Choosing Domain Names for Your Business

Author: John Pawlett

Let's say that you're creating a website for Barb's Specialty Pet Products. Should the domain name be barbsspecialtypetproducts.com?



Perhaps -- but don't stop there. Having the right domain name, or domain names, can bring more traffic to your site.



Why more than one domain name?



One domain is all you need to set up a website. But with more domains directing to your site, you can have these additional benefits:



- Bring site visitors who type variations of your domain name



- Acquire traffic that might otherwise go to your competition



- Harness the marketing power of keyword domains



Your primary domain name



If it's feasible, use your business or brand name in your primary domain. People will remember it and associate it with your business. Also consider the following factors when choosing your primary domain.



Domain name extensions



Should your primary domain end with .com, .net, or .biz, or with a country-specific extension such as .ca or .co.uk?



If your website is aimed at people in a specific country, having a country-specific domain can help:



- Site visitors will recognize right away that the business has a presence in the country of the extension. They may therefore be more comfortable buying from you.



- Some country-specific search results include sites with the relevant country-specific domain extension even if the site isn't hosted in that country.



On the other hand, if you're targeting an international audience, a country-specific domain could work against you. People from outside the country of the extension may be less inclined to buy if the business looks foreign to them.



If you want to attract both people within your country and those in other countries, have both. Each domain could direct to the same site, with each audience seeing the domain intended for them. For country-specific search results, the primary domain should be the country-specific one.



Chances are that the .com domain you want is already taken. If you use the .net or .biz version, you risk having potential site visitors go to your .com competition instead. Be sure to use the full domain name on all promotional material to reduce this risk.



Domain name length



A short domain is easier to remember, it has less risk of being mistyped, and it'll fit easily on your business cards and correspondence.



Conversely, if a short name doesn't represent your business, it's more difficult for people to remember. The short names you like may already be taken anyway.



If your business name is up to three easy-to-spell words, it'll probably work as a domain name. For a longer business name, the initials or just one or two words may be easier than remembering a combination of words.



Secondary domain names



Secondary domains directing to your site are for online use:



- For people who type your primary domain name incorrectly



- For people who search for your products or services online



Typing and spelling variations



How many ways can people spell and type your business name?



barbsspecialtypetproducts.com



barbs-specialty-pet-products.com



barbspecialtypetproducts.com



barbsspecialitypetproducts.com



barbsspecialitypetproducts.com



barbspecialtyproducts.com



barbspecialtyproduct.com



Hyphens aren't recommended for your primary domain. When people tell others about your site, they're likely to omit the hyphens. They may also forget to type them.



For secondary domains, hyphens make long domains easier to read. Each word stands out when people see your domain. However, domains such as buy-keyword-product-now.com make some people view hyphenated domains, especially those with more than one hyphen, as spam-like.



Having the words in domains separated may help some search engines recognize keywords. With Google, though, hyphens don't make any difference.



Consider all of these variations for secondary domain names:



- With and without hyphens



- Different ways of spelling some words



- Singular and plural versions of nouns



- Extensions with .com and .net as well as a country-specific extension if relevant



What people search for



If you want to find the website for Time magazine, you might do a search for it, or you might try typing in time.com. If you do the latter, you'll find yourself at the Time site.



This type of search behavior extends to generic words too. Searching for dog collars? Try dogcollar.com, for example, and you'll be redirected to dogidcollar.com. Do you want life insurance? Lifeinsurance.com redirects to nmfn.com (and so does northwesternmutualfinancialnetwork.com).



While having keyword domain names may not draw a lot of site visitors, using them is a technique to consider.



How to use more than one domain



Set up your website with your primary domain, and use that domain on your correspondence and with your customers.



Point secondary domains to your site using URL forwarding (also called domain forwarding, domain redirect, or URL redirect). To have the secondary domain appear in the browser, use domain masking. You can set up these features when you log in to your account with your domain registrar (if your registrar offers these services).



With domains that are simply variations of your primary domain, you can expect additional traffic just from having set up these domains. With domains that contain keywords, you can get more from them by using them to list your site in online directories. When these domains appear in search results, searchers will see the keywords.



The next step



Once you decide on the available domains that you want, register them immediately. They might not be available tomorrow.



If you don't already have a business name, you'll find it easier to market your business online if you choose a primary domain and a business name together. If your first choice for a business name doesn't work well with any available domains, consider a business name that you can easily market with an available domain. Once you've registered that domain name and your business name, register secondary domains and put them to use.



Is it worth registering multiple domains for one site? That depends on your site, but any variations that you don't register will be available for competitors to register and use. If a domain is valuable to a competitor, it's valuable to you.

