Your Domain Name is a vital part of your web presence!
You knowing what you are talking about in your niche is great. You being an expert in your field is fantastic. You being able to captivate your audience with the written word is outstanding… But
Your domain name still says a great deal about you, or your site. Your domain name can also make it either very easy, or very difficult for your market to find you.
Here are a few things to remember when choosing a domain name.
1. KeyWord – Ideally, you do want your main keyword to be included in your domain name. This is not always possible. Actually, quite often, it’s not possible. The popular keywords are usually taken first.
Instead, try a less popular keyword. One that is searched for, but not by as many people. There is a greater chance that the less popular keyword is available, and it is still being searched for.
You can always have you main keyword in your tagline.
Look to the top of the page. You have your address bar, Look above that, to the very top of the page. See the blue bar/border across the top. The writing in there is called the tag line. It is also crawled by the spiders of the search engines.
2. Think outside the box – Remember that it is your customers that are searching for you – you are not searching for yourself.
They are looking to solve their problems, to make life easier for themselves. What you think they might be looking for may be totally different from what they are looking for.
For example – Imagine you were selling fruit. You could have the word “fruit” in your domain name (already taken). You could have certain types of fruit – apples, pears, oranges, mandarins etc.
But what if your customers weren’t just looking for “fruit”? What if they were looking for fruit smoothies, apple pies, freshly squeezed orange juice, fruit cocktails…
The list goes on and on. Think outside the box. Not just what your niche is, but what your (potential) customers are looking to do with it.
3. Do-Not-Hyphenate – You think of a great domain name. You’re excited. It’s perfect. It’s taken!
Do not make the mistake of taking that domain name with dashes between the letters!!
Most people, when typing in your domain name, will forget the dashes. They will go directly to the other site, which may be a competitor, or it may be a site about something completely different.
One of two things will happen. If it’s a competitor, the customer may not know it’s not your site. Your competitor will reap the benefits of your hard work.
If it’s a site about something completely different, you will lose credibility. You have led them to believe they are going to a site to solve their headache problems, instead they are learning about the headaches associated with unpaid bills. Even though they are on the wrong site, they are unlikely to go back and check. As far as they are concerned, you tricked them.
4. Not Too Long – I have a website. It’s just a one page website. A pretty basic website. It’s purpose is to get a persons name and email address. In exchange they get something extremely valuable. Seriously. It’s an e-book. A book explaining how, step-by-step, in easy to understand language, how to create your own website.
You may not be interested in creating your own website (at the moment). I was when I found this book. But, when you read this book you actually realize how easy it really is. If creating you own website is really this easy, imagine how easy all the other skills you need to know to earn an income online are easy to learn! (yes, I’m sorry. You do need to learn a few skills)
This book is so fantastic, I would like to pass it on. The problem is the domain name I chose.
www.createyourfirstwebsitebythisafternoon.com.
See what I mean. Wayyy to long. I wanted my main keyword – create your first website –(yes keywords can actually be more than one word), but all the different combinations were taken. So, instead of thinking outside the box, I just added in a couple of extra words. Try typing that domain name into the address bar… see how many letters, or what word, you forget.
So remember – Not Too Long
5. Dot Com – If you are trying to sell something, .com is always best. The com is short for commercial. It is also what just about everyone associates with a web address. People will either type that in automatically, or just type in the actual name and the .com will be what automatically comes up first.
6. Branding – You may wish to become known as a expert in whatever niche you are in. The easiest way for people to know who you are is by using your name as your domain name. This does go against the advice of having a keyword in your domain name (unless your niche is fruit and your first name is Apple). There may be hundreds, or even thousands, of websites and affiliates trying to sell the same thing you are.
What makes your site different? You. There is only one of you. You can make the difference between your site and the thousands of others offering the same stuff
Tip#1 – If your name is already taken (it’s possible), try having yournameonline.com or therealyourname.com. I’m sure you can think of some other variations.
Tip#2 – If you are interested in Branding yourself as an expert in your field, (strongly recommended) Click This Link. Just enter your name and email to receive a 7 day video course (free).
Tip#3 – Go to www.createyourfirstwebsite.com Enter your name and email. This book is seriously worth while. It is completely free. You don’t have to pay to find out the real secrets. Everything is explained in very simple, easy to understand (without making you feel like an idiot) language.
Hopefully these tips will help you when trying to choose a domain name. Although Domain Names are fairly cheap – anywhere from $10-$20 per year, sometimes it is still a good idea to sleep on it.
