What Makes a Good Domain Name?
Checking if the domain name you want is available is the first step towards getting online. If your primary keyword is ‘potty training’, you could start by trying ‘www.pottytraining.com’. Market Samurai has a tool that will search for available domain names for you if you use it, or you could use a domain registrar (like Godaddy.com) or a hosting service to search for and register the domain name as well as host your site.
What Makes a Good Domain Name
When selecting the domain name for your new niche website there are a few principles that are good to consider & can help with the success of your venture. When choosing a domain name try and be sure it fits under at least one of three categories:
- relevant
- memorable
- descriptive
Of course, if you can manage to find a domain name with all three, it’ll be that much better! At present Google gives a lot of weight to exact match domains (EMD’s). What that means is that if your primary keyword is ‘chinchilla care’, then the domain name chinchillacare.com, or chinchillacare.net would give you an extra boost and help your site rank faster for those key words. If a domain with the exact match for the primary keyword you want to rank for is available that will make ranking for those keywords somewhat easier. It is possible to rank for keywords without them being in the domain, and many websites do, but as a newcomer to internet marketing any advantage you can get is definitely a plus. In many instances finding an exact match domain name, especially for a common word or phrase, is impossible, and adding a modifier to the beginning or end of the keyword is one way to find a good, relevant domain name, without paying through the nose. If chinchilacare.com isnt’ available, check for chinchillacarehq.com, chinchillacarepros.com or the modifer of your choice. Some favorites are adding an ‘i’ before the name, ‘the’, or an extra word, like chinchillacaretips.com. Of course many sites rank very well using a memorable domain name could be something abstract but easy to remember (think amazon.com, ebay.com, or viperchill.com), so if you already have a company name in mind you could check to see if that is available. A descriptive domain name could be something like cuteexoticpets.com, or mychinchilla.com. Other than domain name, the extension is another consideration. Although opinions vary, and in theory search engines don’t lend more weight to a .com over other extensions, but most will agree that .com is the preferred extension & is the most recognized. Of course, if .com is not available the next best option is .net followed by .info. Although .org is also very recognized, it is usually used for non-profit organizations and could seem dishonest if it is used for a for-profit business.
Checking for Availability
Once you have a locked down few ideas for domain names, the next step is to check which ones are available & modify them if necessary. This is simple to do using a domain registrar like godaddy.com or namecheap.com. Both sites feature a search field on the home page, simply type in the domain name you are interested in and click search to see if it’s available. The registrars search for .com domains by default; if the domain you entered isn’t available they offer suggestions using other extensions or add modifiers to the domain. Searches are unlimited, so don’t feel pressured to select one of the suggested domains if it isn’t what you want. Do your research; take your time to make sure that the domain you suggest fits the business you are starting. Tip: Try adding modifiers to your key words if an exact match isn’t available. For example if chihuahuatraining.com isn’t available or is considered a premium domain name (meaning they cost a lot more than normal, sometimes in the thousands) you could try chihuahuatraininghq.com or chihuahuatrainingacademy.com.
Registering the Domain:
Registering the domain name is simple, you can either register directly through the registrar you used when checking for availability or use your hosting provider to register it for you. At the time of registration most registrars will offer a number of add on features for extra cost, those are unnecessary for the most part & just drive up the cost of registration. The exception to that is the WhoisGuard Protection feature, which will protect your personal information from the public and is usually a good idea. This service usually costs about $10/per year, although a few such as namecheap.com, offer this service free or decidedly cheaper.