About the Author:

Domain Names Unleashed is an informative Domain Name site that looks into all aspects of Domains from SEO to The Site Itself.
To find out more visit Domain Names

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Choosing Domain Names for Your Business

The Domain Name Gold Rush

Author: Lois S.

All the good ones are taken. The really good ones, that is. But
they don't always stay taken.

Domain names often come back onto the market. Even before they
do, domain name prospectors are sifting through them to find the
gold domains among them.

Why domain names become available again

Thousands of domain names expire every day. Other domains are
offered for sale. The reasons are varied:

Carelessness

The webmaster forgets to renew the domain by the expiry date.

The email address that the domain is registered with becomes
invalid, and the domain name registrant doesn't receive the
renewal notices.

- Lack of need or funds

- The company that had registered the domain goes out of
business.

- The website owner loses interest in or doesn't have time for
the website.

- The website owner doesn't have funding to continue the website
venture.

- The domain name registrant registered numerous domains on
speculation and couldn't afford to continue renewing unused
domains.

Profit

- The domain name registrant may realize how much a domain is
worth and decide to sell it.

- The domain name registrant may have registered the domain
because of its potential worth, with the aim of selling it later.

What makes a previously registered domain name valuable?

In July 2005, the domain name website.com sold for $750,000, the
highest-valued domain name sale this year. Why would anyone pay
so much for a domain when they could register a new domain for
under $10?

- Instant traffic

If the domain name previously pointed to a website, search
engines have already indexed that domain name. Other websites
probably still have links to that domain. If the domain is
listed in directories, these links bring in even more traffic.
You register the domain, and the work getting incoming links has
already been done for you.

- Surf value

Sometimes web surfers search by typing generic words followed by
dot com (or other extensions) into their browsers, for example,
dogs.com. This particular domain name redirects to the website
for a company that sells pet products and services. A domain
name like this constantly brings visitors to the website without
the cost and effort of advertising and marketing.

- Easy to remember

Your company name may not be memorable, but domains such as
dogs.com and website.com are. People are more likely to return
to a site or pass on the name to their friends when they can
easily remember it.

How to find domains pending expiration

You decide to join the gold rush for valuable pre-registered
domains. Finding expiring domains is the first step, but you
also need to research domains that are about to come back on the
market.

Lists of domains pending expiration

At these websites, among others, you can search for domains
containing keywords you enter. At expireddomains.com, the
results contain domains that are currently available, soon to
expire, on hold, in the Redemption Grace Period (RGP), or for
sale by their registrants. Extensions searched: .com, .net, and
..org.

The domainsbot.com database searches .com, .net, .org, .info,
and .biz extensions for domains that are available, for sale, or
expiring.

Domain research

You can find some (but not all) incoming links to a domain by
entering "link:siteURL" (replace "siteURL" with the domain name)
into Google or Yahoo. When you find the links, follow them to
see what types of sites link to the domain. How would you feel
about having these particular sites linking to your site?

Also look into any possible problems associated with the domain.
Search engines may have banned the domain if the previous site
had controversial search engine optimization techniques
employed, such as the use of hidden text or links. Check the
history of the site at a domain name via the WayBack Machine. If
the domain previously pointed to a site with gambling or adult
content or a lot of affiliate links, or if it employed
questionable search engine optimization techniques, search
engines may have banned the domain. Aside from the possibility
of a domain being banned, you may not want incoming links from
sites associated with these types of content.

How to register domains pending deletion

You've decided on a domain that you want. How do you maximize
your chances on getting it?

At eNom.com's Club Drop, you can bid on expiring .com and .net
domains the day before they're available to the public. You can
also be notified when domains matching your search criteria
become available.

The NameWinner system places bids on .com, .net, .org, and .info
domains for you. It bids only as high as is necessary to
maintain your high bid position up to your maximum bid.

How to profit from your domains

- Selling domains

If you have a domain that may be valuable and that you aren't
using, consider selling it at a domain auction. If you already
have a buyer for a domain, you can transfer it securely through
Escrow.com.

- Paid parking for domains

With paid domain parking programs, also called "domain
monetization" or "monetize domains," you can earn pay-per-click
revenue via targeted advertisements. These sites offer domain
monetization services:

- DomainSponsor

- Park Quick

- Domain Spa

- Google Adsense for domains

With the right knowledge, timing, and a bit of luck, you have a
chance as a domain name prospector to hit pay dirt.

About the Author:
Lois S. is a Technical Executive Writer for http://www.websitesource.com and http://www.lowpricedomains.com with
experience in the website hosting industry.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - The Domain Name Gold Rush

Choosing Domain Names for Your Business

Author: John Pawlett

Let's say that you're creating a website for Barb's Specialty Pet Products. Should the domain name be barbsspecialtypetproducts.com?



