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10
TIPS FOR CHOOSING A GOOD DOMAIN NAME
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| Tim
North, http://www.scribe.com.au |
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What makes a good domain name? Well, it's a
subjective issue, of
course, but here are ten tips to point you in the
right
direction.
1. Good domain names are easily memorable and easily
typed.
Generally this means keeping them short.
2. Hyphens should be avoided if possible. When I
chose
BetterWritingSkills as a domain name, I deliberately
didn't
include hyphens. I agree that it would have made it
easier to
read (Better-Writing-Skills.com), but the problem is
that it
is more difficult to *say*.
If someone asked me for my web address and I said
"better hyphen writing hyphen skills dot
com" I certainly
wouldn't expect them to remember it.
The bottom line with hyphens is that most domains
don't
include them. So, when you tell someone your domain,
they'll
probably try typing it without any hyphens.
3. Use a plural form if this seems more natural. If
you're
selling toy trains, I'd go with "toytrains.com"
instead of
"toytrain.com".
4. Domain name search programs can help you to
choose variations
on a name. One such program is "Mozzle Std
2.30" which you
can download for free from this address:
http://www.simtel.net/pub/pd/54228.html
Programs like this are a great help when you're
trying to
think of a new domain name. (Mozzle's "Advanced
Search"
feature is particularly useful.)
5. If you're marketing your products and services
primarily to
users in a single country (other than the US) then
seriously
consider using that country's top-level domain.
For example, if you're retailing products primarily
to New
Zealanders then choose to end your domain with
".nz". In
Australia, use ".au" etc. This will help
to identify your
site as a local one.
On the other hand, if you're marketing your products
or
services globally (or if you're in the US), use
".com" as
your top-level domain.
6. Don't use words that are tough to spell.
Similarly, don't use
words that are spelled differently in some
countries. For
example, "ColorChart.com" may confuse
those of us in the
Antipodes who would probably expect "ColourChart.com".
7. Ensure that there will be no trademark or other
legal
problems with the domain name you choose.
8. Brand names (e.g. BarnesAndNoble.com) may be
preferable to
generic names such as "books.com". For
many years, it was
assumed that generic names were hugely valuable.
(Indeed
during the late 90s, some generic domain names were
selling
for millions of dollars.)
These days, many analysts argue that a domain name
that
features your brand name is more important. For
example, if
you've invested time and effort building up your
brand name
(Toyota, for example) you'd be better of using
Toyota as your
domain name, rather than something generic like
"GreatCars".
9. Avoid domain names that are too similar to
existing ones. Not
only do you want avoid legal issues (tip 7), but you
want
your brand to be distinct from that of your
competitors.
10. Remember, you don't *own* your domain name.
You're merely
renting it for a specified period. Don't let your
domain name
expire, or your competitors may snatch it out from
under you.
I welcome any tips or comments you might have on
this subject.
Feel free to send them to me at info@s...
Regards
Tim North
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You'll find many more helpful tips like this in Tim
North's much
applauded range of e-books. All come with a
money-back guarantee.
http://www.scribe.com.au/ebooks.html
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