Is your business launching a new website? One of the first and most important steps in a successful website launch is choosing a domain name.
A domain name is the cornerstone of your online marketing plan, and when choosing a domain name for your business, it’s important to get it exactly right. The domain should make it easy for people to find your website and should incorporate descriptive words or phrases to help communicate what the business website is about.
We suggest that you do a little bit of brainstorming and planning before selecting a domain name, so here are five quick questions to ask yourself before deciding on a domain.
1. What is a domain name?
A domain name is the name that visitors will use to navigate to your website. Behind every domain name is an IP address, or long string of numbers indicating a website’s exact location. Google.com and Amazon.com are both examples of domain names. Easy-to-remember domain names allow web users to remember and navigate to websites without memorizing each site’s numerical IP address.
2. Do I use the business name, keywords, or both?
Sometimes, a domain name works when it is the same as a business name and sometimes it works even better as a combination of keywords and location indicators. For example, if a business is called Jim’s Garage, a domain of “jimsgarage.com” may be too vague. What if we know that Jim’s Garage is an auto repair garage and create the domain “jimsautorepair.com” instead? You can take that domain a step further so that it stands out from national competition by adding location information such as, “jimsautorepairtucson.com.”
3. Is the domain simple enough?
When selecting a domain name, the goal is for customers to be able to find your business. Think of the websites you visit regularly: Are the domains simple to remember and type or do you have to go find a bookmark or use a search engine to get to the site? Make sure the domain is memorable and easy to read and type. Watch out for unnecessary hyphens and off-beat spellings, as these will make your domain difficult for users.
4. What do my friends and colleagues think?
Brainstorm a list of about ten different domain options and shop this list around to friends, family members, and colleagues. Ask for detailed feedback about why they like or dislike particular options. Getting outside feedback will ensure that your domain is universally appealing and that it meets the criteria of question number three above.
5. Are there availability issues or copyright problems with the domain?
First visit a site like domai.nr to check and see if your desired domain is available. If your exact domain is already taken by another business, then you can go back to your list of options or start the brainstorming process anew. If your domain is available, then you should visit the government’s copyright database and run a keyword search for the words or phrases in your domain to avoid any costly copyright issues in the future.
If you are working to create a business website or need a new domain, then contact the online marketing and web design experts at Anchor Wave Internet Solutions. We provide online marketing services to help businesses improve their bottom line. Please contact us at (520) 622-3731 to set up a free consultation.
