Choosing the proper domain name can make or break your business. Quite simply, a domain name is a URL or Universal Resource Locator. It’s your address and identity on the internet.
Deadly Mistake # 1 – Avoid Choosing a Name that is Hard to Spell & Say
I see people make this mistake everyday, especially when using their name. A friend of mine is going to start up a gardening site (specialty niche within that). She was going to call her blog her name. But her name is extremely difficult to spell with “ouvi” in the middle of it. I finally convinced her to name it after something to do with her gardening. This is very difficult for most people because of their egos. Everyone wants to use their name, but not everyone has a name that is easy to spell.
TIP – Call up your friend and tell them your proposed web address before you pick it. If you find yourself having to say it 2 or 3 times, then you have made Mistake # 1.
Deadly Mistake # 2 – Avoid Choosing a Name that isn’t related to your Content/Product
For instance, if you are selling on-line stamps, don’t select something like “Save-a-tree”. People will not be able to connect with it because it is unrelated to your content. Name it StampsOnline or InternetPostage.
Deadly Mistake # 3 – Avoid Homophones
Homophones are words that are pronounced the same, but spelled differently. For instance, secrets2wealth as opposed to secretstowealth (secretstwowealth & secretstoowealth). If you own one of them and not the other, there’s a good chance you will lose traffic/business to a competitor. My advice is to avoid them, but if you must have them, own them both. The same story applies to secrets4wealth and secretsforwealth (and secretsfourwealth). You’d be suprised (misspelled intentionally to make a point) at how many people can’t spell.
Also be aware of different orientations of the word in different countries. Some spell judgement with an e, others without as judgment. Liter in the United States is spelled Litre in the UK. Similarly, recognize (US) and recognise (UK).
Remember, you are entering a world-wide market. Think GLOBAL!
Tommy Merlot mentors entrepreneurs. Tommy created TommyUniversity, which sold out in 24 hours. Now Tommy teaches others on how to lead with value. You can read more about me at my blog http://www.TommyMerlotBlog.com. Pay it forward my friends…
