Domain Name Advice
Some useful advice to keep in mind when choosing a domain name.
Try to choose ".com" if you can. The ".com" extension is still the most respected extension. The ".net" domains are steadily gaining respectability though so if you can get a very basic 1-word or 2-word ".net" domain name then I would consider it. A good, simple ".net" name is better than a bad ".com" name. ".org" names are also gaining ground in people's minds. If you have a geniune non-profit organization then the ".org" is a perfectly fine. These days though there are "regular" web sites using ".org" domains simply because there are still many simple ".org" names available. Whether or not this should be done is debatable. There are clear benefits to having visitors only remember and type in a 1-word domain name but there are drawbacks. Some web users are going to look at your site as inferior because you couldn't get "real" domain and had to settle for a ".org" extension. On the other hand, I have seen some very successful for-profit .org sites. This choice is a matter of personal preference.Another reason to get a .com extension is because there are many, many inexperienced web users who automatically type in .com when they go to a web site. Many web-savvy webmasters may write off this as a small cost but I think they underestimate how often this happens. This is prticularly important if you will be doing offline advertising for your site or if it for an offline business.
Don't make the name too long. These days you should probably not even bother looking at 1-word keyword domains (1-word unique branded domains are still available if you can make up a good enough word) and you'll have to start looking at 2-word domains and you'll probably even have to look at a 3-word domain. In my opinion 3 words or less are fine while 4 words in a domain is pushing it. You also have to look at the number of total syllables between the "www." and the ".com". I think 1-2 syllables is very good, 3-4 syllables is still pretty good, 5-6 syllables is pushing it while 7 or more is probably too many.
Make sure the web address is something people can pronounce. Having a name that is difficult to pronounce impedes the communication process. This is especially hurtful to a small web site looking to build a nice following through word-of-mouth advertising or a web site that will do a lot of offline promotion.
Don't use a hyphenated domain. Like the example above, the chances are too high that someone who hears the site will type in the wrong site when they type it into a browser. It also just doesn't sound very nice - imagine telling someone "My web site name is "poker dash chips dash depot dot com." The only site that I know of which is a very high ranking site which has a hyphonated name is m-w.com, which is Meerium Webster's Dictionary site. Other than that I can't think of any.
If you think of a name you really want and it is available - buy it right away. If you plan on creating a web site and having it up for the next 10 years, you don't want to risk losing a good name just because you didn't buy the name right away. It only costs $8 a year to hold - just buy it and hold it. If you don't need it and it is a decent name then you will probably be able to sell it later anyway and make some of your money back. You also may be able to park the name and make a few bucks off it.
Choose a name with clarity. Look at a domain like ginashoes.com. This is a website for "Gina Shoes" but when I look at it I see "Gina's Hoes". Another example is friendstalk.com, which is "Friends Talk" but can just as easily be interpreted as "Friend Stalk". Another one is whorepresents.com which I see as "Whore Presents" (gifts for you favorite prostitute?) but the real site is WhoRepresents.
 | expertsexchange.com - Experts Exchange, a computer programming site. |
| penisland.net - Penis Land or Pen Island? a site that sells pens. |
| therapistfinder.com - The Rapist Finder or Therapist Finder? |
| powergenitalia.com - an Italian Power company. |
| molestationnursery.com - Molestation Nursery? or The Mole Station Native Nursery? |
There also instances of people choosing names with 4 or more words and you have to take a second to actually decipher what the name is. You don't want a name like thisismycoolnewwebsite.com.
Don't do bad grammatical variations. This would be a name like pokerstables.com. This is stupid. Don't do it.
Don't get a Domain Appraisal. You have to understand that the concept of domain appraisals don't make any sense. There are two reasons to buy a domain name: 1. to use it or 2. to sell it. Now, if you plan on using it and developing a brand around the name then the value of the domain is therefore dependent on your ability to build a brand around the name. What do you think the value of "google.com" was before Google developed it? A few thousand maybe. When you use a domain the value comes from your execution.
The other reason to buy a domain name is to re-sell it. If you are buying domain names to re-sell them then this implies that you are doing this as a business. In order for you to do this as a business successfully then you are required to know how to value a domain name yourself.
Another thing to point out is that many times these are rip-offs. They analyse the keywords in your domain, the number of links, and other factors and apply a generic mathmatical formula to estimate the value. These estimates go be so far off that they don't have any meaning.
Don't do a 5 letter acronym. 3 or 4-letter acronyms are OK, but 5-letter acronyms are no good because there are simply too many letters to remember. 3-letter acronyms sound short and cool. 5-letter domains sound stupid. A good example of a nice site with an a long acronym that is too long to remember is atypyk.com, a design web site.
Dont let them expire. Renew them way before they expire. I know this seems obvious but it needs to be said. It is possible to retrieve your domain name if you let it expire but the process is a pain-in-the-ass and there is usually a $100-$200 fee associated with it also.
Buy up related names. Buy the other versions of your name so other webmasters won't get them. If you have the .com then buy the .net and .org. You also may want to buy similar names so no one can brand a website that is like yours.
Do bulk searches. When looking up a whole list of names use a bulk search. This comes in especially handy when looking up a sequential list (poker1.com, poker2.com, etc). This site is a good site to use - databasepower.net/domsearch/bulksearch.asp. Namecheap also has a good bulk search but you must get a username first.
Avoid using trademarks. Trademarks can be checked at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's website. Don't bother getting into a fight with a company. You should have better things to do with your time.
Don't use a domain with a swear word in it. This will really hurt you if you are in a position to get P.R. from the mainstream media because they can't say or publish the name of your site. You also have to wonder if Google will ever punish these domains.
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