You’re about to get your business online for customers to see, but before you do, you’ll need to choose your domain name. But you’re probably wondering “How Do I Choose A Domain Name?” as it’s not as straightforward as you might think. In this guide, we’ll show you step by step, how you can choose a domain name for your business’ website and feel confident that you’ve made the right choice.
What is a domain name? A domain name is a unique URL address for your website. It’s the part of the website that comes after the www. at the beginning of a web address (for example, www.example.com). A domain name is rented, not owned, from a domain registrar. But once rented, that domain name is uniquely yours. No one else can have that exactly same domain name as long as you continue renting it. Having a domain name is a way to carve out a little piece of the internet as something truly your own. When someone types a web address into their browser, they’re making the conscious decision to navigate to your website. You can think of the domain name as the online equivalent to your business’s physical address.
That may seem like a small thing, but having a good domain name can be important for three main reasons:
- A domain name can tell people what your business does and who it serves
- A domain name can be memorable and easy to type into a web browser
- A domain name can contain words or phrases your customers are looking for, being beneficial for search engine optimization (SEO) and online marketing
It is an essential ingredient for establishing your online presence and the image you want to project to the world.
The domain name is the virtual address of your website, which indicates where people can find your site on the internet. Choosing a relevant and easy-to-remember domain name should be one of the first things you do after deciding to take your small business online.
Step 1: Choose something short and memorable
This might seem obvious but it’s important to keep in mind as you move forward. Your site’s URL needs to be easy for people to remember and type correctly when they visit it in their browser or on social media. Your domain name is one of the first things people see, and can make or break the first impression of your site.
Tens of millions of domains are registered each year, and with so many options to choose from, it can be difficult to settle on just one. The good news is that there are a few different methods you can use to come up with an ideal domain name for your website. Here’s an overview of several different strategies for choosing the best domain for you:
Is it easy to spell?
No one wants to type in a URL that they can’t remember or won’t be able to figure out how to spell without having to look it up. Even if you consider yourself an excellent speller, try typing in the domain name on your own keyboard before committing to it. Make sure there aren’t any typos! Also, say your domain name out loud, as if you were telling someone at a party. Is the spelling of the domain name obvious when hearing it or does it require further explanation? You’ll want to gravitate towards obvious spellings, as the best domains are the simplest ones.
Is it memorable?
You want people to remember your company’s name — not just its URL. Remembering and sharing something short and memorable is easier than remembering something long and complicated.
Does it match my branding?
If you’ve already created logos, business cards, etc., you probably have an idea of how you want your brand identity to look and feel. Typically, businesses utilize a domain name that matches their business name, if available. And if an exact match isn’t available, it may be worth changing your business name (to avoid confusion) or simply altering the domain name with a synonym, variation, or possibly a location-specific term.
Keywords
Keywords are the words or phrases within the search terms someone might use to find your website through Google or other search engines. . You’ll want to utilize keywords in your domain name that match how someone might search for your product or service.
For example, if your small business website is selling dog grooming services, then you may want to include the word “Dog” and “Grooming” within your domain name. Including these keywords helps signal to Google (and potential visitors) exactly what your website is all about, which in turn, helps strengthen the connection between your website and these common search terms.
Length
Keep it short. Although there are exceptions to this rule, most successful websites have names that are five characters or less in length. There are a few reasons why a short URL is preferred over a long URL. First of all, short URLs just look more professional and trustworthy than long ones. Second, as you probably know, the shorter the URL, the easier it is to remember or share. Finally, a shorter URL makes it easier to type into a web browser, which will help reduce or eliminate misspellings by interested visitors.
Avoid hyphens
Avoid using hyphens in your domain name unless it’s a key part of your company’s name. Small business owners sometimes believe that a hyphen between words in their domain name will act like spaces, however, we’ve found that consumers have a harder time reading and remembering hyphenated names than non-hyphenated ones. After decades of regular internet usage, the average internet browser recognizes that hyphenated names are a relic of Web 1.0 times. Nowadays, regular internet users know that domain names don’t contain spaces and they simply smush words together, ignoring spaces entirely.
Don’t put unnecessary words in your domain.
One of the biggest mistakes I see people make with their domains is using unnecessary articles like “the” in their URLs. Avoid articles like “the”, “a” or “an”. It’s a good idea to drop “the” from your business name if you can.
One-word names are easier to remember, and people naturally like brands with short names.
Facebook was originally going to be “The Facebook,” but dropped the “the” for branding purposes.
Doing this for your own business name might seem hard if you’re attached to it already, but try dropping “the” and see if it feels better. You’ll probably get used to it quickly, and then everyone will be happier because they won’t have to say “the” all the time when they’re talking about your business!
