How to choose a domain name for your website? 10 useful tips!
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Abdul Wadood
A domain name is one of the aspects that determine the success of your website. A domain name should be recognizable, easy to remember, and it should be a name that can proudly represent you and your brand.
Ok.
Are you having trouble choosing the best domain name for your website?
If so, don’t worry!
In this blog, I have clearly explained how to choose a domain name for your website.
Let’s begin!
Table of Content:
What is a domain name?
Could a stranger find your home without knowing the address? Of course, no. Am I correct?
Similarly, a domain name is the address of your website on the internet. It represents you and your brand online. So, it’s essential to choose a good domain name for your website.
Now, some may argue that you can change the domain later. But, trust me, it involves many difficulties, and it’s not a risk that’s worth taking.
Changing the domain name of a website can significantly impact its traffic.
So, it’s better to come up with a good domain name from scratch.
Tips for choosing the right domain name
1. Keep the domain name short
The domain name you choose should be short and easy to remember.
It’s better to keep your domain name shorter than 14 characters. By doing so, people can remember your domain name easily.
Also, some users may consider websites with overly long domain names to be suspicious — though they are legit.
So, choose a short domain name for your website.
2. Keep the domain name brandable
Some people tend to choose a generic domain name, and they stuff the domain name with keywords. This makes their domain name look unprofessional.
For instance, footballskillsanddrills.com is a domain name that contains many keywords. Similarly, footskills.com is a brandable domain name.
As you can see in the example, brandable domain names are easier to read and remember.
3. Choose “.com” domain extension
If you ask me, I will suggest anyone opt for the “.com” domain name extension. It’s the most popular extension on Google. Also, it’s easy to remember because people are used to hearing and typing it.
Moreover, if you tell someone a domain name without the domain extension, they will most likely take the extension as “.com”.
Moreover, many smartphone keyboards, by default, come with a “.com” button. This alone speaks the popularity of the “.com” extension.
However, if you desire to keep a particular domain name, and “.com” isn’t available, you shall opt for other popular extensions like “.net” or “.org”. But, stay away from fancy extensions like “.shop”, “.food”, etc.
4. Choose a domain name that is easy to spell and pronounce
The domain name you choose should be easy to spell and pronounce.
When you say your domain name to a stranger, they shouldn’t ask you to repronounce it. If they ask so, you haven’t got your website domain name right.
Most of the top websites on the internet, such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, etc., have a domain name that’s easy to spell and pronounce.
5. Avoid hyphens and numbers
Your domain name should not contain hyphens or numbers. Adding them will make your domain name difficult for people to type and spell.
For instance, say that a person has chosen a domain name, marketing1.com. If he says his website to someone, they will probably misunderstand the name as marketingone.com.
So, not using hyphens and numbers in your domain name can help people to avoid confusion.
6. Check for trademarks
Once you have chosen a domain name, the next step is to check whether any registered businesses exist with the same name.
You can search for registered business trademarks by performing a trademark search. If the name of a registered business matches your domain name, stay away from it.
Also, ensure to check whether the name is available on top social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
Many people tend to overlook this important step, which is wrong. If your website has the same name as a business with a trademark, there’s a high chance for you to run into legal issues.
7. Use domain name generators
If you run out of ideas, don’t worry!
There are several free domain name generators that you can use to choose a good domain name. But, as said above, be sure to check for trademarks and the availability of the name on top social media sites.
8. Stay away from weird domain names
Weird domain name? What’s it?!
You can consider weird domain names to be the ones that have a common word with a different spelling or double letters. They increase the chance of typos, and it makes the name more difficult to remember.
For instance, consider a sample domain name comfyysleep.com. When you say this domain name to someone, they will probably misunderstand it as comfysleep.com.
Some popular websites do have a weird domain name. But, it’s highly recommended to stay away from them.
9. Think long-term
It’s essential to think long-term when choosing a domain name. Your domain name is what identifies you on the internet. So, act clever and stay away from short-term decisions.
If you choose a domain name that’s too niche-specific, you’ll have a hard time expanding your business in the future.
Here’s an example of how to choose a domain name with the future in mind.
Say that you want to start a website in the dining table niche. In this case, don’t choose a niche-specific domain name like diningtables.com. Instead, think broad, and go with tables.com. By doing so, it’ll be easier to expand your business.
10. Act quick
Domain names are inexpensive, and they sell quickly. So, if you have chosen a good domain name, go ahead and buy it as soon as possible.
Below, I have explained how to purchase a domain name for an affordable price.
How to purchase a domain name?
Purchasing a domain name is pretty simple. There are various places through which you can purchase domain names. One such place is Namecheap.
However, if you don’t have a website and planning to create one, I suggest buying the domain name through web hosting companies. Here’s why.
If you want your website to be accessible to people, you should host your website on the server.
If you have the resources, you can host your website on your own server. — though not recommended. If not, you can purchase the hosting for an affordable price (less than $100 for the first year) from hosting companies like HostGator.
If you opt for the yearly plans of HostGator, you can get a domain name for free for a year. So, why miss this opportunity of getting a free domain name?
Depending on your convenience, you can purchase the domain name individually or along with your hosting. If you purchase the domain name along with hosting, you can save some money, at least for the first year.
Conclusion
I hope this blog provided you with a clear idea about choosing a domain name for your website.
As mentioned in this blog, a domain name defines you and your brand on the internet. It’s one of the main aspects that determine the success of your website.
So, don’t hesitate to put your time and effort into choosing a good domain name.
If you have any doubts, comments, or suggestions regarding choosing a domain name, let’s discuss them in the comment section below!
