In today’s video I want to talk about FIVE questions you should ask yourself when buying a new domain name for your business.
Getting a new domain name can be scary: it’s like naming your first child.
What if you get it wrong? What if it’s awkward? What if the name doesn’t fit the baby or in this case your new business?
So to help you alleviate some of that fear, I’m gonna go over some questions you can ask yourself as you consider the new domain names for your business.
QUESTION: #1: Does the domain represent what I do in someway?
The first question you should ask is does it represent what I do in someway?
In the past if I purchased a domain name with a rich keyword phrase, for example, Attorneyspanishforkutah.com, everyone, including Google, would know what this website is about.
And most likely, you would rank for that keyword phrase in Google fairly quickly.
But nowadays, according to Google’s John Mueller, a keyword which domain name does not have as much weight, and in fact, is not that valuable.
John says:
“Just because a website has a keyword in its domain name doesn’t mean that it’s more relevant than others for that keyword.
In short, you don’t need to put keywords in the domain name.”
About three years ago my initial domain name for my business with mollermarketing.com. I started with that domain name back in 2006 and it seemed applicable for what I was doing at the time.
My last name and Marketing.
But as I have grown and expanded I realized something: that domain name is not very brandable.
So I changed it to Web 801. This domain name very strongly represents what I do but also is brandable.
Web, I do things on the web and 801, which is the ZIP Code of where I live.
Including at least a partial keyword phrase in your domain name can be helpful to answer this first question: does the domain name represent in someway what I do as a business? But again, it’s not going to help you rank quickly in search.
Another important factor in making a domain name brandable is the domain suffix. This means GET THE .COM
Yes, there are other domain types now like .jobs, .net, .org, and even .travel, but according to Google, these custom suffixes don’t help. Here’s what they said:
“This is a really common question that comes up for the new top-level domains.
“In short, no. You don’t get a special bonus like that from having a keyword in your top-level domain.
“Anecdotally you can see that by searching naturally for anything that interests you.
“I’d venture a guess that the top results don’t have those keywords as a domain ending. Often it’s not even in the URL at all. That’s by design.”
If you’re having a hard time finding a domain with the .com, keep looking. Don’t settle for the .net or other suffixes – people won’t remember them and will usually type the .com first anyway.
QUESTION #2: Is the domain name EASY to SPELL & REMEMBER?
The next question to ask is is the domain name easy to spell & remember?
There are a variety of things I like to avoid when answering this question.
A domain name with a word that could be spelled multiple ways is confusing.
How would you spell the word two? Wrong it’s TWO, wrong it’s TO, wrong it’s TOO, If you speak spanish it could be TU, The correct answer is there isn’t a RIGHT WAY.
You get my point.
If I can spell it multiple ways somebody else will too and you will lose traffic to your website because of it. Another thing to consider in answering this question is what if my domain name has multiple of the same letters in it?
For example, theelephantitle.com
Apologies if this is actually a domain name, I just made this up but you see my point.
The elephant, does that have one E or two? Elephant title same thing? If someone can spell it wrong they will.
One other thing to address with this question about if my domain name is easy to spell relates to how long the domain name is.
If my domain name is three words or more, it’s probably too long. Sometimes three words will work but the shorter the domain name is the better.
The first domain name I ever purchased was called clogon.com.
At the time I didn’t realize this was such a great domain name, my website was about clogging, a form of tap dance. And I ended up selling clogging shoes on my website. The domain name ClogOn was easy to spell, easy to remember, short – only two words, and very brandable.
One client domain name used to be beautifulweddingannouncements.com. Yes, this domain name definitely represented what they offer. But, it was not easy to spell. Even though I knew the domain name I often times misspelled it.
Eventually I convinced the client to change the domain name to shopbwa.com.
They didn’t have to change their business name; in fact, if you go to the website now Beautiful Wedding Announcements is what shows up at the top as their logo. But the domain name is now much easier to spell, easier to remember, and it still represents their business because of the acronym BWA. They can associate the domain name with their logo and business and it all ties together.
And if you type in beautifulweddingannouncements.com it will still redirect to shopbwa.com so they don’t lose traffic for people that knew the domain name in the past.
Keep your domain name short, and easy to spell, and you will get more traffic and more deals.
QUESTION #3: Would I put this domain name on a t-shirt, hat, hoodie, sticker, etc?
Another question to ask that goes right along with the other two is what I want to put this domain name on a T-shirt, hat, hoodie, sticker, etc.?
This was one of the main reasons I changed my domain name from Moller Marketing to WEB801. Moller not only is spelled variety of different ways but people would miss pronounce it: Moeller Miller Mueller you name it. Plus putting that on a T-shirt or hat was a little bit long so eventually I did research and found WEB801 by accident.
Not only is WEB801 something I’d put on a billboard or hat but it makes people curious, “I wonder what that is…” and then they come to the site.
Having a brand able domain name, something you want to put on a hat, is an important factor in domain name selection. And it ties in with the other things we’ve discussed so far.
QUESTION #4: Are you in this for the long-haul?
The fourth question to ask yourself when purchasing a new domain name for your business is are you in this for the long-haul?
There are MANY places you can buy a domain name – but I recommend two as the best ones to work with.
- GoDaddy
- Google Domains
Don’t buy your domain name at a hosting company like BlueHost or HostGator or something like that because often times they will tie in the domain name with your hosting and then if you want to change hosts your website may go down.
It’s best to buy a domain name at a place like GoDaddy or Google domains because that’s what they’re focused on for the most part.
When you buy a domain name, they will give you options on how long you want to register the domain name for. Six months, one year, two years, three years, five years, 10 years. Maybe you don’t have to go all out and do 10 years but usually I will do three years or five years.
According to Search Engine Land:
“Google isn’t specifically saying domain registration length doesn’t matter, just that it’s not all that important in the Big Picture. Several years ago, I interviewed Jon Glick, a former member of the Yahoo search team, and he said the length of a registration does matter, but it’s just one signal, one potential flag.”
In other words, if search engines can see that your domain name is only register for six months or one year, you may not get much traction at all.
Start with at least a 2 year registration.
QUESTION #5: What if I didn’t follow these other suggestions? Can I change the domain?
The final question is a great one – can I change my domain if I find a better one?
The answer is ABSOLUTELY YES.
If you’re just starting a business, there are a LOT of decisions you have to make, and I highly recommend MAKING a decision as to falling into the “paralysis by analysis” and doing nothing.
Buying a domain name is one of those decisions it’s better to just make, get things moving, and then if you later find a better domain, you can always update the domain.
Will it affect rankings in search – maybe a bit, but a good web development company will know how to set up 301 Redirects which will help you not lose traffic.
Will you lose traffic to your prior domain? NO, not if you’ve set things up correctly.
Sure, changing your domain may lead to other updates, like logo for example, but it’s not the end of the world and it’s better to get started than go back and forth indefinitely.
ONE BONUS SUGGESTION:
Avoid buying a premium domain as your first every purchase.
What are thoughts?