Step 2: Make sure your domain name is available
If you have a great idea for a domain name, the next step is to make sure it isn’t taken. The purpose of this step is to make sure you can actually register the domain name. The easiest way to do that is to search for your preferred domain name on a site such as GoDaddy and see if it’s available. You will want to look for a domain that is close to the same keywords that your potential customers are going to be searching for. For example, if you’re planning on creating a blog about dog training, a domain like “MyDogIsSmart.com” is going to rank higher because it’s closer to the keywords that people are searching for.
If it’s taken, try variations on the domain name (e.g., different spellings or tacking on a relevant word) and see if any of those are available. If all else fails, you’ll have to register a different domain name (but not before taking the time to congratulate yourself for getting this far).
The Best Domain Name Search Sites:
Domainr: This site helps you find domains based on category or keyword searches. You can search by category or keyword, but keep in mind that if you search by keyword, the domain name may be taken already as some people often use keywords as their website names.
Domain Suggest: A great site that lets you search through all of its domains at once instead of having to do individual searches for each one separately. It also has its own search filter options which makes it extremely easy for you.
Instant Domain Search: Instant Domain Search is an easy-to-use domain name search engine that allows you to find all relevant domain names instantly. One of the best features of Instant Domain Search is that it queries available domain names as you type. This means you can easily find variations of domains, like with or without the “s” at the end, without having to start a search over again.
Step 3: Choose where to buy your domain name
The next step is to choose where to buy your domain name. Some have all kinds of extra services you won’t need, so it’s a good idea to narrow down your search and pick a few that look good from their front pages.
There are several places where you can purchase your domain name, but the most popular places are GoDaddy, NameCheap, and domain.com. And while there are other places out there such as Google Domains and Hover, it’s more favorable to purchase from these major players in the registrar space as they are known for great customer service.
The Best Domain Name Registrars:
GoDaddy: GoDaddy is a good domain registrar. They both offer reasonably priced domain names and web hosting services. They have solid security features as well as domain management services that are flexible.
Namecheap: Namecheap is an ICANN-accredited domain name registrar providing domain name registration and web hosting based in Phoenix, Arizona, US. When it comes to cheap domain names, Namecheap is the best option. If you don’t mind registering your domain with them rather than with another provider, you can use this site.
Domain.com: Domain.com is a domain registrar and web hosting company, providing domain name registrations and website hosting for the UK and international markets. It provides domain names, privacy services, and website hosting.
NameCheap is one of the best domain name registrars out there because they’re just so cheap. However, the main reason why I recommend NameCheap is because they’ll actually give you a lifetime discount for buying your domain names from them—and it’s an instant discount!
Step 4: Get the right domain name extension
Domain name extensions are usually used to show which country the site is from or where it is hosted. Other extensions are used for specific use cases, like .io for websites made for programmers or .dog for pets’ owners but there are still others that can be used for more general purposes, like .com or .net.
Extensions are a big part of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). In order for search engines to know what your website is about, they need to be able to tell how your site relates to the search terms that people enter into search engines. One way they do this is by looking at your domain extension. Generally speaking, people tend to trust .com and .org more than other domain extensions (such as .info or .biz). For example, if someone types in “home inspector” into Google, the first five websites on the first page will all have either a .com or a .org extension. The same goes for any popular search term like “dentist” or “lawyer”. So it stands to reason that you want your website to be viewed as legitimate with a common domain name extension so that it ranks higher in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Page).
The .com top-level domain (TLD) is a very popular TLD used for commercial purposes. If you’re starting a business, this domain extension is an excellent choice. It’s recognizable, easy to spell and it is not country or geography-specific, so it can be used in any country around the world.
A typical domain name registration will cost you anywhere between $9 and $14.99 per year. However, these prices may differ based on the domain extension or the domain registrar you choose. Regardless of the initial cost of your domain name, you’ll have to renew it every year to maintain ownership.
Takeaway: Don’t let a domain name hold any of your ideas hostage.
Choosing a domain name can be a difficult endeavor due to all the options, but it’s certainly not impossible. Just look at the billions of websites that exist today, they all had to start where you are starting from right now.
If you follow the advice we provided here and identify which factors are most important to you, you should end up with an excellent domain name. For us, we ended up choosing Opasite.com due to its short length, memorability, ease of spelling, and that it contains the word “site” which happens to be a keyword of ours as a website design company. But we could have chosen something completely different (and we almost did) if there were other criteria we deemed more important to our name. Either way, it’s vital that you consider all the options and then begin narrowing down those options by following our guidance above. Above all, don’t be afraid to experiment with your domain name to find that perfect fit for you and your target audience.
