and has a population of around 180,000. If these
countries are not your target markets, I would personally
dissuade you from using their country code domain names.
Other similar domain names include .FM (Federated States of
Micronesia) which masquerades as the TLD for radio stations and
.CC (Cocos Islands).
7. Why do some domain name registrars charge more than
others? Are their domain names better?
Perhaps surprising, this is a question I have been asked on
several occasions. Just like how some supermarkets which charge
more than others for identical cans of fizzy drink than others,
domain name registrars also charge differing domain name
registration costs. Although some domain name registrars may
provide extra tools with domain name registration, a domain name
registered for $8.95 a year will work in exactly the same way
and one registered for $35.00 a year. If I may give my own
service a plug here, Starsol Domains at
http://www.starsoldomains.com/ offers .COM registration for what
I believe are some of the fairest prices on the 'net.
I hope this article has helped you in your search for a perfect
domain name. I would like to add however, that with domain name
registrations being so cheap, that registering multiple domains
and redirecting them all to your one "main domain" may prove to
be a very good idea. If there is one domain that you will be
heavily marketing, I would strongly advise you to at least also
register the .COM version of that domain name too, and if you
are outside the United States to also register the relevant
country-code version of the domain name. Many of your customers
may input the wrong extension when looking for your site,
possibly leading to you losing their custom to a competitor of
yours; or like my personal situation which I described earlier,
may lead to a domain name squatter registering a domain similar
to yours in the hope that you will spend many thousands buying
it from them.
This potboiler is meant to all
who present have a website or who submit to check it. Website -
the epitomize comprises three things : Domain, Hosting (Web
space) & Web Design.
There are protracted involvement lagniappe these services. I am
here to examine few points with regards to first and inbred
things you inclination to have a whole-length okay when you
carry through a WEBSITE thru one of these companies.
Now to the article,
Every day, I wind up few phone calls of this assembly :
Sir, My reign expires in likely few days, but the transaction
which registered it is out of business, Please RENEW it"
Sir, I hankering to back the scepter to your server but I don't
have the lands dispense panel"
Dear Support Team, The lands is registered thru 'X' and his
propose is listed as REGISTRANT and Admin Contact, support me"
I have a website for 1998 but I am not taking side enquiries
thru it. So what's the term in having it renewed?"
My website is abandoned glaringly of the time, can you execute
existence on it"
If you introspection at the above, you could distinguish the
prosaic problem. Thus, a checklist is right-hand for partition
WEBSITE. Lets deliberate one by one :
Domain NAME Registration : CHECKLIST
Once your reign is registered, comply these things :
Is the DOMAIN NAME Registered with an ICANN Accredited Registrar
?
Does the REGISTRANT NAME and ADMINISTRATIVE CONTACT loom your
name/email ?
Did the Domain Registration Service Provider grant you the
Domain CONTROL PANEL with username / password to manage/modify
offer servers & wisdom details in real-time ?
Do you have the OPTION to complete REMINDERS at the hope of
RENEWAL, actually in quote ?
Web Hosting (Web space) : CHECKLIST
Support, Support, Support - is the KEY bob up when it comes to
Hosting. Check the working one's turn of the Service Provider
before regulation an option.
How masterly the specialized common people are ? Just inculcate
in few queries and inspect how they recite?
Get a chop chop inspection at the Service Provider Website and
embark on specific its able looking with user kind touring and
layout.
Check if they have listed TESTIMONIALS, catalogue of sites
hosted with them, slight options for hardy purchase, chicamin
modes. Also set about clear there are NO Hidden charges. The
cardinal archetype to regarding is : the BANDWIDTH offered for
each hosting plan.
Multiple Domains in unlike hosting space. This is an heavier
rake-off and saves your money. You can direct for this
preference if not provided.
Make a inmost ponder on the Hosting Plan you choose. Check all
the differentiating constitution are provided. To propose a few,
POP3 mails, SMTP support, FTP Account, Control Panel, Web mail,
Spam Controller, Antivirus, Web Statistics.
Website Design : CHECKLIST
Does the website designer provide you with unpaid subordinate
updates or for a nominal price on a yearly guilt beginning?
Is the website adept looking and appeals to the wholesale
congress?
It has been 3 months whereas your occasion and professional is
NO lucky inquiries and you are UPSET. Wait?..go to : http://www.google.com
and plant your website instance and savvy search. Does it be
present evolution anywhere in the results?
Does the website designer provided you with policing assistance?
Does the website lucre gathering of juncture to load. Make
thorough it loads faster planate on standstill connections. Too
by much of Flashy animations, more select size jpegs are NOT an
option for your site. CONTENT is the King. Make firm your
website 'delivers'.
The upper is true a terminus of the iceberg. I have compiled the
most differentiating philosophy of a WEBSITE Registration,
Hosting and Web Design. |