Perhaps -- but don't stop there. Having the right domain name, or domain names, can bring more traffic to your site.



Why more than one domain name?



One domain is all you need to set up a website. But with more domains directing to your site, you can have these additional benefits:



- Bring site visitors who type variations of your domain name



- Acquire traffic that might otherwise go to your competition



- Harness the marketing power of keyword domains



Your primary domain name



If it's feasible, use your business or brand name in your primary domain. People will remember it and associate it with your business. Also consider the following factors when choosing your primary domain.



Domain name extensions



Should your primary domain end with .com, .net, or .biz, or with a country-specific extension such as .ca or .co.uk?



If your website is aimed at people in a specific country, having a country-specific domain can help:



- Site visitors will recognize right away that the business has a presence in the country of the extension. They may therefore be more comfortable buying from you.



- Some country-specific search results include sites with the relevant country-specific domain extension even if the site isn't hosted in that country.



On the other hand, if you're targeting an international audience, a country-specific domain could work against you. People from outside the country of the extension may be less inclined to buy if the business looks foreign to them.



If you want to attract both people within your country and those in other countries, have both. Each domain could direct to the same site, with each audience seeing the domain intended for them. For country-specific search results, the primary domain should be the country-specific one.



Chances are that the .com domain you want is already taken. If you use the .net or .biz version, you risk having potential site visitors go to your .com competition instead. Be sure to use the full domain name on all promotional material to reduce this risk.



Domain name length



A short domain is easier to remember, it has less risk of being mistyped, and it'll fit easily on your business cards and correspondence.



Conversely, if a short name doesn't represent your business, it's more difficult for people to remember. The short names you like may already be taken anyway.



If your business name is up to three easy-to-spell words, it'll probably work as a domain name. For a longer business name, the initials or just one or two words may be easier than remembering a combination of words.



Secondary domain names



Secondary domains directing to your site are for online use:



- For people who type your primary domain name incorrectly



- For people who search for your products or services online



Typing and spelling variations



How many ways can people spell and type your business name?



barbsspecialtypetproducts.com



barbs-specialty-pet-products.com



barbspecialtypetproducts.com



barbsspecialitypetproducts.com



barbsspecialitypetproducts.com



barbspecialtyproducts.com



barbspecialtyproduct.com



Hyphens aren't recommended for your primary domain. When people tell others about your site, they're likely to omit the hyphens. They may also forget to type them.



For secondary domains, hyphens make long domains easier to read. Each word stands out when people see your domain. However, domains such as buy-keyword-product-now.com make some people view hyphenated domains, especially those with more than one hyphen, as spam-like.



Having the words in domains separated may help some search engines recognize keywords. With Google, though, hyphens don't make any difference.



Consider all of these variations for secondary domain names:



- With and without hyphens



- Different ways of spelling some words



- Singular and plural versions of nouns



- Extensions with .com and .net as well as a country-specific extension if relevant



What people search for



If you want to find the website for Time magazine, you might do a search for it, or you might try typing in time.com. If you do the latter, you'll find yourself at the Time site.



This type of search behavior extends to generic words too. Searching for dog collars? Try dogcollar.com, for example, and you'll be redirected to dogidcollar.com. Do you want life insurance? Lifeinsurance.com redirects to nmfn.com (and so does northwesternmutualfinancialnetwork.com).



While having keyword domain names may not draw a lot of site visitors, using them is a technique to consider.



How to use more than one domain



Set up your website with your primary domain, and use that domain on your correspondence and with your customers.



Point secondary domains to your site using URL forwarding (also called domain forwarding, domain redirect, or URL redirect). To have the secondary domain appear in the browser, use domain masking. You can set up these features when you log in to your account with your domain registrar (if your registrar offers these services).



With domains that are simply variations of your primary domain, you can expect additional traffic just from having set up these domains. With domains that contain keywords, you can get more from them by using them to list your site in online directories. When these domains appear in search results, searchers will see the keywords.



The next step



Once you decide on the available domains that you want, register them immediately. They might not be available tomorrow.



If you don't already have a business name, you'll find it easier to market your business online if you choose a primary domain and a business name together. If your first choice for a business name doesn't work well with any available domains, consider a business name that you can easily market with an available domain. Once you've registered that domain name and your business name, register secondary domains and put them to use.



Is it worth registering multiple domains for one site? That depends on your site, but any variations that you don't register will be available for competitors to register and use. If a domain is valuable to a competitor, it's valuable to you.

About the Author:

Domain Names Unleashed is an informative Domain Name site that looks into all aspects of Domains from SEO to The Site Itself.
To find out more visit Domain Names

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Choosing Domain Names for Your Business

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