A domain name is more than just a URL; it is a way for people to locate you on the internet. It is the means by which you construct a brand and express your identity.
Undoubtedly, there are a great deal of factors to take into consideration while selecting the appropriate domain name.
The good news is that although domains are inexpensive and simple to register, it does take some time and effort to pick the ideal domain name. That is why we have included this guidance in our collection of resources.
The top e-commerce websites provide examples of domain names, and there are tools that can produce ideas for business names. With these resources, you may start an online store right away and start selling products quickly.
1. Make sure that your domain name is not too long, short, and easy to remember.
In the event that you are fortunate enough to already possess a brand name, you should make every effort to register it as your domain name. This makes it simpler for consumers to locate you on the internet and establish a connection between your company and your website. You should obtain the.com domain name if at all possible; nevertheless, the.co and.net domains can be viable alternatives.
Regardless of the name you decide to go with, just remember to keep it brief, succinct, and simple to recall.
Aim to achieve:
- Use a domain name that is no longer than 15 characters.
- Stay away from slang (for example, don’t say “you” instead of “U”).
- Steer clear of words that have complicated spellings and meanings.
- One example would be the online store of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which might have utilised the domain name thelacountymuseumofartstore.org. It seems to me that something is odd here. In addition to the fact that the domain name is excessively long, the words “farm store” stand out as being particularly unattractive for a company that sells products online.
Rather than that, the company decided to go with thelacmastore.org, which is a domain name that is not only short and sweet but also easy to pronounce.
2. Stay away from hyphens and numbers.
You have no control over the fact that people tend to type things incorrectly. However, if you leave out the hyphens and digits in your domain name, you can reduce the likelihood that people would type it incorrectly. People could be confused about what to enter when they are looking for your website, for instance, if you use the letter “4” instead of the word “for.”
It is also possible to make your domain name mobile-friendly by avoiding the use of digits and hyphens. The fact that you have to jump between the alphabet and numeric keyboards in order to type down a URL on a phone increases the likelihood that you will make mistakes, misspell words, and become confused.
Stay away from the following:
- Utilising a combination of words and numbers: c00l-d0main.com
- Cool-domain.com is an example of a hyphen.
- coolest-domain4u.com contains the abbreviations.
- The coolesttopdomain.com extension has been doubled.
Only in the event that your brand name contains a number is there an exception to these requirements. For instance, the domain name 3sixteen.com is utilized by the clothing company known as 3sixteen Inc. Every aspect of its branding, including its merchandise and social media handles, is congruent with it. Therefore, in this particular instance, the domain name is easily recognizable and brandable, which reduces the likelihood that customers may become confused by the number.
3. Select a domain name that ends in.com (but don’t worry if you are unable to obtain one).
When it comes to selecting the extension for your domain, there is a lot of dispute about which one would provide the most traffic for you. Over seventy-eight per cent of companies operate under the.com domain, making it the most well-known and respectable of all extensions. Some mobile devices, such as smartphones, come equipped with a “.com” key, which makes it simpler to enter your domain name.
In spite of this, it is not the end of the world if you are forced to “settle” for a domain ending in. co or.net. If, for instance, you are able to get the.net domain, but the.com domain is being offered for sale for a price that is hundreds of thousands of dollars, it could be prudent to go with the latter. It goes without saying that you will want to be certain that you are not violating any copyright rules; it is always better to be safe than sorry!
4. Look at different top-level domains, such as ccTLDs or. Shop for your website title.
On occasion, you can discover that the.com extension does not allow you to register a desired domain. In that scenario, you shouldn’t be too concerned. Consider the following top-level domain (TLD) suffixes in addition to the ones listed above:
The City
Brick-and-mortar firms in a particular city, such as those located in London or Boston, are a strong candidate for this approach.
Nationality
Think of the.uk or.br domains as a good option for retailers who wish to expand their presence into overseas regions.
[Co]
This is a global alternative to the.com domain that is compatible with all nations and languages.
“.org”
“.org” will help you stand out from the competition if you run a nonprofit organisation.
store
Because it is both simple and concise, this is an excellent solution for websites that are dedicated to e-commerce.
Shop
An option that is beneficial for proprietors of small businesses and internet sellers.
commerce
An excellent option for wholesalers or business-to-business online retailers.
Try searching for country code top-level domains (TLDs) if you are selling in a different country, such as the United Kingdom or India. Suta, a Shopify merchant based in Mumbai, for instance, utilizes the. in the domain rather than the.com extension for her website. The name of the domain is still uncluttered and easy to remember, and it may be discovered without any conscious effort.
5. If at all possible, incorporate search engine optimization keywords into your domain name.
When searching for a domain name, you should think about using keywords, but only if doing so makes sense. Your website’s subject matter can be communicated to search engines through the use of a keyword. You may achieve a higher ranking in the search results provided by Google if you provide a positive user experience and publish high-quality content.
In order to make your brand name stand out from the crowd, you will need to use your imagination and combine keywords with it. Once you have a few broad keywords that are representative of your items, you should then include the name of your organization.
What to do in the event that your domain name is already in use
There are occasions when the fantastic domain name that you are looking for has already been registered. In such a scenario, there are a few choices available:
Make an effort to purchase it from the owner.
There are occasions when individuals purchase domain names with the intention of selling them to businesses such as yours in the future. Attempt to get in touch with the owner of the domain you wish to purchase if it is already owned by someone else and make an offer that is appealing to them. Determine their information by searching the WHOIS database, and then get in touch with them to negotiate purchasing the name.
Another option for conducting more research is to search for the brand on social media and make a note of the frequency with which the website is updated. In the event that the owner of a domain has not updated it in years, there is a possibility that they would be prepared to negotiate a transaction.
Choose a different option.
Despite the fact that in a perfect world, you would be able to secure your ideal domain name, it is not always a bad idea to have a little bit of a variety.
Consider coming up with fresh domain names that are variants of the ones you already have. Changing things up and coming up with a new version of your brand name is something you might also consider. In the event that an IT consultant already has the domain name katysimons.com, for instance, you might want to consider katysimonsprints.com or ksimonsillustrates.com as an alternative for your illustration firm.
You might also register a country-code top-level domain (ccTLD) that is specific to the location of your company, such as a city-specific domain (.nyc,.cdmx) or a country-specific domain (.mx,.de). Your search ranking in international markets could be improved as a result of this, and you could effectively target clients in certain countries.
There is more to a domain name than just a web address that is displayed in a browser. You might think of it as an extension of your brand and organisation. The way in which you show yourself to the digital world and how you position your brand is largely determined by the domains that you choose, regardless of whether you are blogging or selling items online.
If you want your domain name to be ideal, it does not need to be more brilliant than it already is. Instead, go for a name that is easy to remember, has a pleasant ring to it, and is straightforward.
Not only will you appear more professional, but you will also immediately earn credibility with your customers, which will most likely result in increased brand recognition and sales for your company. Even if you might not be the next Google, your domain name has the potential to become a well-known brand if you have a little bit of luck.