Blog
News and useful information for existing and future entrepreneurs.
News and useful information for existing and future entrepreneurs.
Choosing a domain name is one of the biggest decisions you’ll make as a website owner. If you choose poorly, it can negatively impact your brand’s reputation. So, what’s the secret to finding the perfect domain name? We hope you’ll have a better idea by the end of this post.
Fortunately, picking a winning domain isn’t overly complicated. As long as you do your research, stay on brand, and make sure you go with something user-friendly, you’re likely to make a good impression.
This post will discuss the importance of choosing the right domain name. Then, we’ll share some tips to help you make the right decision. Let’s get started!
A domain name is your website’s address. It is a part of a larger Domain Name System (DNS) that enables internet users to input a combination of words instead of a lengthy set of numbers.
Your domain name serves a highly practical function, but it’s so much more than that. In many cases, your domain is the first impression a customer will have of your brand. This is true whether you’re a freelance photographer, a small business, or an international corporation, this is true. Therefore, your domain is nearly as important as your logo and brand name.
A lengthy URL may seem like a red flag to customers. Moreover, if it’s hard to remember, users might be less likely to revisit your site. Therefore, your domain name should be short and memorable.
Note that changing your domain name can be challenging. It’s not impossible, but it can lead to unwanted outcomes such as a loss of traffic and unnecessary downtime. With this in mind, you’d be wise to carefully consider your domain name from the get-go.
Now that you know why picking the right domain name is essential, let’s go over some key tips to help you do just that. Keep in mind that you can check for domain availability in various places, such as NameCheap.com or NIC.lv.
A Top-Level Domain (TLD) extension is the last part of your URL that comes directly after the name of your site. Some of the most popular TLDs are .com, .org, and .net.
Among all the TLDs, .com is often a popular choice. However, if .com is taken, it’s not the end of the world.
Other popular TLDs such as .xyz, .shop, .club, .online, .art, .inc, and even .party are becoming increasingly common. TLDs like .marketing and .technology allow you to go with something more relevant to your industry. The usage of ccTLDs (Country Codes) is also an extremely popular option. In recent years, more technology startups are using .io (Indian Ocean), .ai (Anguilla Island), and .co (Colombia), for example. Ultimately, you’ll want to choose a domain name extension that is cohesive with your website and signals credibility.
You probably want your domain name to be original and memorable. However, novelty isn’t always a good thing. If you modify the spelling of a common word to get that .com extension (or simply to be cute), you might confuse your audience.
While word-of-mouth advertising is powerful, it only works when people can actually pronounce your domain. This also makes the name easier to remember, increasing the odds that people will visit and pass the site along to their networks.
In recent years, more businesses have opted for 4-letter combinations of easily pronounceable domains. In addition to being incredibly memorable, this is also due to the ability for domains to hold aftermarket value. That is, if the business fails, the domain(s) can still be sold.
Using hyphens may seem like a creative way to get the domain name you want and is admittedly still popular in some European countries (www.deutsche-bank.com). Unfortunately, they’re tough to express verbally (imagine yourself saying “dash” or “hyphen” out loud). They also make the domain more difficult to type. This can create a poor User Experience (UX) from the start, leaving a user frustrated. Even worse, they may give up entirely and end up on someone else’s website.
While there are exceptions, when you’re brainstorming domain name ideas, it’s best to avoid anything that isn’t a letter. This includes replacing letters with numbers, which make the name a lot easier for people to mistype.
The same goes for doubled letters – it’s asking for typos. Doubled letters are hard to read and even harder to type correctly. If mistakes happen often enough, you may end up with someone typosquatting and stealing your traffic.
There are several reasons short domains work better. First, they’re easier to remember and faster to type. Therefore, they are more likely to support a positive UX.
This is especially important as more and more people are browsing the internet on mobile devices. A short domain name means fewer opportunities for mobile users to get blindsided by autocorrect.
Furthermore, an overly long URL is yet another way to scare off visitors. If you’re overcomplicating your domain with unnecessary keywords, your users might get suspicious.
A unique domain name can help your website stand out and potentially help you avoid legal trouble. It can also contribute to your marketing efforts. In fact, if your site represents a larger brand, you would be wise to consider your domain name as you’re creating the brand name itself.
If you’re a self-employed individual, you can still consider your body of work and your website as part of your personal brand. For instance, if you run a private therapy practice, an original yet branded domain name might include your full name and field. In this scenario, a strong URL might read something like: janesmithpsychology.com.
Another powerful way for businesses to reach a local audience is by including geolocation within the domain name (e.g., laautoshow.com).
Your domain name is one area where you don’t want to put yourself into a box. While you should be specific enough to attract an audience, you don’t want to be so precise that there’s no room for your website to grow.
For example, “shutter.photography” might be perfect for a photography blog. However, if you decide to write about other art forms in the future, you’ll be stuck with an inaccurate domain name.
Therefore, it’s smart to consider how your site or business may expand over time. You’ll want to make this decision with a long-term vision.
You might have your sights set on a completely fresh domain name. However, there’s also a possibility that the domain you’d like to purchase had a previous owner.
It’s best to investigate the domain’s history as this could affect your site’s search engine rankings. There are a few tools you can use to check on past owners, including Wayback Machine:
This is useful information to know. For instance, you wouldn’t want to buy a domain name that was previously running an unethical business, as it might hurt your reputation.
If you have plans to engage with your visitors or customers, chances are you’ll want to create social media accounts that are linked to your domain name and website. Therefore, it’s wise to check your preferred social media sites to see if your domain name is available in handle form.
Alternatively, you can check to see if a variation of your domain name is available. This is a common practice.
If you’re not planning to use too many different social media networks, you can easily do this manually. However, if you want a bit of help, Namecheckr is a great way to see all available social media handles at a glance.
This handy tool can provide you with useful information about trademarks. It can also help you manage dozens of social media accounts.
Even if you manage to snag a coveted .com address, you might consider purchasing other TLD variations and setting up redirects. You can even go a step further and buy common misspellings of your domain name — that way, you’re not missing out on traffic lost due to “user error.”
You can apply this strategy to social media as well. Even if you don’t think you’ll use Twitter, you might want to grab a decent handle if one is available. That way, you’ll be ready if you ever decide to tweet, and you’ll prevent anyone else from taking that username.
The price of creating a website is made up of several factors: functions required on the website, its size, complexity, creation of visual files, etc. therefore, it is impossible to quote one price. The price calculation is done for each project individually after the first conversation, where the client has explained his wishes and needs. Price limits are on average 1000-3000€ per project.
The term of creating a complete website is on average 3-6 weeks. An exact estimate for the creation is made after the first conversation with the client, when the scope of the project is understood.
You must be ready to take the time to prepare everything necessary for the website content (text, images, logo, etc.). Namely, in the beginning you will have to spend more time. Once we've received everything we need for the content, you'll need to spend time approving the stages of creating the website, which will be a much shorter period of time than preparing the content.
Website texts are usually prepared by the client by filling in the guideline questions. However, if you do not feel confident in your text writing skills, there is a possibility to invite a "copy writer" who will edit or write the text for you.