9 Tips For Choosing the Right Domain Name

Choosing a domain name is one of the first things you will do to get your online business or blog started, but it is one of the most important decisions you will make. The following tips for choosing the right domain name will help you pick a name that serves you well.

Don't Play Name Games... The name of your site should be the same (or as close to as possible) as your URL domain name. This is part of name branding. You want your fans, followers, and paying customers to know exactly where you are without guessing or searching around.

Know Your Keywords... You can allow your domain name to draw in traffic for you if it includes the right keywords. They have to be words directly related to the content and focus of your site, otherwise you are shooting yourself in the foot!

Reflect Yourself in Your Name... When choosing a domain name, consider concepts that represent who you are and what you have to offer the world. If you try to be clever and make them guess, many just won't bother to come look to see what you're about!

The Listing Game... If you are really stuck on a good name for your domain, consider listing words at random that are directly related to the purpose or content of your website. Go back and circle the ones that jump out at you and then start combining them in unique and unusual ways. These combinations can lead to fresh names that haven't been taken yet.

Make it Snappy... When choosing a domain name, try to grab attention and leave a lasting impression by choosing something snappy or otherwise memorable. Names that slide right off the tongue, rhyme, or combine a unique combination of words tend to stick in the mind longer than more boring or typical names.

Get Specific... It can be costly trying to acquire a domain name with a very general term, such as "diets.com." This is because these simple names have all been dominated and are now highly competitive keywords. Yet, when someone wants to find a product online they are more likely to search for a specific brand name, so get specific rather than going generic.

Make it Brief, or Go All Out... There is something to having a short name that is easy to remember and less trouble to type into a search field, but it has to be a truly meaningful, powerful short name. if you can't get the short names you really want go with something a big longer rather than sacrificing for something no one will understand or remember.

Reconsider the Hyphen... One way to get a name that you want but which has already been taken by someone else is to use hyphens, such as this: diets-that-rock.com. This isn't necessarily a bad thing and can be good when it comes to pleasing Google, but understand that hyphens are easy to forget when typing in a domain name, so some of your followers and admirers could be lead to that other website instead of yours on occasion.

Know the Competition... Other sites that are named very similar to your own will be your toughest competition because people looking for your site may occasionally find them first or confuse you with them. Before choosing a domain name, look for similar names that are already owned and find a way to stand out from the crowd.

Jerry Pelletier is an online marketing and self branding expert who teaches the tips and techniques to his team of new and experienced entrepreneurs that gets results to sell anything to anyone, anywhere in the world, working from your own home-based business. To learn how to become Financially Secure and gain Financial Freedom through his unique Business platform.