These days, getting a perfect domain name seems like finding a magic lamp, in a pile of other non-magical lamps.\u00a0 Basically, it’s getting harder.<\/p>\n
Quality domain names, even ones that reflect your exact business name, are becoming scarce.\u00a0 In the mid to late ’90s, a lot of people registered tons of domain names because they felt sure they would someday become rich from the amazing worth of those names.\u00a0 And some folks did make a pretty penny on selling domain names.\u00a0 But there were also hundreds of “squatters” on completely unused names.<\/p>\n
Business owners often struggle to register a unique domain name that both represents their business and that is easy for their customers to spell and remember.<\/p>\n
The .com top-level domain remains the most popular and therefore the most memorable.\u00a0 If you own a .net or less popular version, you risk leading your visitors in confusion to the .com website you do not own.\u00a0 This problem can also translate to email.<\/p>\n
This need further narrows your available domains and makes the search more challenging.<\/p>\n
In some cases, when a name is too broad or common – may be a popular name like Smith or a popular industry like RealEstate, it could be acceptable to use a .net or other top-level domain.\u00a0 But you will need to be consistent in educating your customers and prospects about the correct web address.<\/p>\n
There was a day when having a perfect keyword phrase in your domain name served as “magic juice” and helped with your ranking even when the website was not very strong in content.\u00a0 Those days are gone.\u00a0 Google has since updated its algorithm and it no longer leans toward domain names with keywords.<\/p>\n
However, a domain name with a strong and memorable keyword can still be valuable to your business, if it is easy for customers to identify with and if it is good for your brand.<\/p>\n
Maybe your ideal business name wasn’t available: XYZcompany.com.\u00a0 But what if your business is headquartered and focused in Chicago?\u00a0 XYZcompanyChicago.com might be available and still easy to identify with.\u00a0 To spread your wings a little more, you can use a state name or the country (USA).\u00a0 When using states, I like to spell them out (Texas), but it could be helpful to also own the 2-character code (TX) and have both names point to the site.<\/p>\n
To extend the domain name and make it slightly more unique, you can choose a keyword that represents your business.\u00a0 XYZ Company makes Pencils, so a good domain could be XYZcompanyPencils.com.<\/p>\n
Many companies have chosen a catchy name that is easy to include in marketing but does not mention their company name at all.\u00a0 It often comes from a marketing campaign or company slogan.\u00a0 For XYZ Pencils it might be SharpenYourPencil.com.<\/p>\n