How do I choose the right domain name?

There are several things to take into consideration when deciding on a domain name. Of course, the first thing to consider is your business name. If your business is named “Crystal’s Crispity-Crunchity Country Cronuts”, that probably won’t be what you should name your domain. It needs to be simple. So, here are some things to think about when considering choosing a name:

• Easy to type – if you use real words, “you” as opposed to “u” your site will be much easier to find

 

• Keep it short – people are impatient and don’t want to type a slew of letters just to get to your site 

 

• use keywords – use words that describe your business and the services you offer. for example, if you are a mobile car wash, you may want to choose MobileCarWash.com as opposed to DaveysCleanCars.com

 

• if  your business is local, consider including your city or state in your domain name (example: fortsmithmobilecarwash.com)

 

• avoid using numbers or hyphens – people who hear your website address don’t know if you’re using a numeral (5) or it’s spelled out (five) or they misplace or forget the dash. If you really need these in your domain, register the different variations to be safe.

 

• be memorable – with so many domains out there, make yours memorable. If you have a health and fitness website consider naming it something like stayinalive.com (nobody will forget the song by the bee gees – “And we’re stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive – Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive – Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin’ alive”)

 

• research it – makes sure the domain name you choose isn’t trademarked, copyrighted, or being used by another company. 

 

• use the correct domain extension – these have meaning so make sure you choose the correct one that corresponds with your business:
• .co : an abbreviation for company, commerce, and community.
• .info : informational sites.
• .net : technical, Internet infrastructure sites.
• .org : non-commercial organizations and nonprofits.
• .biz : business or commercial use, like e-commerce sites.
• .me : blogs, resumes or personal sites.

 

After you have decided on a name, you have to see if it is available. If you need help finding this out, give us a call and we will get you headed in the right direction.