In life there are always certain ways to do certain things, and this is no different with picking a domain name. Now if you want the domain name to be brandable, easy to find, and worth any value then there are going to be some guidelines you should follow. On the other hand, if you don't really care about any of this stuff, then that's fine as well. No matter what activity I'm using my domains for, I try to always stick with the same rules because it's usually what works the best, it doesn't matter if I'm doing domain parking, developing a website, or flipping it, however, if you choose not to use those rules who cares it's not like the domain police are going to come after you!
These rules weren't designed by me, in fact I just picked them up along the way and like I said they have worked really well for me, so for all you newbies I figured I would pass these "rules" on. In the writing business I see a lot of different domain names, and sometimes people just plain old don't understand why they aren't getting traffic, and they want to know if I can help them, which of course I do! But I really have to wonder if some of these people really are stubborn and want the name they want or nothing else, or they just don't understand some things work better than others.
Characters -
When it comes to the characters (letters and or numbers) in your domain name it should be as minimal as possible. Most of the 1-2-3 and 4 characters are gone, and you would usually have to pay a hefty price if you wanted one. This leaves you with a few short character count domains such as 5-6-7-8, and if possible those are the characters you should be using.
If nothing else and you really can't find the domain name you want in those options, try not to go overboard at least and go choosing 23 characters! The reason for this isn't just because it looks "bad" cosmetically or visually, but because most of the time (especially when the domain is new) people won't be willing to type in the domain name if it's not hypered.
If the domain name is SuperDuperToyStoreSpecatacular it's also not going to be a "phrase" other people would just automatically type in when looking for something, whereas TennisBalls would be or ComputerSpeakers or BookEnds, etc.
Extension -
In the big world of domains selling and buying a domain with a certain extension is a lot more valuable than one with any other extension. The most popular and valuable extension would be a .com name. I see a lot of people using .biz.uk.us domain names and it makes me think, don't they know that's a horrid choice! I'm sorry, but that really isn't the way to go. I completely understand if you're a UK company or if you're in the UK but why add on other things? It just doesn't make sense!
Keywords -
Like I mentioned above in characters, it's a good idea to use 2-3 keywords per domain name that can be used as phrases when people are searching for something. For example, don't use the domain name KuplincuppaCubix because no one (besides you) is every going to actually type that out, well maybe 1 in a trillion anyway. Keyword phrases such as ItalyVacations or CandyShop are great keyword phrases for your domain names, of course these aren't available so don't even bother looking, but if you spend a little time searching around, using certain tools, you will easily find the best domain for your needs! Do some research!
Popularity -
This sort of goes along with keywords, if you go to google right now and type in Golf, you will find 521,000,000 results! That is a superb keyword to use where as a word like supercalifragilisticexpialidocious comes up 39 times, now some may say supercalifragilisticexpialidocious is a good word because it doesn't show up as many times on sites like Google, but then supercalifragilisticexpialidocious is way too many letters and really can you name one person that can spell supercalifragilisticexpialidocious correct the first time? I can't!
Some major Gurus might have some other domaining tips for you, but these are the ones I have always stuck with and it has always worked out quite well for me. I have 53 domain names, 3 are being developed in which I plan to sell for a few thousand by next year, one is in its development stages (business plans and whatnot) some are parked and are making great money, others are just waiting to be used for other projects I have in mind!
Whatever you choose to use your domains for, try to follow the guidelines listed above and see if it makes any difference in your traffic, page rank, backlinks, or wallet.
No comments:
Post a Comment