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How to Choose a Domain Name for Your Website

Choosing the right domain name for your web site is important. But some times this step becomes quite confusing for beginners.

To make this step easy, review the following points before you actually register a domain name.

Choose a Related Keyword Rich Name

Choose a domain name related to your business or web site. Make a list of keywords that describe your site and then include one or more in your domain name.

For example, if your website is related to cars, try to include the keyword cars in your domain name or if your website is some sort of guide you can include the keywords guide or manual etc.

The more related your domain name is, the easier it would be for people to remember it and associate it with your website. Also, related keywords can get you some extra search traffic with search engines.

To find some related keywords and compare there search traffic you can use an online tool such as,

Google Keyword Tool
Helps you find related keywords in terms of search traffic.
Google Trends
Helps you compare keywords in terms of search traffic.
Word Tracker
Helps you find related keywords
Thesaurus
Helps you find related words.

Choose a Short Name

Choosing a shorter yet related name is always better. Some times while trying to get more keywords in a domain name, people end up

with longer names in their mind. But, this is not a good idea as no body will likely remember long names and there is a higher chance of typing errors as they have more characters in it.

In my opinion a three word domain name is enough as it can have your keywords in it and it will be easier to remember and tell others.

Which Top-Level Domain? Com, Net or Org?

The most common top-level domains that you will see out there are com, net or org, with COM being the most popular. Now the question is, which top-level domain you should go for?

The simple answer is that you should consider COM TLD as your first choice. The reason is that many people still believe by default for com to be your TLD. If you tell some one a name of a web site but don't tell them the TLD, they will almost always assume it to be a .com TLD.

You can also go with a .net TLD but keep it down in your list of priorities. If the domain name you are registering is for an organization, then you can go with an .org TLD as well.

Domain Name Availability

This is big problem! Suppose you have the best domain name in your mind. Its easy to remember, easy to type and keyword rich. You go on to buy it and blah! it's already taken. Worst, most times the domain is just parked doing nothing but preventing you from taking it.

If you have money you can buy some of those parked names which are for sale, but at a way higher price, determined only by the person who has the ownership.

But if you don't want to pay more, then keep on thinking and brainstorming. It will take time but hopefully you will end up with some thing good. Always try to find the best possible option for you.

You can check the availability of a domain name by using the search box below, provided by GoDaddy.com

Hyphens or No Hyphens?

Although hyphens give you more option to consider. They let search engines read your keywords separately and could be a solution especially when the non hyphenated name is taken. But, hyphens have their problems as well. People do not remember them, especially where to place them.

Lets say, your web site does good and it has a hyphenated domain name. Now, If some one tells some other person about your website by mouth, he may forget to mention the hyphen. Or the listener might forget where to place it, causing him to land on some other website which has the non-hyphenated version of your website's domain name. This is loss of traffic, so its better to avoid it.

The Grammar: Singular, Plural, a, The?

When writing an essay or a sentence we care about grammar as it is important. But, there is no such rules with writing Domain Names. Some times the grammatically correct word sounds good, but some times the grammatically not fully correct can sound right too.

The thing here is that whatever name you choose, if it makes sense, then its okay. Just remember to include the a, the or plurals (if they are part of the name, of course) when you promote the domain name by any means.

Another thing you can do is to buy more than one domain names that sound very close to each other. For example, the singular and plural version, or a name preceded by the article "the". Then you can redirect one domain name to other, so that if some body opens one domain name, he/she will be taken to the other one automatically.

Check Copyright Information

Before you register a domain name, check if the domain name has any copyrights associated with it at U.S. Copyright Office.

Now that you have choosen a Domain Name for your website move on to the next section How to Register a Domain Name for your Website to register it.