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Best Practices For Selecting a Domain Name, Part I

First impressions matter, especially in the world of search engines and online marketing, where competition is steep and information is plentiful. One of the first things you thought about when conceptualizing your business was likely its name-meaning something to you, the type of business you were opening, or a name that would speak to your intended audience. These same principles apply when determining your web address: your domain name.

Your domain name is your first introduction to a new and expansive online audience. It is important not only to choose wisely, but also to take measures to make sure the name you choose remains exclusive to you and helps you capitalize on the massive opportunity available to you.

Whether you use a free site builder to create your website by yourself or you obtain the services of a web professional, the selection of your primary domain name will be up to you. Many times, you’ll get a free website domain name with these other services, such as hosting or a site builder tool. Choose the best deal through the outlet that works for your company and your budget, then begin determining your domain name.

Solidify Your Brand

Make your name congruent with your company name and purpose. For example, if your company is named “My Restaurant Solutions,” you’ll probably want MyRestaurantSolutions.com as your primary name. If you sell restaurant supplies and chef’s uniforms in this shop, you may also consider some other domain names that contain the words “chefs” “uniforms” and other related terms. The name should accurately reflect the company name, products, services, location, etc.

Make it Easy for Customers to Find

Parallel to the branding concept, you’ll want to make sure that the domain name is short and snappy. It should be easily and immediately recognizable to web surfers. If you have a very long company name, you may want to consider abbreviating the whole name, perhaps using a shortened version or just the initials, such as nytimes.com (New York Times website domain) or jnj.com (domain for Johnson & Johnson).

Prevent the Competition from Capitalizing on Your Success

Now that you have the basic idea of choosing the domain name, you’ll want to take into account all of the possible names that could be associated with your company and purchase those domain names in addition to your paid or free website domain name. This will help any customer searching for your company specifically or those just searching for your company type find you. There are some things to consider when developing your “long list” of domain names:

  • Common misspellings for words in your company name
  • Your tagline as a domain name
  • Domain names similar to your first choice
  • Names based around services you offer or products you provide
  • Other extensions, such as domain.net or domain.biz

Don’t worry about having multiple domain names all registered to your website. They will all be redirected to your main website.

Get Started

Develop a list of possible choices, choose your primary domain name and consider purchasing alternates. Work with a web professional or use a site builder tool available through a number of sources. Once you have selected the domain name and created your site, you are ready to compete in the new online arena.

Network Solutions, a provider of Web solutions, offers hosting packages, design services, ecommerce software, search engine marketing, SSL certificates, e-mail services and domain name registration. Network Solutions draws on 30 years of experience to make it simple and affordable for customers to build and manage an online presence through a one-stop Web solutions provider.

Author: Jaime Soell
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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