Your domain name is your business’s online address. It’s one of the first decisions you have to make when setting up a business website. When you get it right, a good domain name can do wonders for your online brand, as this article will show.
What Makes a Domain Name “Good”?
There are many characteristics you must aim for when deciding on a domain name. First, you must ensure that you’re using a reliable domain registrar, such as IONOS. Now, regarding the domain name, it must be short and memorable. Your potential customers need to be able to remember your domain name off the top of their heads. A long domain name can be too unwieldy to remember.
If it’s a website for an existing business, then the domain name must be consistent with your business name and the brand identity you have established. It’s important for your online and offline identities to be consistent.
Also, your domain name can signal your type of business or the locale you are operating from. Including your town, city, or neighbourhood name lets people know the specific market that you serve. If you have a generic-sounding brand name, you can also add your profession. For example, apexengineering.com is more specific than apex.com.
Finally, your domain name should be professional looking and sounding. That means that you should avoid using numerals and hyphens which tend to make a URL seem amateurish. You should also avoid domain names that sound too similar to established online brands as this is a tactic used by scammers, and it may negatively taint your online brand. It goes without saying that you should research a domain name to avoid using a trademarked word or phrase, these can lead to lawsuits.
How Will You Benefit from a Good Domain Name?
A good domain name will make it easier for new and returning customers to find your website. The modern internet user has a very short attention span, and if your website’s name isn’t concise and memorable, they might be redirected to a competitor’s website from search results. Having a good memorable domain name means that customers don’t need search engines to load your website, they can type the URL and access it directly.
Also, a good domain name can help your website rank higher on search results pages, leading to business growth. If your domain name includes a keyword your customers use in online searches, it might get a rankings boost. Keywords could include the nature of the business you are in as well as where your business is located.
A good professional-sounding domain name makes your website seem credible both to human users and search engines. Especially if you avoid hyphens, numerals, and other unnecessary special characters in your URL. Using domain names that are visually similar to existing online brands makes your site seem “scammy” which tarnishes your online reputation. Keep it unique and avoid registered trademarks.
Conclusion
A good domain name is short, memorable, unique, and professional-looking. Keeping it short and memorable makes it easier for customers to remember your URL. Adding keywords relating to your business type and location makes your domain name informative, and can help it rank higher on search engine results. Also, keeping it professional and unique from existing brands makes your website seem credible.