Making a Good Domain

Domain names are one of the lifeblood aspects of your website. It is your street address on the Internet and people need to remember it. While many Webmasters name their website after their domain, there are a surprising amount of Webmasters that do not do this.

Think for a moment. Your domain is “mycompany.com.” If your brand is “Computer Parts” people aren’t going to search for your domain name, but your brand. Aligning your brand and domain is paramount to online success, both for a business or a content website.

In the realm of domains, there is a debate about what type of domain is better. A long or short one, or a generic or specific one. Each one has their own strengths and weaknesses.

When it comes to length, both can be good. Let’s look at two content websites. “Ehow.com” is a short domain that gets millions of unique visitors. However, “AssociatedContent.com” is a long domain that also gets millions of unique visitors. What really matters isn’t length, but the domain itself.

If you can manage a shorter domain, it can be easier for people to remember, but if you need a long one, make sure it makes sense. Put words together that make sense. If you make a nonsense domain, no one will find it.

Now, what about generic or specific domain names? A generic name like “Computers.com” will probably do great. Many people will search it out of curiosity and it will get a good search engine ranking. Here’s the problem: you’ll have a hell of a time finding any generic domains still around.

If you want one of these domains, you will have to either find an obscure word or pay hundreds, thousands or more to purchase the domain from someone selling it.

Specific names have their own power as well. If you have built your brand up outside the Internet, then a domain named after your business will have inherent value as it will already be well searched online, and it will probably be easier to find.

If you are new to building websites and getting online, you may wonder where you can get a domain. Most hosting companies offer domain registration, and it is a prerequisite before you can even get hosting.

There are also many different domain extensions at your disposal. “.com” is the most popular and stands for “commercial.” Other common extensions are “.org” for “organization,” “.info” for “information” and “.net” for “networking.”

When you search for your domain, think about your business and what domain model will fit it best. Doing this before searching will make it much easier to find a domain when it comes time to buy one.