How to Choose a Good Domain Name
The domain name is used in a URL to identify web pages and has a specific suffix like .com, .net, .co.uk, .biz, .eu etc.
A good domain name is an integral part of any website, it will assist in building and establishing a brand for your business. It should be recognizable and relate to your brand, business name, product, and activities.
Now to choose a domain name, we have to keep several things in mind especially that your domain name will represent who you are on the internet and it will help generate traffic to your website.
Shorter is Always Better, when you Choose a Good Domain Name
Choose a domain name that is short, easy to remember, understand, easier to type and less susceptible to mistakes. Not only are they easier to remember, but they look better. It should be creative enough to entice the surfers to your business.
People will search for keywords in a search engine and it is a brilliant if you include keywords in your domain name.
That said, it is increasingly difficult to secure short domain names among top level names such as .com, .net and .org.
Although domain names can be up to 67 characters, your domain that you choose should be shorter.
When potential buyers search the internet, a catchy domain name generates more results and ranks higher in the search engine.
The Choice of an Alternative
If the domain name you have chosen is not available, you can check the "whois" information field for the domain name, contact the specified person and find out if they are ready to sell it.
An easier alternative is to register an option of your first choice. Try adding a small letter such as "e" to indicate that this is an online business.
Or add your location as well as a little creativity to attract attention, and you may find that your option surpasses your original choice.
Avoid Hyphens or Numbers
If you are having trouble getting the name you want, consider а hyphenated domain name, е.g. your-site.com.
However, the downside of this approach is that some people will forget the hyphen when typing and go to another website.
Spelling Mistakes
If you want to choose a good domain name for your site, take into account the mistakes that people will make when entering the address of your website.
Will customers accidentally make spelling mistakes? When you say the site address out loud, it should be clear how to write it.
Explaining special characters, abbreviations, and spelling is inconvenient and impractical for business.
Make a list of possible errors that visitors can make and register additional domain names that include these errors.
Otherwise, you may lose traffic if potential customers enter your address incorrectly.
Avoid Trademarked Names
Ensure someone else has not trademarked the name you register. You cannot register names already registered as copyright. Like company names, domain names are unique and cannot be duplicated. Also, always avoid choosing and registering domain names that are similar to your competitors website names or well-known trademarks.
Some companies have lost their rights to registered domain names due to conflicts with existing trademarks for off-line companies.
Register Locally
If your company is located (for example) in the UK, you can choose a domain .co.uk, even if your commercial activity includes export trade.
If you have an international presence, a top-level domain is more suitable for you, for example .com, .net, .biz or .org.
Many companies prefer to register all four. Keep in mind that if your website is the main tool for business, the company name should be the URL of the company.
All these factors will help you make the best choice for your website from the available options.
Also, do not forget to enable automatic renewal, many companies lose the selected domain name because they forget to renew it.